tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58888442837913262882024-03-14T02:11:46.519-04:00One Pastor's LifeReflections on the journey of faithfulness and sanctification that we're all on togetherKristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.comBlogger101125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-23789873688993811442010-09-18T14:34:00.000-04:002010-09-18T14:34:01.413-04:00Our God is Greater - Chris Tomlin<p><object style="BACKGROUND-IMAGE: url(http://i3.ytimg.com/vi/zlA5IDnpGhc/hqdefault.jpg)" height="344" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zlA5IDnpGhc?fs=1&hl=en_US"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zlA5IDnpGhc?fs=1&hl=en_US" width="425" height="344" allowscriptaccess="never" allowfullscreen="true" wmode="transparent" type="application/x-shockwave-flash"></embed></object></p><p>We are in the middle of a great adventure, one that God has invited us to undertake, one that has been filled with great challenges. </p><p>The journey will continue to be difficult, we know. This song has touched me, and perhaps you need to hear it as much as I did.</p><p>I have not disappeared. I promise</p>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-35048254335046167452010-07-31T22:42:00.002-04:002010-07-31T22:57:27.311-04:00The Prince of EgyptI had forgotten I had it.<br /><br />That is, the VHS tape of the movie <em>The Prince of Egypt.</em><br /><br />It came out while I was in seminary, and I saw it in the theater.<br /><br /><strong><em>And that was it.</em></strong><br /><br />After seeing that movie, I was fully and completely in a crisis of faith. It was the Passover scene that did it, really. It was just too hard for me to see an actual (albeit animated) reinactment of the killing of Egypt's children by the "passing-over" Spirit of God. I know, I know, they were oppressors, and their violence against others and unwillingness to listen to God and free the people resulted in the Passover, but still...<br /><br />Seminary itself already shakes the foundations of your faith. All I needed was this movie--and I fell.<br /><br />After a long conversation with my Old Testament professor the next week, I came to terms and peace with God and the Bible again, and my faith returned, but not without a "dark night of the soul."<br /><br />I'm honestly not sure why I then obtained the VHS tape of this movie, or why it ended up later with my sister.<br /><br />But this past week, she brought it back to me. And, while "Jed" stayed with her in her new classroom while she set it up (she's a teacher) and I went to do some work in Columbia (supply-getting and hospital-visiting), she let him watch it. I knew she would. I didn't try to stop her. But I felt kind of funny about it.<br /><br /><strong><em>Since then, he's wanted to watch it 4 times. </em></strong><br /><br /><strong><em>I don't know how I feel about this.</em></strong><br /><br />I have watched it with him several times, stopping to explain various things in the best way I can, but it's hard.<br /><br />So I wonder--what do (or did) you who also raise (or who have raised) your children in faith and knowledge of the Bible tell your children about the "texts of terror," the stories where God smites people, and people kill people, and the Lord seems scary?<br /><br />I know what I say, and I'd be glad to share.<br /><br />But it's hard. And since God is the Great Mystery, I am so afraid I'm saying the wrong things, or things that might scar my child in ways that would not please Christ, or be true to Him.<br /><br />So I'd like to know what you say to your children about these things.<br /><br />Please comment below, if you're willing to share!Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-67222952052773525992010-07-31T22:36:00.000-04:002010-07-31T22:36:36.603-04:00Wayfaring Pastor: Wayfaring Stranger - SelahMy friend and colleague Mike just posted this on <a href="http://www.wayfaringpastor.blogspot.com/">his blog </a>earlier today. I liked it, and thought I'd share. Maybe it will touch you where you are, too.<br /><br /><a href="http://wayfaringpastor.blogspot.com/2010/07/wayfaring-stranger-selah_31.html?spref=bl">Wayfaring Pastor: Wayfaring Stranger - Selah</a>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-88362141698061029592010-07-19T19:00:00.006-04:002010-07-19T19:32:11.382-04:00Missing "LaLa"<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/TETgAK69CjI/AAAAAAAAAUI/ePwk-DFN2AI/s1600/100_3135.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5495763738835094066" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 213px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/TETgAK69CjI/AAAAAAAAAUI/ePwk-DFN2AI/s320/100_3135.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/TETfqu9N9mI/AAAAAAAAAUA/MN-ZCSaeOuQ/s1600/100_2223.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5495763370551146082" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 213px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/TETfqu9N9mI/AAAAAAAAAUA/MN-ZCSaeOuQ/s320/100_2223.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/TETfNe-kZ3I/AAAAAAAAAT4/PJgFdzdPU1Y/s1600/100_2341.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5495762868045637490" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 240px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/TETfNe-kZ3I/AAAAAAAAAT4/PJgFdzdPU1Y/s320/100_2341.jpg" border="0" /></a><br />On July 4, one of her favorite days of celebration, my mother-in-law joined the greatest celebration imaginable--around the throne of God.<br /><br />After a whole morning and afternoon of having music played for her from the laptop she used in the hospital (everything from a version of the 23rd Psalm to "Amazing Grace" to our son's "1st recording" of "Jesus Loves Me" on YouTube), we finally played a song she loved, and had requested for her funeral. That song was "I Can Only Imagine" by MercyMe.<br /><br />She was breathing as the music began. But with the the first words, we who were beside her looked at her again. She had slipped away. She no longer had to "imagine" the moment described in the song. She knew the glory of that time.<br /><br />Now, just over 2 weeks later, her family is missing her a great deal.<br /><br />"LaLa" gave her all to parenting her three children: my husband and his younger brother and sister. She took care of the husband she married at age 18 for 43 years. But the greatest joy of her life came with the births of her grandchildren...6 of them. It was with the first that she took on her new name. As a toddler, he was the first to call her "LaLa," because of the way she sang to him all the time.<br /><br />On Wednesday, we will mark 2 weeks since the worship celebration of her life. It was grand...a celebration of who she was.<br /><br />And I'm still giving thanks to God for bringing me into this family so I could know her, love her, be loved by her, and watch her love my child, for 7.5 years. She was a teller-of-the-truth-as-she-saw-it, a fun-lover, a lover of life, an adventurer, a Christian, a loving mother and grandmother, a care-taker, and quite a fighter through her 4.5-year battle with cancer.<br /><br />She is missed, and she will be for quite some time. But thanks be to God for Judy, "LaLa," and her witness of faith, fight, and love. Thanks be to God for all the prayers and love that have come our way in this difficult time. And thanks be to God for the promise of eternal life with her and all the others who have gone before us in life and faith.<br /><br />I hope you you enjoy the pictures of the time she and "Jed" shared...Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-82627983242043227722010-06-30T16:27:00.004-04:002010-06-30T22:51:17.635-04:00To "Anonymous"As I sat here in the hospital room with my mother-in-law and and family a few minutes ago, I took a moment to check my e-mail. To my surprise, I discovered that at least one person is still reading this blog. Unfortunately, you have chosen to keep your identity "anonymous."<br /><br />But whoever you are, if you're still reading, I want you to understand (though I rejected your comment and it will not show up on my former post) my understanding of God and prayer.<br /><br />I do NOT in any way "blame disease or government incompetence on not praying enough or properly" (in your words). I do NOT subscribe to ANY understanding of God or God's work in the world that DOES blame terrible things on "not praying enough or properly." To do so would NOT make me feel better, and would indicate that I believe in a God not of wholeness, peace, and grace, but of terror.<br /><br />Instead, what I believe about prayer and God is this:<br /><br />Prayer is a gift that invites us into, and allows us to maintain, relationship with the God whose will and work are always for our wholeness and peace, and for justice and peace in the world. <br /><br />True prayer is the equivalent of open, full, and honest communication between a parent and child, or two lovers.<br /><br />The God I worship is all-loving and wants to be in real relationship with us. <br /><br />The God I worship did NOT create chaos, disease, division, or government incompetence. That all came from somewhere else.<br /><br />The God I worship has overcome the power of all of that life-stealing stuff through the self-giving of Christ (who himself was God become flesh out of love for us, to share humanness with us and offer us life eternal in and with God).<br /><br />Through the gift of prayer, the God I worship reveals healing and resurrection in powerful ways to God's children.<br /><br />The God I worship will ultimately eliminate all of the life-stealing stuff in the world and make all things right and whole forever. Though I can't explain why that hasn't already happened, I know that God touches us even in the midst of pain to bring wholeness and peace, and I am thankful for that. I do continue to pray for the day of peace and wholeness, and redemption of all creation, to quickly come.<br /><br /><em><strong>And by the way</strong></em>, <br />my mother-in-law is now actively dying. Her death will release her from pain and bring her a peace she has not known in some time. And if the government had worked the way it was originally "supposed to" according to our human plan, we wouldn't be able to be here now...we'd be in Russia instead.<br /><br />So perhaps, in God's mysterious love, this holy time was protected for us to be HERE NOW...even maybe through some "government incompetence." Who knows? I just embrace the mystery and praise God that I can feel the mystery of divine grace.<br /><br />I also pray that you, and all of the children God created, can also one day feel that mysterious grace. There's nothing more beautiful, or life-giving.Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-47302388620863535662010-06-09T21:52:00.005-04:002010-06-09T22:19:32.344-04:00My PrayersThere is so much pain in the world, all the time.<br /><br />But sometimes the deep pain touches closer to home than others.<br /><br />RIGHT NOW, my mother-in-law is lying in a hospital room in the cancer center of a major regional hospital. This past Friday, she became unresponsive right in front of my eyes, the eyes of my husband, and the eyes of our five-year-old son. Though she is now out of that particular area of the woods, she is very tired of fighting a 4-and-a-half-year battle with an uncurable disease. But she's only 62 years old, and she needs to see her grandchildren all graduate from high school and college!<br /><br />RIGHT NOW, our second son (who will turn 3 on October 4) is waiting for us to return for him. He is in a "baby house" in Russia with 89 or so other children under the age of four. He has a picture book of our family, a toy phone to "call us" on, and the promises of his caregivers that we are coming back for him. But we can't get to him, because the U.S. government (Citizenship and Immigration Services) has declared that they have until the end of July to process our application and issue their approval for us to adopt this child. They've also said that there's nothing we can do to speed that process up, even though we first submitted our application to them in December. And all we want is to go to Russia and pick up our child, love on him, introduce him to his big brother, and bring him home. RIGHT NOW.<br /><br />RIGHT NOW, my sister in Christ, friend, and clergy colleague Narcie (a 30-year-old campus minister, wife, daughter, sister, and mother to a 1.5-year-old and a just-now-3-year old) is preparing to have brain surgery to remove a tumor that was found a week and a half ago. She will go in for this surgery on Friday.<br /><br />You can read Narcie's journey, and share your prayers with her and her father, by following their blogs <a href="http://narciejeter.wordpress.com/">here</a> and <a href="http://timmcclendon.blogspot.com/">here</a>. I hope you will join me in praying for them.<br /><br />These, among a few other painful situations for those I know and love, are the soil from which most of my prayers are growing right now. <br /><br />Or maybe the word is not growing, but "groaning," which is (I believe) one way of interpreting what the Holy Spirit does within us since, or when, we "don't know how to pray as we ought." Come to think of it, there's a lot of stuff I need to hear in Romans 8, which is a passage another dear friend of mine from divinity school used to pray in its entirety, from memory, when her Chron's Disease or Multiple Sclerosis would have her doubled over in pain. <br /><br />It seems like there's a lot of stuff from Paul in that particular part of that particular letter about suffering and "waiting for adoption, the redemption of our bodies." And there's something else about groaning in labor pains while we wait for the revealing of glory and God's children in there, too, isn't there? Perhaps I'll go read Romans 8 one more time. Maybe you'll join me in that, and in prayer...Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-86786992342073466962010-04-13T10:31:00.002-04:002010-04-13T10:47:20.787-04:00"We Are the Truth"As you know, we are trying to adopt. <br /><br />We are trying to adopt, ironically (considering international news of the past week) a little boy named Artyom from Russia. He is not 7, but 2 1/2. We consider him to already be our son, and we are very concerned that our process may be interrupted by this horrible action committed last week by a woman in Tennessee.<br /><br />If you'd like to be a part of advocating for continued international adoption, which I sincerely believe is a movement of the Holy Spirit in the world, and/or you have an adoption story to share with the world, please consider this "Call to Action" from the Joint Council on International Children's Services.<br /><br />Please click here and read how from a fellow adoptive parent:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.littleboydove.blogspot.com/">Call to Action</a>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-3403101900430332832010-03-13T20:12:00.001-05:002010-03-13T20:12:13.630-05:00Gods Heart: Adoption<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/xrPGyzvI_nU' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/xrPGyzvI_nU'/></object></p><p>Why we're doing what we're doing...<br /><br />Pray for us and for our new child!<br /><br />We're headed across the ocean to meet him next week!</p></div>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-74285656325973343292010-02-20T13:46:00.002-05:002010-02-20T13:53:52.842-05:00Kids say the darndest thingsI absolutely love to hear a four- or five-year-old talk.<br /><br />They can be so adorable and funny. Yes, even mine.<br /><br />We were lying in the bed the other night, after bath and stories, listening to the first songs on "Jed's" lullaby CD. After the first two songs, I leave the room.<br /><br />Usually, we don't talk. We just say our prayer and then "try to go to sleep."<br /><br />But this time, "Jed" had a question. He'd been watching the Disney Channel, and had seen a preview for the new teen movie <em>Starstruck</em>. He wanted to know about it. But I didn't know anything. So our conversation went like this, when he spoke with his sweet soft voice into the darkness.<br /><br /><em>Mommy, why is Starstruck a big-kid movie</em>? <br /><br /><strong>Buddy, I don't know. I don't even know what that is.</strong><br /><br /><em>It's a new show on Disney Channel. Why is it for big kids?</em><br /><br /><strong>Buddy, I told you, I don't know. I don't know anything about the show. We'll talk about it in the morning. Just go to sleep now.</strong><br /><br />-Brief silence, while I think I know what he's thinking, then-<br /><br /><em>It's not like a star that got struck by lightning, Mommy. <br />It's just the name of the show.</em><br /><br />Yep, that's exactly where I thought his mind had gone. I guess a Mommy knows her little boy and how he thinks.<br /><br />Just like God knows God's little children and how they think. Kinda scary, and really comforting.Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-36295750133622814042010-01-31T19:09:00.006-05:002010-02-01T08:20:05.402-05:00The WreckThe other day I got a bill in the mail from the SC Department of Transportation. My husband had told me that it would probably eventually arrive, but even he began to doubt after this long. It seems that when you damage state property on the interstate (namely, the cable barrier in the median), you are responsible for paying.<br /><br />You see, on October 24 (over 3 months ago now), I had a wreck. "Jed" and I were on our way to Greenville to celebrate the birthday of one of his little friends, the son of one of my best friends. As we made our way (yes, probably too quickly) up the interstate, a series of events ensued. The chain reaction started with my reaching into the back seat to get "Jed's" cup and ended with our car facing incoming traffic from the median, caught in the cable barrier between the north- and south-bound lanes. When it was all over, the passenger-side-curtain airbag had deployed, the interstate barrier cable had smashed the back window in on that same side (right beside my son) and "Jed" had a teeny scratch down his right arm, from the <br /><br />"Jed" was a jewel and a trooper through the whole thing. He said,<br /> <br /><em>"I wasn't even scared when the car went all wiggly; I just was like 'Whoa! What's goin' on here?'" </em><br /><br />He also kept saying, <br /><em>"I'm sorry you broke your car, Mommy. I really liked your car. I know you liked your car." </em><br /><br />When I would tell him how sorry I was that I messed up driving and he was going to miss his friend's birthday party, he would just say<br /><em>"It's OK, Mommy. It's OK."</em><br /><br /><strong>In the face of my little boy that day, I saw the face of Jesus.</strong><br /><br /><strong>I also knew God's Spirit at work in some miracles and gifts, like:</strong><br /><br />+ Somehow, our car wasn't hit by another car as it swerved all over the two lanes of the interstate totally out of my control.<br /><br />+ Somehow, our car didn't slam into another car as it swerved all over the two lanes of the interstate totally out of my control.<br /><br />+ The two nicest young guys in a pick-up behind us (who had seen the whole thing) stopped to check on us, got "Jed" out of the back seat, and waited with us until the first responders came.<br /><br />+ The officer that responded to the accident had a preschooler and thus a carseat in the back of his vehicle, and he offered to drive us to meet my mother (who was the first family member I could reach to come meet us, and who dropped everything to come)at a gas station 20 minutes away from the accident.<br /><br />+ That same officer let me pile all my stuff (the car was loaded down) into his vehicle, and then helped us get it in my mother's car.<br /><br />+ My mother drove us on up to Greenville to where the party was, and all the kids were still there and still in their costumes. "Jed" got to play with his friend on his birthday after all, and I got to see my good friends.<br /><br />+ And, not least, neither of us were hurt in any way (with the exception of that teeny scratch on "Jed's" arm.<br /><br />So, God showed up in some amazing ways, and I took a few weeks (during which I borrowed my Lay Leader's Jeep--thanks, Ken!) to discern what I should do for a new vehicle. Of course, they had totaled my beautiful 2-year-old Hybrid Civic. Ugh.<br /><br />I do like my new car, though. It's just that the gas mileage isn't QUITE as good--only 32 MPG :-) (The hybrid got about 45).<br /><br />All this was just brought back by that LARGE bill from SCDOT. I realized that I'd never shared the story. I'm remembering the good gifts. And I'm thanking God yet again for yet one more gift: GOOD CAR INSURANCE.Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-44078274834246278692010-01-22T18:54:00.002-05:002010-01-22T18:58:37.410-05:00New BlogI just posted for the first time on a second blog that I've just begun.<br /><br />The other blog will be open to invited readers only, and will chronicle a new journey our family has begun. We are following what we believe to be the call of God into adoption.<br /><br />If you would like to be invited to follow our journey on the new blog, please send an e-mail request to preacherkristen@yahoo.com. <br /><br />Whether you read along with my other blog or not, though, please join our family in prayer for the child we hope to adopt, and for God's guidance and provision through this process.<br /><br />Thank you!Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-88516764578782850082010-01-16T20:12:00.003-05:002010-01-16T20:42:16.699-05:00HaitiMarthe lives there. She's almost 14 years old, and I've been her sponsor through <a href="http://www.compassion.com/">Compassion International </a>since she was 5. My $38 a month gives her clothing, a Christian community and mentors who show her the love of Jesus, and education designed to release her from poverty. Her school and community are located 3 km from Port-au-Prince.<br /><br />It's Jean-Luc's home. I'm not sure where he is now, but he was one of my good friends in seminary. He wanted to go back to Haiti to minister there, to make his country better. I wonder where he is now.<br /><br />The Reverend Dr. Sam Dixon, the top official of the United Methodist Committee on Relief and a member of the North Carolina annual conference, died there after the earthquake. He was trapped with two other United Methodist ministers in the Hotel Montana, and two other aid workers (at least one of whom was also United Methodist). The five had gone to the hotel to discuss improving medical missions in the nation. Those with Rev. Dr. Dixon were pulled from the rubble alive. The Reverend Clinton Rabb was rescued 55 hours after the earthquake and is in critical condition now in a Miami hospital. The Reverend James Gulley is back in the U.S., too.<br /><br />Mrs. Jean Arnwine died in the earthquake, there, too. She was 49 years old and one one of three United Methodist mission teams in the country.<br /><br />Let us pray for the families of all these individuals, as we pray for them by name. And let us lift the hundreds of thousands of others affected, even though we don't know their names. Because each of them is a beloved child of God.<br /><br />And, though the earth may shake, there is something I do know for sure: the love and grace of God is unshakeable. They never move, except to reach those who suffer. And I know that Jesus cries with those who cry, and that the Holy Spirit of power and healing fills all who open themselves to it.<br /><br />Let us pray that the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, will indeed work powerfully, yet again, to bring life out of death, order out of chaos, and hope out of hopelessness.<br /><br /><strong><em>May God use us to do just that</em></strong>.<br />Please visit <a href="http://new.gbgm-umc.org/umcor/">UMCOR's website </a>to learn more.Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-48008689241345534552010-01-04T22:22:00.002-05:002010-01-04T22:39:10.490-05:00Five Years Ago Today...this picture was taken, and sent out to friends and family by my husband, to announce the birth of our son:<br /><p><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5423091235998171890" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/S0KwvxI0gvI/AAAAAAAAANE/Q4__e0R6HQA/s320/je+birth+announcement.bmp" border="0" /></p><p>He woke me up this morning by coming into my room and announcing (with his hand up and all his fingers up in the air to show me his new age):</p><p><em>"Mommy, I'm five! I'm five years old today...it's my birthday! I'm five years old FOR REAL!"</em></p><p>It was the best wake-up I could have gotten. Such a happy boy...joyful to be five years old.</p><p>Over these five years, I've made many mistakes and lost my temper more times than I can count. I've not been a perfect parent, and he's not been a perfect child. But I pray that I've done a few things for him. </p><p><strong><em>I pray that I have... </em></strong></p><p><strong><em>shown him a reflection of the unconditional love his Creator has for him, </em></strong></p><p><strong><em>taught him a bit about God's design for his life,</em></strong></p><p><strong><em>introduced him to his Savior as faithfully as I can,</em></strong></p><p><strong><em>begun to guide him to accept the grace of the Holy Spirit who will fill him throughout his life, </em></strong></p><p><strong><em>and</em></strong></p><p><strong><em>taught him about the beauty of the Church</em></strong>, the followers of Jesus who love God and each other as best they can and who walk together, hand-in-hand, on the journey of faith.</p><p>If I've done this, then perhaps I can consider that the greatest success of my life. </p><p>But I pray each day to be a better representative of Christ to my son than I was the day before. I thank God each day for the grace that offers me forgiveness, a new start, and transformative power. I pray each day that "Jed" knows the love and grace of his Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, as I do. I thank the Lord each day for the man who is "Daddy" to our "little man" and my partner in parenting...and I pray for those who have no partners as they parent. I can imagine no harder task.</p><p>In this, my son's now-sixth year of life, I pray that we will all "grow up" together through the beauty of sanctification. What a journey...</p>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-50412081513101060062009-12-31T17:30:00.002-05:002009-12-31T17:37:02.568-05:00New Year's ResolutionsI'll continue my tradition.<br /><br />My resolutions for 2010 are:<br /><br />+ Write thank-you notes (haven't I had that as a resolution before...hmm...a growing edge?)<br />+ Rescue a child from an orphanage (if indeed that's God's plan for our family), OR<br />+ Get involved in orphan ministry in Ukraine<br />+ Grasp a vision...God's vision...and take a step (or two) to help make it a reality<br />+ Clean my desk<br />+ Get rid of some junk (in my soul and in the house and office)<br />+ Hug my child every day, whether he likes it or not<br />+ Every week, call a friend far away<br />+ Read a book each month, even if it's an "easy read"<br />+ UPDATE MY BLOG!<br /><br />And, if you're reading this, how about help remind me about these?! Thanks!Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-15318614065193308762009-12-31T16:57:00.004-05:002010-01-07T21:13:15.990-05:00Time, Time, Tickin'...So, about six weeks or so ago I came home from work to a most amazing scene. My husband practically met me at the door to say: "Your son has something he wants to show you."<br /><br /><em>"Mommy, come here!"</em> his voice rang out from the hallway. So I went through the den and peeked around the corner to see this:<br /><br /><br /><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5421525501192968130" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 240px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 320px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/Sz0guAdUF8I/AAAAAAAAAM0/NVLd1PdVIUw/s320/100_0730.jpg" border="0" /><br /><br /><p>Look carefully. He's so proud. And can you guess what he had been doing? I knew immediately, because I had been watching him copy the times off of the digital clock under the television for days. My husband reported that for a full fifteen minutes, our son would copy the time onto a piece of paper and then put it in the marching line in the hallway, only to begin again as soon as the minute changed. He did both sides of the paper, so when you flipped a sheet over, you saw 1158 and 1204, for example. </p><p>He left out the colons, but he still marked every minute of time for fifteen minutes of his life and left the evidence of his focus all down our hall. </p><p>It got me thinking about just how quickly those minutes change and turn to hours, and how those hours turn to days, and those days to weeks, and those weeks to months, and the months to years. And how do we mark that time? How do we honor the truth of each minute? And do we recognize God's presence in each time?</p><p>I realize that I haven't been the best blogger here recently. The past few months have brought lots of twists and turns, and I've been preoccupied. Time has marched on, and I've just tried to hang on for the ride, giving honor to each death and to the grief it brings, while celebrating moments of joy and peace in a spirit of thanksgiving to God. </p><p>I've also been faced with many questions and struggles over the past year, as I'm sure most of us have. These struggles have been personal as well as vocational, dealing with family and church life. As a family and as a church family, we've tried together to discern the best paths ahead, the ones into which Christ would lead.</p><p>But today is New Year's Eve, and I look forward to the calendar's turn-over. I look forward to a new year. I hope it is full of hope, health, love, celebration, and joy. Perhaps it will involve adding a new "little one" to our family through international adoption...we're working on that. Perhaps it will lead to peace with our family just the way it is. Perhaps...</p><p>What is sure is this: God already knows what 2010 will hold, and will hold us through it. Thanks be to the Lord for that!</p>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-52240875164439290412009-12-19T12:48:00.001-05:002009-12-19T12:48:35.330-05:00Trade as One - Just One<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/8JfGki00T0c' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/8JfGki00T0c'/></object></p><p>Something to think about if you haven't finished your Christmas shopping. Also check out options at www.umcor.org.</p></div>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-28484244524608869612009-09-11T21:51:00.001-04:002009-09-11T21:51:22.000-04:00JEd's first recording- "Jesus Loves Me"<div xmlns='http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml'><p><object height='350' width='425'><param value='http://youtube.com/v/SHIOvYXS4ps' name='movie'/><embed height='350' width='425' type='application/x-shockwave-flash' src='http://youtube.com/v/SHIOvYXS4ps'/></object></p><p>Enjoy!<br />No matter how you sing it, the message is always true!</p></div>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-30815650520978499442009-08-07T20:49:00.003-04:002009-08-07T21:14:20.794-04:00Challenging the Waves<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SnzMKxWJkFI/AAAAAAAAAMs/HSYvPDNkJQM/s1600-h/img_0421.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5367389341335785554" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SnzMKxWJkFI/AAAAAAAAAMs/HSYvPDNkJQM/s320/img_0421.jpg" border="0" /></a> My son has begun a new phase of his life: the water-loving phase.<br /><br />We were worried about this for a long while, because while he would play in VERY shallow water, he would have a screaming fit if we tried to get him to float, swim, or do anything that involved water above his waist.<br /><br /><strong><em>But this is a new day. </em></strong><br /><strong><em></em></strong><br />He has taken swimming lessons, and he has developed confidence.<br />My husband was eager to see how this translated from a pool to an OCEAN.<br />So they went yesterday to the beach, only 1.5 hours away.<br /><br /><strong><em>And the most amazing, hilarious, and inspiring thing happened:</em></strong><br /><strong><em></em></strong><br />Our son was loving playing in the water, the waves, even slightly above his waist. My husband could hear him saying something, seemingly to the waves, over and over, but he couldn't make out the words. He just let the boy play.<br /><br />AND THEN THE BIG WAVE CAME. IT KNOCKED "JED" DOWN, UNDER THE WATER.<br />Suddenly, my child was completely enveloped in the wave, pulled totally under water. My husband was certain that he would react the way he always had: coming back up, crying, wanting to pack up and go home.<br /><br />BUT THIS TIME WAS DIFFERENT.<br />As "Jed" came up, my husband watched him turn again to the waves. He pointed both of his fingers at them and said,<br />"<em>Now THAT'S what I'm talkin' about!"</em><br /><em></em><br />My husband was so proud; he has turned a corner.<br /><br />We later found out, as they were telling me the story, that what our son had been saying to the waves as they hit him, before the "big one" came, was<br /><em>"C'mon now, waves, you gotta do better than that if you wanna knock 'Jed' down!"</em><br /><em>[he actually said his full name in that sentence :-)]</em><br /><em></em><br />I've been thinking about this ever since. My son was challenging the waves.<br />The things that had always come and knocked him down, making him fear the power of the ocean, throwing him off-balance...he was challenging them! He was ready for whatever knock they would bring, and he knew he could get up. He was confident.<br /><br /><strong><em>I wonder...do we have the confidence to "challenge the waves?"</em></strong><br /><strong><em></em></strong><br />Those things that have been able to knock us down in the past, that have caused us fear, can we look at them and know that they really have no power over us? Can we be like the "virtuous woman" of Proverbs 31, who, because of her trust in God and her wisdom in living, could "laugh at the time to come?"<br /><br />I'm so glad my son learned that, no matter what waves came at him, or how big or strong they turned out to be, he could have confidence that he could and would get back up. The courage he has gained has come through learning, trusting. I pray that, in faith, we too can learn and trust that the God within us is stronger than any waves, so we can confidently say:<br /><br /><strong><em>C'mon now, waves, you gotta do better than that to knock [insert your name here] down!</em></strong>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-36973146811737423882009-06-13T17:13:00.004-04:002009-06-13T17:25:24.401-04:00Mommy's Kisses vs. Daddy'sWe've had a big weekend. <br /><br />Yesterday we went to one of our beautiful state parks: on Lake Marion in Santee. The boys had been there several times before; I hadn't. So they took me in our canoe along the shoreline from the boat ramp, to the isolated place they had named "Little Frog Beach," owing to the fact that there had been scores of little tiny frogs there the last time they'd been there. I re-named it "Stinky Beach," because while I saw no tiny frogs, I did see quite a few fish skeletons, and I did smell quite a fish smell.<br /><br />However, I also got to watch my son splash in the water and quite enjoy himself, so it was worth it.<br /><br />You can imagine that after such a day in the sun, no one was interested in cooking that evening after we got home. We decided to go get a pizza instead. So while we were at the restaurant, "Jed" bumped his elbow on the table. It hurt. He started to whimper.<br /><br />"Let mommy kiss it," I offered. <br /><br />So he showed me the spot, and I kissed it. At least I thought I did. He said<br /><br /><em><strong>"No, mommy. Right here."</strong></em><br />And he pointed to a new spot.<br /><br />At that, he frowned. It was obvious he was still hurting.<br /><br />"I guess mommy's kisses just don't really work anymore," I said to him, sadly. I was secretly lamenting the fact that my son is growing up as he opened his mouth again.<br /><br /><em><strong>"Well, sometimes they don't," </strong></em>he said.<br /><br />At that, my husband said, "Let Daddy try."<br /><br />So "Jed" offered his elbow. My husband kissed it.<br /><br />"Jed" thought for a second, looking at his elbow.<br /><br /><em><strong>"OK," </strong></em>he said, with a lift in his voice, <em><strong>"Daddy's kisses kinda make it worse!"</strong></em><br /><br />CHALK ONE UP FOR MOMMY.Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-30502020326518534022009-04-25T14:35:00.004-04:002009-04-25T14:47:55.249-04:00A "Jedism" Kind of WeekendI really need to be catching up on work, but since <a href="http://hibbenumc.org/blog/">Jim </a> shared with me this past week (at our Board of Camps and Retreats Ministries meeting at <a href="http://www.sewee.org/">Asbury Hills UM Camp</a>, about which I will blog soon) that he liked my sharing of my little boy's humor, I thought I'd relay a new "Jedism" from Thursday night.<br /><br />When I got home from that overnight meeting, "Jed" and I had some quality time together, the latter part of which involved cleaning his mess from the den. You need to know that his best little stuffed friend is named "Lambie." Lambie is, of course, a lamb. Well, Lambie was on the floor, as were many other things. "Jed" couldn't get them all, so I offered to help him. <br /><br />"Would you like for me to carry Lambie?" I asked helpfully.<br /><br />"Yes," he said, absently.<br /><br />We took a few steps into the hallway, at which point he actually noticed for the first time that I had picked up Lambie. He put out his little arms as if to stop me from moving.<br /><br />"Oh, Mommy, Mommy," he said, "I meant 'no.' No, you can't carry Lambie."<br /><br />"Why not?" I asked.<br /><br />"Well, because you have to be <em>special</em> to carry him."<br /><br />"Am I not special?" I asked, trying to hold down my smile.<br /><br />"Um, well, you <em>are</em> special," he replied, "just not really quite special <em><strong>ENOUGH</strong></em>."<br /><br />Gotta love the possessiveness of a four-year-old for his best friend!Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-74421109027783667272009-04-24T08:21:00.004-04:002009-04-24T08:28:27.796-04:00Six years ago today...<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SfGvO8CnaBI/AAAAAAAAAMk/hfZkAWI52vU/s1600-h/weddingwithwillimon.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 134px; height: 200px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SfGvO8CnaBI/AAAAAAAAAMk/hfZkAWI52vU/s200/weddingwithwillimon.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328232505326135314" /></a><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SfGvAl_hUaI/AAAAAAAAAMc/sK3KTOaT9C8/s1600-h/img_0102.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 133px;" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SfGvAl_hUaI/AAAAAAAAAMc/sK3KTOaT9C8/s200/img_0102.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328232258889404834" /></a><br />I married this man.<br /><br />We were standing in the small Memorial Chapel within the massive and gothic Duke University Chapel. I promised, with newer vows from our <em>United Methodist Book of Worship </em> to "encourage the gifts of God in you," or something like that :-)<br /><br />Today, I still love to hear him play the piano, the organ, the trumpet, the fluglehorn. I love to watch him play with our son. I am thankful to have a husband who supports my minstry and who understands its demands, even when those demands interfere with our family plans. I even love that he wants to spend our anniversary evening walking in the <a href="http://www.relayforlife.org/relay/">Relay for Life</a>. So that's what we'll do tonight, even as I give thanks for the gift that my husband is.<br /><br />Happy anniversary, honey!Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-59992665184414884952009-04-24T07:53:00.006-04:002009-04-24T08:19:05.725-04:00Death...and LIFE<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SfGp512eKwI/AAAAAAAAAMU/-X54TtO_U6w/s1600-h/img_0168.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 134px;" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_ocoImlUdW0A/SfGp512eKwI/AAAAAAAAAMU/-X54TtO_U6w/s200/img_0168.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5328226645329193730" /></a><br />We've just walked through the journey of Holy Week, moved from death to life. The journey was pretty amazing here... Above is a picture of what Good Friday evening looked like.<br /><br />Our church shared the Holy Week journey (Maundy Thursday and Good Friday worship) with three other churches: another UMC, a Baptist (Cooperative Fellowship) congregation, and a PCUSA church. The four ministers led the services, and a combined 80-voice choir sang at each one. These two were the last of a series of four services, which also included Ash Wednesday.<br /><br />We also shared the Lenten journey with four other UMC's, joining together with them each Sunday evening of the first 5 weeks of Lent. This brought together United Methodists of all backgrounds and several ethnic groups. <br /><br />These services that have brought together followers of Jesus from many different groups were a tremendous source of joy, hope, and life for me throughout the wilderness journey of the 40 days of Lenten fasting....but now<br /><br /><em><strong>Easter has come!!</strong></em><br /><br />This 50 days is about LIFE...NEW LIFE!<br /><br />To the end that we might experience the power of Jesus' resurrection as a church family, I am looking forward to two things:<br /><br />1. Dr. Kennon Callahan, author of <em><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Effective-Callahan-Resources-Library-Churches/dp/0787938718/ref=pd_bxgy_b_text_b">Twelve Keys to an Effective Church</a></em> WILL BE COMING TO HELP OUR CHURCH DISCERN GOD'S VISION FOR OUR FUTURE. He will be here on Saturday, May 16, and I hope that our church family will be as excited as I am that we are going to be able to glean from his wisdom and experience as we seek God's guidance for the church's LIFE in the future.<br /><br />2. WE ARE GOING TO START A NEW WORSHIP EXPERIENCE! Look for details in a post to come very soon. The date to begin this source of new life is June 9 (and yes, that's a Tuesday).<br /><br />In summary, I want to thank the Church Council of my congregation for their "leap of faith" in the two areas mentioned above. And I'd like to invite all of you readers to be in prayer for our church family as we undertake this new ventures. <em><strong>Please pray with me that they will indeed be signs, symbols, and means of God's power of resurrection here in this place!</strong></em>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-72974346861710710052009-03-24T21:48:00.001-04:002009-03-24T21:50:11.521-04:00I found this quite...overwhelming. And what does it all mean for church?<object width="400" height="300"><param name="allowfullscreen" value="true" /><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always" /><param name="movie" value="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2030361&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1" /><embed src="http://vimeo.com/moogaloop.swf?clip_id=2030361&server=vimeo.com&show_title=1&show_byline=1&show_portrait=0&color=&fullscreen=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" allowscriptaccess="always" width="400" height="300"></embed></object><br /><a href="http://vimeo.com/2030361">Did You Know?</a> from <a href="http://vimeo.com/user297099">Amybeth</a> on <a href="http://vimeo.com">Vimeo</a>.Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-61428333846163859352009-02-27T21:28:00.002-05:002009-02-27T21:34:55.642-05:00Transfiguration Sunday SermonThis is for you, Meredith!<br />Here's how we got to Lent in our church...<br /><br /><em><strong>God Shines Forth:</strong></em><br />Mark 9:2-13: Transfiguration Sunday, Yr. B<br />Kristen R. Richardson-Frick<br />St. Paul’s UMC<br />February 22, 2009<br /><br /> If Transfiguration Sunday is about anything at all, it just might be about teaching Jesus’ disciples that we have a lot to learn. I’ll tell you the story, and you’ll see what I mean.<br /><br /> Jesus’ first disciples, the ones who got to walk with him, watch him heal, and hear the tone of his voice as he cast out demons and taught his followers, they loved God’s holiness and glory. They did everything right by God’s law. And they knew the Scriptures. They could sing all the Psalms and quote you the Ten Commandments. And they knew what to expect when God down to save them from their enemies. The Psalmist whose song was our greeting this morning says it: “Our God comes and does not keep silence, before him is a devouring fire, and a mighty tempest all around him. He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people.” When God’s messiah came to deliver the people, that’s how he would come, the disciples knew. He would come in power and great glory, with a devouring fire and a mighty tempest to judge the people and root out all enemies from the land. Yes, the disciples knew what to expect from the Son of God.<br /><br /> They were very confused, then, when, right after Peter shouted “You are the Messiah!” to Jesus, Jesus told him to shut up about it and started talking all over the place to everyone about how “the Son of Man” was to be rejected, and beaten, and shamed, and humiliated, and ultimately strung up naked for the world to mock at while he died a horrible and gruesome death. They had thought he was the one coming with power, glory, fire, and wind to set the world straight! They had thought he was the one coming with weapons to destroy the enemies of God! All this talk about suffering and death and silence couldn’t be right! And now the disciples are confused, even angry at Jesus’ words. I can understand. God knows they at least need some verification, some proof from God that what they think about Jesus is true. They need some little glimpse of his glory to hold on to.<br /><br /> And so six days later, Jesus takes them up the mountain, the realm of God’s glory. God’s promise was revealed to Noah on a mountain as the ark perched atop and a rainbow filled the sky. God’s Law was thundered to Moses on a mountain from the stormy brightness of the cloud of God’s glory. God’s Word was spoken to Elijah on a mountain in a still small voice. Oh, yes, going up on a mountain was always inviting yourself into God’s holy presence, and Peter and James and John all knew it. Phew! Amid all this talk of suffering and silence, finally we get to experience a little glory!<br /><br /> But we should all always be aware that when you get what you pray for, it may scare you half to death, and it almost certainly won’t happen the way you expect, or even maybe want.<br /><br /> So they go up to the mountain, and they do get to see God’s glory all right, and they get to hear God’s voice. And they get to see Moses and Elijah, and they get to see Jesus transformed into his glory right there on the spot. And it was terrifying. But it was unbelievably glorious and awe-inspiring. Can you imagine? What would you do? Have you ever had an experience quite like it, a mountaintop experience, where everything is glorious and you can literally see and feel the holy God with you? Remember when you felt like you were on a high mountain and that your prayers for confirmation of Jesus’ real-ness were answered? Remember? I pray that we all have those mountaintop moments in our lives from time to time, for they are amazing, aren’t they? A moment like that is an answer to prayer, a confirmation of our faith, something to hold onto when the going gets tough.<br /><br /> Most of us who have these kind of experiences want to stay there forever. We see Jesus, feel his glory, know God’s presence, and it’s awe-inspiring. Though it’s scary, it’s the most wonderful kind of scary we’ve ever known, and we’re in the presence of the Lord, for God’s sake, and who wants to leave that? So we sing, and we shout for joy, and we hug and cry. And we feel like real Christians, maybe for the first time ever. And we want to stay right there in that worshipful place forever. And so we, like Peter, ask if we can. We think we’re doing the right thing, making a real and true home for Jesus right where we are. If we want to stay on the mountain forever, surely God does too, right? We blurt out “it’s good for us to be here! We can make dwellings right here!”<br /><br /> And then a cloud descends over us, the glory of God, that like the light and brightness of God hides our eyes from seeing what is too great for us to see, and we hear the Father’s voice thunder from heaven: “Look at Jesus, your Lord, my Son, the Beloved One! Listen to him!” And suddenly the glory is gone and Jesus looks normal again and Moses and Elijah have disappeared, and everything is back to the way it was. <br /><br /> And before we can say “boo,” Jesus is saying: “OK, time to go down the mountain now. Now don’t tell a soul about this! I mean it. No one can know until after I’ve risen from the dead.” And you mutter with your friends “from the dead? He’s holy; he can’t die! We just saw him in glory! What’s going on here?” And you try to figure it out. And so you start to ask Jesus questions about what’s going on here. You ask about the one who was supposed to prepare for the Messiah’s coming, Elijah. And Jesus says: “Yeah, Elijah came, and they did horrible things to him, just like the Scripture says.” Jesus sure seems to be on this suffering kick, but you just saw him in glory, and it’s all so confusing! And you just want to go back to that great place on the mountain top, but you can’t.<br /><br /> See, we think that the mountain is the place to be with God. We think that’s where the true worship is. We think that’s where Christ’s glory is revealed to us most plainly. We think that’s where God’s best work is done. We’re a people who “reach for the stars” and believe “bigger is better.” We believe in great success and wealth as a blessing. We think the high and mighty of this world are also the holy and powerful. At the top is where the glory is, right, or why all this “American Idol” and “Forbes” magazine and “Most likely to succeed” in our yearbooks? Why all this grades-comparing and church attendance comparing and house-square-footage comparing? Yes, we think higher is holier, bigger is better.<br /><br /> And what’s more, we think that worshiping Jesus and building dwellings for him in our holy mountain places and going with him there or staying with him there is what being a Christian is all about. We think we’re most holy when we’re most successful for Jesus, when we can bring lots of people up to the mountain with us and invite them to stay there. But the Transfiguration tells us we’re wrong about all that, and so much more. The Transfiguration tells us that we have a lot to learn about how God works, and what Jesus wants, and where God’s glory really shines forth most powerfully.<br /><br /> The Eternal Father’s voice thunders: “This is my Son, the Beloved One. Listen!!” And Jesus says: “The Son of man must suffer to be glorified. We must go down from the mountain to really do God’s work, to be true as God’s people.” And down the mountain we go, right into the scene of a demon-possessed boy and sheer human helplessness and need…right on the journey to Jerusalem that leads to conflict, and suffering, and beating, and torture, and mocking, and death.<br /><br /> I don’t know why we think being a Christian is about going to the mountain to worship in God’s glory and bringing others up with us to stay there. I don’t know why we forget that, if we’re going to follow Jesus, we have to get down off the mountain and get right into the places where people are helpless and need a hand, where people are hungry and need to be filled, where people are hurting and need to be healed. I don’t know why we think we can stay and worship God through our stained-glass windows and with a dreamy detachment from the world without meeting Jesus in homes and neighborhoods where all the windows and dreams are broken. I don’t know why we’ve forgotten that Jesus revealed his glory and power when he gave up glory and became powerless. I don’t know why we’ve forgotten. But we have, I think. <br /><br /> And so Jesus, after shining in our faces, pushes us down the mountain, because he wants to transform us into what he is, on the mountain and in the streets and on the cross, shining his holy light, so God can continue to shine forth, this time through us.<br /><br /> Shane Claiborne is a twenty-something who saw Jesus’ glory, heard the Father’s thunderous voice, and followed Christ down the mountain so Jesus shine forth God’s holy light into his heart and could transform him, too, into a shining light of holiness. He’s written a book about his life “as an ordinary radical,” as a fool for and lover of Jesus who lives most of the time in community in one of the “worst” neighborhoods in Philadelphia but has also spent time in a leper colony in Calcutta, India. While in Calcutta, he learned a new word: namaste, meaning something like “I honor the Holy One who lives in you.” <br /><br /> One day, Shane was asked to do a doctor’s job in the leper colony, to treat and dress a wound. He’d been watching the doctor do it all day, just assisting. But now he was asked to do it alone. “I had been watching,” Shane writes, “and I did know what to do, but I wasn’t sure I dared. I came forward and sat in the doctor’s seat and began staring in the patient’s eyes, and the decision had already been made. I began carefully dressing the man’s wound. He stared at me with such intensity that it felt like he was looking into my soul. Every once in a while he would slowly close his eyes. When I was finished, he said to me that sacred word I had come to love: ‘Namaste.’ I smiled with tears in my eyes and whispered, ‘Jesus.’ He saw Jesus in me. And I saw Jesus in him. I remember thinking back to the stained-glass window my United Methodist church had bought for over $100,000. I saw a clearer glimpse of Jesus in this leper’s eyes than any stained-glass window could ever give.” (all Shane Claiborne references taken from <em>The Irresistable Revolution</em>, (Zondervan: 2006), 80).<br /><br /> We don’t have to go to Calcutta to follow Jesus down the mountain, to see Jesus in a leper’s eyes. But, as Mother Teresa used to advise, we do have to “find our Calcutta,” whether it’s in our own home with a spouse or parent, or down the street with a neighbor, or in a part of this city you’ve always been scared to go in, or working at CCMO or on a Habitat house, or as part of a Mission team to another state or even country. The disciples thought worshiping Jesus was about staying on the mountain with him in the glorious place, singing praise songs and being shielded there from the pain of the world down below. And the Transfiguration said they were wrong, said we have a lot to learn if we think that way. <br /><br /> For it isn’t until we get down from the mountain and encounter the helplessness of other human beings, until we touch them and offer healing, that we really begin to see Jesus. It isn’t until we suffer with Christ that we can be glorified with him. It isn’t until we get down from the mountain and into the hurting places of the world that we begin to know who our Lord really is, and to truly see and worship his glory. It isn’t until we get down from the mountain and begin to carry the cross with Jesus that we can really be transformed into his presence for the world. And that is what being a Christian is all about. Not the mountain, but the cross. Are we ready to go down into the valley, into the real world? And are we ready to find, if we do, that the cross ends up on a mountain, too, where God shines forth like nowhere else? I pray the answer is “yes.” So may it be. Amen.<br /><br /><em></em>Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5888844283791326288.post-71407223408938353702009-02-25T17:33:00.004-05:002009-02-25T17:38:42.502-05:00Unusual ProphetsOn this Ash Wednesday, as we begin the season of Lent and face our sin, brokenness, and mortality...as we walk through the wilderness and to the cross with Jesus, here's a little inspiration for the journey.<br /><br />God just might use even a dog and an elephant to show us what pure love is like, what we're called to be and do...<br /><br />Check <a href="http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=4696315n">this </a>out.Kristenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02250639715760542922noreply@blogger.com0