Do Ya Dig?

Pathetically, I am not updating this as regularly as I need to be doing. But then, that shouldn't be surprising, really. I love the Lord, with all my heart. But, my life is busy. Finding time to pick up a Bible and read is never easy. That doesn't mean I am not learning, though. I am learning constantly.

I wrote a post on my other blog about Barack Obama and the fact that he actually picked up a shovel to help flood victims. I mentioned that James 2:14-18 says that if you tell someone "Go I wish you well" when they need food or clothing, what good is your faith. James says that faith is deeds. And I agree.

This is a challenge to me. I need to work out my faith, with fear and trembling... figure out what it looks like in the real world, not just in church on Sundays. I am trying to be real. After all, once the lights go out, that's all there is.

how about you? Where's your shovel?

T, who is just trying to keep it real

Now What?

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"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. -James 1:27

What does this MEAN? What do I actually DO? It's all well and good to read about what God considers "religion" to be...but do I actually do anything about it? Sure, I am busy, isn't everyone. But what service do I actually do?

I do work with teenagers at church, trying to help them grow in their faith (or in some cases, find it) but beyond the day-to-day grind of homeschool, parenting, keeping house and managing everything, there is little time left over. I barely have time to schedule my things. It is embarrassing if I told you how long it has been since I have had a physical... everything else seems to come first. But I digress. We aren't talking about me, we are talking about service. Funny how it always comes back to "me."I'm working on that.

Lord, please show me opportunities to serve. Wake me up. Help me see the people around me, and make it a priority. Please give me the ability to manage my time, and do something good.

T, who is a pretty selfish person with time, but I am working on it

So What Started This?

A year or so ago, I read an amazing book, called The Irresistible Revolution, by Shane Claiborne. It challenged me to think about my faith in a different way. What is this thing called Christianity? What does it really mean to be a Christian? Not, what does the world, or church or my neighbor think, but what did Jesus mean? I wrestled with that. I still do.

A month later I heard a song by Todd Agnew called "My Jesus." It moved me to tears, and put into words everything I had been feeling. Here are the lyrics..scroll down to the middle of the post.

It challenged me to think differently, to go deeper and to really try to understand what I am doing with my butt in the seat at church every Sunday. Shortly thereafter, I became a youth leader for our jr. high group at church. And that transformed my life and my faith.

It wasn't enough to say I was a Christian. What was I going to DO about it? Hear how Shane Claiborne puts it:

How about you? What do you DO with your faith?

Why is this here?

I wanted to have a place to "land" in my too busy life, a place where I can be safe and authentic in my faith. I knew that I would actually stick to my devotions if I started blogging them. I am all about being an ordinary radical. I want to ask the tough questions. What does it mean to be a follower of Jesus, vs. a "Christian?" What is culture vs. bare bones lover of Jesus? If I really love Him, what would that look like? I have a family, I have responsibilities. I can't just drop everything and go to India to hang out with lepers. A pastor once said, "If you want to know what God's will is for your life...eat what's on your plate." I have never forgotten that.

So, I do. I am who I am, and hopefully who he is making me. If you want to come on this journey, I would love to share it with you. Maybe together, we might learn something.

In Him, T, who really does love the Lord