Texas has passed the most restrictive abortion law of any state yet. The new regulations will go into effect the end of this month. Before I get into this, let me make clear that I am most definitely pro-life. I am against abortion. I believe God is the giver of all life and should be the one who decides when life should end. Maybe I will blog another time about why I believe that. Really, it goes beyond my faith! I decided at 11 years old I was pro-life before I really knew anything about my faith!
When the battle over the legislation was in full force I did my share of Facebook shares of the information. I asked my state representatives and senator to support the bill. And I can say with some certainty that the results of the now law that I will discuss here most likely saved a baby in my own family. I believe in it. I am thankful for it.
However, I fear most who marched on the steps of the Texas Capital or posted their support from their computer on Facebook celebrated once the bill passed into law, but now what? You see the bill being passed was the pebble...or quite possibly the boulder...that was thrown into the lake. But the ripples are just now starting! There are consequences of legislation. There will no doubt be babies saved because this stricter legislation has shut down abortion clinics. Praise God! Women's lives will also be saved as stricter regulations will provide for cleaner and more professional settings for those who do choose to abort a baby. You can read about some of the ripples already starting in DallasNews and the Star-Telegram. The effects are real.
But there is more. I sat talking to one of our adoptive families right after the legislation passed. This is a family who is not looking for a baby. They are one of my heroes who are committed to providing a home for one or two of the older kids who wait in our foster system. But in our conversation, the husband made a comment that left a knot in my stomach. He said something like, "The agency is going to explode now with all the babies that aren't aborted!" I can honestly say I had not thought of that. But since that day, it has not left me.
Here's the facts. The legislation will no doubt prevent some abortions. Babies will be saved. But what then? What happens to that baby? Most women who are considering abortion are in that place because they feel unprepared to parent a child for a multitude of reasons. So what do we do now with a mom who doesn't want to be a mom? Let me stop here and say that I know there will be many, probably most, women who by the end of their pregnancy will have come to a place where they are grateful they did not abort and will have made whatever changes or sacrifices needed to be made to go on to be amazing mothers for their new baby. I don't believe nor intend to allude here that all babies not aborted will not be parented by the women who birth them. But what about those who aren't?
If those of us on the pro-life side are sitting back thinking the work is done, well, we are clueless. If we think for one minute that the pro-choice activists are not watching every statistic in our state - child abuse numbers, Women, Infant and Children's Nutrition numbers, Child Protective Services numbers, infant mortality numbers - then we are more than naive. All of this will be monitored. If we don't provide an intervention for those babies that this law saves, then we have failed. I fear that most see the law as the victory, and they are done. But really, the work has only begun!
This is how it looks in my world. Eight of the nine children who I am raising should have been aborted by most pro-choice standards. Only one of my children was a planned pregnancy, and the other eight were God-given blessings with un-planned pregnancies. Six of those eight children met most if not all of the bullet points for why women should abort. They were in poverty, some were into drugs and other detrimental habits. One of my children was conceived after two pregnancies had been terminated by abortion. Only by God's grace does this child breath life! I remember being in high school and being in the abortion debate in my government class. My teacher was pro-choice. There were several of us in the class who were pro-life, and we were all very outspoken about it. I will never forget during one of the debates, Ms. Fowler said, "I wish all those who want to keep these babies alive would put their money where their mouth is and raise them instead of letting the government do it." I was highly offended that day, but even deep down in the gut of a immature high school girl, I knew she had a point. I have no idea where Ms. Fowler is today, but I would love to tell her that I have to agree with her now! Not much I can say that about, but on that fact, I agree! And I would love to look her in the eyes and say, I put my money, my time, my life where my mouth is! Thank you for the challenge!
I am sure many would say, "there are so many families waiting for a baby, that will not be a problem!" Maybe so, but what about those babies who are born with the birth defects? What about the babies who are born addicted to drugs? What about the babies who have been exposed to alcohol and you have no way of knowing just what that fact will mean for you or your child until they are older? Very few of those waiting families are willing to take those babies. And what about the babies that don't look like those families? You know, the darker ones that are already difficult for agencies to place with families. I don't mean to offend anyone here, but it does us no good to ignore reality!
Let me take it a step further. What about the 13,000 children who are currently in the foster system in Texas whose parents did choose life? Obviously those parents were not ready to be parents for some reason or their children would not be in the custody of the state. Some of those parents will get another chance, and their children will be returned. What about the ones that will not be returned? What about the over 6,000 children who right now sit in the foster system with parents' rights terminated ready to be adopted.....but no families to adopt them? Their parents chose life when legislation didn't dictate it. What are we doing about it?
"We" is such a vague word, isn't it. It's kind of like "they". So who is "we"? Well, in this case, I would say "we" starts with anyone who wrote a letter, posted on their Facebook page, marched on the lawn, or otherwise supported the legislation to provide stricter abortion laws in any way. You are "we"! Thank you for your part in getting the legislation passed! I sincerely mean that! I am thankful! But you can't stop there! You have to now provide an answer for those parents who choose life because abortions are no longer readily available! We have to provide a solution to the ripples coming from the pebble that was tossed!
But honestly, the "we" is much bigger than that group of people. And really, this is the "we" I want to reach out to here! The bigger "we" is the Church! Are we not called to provide answers to a lost world? Is the Church not called to care for the least of these? First John 3:17-18 says it best, "But if anyone has the world's goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God's love abide in him? Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth." My question is when is the Church going to quit talking about it and start doing it? There are over 6,000 children in Texas waiting on you! You realize that it would take less than one family per church in the state to adopt in order to completely empty the state of Texas of waiting children? That is insane! What are we waiting for? If you are not convinced, read James 1:27, "Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world."
If this legislation becomes the basis to fight all other legislation in every other state because we, the Church, does not stand up with answers to these girls who are in crisis pregnancies, then we have failed. Will you help? Will you take this message to your church leaders? Will you take the initiative to look up an adoption agency in your area? Friends in Midland or Odessa and surrounding areas in West Texas, we would gladly send an Addy's Hope representative to speak to your pastor or even your congregation about adoption as an educational meeting. We can give you resources to hand to women in crisis pregnancy. Adoption should be the last option for these girls. We can help give you resources to put in their hands to give them every opportunity to parent. If they are still unable to parent, we would love to provide them with the option of adoption by a Christian family! If you are in the Dallas or Fort Worth area, I can come speak to your pastor and/or congregation. Help spread the word that the battle over abortion is not over in Texas, but I believe it has just started! Let's give our fellow pro-life warriors in other states numbers to support pro-life legislation in their state! And in the mean time, we will be saving a generation from the hands of the enemy. And in my books, that is a win/win deal!
If you need resources for a woman in crisis pregnancy or would like more information on how to be the answer to the children already here and needing a family, I would be happy to help. You can reach me by e-mail at hollyann@addyshope.com or by phone at 432.897.1503. Our website is under construction, but will be a great resource very soon! If you are a pastor reading this, please take a Sunday night, Wednesday night or at least the corner of your bulletin or a flash on your screen for announcements to educate your congregation on the answers to crisis pregnancies and the need for adoptive families for children in foster care!
We, the Church, have The Answer! It's time we start sharing it in more ways than just inside our church walls! Let's be the answer!
Showing posts with label church. Show all posts
Showing posts with label church. Show all posts
Monday, October 14, 2013
Monday, April 8, 2013
Prophecy: A Nuclear Weapon
I am reading an amazing book right now called Spirit Wars by Kris Vallotton, a pastor at Bethel in Redding, CA. You have heard me mention this church before as it is playing a vital role in my spiritual growth in this season.
The past five weeks have been rough. I went from working 20-30 hours a week to working 60 hours a week. For the first time in my mom career, I am working full time plus. I started a new exercise program that has me at my workout at 5:30 which means getting up at 4. I confess, that 4 wake up only happened a couple of times, which meant my quiet times didn't happen. You don't maintain a relationship without feeding it! The longer I went without my extended quiet times, the more despair crept in! I could feel it, I went through my weapons of warfare, but couldn't shake it...until Sunday.
Kris says this:
"Prophecy is like a nuclear weapon in the hands of a believer. It is important that we embrace the kind of prophetic culture that calls out our destiny and reminds us of God's work in our lives. If we despise, reject or do not believe in prophecy, we play into the enemy's hands by laying down a vitally important weapon of our warfare."
Amen! My breakthrough came through a prophetic word delivered by our Pastor this weekend! I have never sat under a pastor like Jeremy, my current pastor. He is "pastor" in every sense of the word. He is not perfect as no one is perfect, but he is an anointed pastor and understands like no one I have ever met what it means to shepherd his flock! Several times since we started going to LifeHouse, Jeremy has come to us and said, when I was praying for you, God said..... This weekend was one of those times. He had been at a conference this week and had spent time praying for his flock. There were a couple of families whom God spoke to him about directly, and we were one of them. He called us up during church yesterday and spoke the Word over us and prayed for us.
If you have never seen someone operate in the prophetic, you may not fully understand what I am talking about here. Let me challenge you to find a church where the gifts are practiced and watch when the prophetic ministry occurs. Ask God to reveal the prophetic ministry to you. Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4 all talk about prophecy as a spiritual gift. Remember, I was not a believer in the spiritual gifts even five years ago. However, God placed me in battles that required all He had for me to fight with or I would have lost! Prophecy is one of those weapons! And this weekend it sliced through the doubt, the guilt, the frustration, the anger with God when no other weapon in my arsenal had seemed to make a dent.
The Word Jeremy spoke was exactly what John and I are facing. It was basically that we are carrying a "wide load" and that it is taking longer than we thought because we are having to take back roads, but if we keep moving forward and pressing on, there will be a great "payday" when we get there. That doesn't necessarily mean financial, but just that we must run the race as one who wants the price as Paul said it.
I wish I could describe what happened inside of me as Jeremy spoke. But I can't really put it to words other than to say it encouraged me! It showed me that God had heard my cries and had given someone with flesh and blood a way to encourage me in my state of confusion and frustration! It silenced the voices that even then I knew were the enemy taunting me.
Prophecy is such a vital tool in the life of anyone who is engaged in a life sold out for Christ! It is the encouragement to keep running the race because when people who know nothing about your circumstances speak exactly what is happening and then tell you the outcome, you have the strength, the courage and the authority to keep moving until you see that outcome to fruition! Read Joshua 1:6-9 and see how God encouraged Joshua for the road he was about to walk. That is how prophecy works in today's world.
I was reminded yesterday of what God told me when we were struggling with leaving our former church. Let me stop here and say I am in no way putting down or former church, in fact, without the teaching and training we received at that Body, I would not be in the place to receive what happened yesterday! I was a huge skeptic of all supernatural things when we fist started attending our former church. God used the amazing teachers there to bring me to the place where I could receive what my current church has to offer. Our former church had a man who was part of the church affiliation that Body belonged to. He would come a few times a year. It was amazing to see him operate in the prophetic. He was the first person I ever saw do that, and it was inspiring, encouraging, intriguing....I could go on and on. He (even though he was only there a few times a year and had no idea who I was!) was one of the reasons I wrestled with God over moving churches. God had placed it on our hearts to leave, but I kept wanting to return to what was comfortable. During one of my wrestling matches with God over leaving the church, I reminded him of this man who brought great encouragement to me (even though I never received a direct prophecy from him...ever!). God's answer was very straightforward: "Do you want a man who prophesies or a congregation who prophesies?" I thought of that yesterday and I had to laugh! Since attending Lifehouse, I have had numerous Words of encouragement and prophecy spoken over me. And they always came at the moment when I wasn't sure which direction to turn or when I wasn't sure I could last one more day in my current circumstances. Then the Word would come and put the circumstances in the perspective they belonged, and the joy returns!
If you are not familiar with prophecy, do some research! Dig into the Word! Ask God to reveal His Truth about it...and then find a church that allows the gifts to be used! If you have questions, I may not have the answer, but I will put you in touch with some amazing people who do or I can give you a list or resources that have been helpful to me as I wrestled through my traditional thinking that caused me to doubt what was fairly clear in scripture. And if you are in the Midland area, come check out Lifehouse Fellowship! It's not a perfect church, but it is a church where the Spirit moves and is allowed to dictate the order of the service! I will have to tell you more about the service yesterday another time! It was amazing! Or come check it out for yourself this Wednesday at 7 - come at 6:30 if you want pizza before service!
The past five weeks have been rough. I went from working 20-30 hours a week to working 60 hours a week. For the first time in my mom career, I am working full time plus. I started a new exercise program that has me at my workout at 5:30 which means getting up at 4. I confess, that 4 wake up only happened a couple of times, which meant my quiet times didn't happen. You don't maintain a relationship without feeding it! The longer I went without my extended quiet times, the more despair crept in! I could feel it, I went through my weapons of warfare, but couldn't shake it...until Sunday.
Kris says this:
"Prophecy is like a nuclear weapon in the hands of a believer. It is important that we embrace the kind of prophetic culture that calls out our destiny and reminds us of God's work in our lives. If we despise, reject or do not believe in prophecy, we play into the enemy's hands by laying down a vitally important weapon of our warfare."
Amen! My breakthrough came through a prophetic word delivered by our Pastor this weekend! I have never sat under a pastor like Jeremy, my current pastor. He is "pastor" in every sense of the word. He is not perfect as no one is perfect, but he is an anointed pastor and understands like no one I have ever met what it means to shepherd his flock! Several times since we started going to LifeHouse, Jeremy has come to us and said, when I was praying for you, God said..... This weekend was one of those times. He had been at a conference this week and had spent time praying for his flock. There were a couple of families whom God spoke to him about directly, and we were one of them. He called us up during church yesterday and spoke the Word over us and prayed for us.
If you have never seen someone operate in the prophetic, you may not fully understand what I am talking about here. Let me challenge you to find a church where the gifts are practiced and watch when the prophetic ministry occurs. Ask God to reveal the prophetic ministry to you. Romans 12, 1 Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4 all talk about prophecy as a spiritual gift. Remember, I was not a believer in the spiritual gifts even five years ago. However, God placed me in battles that required all He had for me to fight with or I would have lost! Prophecy is one of those weapons! And this weekend it sliced through the doubt, the guilt, the frustration, the anger with God when no other weapon in my arsenal had seemed to make a dent.
The Word Jeremy spoke was exactly what John and I are facing. It was basically that we are carrying a "wide load" and that it is taking longer than we thought because we are having to take back roads, but if we keep moving forward and pressing on, there will be a great "payday" when we get there. That doesn't necessarily mean financial, but just that we must run the race as one who wants the price as Paul said it.
I wish I could describe what happened inside of me as Jeremy spoke. But I can't really put it to words other than to say it encouraged me! It showed me that God had heard my cries and had given someone with flesh and blood a way to encourage me in my state of confusion and frustration! It silenced the voices that even then I knew were the enemy taunting me.
Prophecy is such a vital tool in the life of anyone who is engaged in a life sold out for Christ! It is the encouragement to keep running the race because when people who know nothing about your circumstances speak exactly what is happening and then tell you the outcome, you have the strength, the courage and the authority to keep moving until you see that outcome to fruition! Read Joshua 1:6-9 and see how God encouraged Joshua for the road he was about to walk. That is how prophecy works in today's world.
I was reminded yesterday of what God told me when we were struggling with leaving our former church. Let me stop here and say I am in no way putting down or former church, in fact, without the teaching and training we received at that Body, I would not be in the place to receive what happened yesterday! I was a huge skeptic of all supernatural things when we fist started attending our former church. God used the amazing teachers there to bring me to the place where I could receive what my current church has to offer. Our former church had a man who was part of the church affiliation that Body belonged to. He would come a few times a year. It was amazing to see him operate in the prophetic. He was the first person I ever saw do that, and it was inspiring, encouraging, intriguing....I could go on and on. He (even though he was only there a few times a year and had no idea who I was!) was one of the reasons I wrestled with God over moving churches. God had placed it on our hearts to leave, but I kept wanting to return to what was comfortable. During one of my wrestling matches with God over leaving the church, I reminded him of this man who brought great encouragement to me (even though I never received a direct prophecy from him...ever!). God's answer was very straightforward: "Do you want a man who prophesies or a congregation who prophesies?" I thought of that yesterday and I had to laugh! Since attending Lifehouse, I have had numerous Words of encouragement and prophecy spoken over me. And they always came at the moment when I wasn't sure which direction to turn or when I wasn't sure I could last one more day in my current circumstances. Then the Word would come and put the circumstances in the perspective they belonged, and the joy returns!
If you are not familiar with prophecy, do some research! Dig into the Word! Ask God to reveal His Truth about it...and then find a church that allows the gifts to be used! If you have questions, I may not have the answer, but I will put you in touch with some amazing people who do or I can give you a list or resources that have been helpful to me as I wrestled through my traditional thinking that caused me to doubt what was fairly clear in scripture. And if you are in the Midland area, come check out Lifehouse Fellowship! It's not a perfect church, but it is a church where the Spirit moves and is allowed to dictate the order of the service! I will have to tell you more about the service yesterday another time! It was amazing! Or come check it out for yourself this Wednesday at 7 - come at 6:30 if you want pizza before service!
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
I love my new church!
I cannot say enough good about my new church, Mid-Cities. It is not perfect - it is made up of people just like me. At some point, I will be offended or hurt while being there. It is a family, don't we always get hurt or offended by family? But when that happens, I will pray through it, and do as God directs! We work it out!
What do I love about it? Well, they love people! That is my heart, and I believe that is the heart of God! People! They are constantly seeking ways to take the the people in this family from where they are to the next step in their faith journey. Isn't that what it is all about? Aren't we all supposed to be growing from glory to glory? But the cool thing about Mid-Cities is that they don't just talk about it, they do it! Wow! What a concept! They don't have it all figured out. They don't have the road map or the 10 year plan...well, not as far as I know anyway. They just ask what the people need then try to get the tools in their hands as quickly as possible. We just joined a few weeks ago. Do you know one of the questions that was on the member information sheet? What is your dream for the Kingdom of God? Really???? They want to know what my dream is? They want to know what God is calling me to?? I went from a place that specifically told me, "We will walk with you as a person, but we will not walk with your ministry." That would be great if I knew how to separate the two, but as far as I know, I am one in the same. And now I have found a place that cares about what God is doing in the lives of the believers that He sends to them! Wow! What a marvelous concept.
Funny thing is, we visited Mid-Cities when we first moved to this area almost 5 years ago. I couldn't hack it. It was too much for me! I just wasn't ready spiritually. I still had God in a box! My box wasn't big enough for the God this church serves. That is a post for another time.
The leadership and the people of Mid-Cities believe in the power of God! I LOVE THAT! They pray expecting things to happen. They encourage us to pray expecting things to happen. They believe the sky is the limit as long as God is at the wheel. Praise God!
Daniel, our senior pastor, is younger than me. I love that too! But there are seasoned saints on staff as well. There is a balance! We need the ones who have been there and done that! Daniel is a wonderful teacher. If you want to hear some really practical sermons for walking with God, check out the website: www.midcities.org.
What do I love about it? Well, they love people! That is my heart, and I believe that is the heart of God! People! They are constantly seeking ways to take the the people in this family from where they are to the next step in their faith journey. Isn't that what it is all about? Aren't we all supposed to be growing from glory to glory? But the cool thing about Mid-Cities is that they don't just talk about it, they do it! Wow! What a concept! They don't have it all figured out. They don't have the road map or the 10 year plan...well, not as far as I know anyway. They just ask what the people need then try to get the tools in their hands as quickly as possible. We just joined a few weeks ago. Do you know one of the questions that was on the member information sheet? What is your dream for the Kingdom of God? Really???? They want to know what my dream is? They want to know what God is calling me to?? I went from a place that specifically told me, "We will walk with you as a person, but we will not walk with your ministry." That would be great if I knew how to separate the two, but as far as I know, I am one in the same. And now I have found a place that cares about what God is doing in the lives of the believers that He sends to them! Wow! What a marvelous concept.
Funny thing is, we visited Mid-Cities when we first moved to this area almost 5 years ago. I couldn't hack it. It was too much for me! I just wasn't ready spiritually. I still had God in a box! My box wasn't big enough for the God this church serves. That is a post for another time.
The leadership and the people of Mid-Cities believe in the power of God! I LOVE THAT! They pray expecting things to happen. They encourage us to pray expecting things to happen. They believe the sky is the limit as long as God is at the wheel. Praise God!
Daniel, our senior pastor, is younger than me. I love that too! But there are seasoned saints on staff as well. There is a balance! We need the ones who have been there and done that! Daniel is a wonderful teacher. If you want to hear some really practical sermons for walking with God, check out the website: www.midcities.org.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Still hurts
You know, when you are wounded by your Christian family, the hurt lingers. I think I am ok, then something happens to spark the hurt again. Not anything big. This morning, I was cleaning out some old e-mails and came across some from my mentor. I had a 3 year relationship with this person. I considered her among my spiritual heroes...still do. She was my "spiritual mother". There was a breech of confidence in that relationship that was very painful. Obviously, that breech meant I could no longer share the intimate details that I once did, but it didn't change the fact that I know she is a Godly woman who follows hard after God. She is still human, and made a mistake. I took it for what it was. I still wanted to maintain contact. But evidently the feelings were not mutual.
That has been the hardest part about leaving our church. After five years of dedicating our life to that body and investing in the lives of people there, I can count on one hand the number of people who have not dropped us like a hot potato! And really, those are people who have kind of stepped up from the background, not our close friends. Why is that? I really don't understand that. We have made it clear to everyone we speak to that we are disappointed in the leadership, wish they could give Biblical, spiritual reasons for the way they treated us, but that we still wanted to maintain relationships with all our family there. My saying is, we are leaving the church, we are not dead! But I guess to many, those are one in the same. That hurts!
On a positive note, we are having lunch with the pastor and his wife of the church we have been attending. So far we are VERY impressed with their philosophy on ministry and their willingness to meet people right where they are and provide what their body needs to take the next step in their spiritual growth. Seems that there are some who talk about pacing, and there are some who do pacing! So we are really excited to see what comes of that. John met with the music/missions minister last week for lunch and was very impressed with his philosophies and passion for involving others in missions. Both of these lunch meetings were initiated by the pastors, not us! There is a new concept, at least for us common, not in the "in crowd" people.
We know this church will not be perfect either! It is made of humans like us! But it seems to be much more humble and open to new people than our last one. That is exciting! So maybe we have found a church home! I pray so!
That has been the hardest part about leaving our church. After five years of dedicating our life to that body and investing in the lives of people there, I can count on one hand the number of people who have not dropped us like a hot potato! And really, those are people who have kind of stepped up from the background, not our close friends. Why is that? I really don't understand that. We have made it clear to everyone we speak to that we are disappointed in the leadership, wish they could give Biblical, spiritual reasons for the way they treated us, but that we still wanted to maintain relationships with all our family there. My saying is, we are leaving the church, we are not dead! But I guess to many, those are one in the same. That hurts!
On a positive note, we are having lunch with the pastor and his wife of the church we have been attending. So far we are VERY impressed with their philosophy on ministry and their willingness to meet people right where they are and provide what their body needs to take the next step in their spiritual growth. Seems that there are some who talk about pacing, and there are some who do pacing! So we are really excited to see what comes of that. John met with the music/missions minister last week for lunch and was very impressed with his philosophies and passion for involving others in missions. Both of these lunch meetings were initiated by the pastors, not us! There is a new concept, at least for us common, not in the "in crowd" people.
We know this church will not be perfect either! It is made of humans like us! But it seems to be much more humble and open to new people than our last one. That is exciting! So maybe we have found a church home! I pray so!
Sunday, September 28, 2008
The past week
Once again, I find myself with much to post, but not much time. So here is a run down of my last week:
~My computer crashed, so I am having to work on the kids' old, slow computer! Another reason for not many posts this week! Luckily it had two drives, and I had saved almost everything on the D drive, so I have all my pictures and most of the data. Thank you God!
~ Started the Daniel Fast. It is going well. I am really missing meat today! I have lost 10 pounds in 4 days! That is in sane! Of course, I know some will come back, but can you say, "Reality Check" on weightloss and what I thought I was doing!
~ We got to see our very good friends the Buntyns last night when they came through town after a track meet! They just brought home their two beautiful girls from Liberia..it is always a little surreal when I see the kiddos I helped bring home playing with my kids in my home! I LOVE it!
~ I spoke at a 55 and older group at a church in a neighboring town. It is my parents church, and I just went to share with them what we are doing...no expectations! Just their weekly "program" for that week. Well, turns out, they were extremely touched by our work and are considering supporting us as one of their missions! Go figure! Just goes to show that God will provide even when your home church won't!
~ We are visiting a new church this morning. Finding a new church just stinks! I hate it! I don't know what to judge a church on, I don't know what to consider. There is no perfect church. So what things do we compromise and what things do we not? The longer we are away from our old church the more I see how blinded we were to so many things. I don't want to be that way again! I want to be where God is moving and people are serving OTHERS..not just themselves! I want to go where there is action and not just talk because faith without works is dead! But I also want to make sure we agree on theology as my kids will be taught there! Yet, do I really know what my theology is as it changes the more maturity I get! Things I thought were in scripture, I learn were just inbred traditions...so when God reveals His word to me, I realize what I thought was theology really wasn't! Yet the churches I went to taught it as theology. Totally confused? me too!
Well, time for church! Here we go! God, give us Your eyes to see and Your discernment to know if this is our home!
~My computer crashed, so I am having to work on the kids' old, slow computer! Another reason for not many posts this week! Luckily it had two drives, and I had saved almost everything on the D drive, so I have all my pictures and most of the data. Thank you God!
~ Started the Daniel Fast. It is going well. I am really missing meat today! I have lost 10 pounds in 4 days! That is in sane! Of course, I know some will come back, but can you say, "Reality Check" on weightloss and what I thought I was doing!
~ We got to see our very good friends the Buntyns last night when they came through town after a track meet! They just brought home their two beautiful girls from Liberia..it is always a little surreal when I see the kiddos I helped bring home playing with my kids in my home! I LOVE it!
~ I spoke at a 55 and older group at a church in a neighboring town. It is my parents church, and I just went to share with them what we are doing...no expectations! Just their weekly "program" for that week. Well, turns out, they were extremely touched by our work and are considering supporting us as one of their missions! Go figure! Just goes to show that God will provide even when your home church won't!
~ We are visiting a new church this morning. Finding a new church just stinks! I hate it! I don't know what to judge a church on, I don't know what to consider. There is no perfect church. So what things do we compromise and what things do we not? The longer we are away from our old church the more I see how blinded we were to so many things. I don't want to be that way again! I want to be where God is moving and people are serving OTHERS..not just themselves! I want to go where there is action and not just talk because faith without works is dead! But I also want to make sure we agree on theology as my kids will be taught there! Yet, do I really know what my theology is as it changes the more maturity I get! Things I thought were in scripture, I learn were just inbred traditions...so when God reveals His word to me, I realize what I thought was theology really wasn't! Yet the churches I went to taught it as theology. Totally confused? me too!
Well, time for church! Here we go! God, give us Your eyes to see and Your discernment to know if this is our home!
Sunday, August 31, 2008
A sad day
The meeting is over
We spoke the words God gave us
They were not received so well
We are at an impass
All they can offer is helping us with a board
They can help put us in touch with other para ministry people
We need more
Our ministry is not their responsibility
They will pace with people, but not ministry
They don't know what the church's role is in a member's life either
Our senior pastor didn't even bother to attend
Some lies were spoken
We were disappointed
We are sad
Our hearts are broken
We are with out a church home
We are seeking His face
We are excited to see what He has for us
But first we must grieve our loss
Five years of our life and almost all our relationships are there
But God will heal
God will provide
I am so thankful God is not man!!!
We spoke the words God gave us
They were not received so well
We are at an impass
All they can offer is helping us with a board
They can help put us in touch with other para ministry people
We need more
Our ministry is not their responsibility
They will pace with people, but not ministry
They don't know what the church's role is in a member's life either
Our senior pastor didn't even bother to attend
Some lies were spoken
We were disappointed
We are sad
Our hearts are broken
We are with out a church home
We are seeking His face
We are excited to see what He has for us
But first we must grieve our loss
Five years of our life and almost all our relationships are there
But God will heal
God will provide
I am so thankful God is not man!!!
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Prayers please!
If you are reading this before Sunday at 3:00 pm central time, please pray for John and I. We will be meeting with our church leadership over two major issues. One is a breach of confidentiality of my personal, intimate information (information meant only for my mentor) among staff members. The second is the church's stand on supporting ministries of members that don't fall into their "scope and sequence" of missions. Pray that God gives us wisdom and discernment. Pray that we are able to act righteously and Christ like in all responses and reactions. We are truly seeking God's face on this and want to do whatever He is calling us to do. We appreciate any prayers on our and the leadership of our church's behalf! They have a tough job too!
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Thank you to my blog world!
I have never been so lonely as when the church attacks. So thank you to my blog world! Through a course of events today, I am left with out trust in my closest "real world" friends. But there are several of you whom I have met through blog world that are now dear friends as we have talked on the phone or shared our hearts in e-mails and blog posts. So to all of you, I say Thank You! And thank you, God, that you have provided a way for Christians literally across the world to be connected so that we can encourage and support each other when the local church fails. I still have a support system via the web if my "real world" fell apart today! ;)
Tell me what you think!
I am searching for wisdom here. So please let me know your thoughts!
As a Christ follower, I know what my role is at my church body. Every church makes it clear what you need to do for them, right?! As a Christian who has committed to a body of believers, I am to give of my time, talents and resources in order to further the kingdom and edify the body. So what about "the body"? What can I expect from my church? All of you long time blog readers know that I struggle with the lack of support of our ministry from our church. They have taken me to lunch to specifically tell me that they are not going to support our ministry because it is not with in their "scope and sequence". Not sure how adoption cannot be with in the "scope and sequence" of a church as it is the heart of God, but that is what we were repeatedly told.
We are making an appointment to meet with our Pastor as we try to decide if God is calling us to another body as our ministry seems to be exploding and we really need some spiritual support.
I am reading Acts, but the "churches'' of today are soooo different in every way, that I am having a hard time in my lack of wisdom of sorting through it all. Let me just get one topic off the boar right away...this is NOT about financial support! God has blessed our ministry with wonderful donors that have kept us a float beyond all we could have hoped or imagined. I don't need, and really don't want their money! I just want support...a place to go when I feel like I am attacked on every side. A platform to share my passion in the case that someone else may have the same passion and be looking for a place to serve...etc.
So what do you think? What can a believer expect from the body? From the church?
As a Christ follower, I know what my role is at my church body. Every church makes it clear what you need to do for them, right?! As a Christian who has committed to a body of believers, I am to give of my time, talents and resources in order to further the kingdom and edify the body. So what about "the body"? What can I expect from my church? All of you long time blog readers know that I struggle with the lack of support of our ministry from our church. They have taken me to lunch to specifically tell me that they are not going to support our ministry because it is not with in their "scope and sequence". Not sure how adoption cannot be with in the "scope and sequence" of a church as it is the heart of God, but that is what we were repeatedly told.
We are making an appointment to meet with our Pastor as we try to decide if God is calling us to another body as our ministry seems to be exploding and we really need some spiritual support.
I am reading Acts, but the "churches'' of today are soooo different in every way, that I am having a hard time in my lack of wisdom of sorting through it all. Let me just get one topic off the boar right away...this is NOT about financial support! God has blessed our ministry with wonderful donors that have kept us a float beyond all we could have hoped or imagined. I don't need, and really don't want their money! I just want support...a place to go when I feel like I am attacked on every side. A platform to share my passion in the case that someone else may have the same passion and be looking for a place to serve...etc.
So what do you think? What can a believer expect from the body? From the church?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
