Christian

The Doubting Christian’s Starter Pack

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Are you drawn to the story of a God who lives and dies full of love for a rebellious creation…yet find yourself wondering how it could possibly be true?  Have you grown weary of rules that seem to cause slavery rather than freedom?  Are you skeptical about the usefulness of “good news” that doesn’t seem so good?  Do you worry that the religion you grew up with doesn’t apply to a more diverse population?

Welcome to the Doubting Christians Club!

In a desire to provide a strong foundation for its members, the Church has often promoted a rigorous belief system that seems to leave little room for doubt…which can make doubters feel like they either need to leave the Church or else hide their doubts.  I don’t believe either of these options is a good idea for the Doubting Christian – the first because you will miss out on the beauty you are drawn to, and the second because you will live a double life that will slowly isolate and destroy you.

Luckily, there are others out there just like you (myself, for instance)!  Listed below is the Doubting Christians Starter Pack that will stretch your mind, give you hope, and assure you that you are not alone.

71891781|  O Me of Little Faith: True Confessions of a Spiritual Weakling by Jason Boyett  

This is the book that began my journey toward becoming comfortable with my doubt.    It was given to me, unasked for, by my pastor, which has earned him my undying respect.  In this book, Boyett gets honest about his doubts and comes to the conclusion that perhaps doubters are closer to God than those who never question their faith – after all, doubt is an inextricable part of a faith given to something unseen.

Continue reading →

Fundraising Worries

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At HD, the staff meets every week for a Formation of Servants meeting.  FoS is a 12 Steps program that is a more explicitly Christian version of the Alcoholics Anonymous 12 Steps.  These mandatory meetings were part of why I wanted to work with HD; I love being part of an organization that focuses on the brokenness of its staff simultaneously to the brokenness of the people we serve.  BUT.  I also.  Don’t like it.  Because it’s haaaard!

We’ve been doing these meetings for at least three months now, and I’ve been stuck on the first two steps the whole time.  The first step is:  “We admitted we are powerless over some of the effects of God’s sovereignty in our lives and because of our lack of trust in him our lives are unmanageable.”  I was on this step for a LONG time, because I do not want to admit that I am powerless or that my life is unmanageable.  I’m pretty good at managing my life, thank you very much.  But eventually I did come to a breakthrough of sorts that allowed me to move on to step two, where I promptly got stuck again.

“We came to believe that our loving God, in the person of our Lord Jesus Christ, could restore us to sanity.”  This is the natural progression of step one; if I am not in control of my life, then God is.  And…is he?  Do I want him to have all of that power?  Do I want to admit that I’m insane without him?  No, no, no, I would much rather have everyone believe that I have it all together and can do anything that I put my mind to.

Underneath all of this is the question: do I trust God?  Do I trust that he is both loving and powerful?  I mean, definitely not always.  It is hard to be a counselor and not think, “Um, God, what are you allowing in their lives!?”  It is hard to be a human being and not think, “GOD, I could have used you just then!!”

These abstract thoughts are taking a coherent form in my new round of fundraising.  This time last year, I worked on raising $27,000.  I sent out many letters, I worked in a church where everyone could hear my story any time they stopped by the office, I ran a t-shirt drive and put together a yard sale.  I had a team of people who consistently showed up to support me.   I made a month-long road trip to visit people and tell my story.  I did it.  I mean, God helped.  But in the narrative running through my head, I’m definitely giving myself the majority of the credit.

A caveat: I don’t think that is entirely bad.  I definitely think God used my fundraising experience last year to develop my creativity and confidence, and I think I’m going to use those skills in the future for HD.  But that was last year’s lesson.

This year’s lesson?  It’s about actually trusting God, I think.  It feels INCREDIBLY daunting to do fundraising in the United States from halfway around the world.  I can send letters and emails and make Facebook announcements, but I can’t BE there.  I can’t talk to people face-to-face, and I can’t motivate or manipulate or beg.  I just have to…sit here, and trust that God will work in people’s hearts.

THAT IS SO HARD.

It is going to take a lifetime to learn to trust God fully.  And the part of me that isn’t scared is really grateful for this chance to see God work.  But.  You know.  There’s still that part of me that’s scared.

I guess I just have to wait and see what happens!

The Importance of Short Term Missions

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I have a bad habit of assuming that everything I learn or believe ought to be applied to everyone everywhere all the time.  So because my life path has taken me from short-term mission trips to long-term immersive experiences (because I am much better suited to long-term relationship-based services), I assume that everyone ought to give up on short-term trips in favor of packing up and living somewhere for at least six months.

But, HEY.  It turns out that the world does NOT revolve around me.  This is both tragic and such a relief.  Part of this realization came from several short-term mission groups we’ve hosted at HD.   Continue reading →

God’s Perfect Timing

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A new woman joined us at HD, and although change always makes us freak out a little, I am overwhelmed by just how good God has been at bringing us new participants at just the right time (for them and for us).

“A” joined us first, and she was the perfect first participant for a bunch of women who desperately wanted to help sexually exploited women but weren’t sure if they were cut out to do so.  “A” escaped from her trafficker years ago, and she joined us out of a hope that she will someday help other women like her.  This means she’s already grown a lot and developed a really healthy sense of self-awareness, so classes went smoothly and our confidence grew in our abilities.

“D” joined us next Continue reading →

Should Christians Cuss?

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Growing up as a conservative Christian, I knew that one of the most important things a Christian can do is…to not say curse words.  After all, the Bible says:

But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. (Colossians 3:8)

and

Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. (Ephesians 4:29)

and Jesus even said

And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” (Matthew 15:10-11)

As if that weren’t enough, there was also the ever-looming fear of “not being a good witness,” which basically meant that if someone who was not a Christian saw a Christian doing something bad, the probability of them ever loving Jesus dramatically decreased.

And okay.  I can appreciate the dedication to detail that my conservative Christian upbringing inspired.  God knows I have taken that intense introspection and run with it.  (“God knows,” there’s another piece of the puzzle, to be dissected at the end of this post.)*  But I decidedly disagree with what I was taught as a kid.

A Brief Self-History  Continue reading →

I Went to a Greek Women’s Conference about Joy

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Two of my co-workers are on a committee that creates a yearly inter-denominational conference for Greek Christian women.  When they invited me to join them by saying, “It’s at a resort by the beach, and the cost of €100 includes two nights in a 4-star hotel plus six buffet gourmet meals,” it was very easy to say yes.

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Dina drove me to Euboea, a massive island near Athens, and we got to the resort hours before the 200+ women who were attending the three-day conference.  Due to poor planning on the part of the resort, about half of us had to spend the first night at a nearby sister-hotel.  Dina dropped me off there while she worked, and I had virtually AN ENTIRE HOTEL to myself for five hours.  It was AMAZING.

Later that first night, the buses full of women arrived.   Continue reading →

David and Bathsheba

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David’s life is exemplary throughout his childhood and early adulthood. He trusts God to defend His people when fighting the giant Goliath (1 Sa 17). He trusts God to give him the kingship in His timing rather than take matters into his own hands by killing Saul (1 Sa 19, 1 Sa 24). In a beautiful culmination of his intimate relationship with God, David promises to build a house for God, and in turn, God promises to build an eternal house for David and his descendants (2 Sa 7). It is surprising, then, that soon after this exchange, David becomes an adulterer and a murderer.  Continue reading →

An Orthodox Easter in Athens

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Καλὀ Πἀσχα!
Happy Easter!

Having grown up in rural Illinois where individualism is king and Easter mostly meant chocolate bunnies, I was thrilled to participate in ο Επιτἀφιος (Good Friday) and η Ανἀσταση (Resurrection) Orthodox services while living in Greece.  Although I was an outsider, it was a very cool experience to participate in the traditions that Greek Christians have observed for thousands of years.  Before I get into the details of how I celebrated Good Friday and the Resurrection, a brief overview of the Orthodox Easter, because it is so much more than these two services.   Continue reading →

Let’s Talk About … Aliens (Part 1)

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with Elizabeth

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Last time they talked about Tom Hiddleston.  This time they talk about a theology of aliens.  Elizabeth and Tricia’s friendship truly covers the heights and depths of the human experience.

Elizabeth:  I was just thinking this morning about how having the image of God allows us to be individuals.  God made all of us humans in his image, and to our finite minds, that would seem to make us all the same.  But to God – the infinite God who rejoices in every sunrise (see G.K. Chesterton) – the multitude of ways in which we bear his image as individuals is a continuous source of delight.  We don’t have the capacity to appreciate each and every individual, but he does.  And if we realize that, it can help us see people as valuable individuals when we meet them out in the world.  They are enough.  We are enough!  I have some basic level of value, not just as one of many image bearers, but because I bear God’s image in a way that nobody else can, and God sees that and is delighted by it.
Tricia:  I think this is a good argument for the existence of aliens.
Elizabeth:  You really want to finish the alien co-blog, don’t you? Continue reading →

Theology of the Body: Moderation

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During one class, I led a group that had to create a Theology of the Body.  It turned into one of my favorite projects, resulted in two new friends, and helped me conceptualize and defend something I already believed with my heart.  This post isn’t a paper so much as a bunch of verses from the Bible sorted into categories which, if you’re a theology nerd, is VERY interesting.  Trust me.

 

Application: The body is good, but it can be misused, either by excess or deprivation.

 

Celibacy vs. Hypersexuality   Continue reading →