Tried With Fire

This has been an unusual spring. In April and May, I had jury duty which meant being on call every Tuesday of the month not knowing until the night before. I reported only two Tuesdays, but it was stressful not knowing when I would have to serve. I like having some idea of the week ahead so spur-of-the-moment isn't my preference. It's gardenia time. I've cut dozens of flowers over the past week, and my house is filled with the fragrance. All the wet weather we had since last year seems to have made the gardenia bushes happy because they are full of blooms. Even though creation is under curse, even though there is so much that is wrong, there is still so much beauty in the world for which I am grateful. The book of nature, while limited, still speaks loudly of its Creator. If you like audio books, the freebie from Christian Audio this month has been very thought provoking. Liturgy of the Ordinary by Tish Harrison Warren picks up the same ideas as in You Are Wha...

In the light of the latest round of accusations and all around ugliness on social media, here are some random ruminations and questions for myself: Do I pray before I respond? Do I pray that my response would be Christ-like? Do I pray for the people who I am responding to? Would I say what I tweet or post to another brother or sister, particularly a brother or sister in my local church? Social media seems to give vent to words that we would never say face to face or so it seems. Incidentally, studies show that venting only increases anger rather than dissipating it. [ Mistakes Were Made (but not by me) Tavris & Aronson.] Do I take "Love your neighbor as yourself" seriously? Do I believe I am called to love according to 1 Corinthians 13 and demonstrate kindness, patience, and forbearance? Am I willing to admit that I am wrong about a situation or people? Am I willing to learn about others who are different than myself? I still may disagree but I have a better u...

I've probably read more history in the last 5 years than in my entire life. It's funny how the things you thought were completely impractical are very relevant. History is awkward. It's very natural to want to distance ourselves from the injustices that occurred in the past. One reaction I have seen is for someone to talk about all the things he/she did that were the opposite of the situation in question or how his/her community was different. I get that. I'm not blaming you. But just because you or your community would have behaved differently doesn't mean that the event didn't occur. It still stands as a moment in time that we have to deal with. Sometimes it seems that American "city set on a hill" Christianity has morphed into the bunker in the hillside. It's a also a weird combination of withdrawal, very strong us/them mentality, and yet wanting to regain control via political means. It's also odd that a Christian subculture that is exp...

God is a God for the overwhelmed. He is there during the ugly cry, the anxiety attack, and when you feel like you can't add one more thing to your plate. Being the strong one is hard especially when you forget that it is only possible by His strength. But the invitation still stands to "Come unto Me..." Taking a break and getting rest is not giving in. No one has an inexhaustible supply of energy. History doesn't do us any good if we only see it through rose-colored glasses. It also won't do us any good if we view it only in a negative light. Being truthful requires acknowledging both. Sometimes I just need a listening ear with no added advice. I'm not always looking for an answer, just a safe space to unburden myself. In a reaction to the culture's misuse of the term and the Christian subculture's fondness for sentimentality, have we downplayed genuine biblical love? Has our individualistic society narrowed its scope down to me and my ver...

This quote is from Dorothy L. Sayer's essay Are Women Human? "When the pioneers of university training for women demanded that women should be admitted to the universities, the cry went up at once: "Why should women want to know about Aristotle?" The answer is NOT that all women would be the better for knowing about Aristotle… but simply: "What women want as a class is irrelevant. I want to know about Aristotle. It is true that most women care nothing about him, and a great many male undergraduates turn pale and faint at the thought of him - but I, eccentric individual that I am, do want to know about Aristotle, and I submit that there is nothing in my shape or bodily functions which need prevent my knowing about him."" 1 Academia isn't what it used to be in Sayers' day, but it's taken time for women to overcome this sort of prejudice. In The Disappearing Spoon , Sam Kean tells the story of Maria Goeppert-Mayer who won the Nobel Priz...

Our worth is based on more than what we do. Respecting individuality is not the same thing as promoting individualism. Strengths are a double-edged sword. Competence can morph into pride. The pursuit of excellent can become perfectionism and judgmentalism. You don't have to be patient and kind if everyone gets it right all the time. So given how often the Word exhorts us to exhibit these traits, maybe we should stop expecting people to act as though they were untouched by the fall. Shame-based parenting stinks. It is never too late to say "I was wrong. Please forgive me." to your kids. The election cycle highlighted these issues - race, poverty/class, and immigration. How will the church respond? If Revelation 7 shows a picture of the body of Christ, shouldn't we expect people to be different? This is why I have a problem with application that promotes cultural norms and ignores these issues. I am not a fan of mysticism. Trusting in my perception of God ov...

1. Our tree is fake and oh so easy to set up. 2. Most of the ornaments are plastic. A few, a very few are handmade. 3.  I'm not a decorator type the remaining 364 days of the year, so other than tinsel garland on the mantle, the tree is it for decorations. 4. We have a tree because it's pretty, not for any Norse rituals as my ancestors came from a different continent. 5. We skip the gifts to each other and give elsewhere. 6. We have no holiday traditions (gasp!) probably because there was a long gap in my life not celebrating Christmas. My parents had convictions about not holding one day above another, and my ex- and I continued in the same vein. There was a certain amount of smug superiority (in me, not my parents) for being spiritual enough to not celebrate Christmas. That changed when we started attending Grace and the gospel was recovered in my life. Which leads to... 7. My main reason for celebrating Christmas is to reflect on the Incarnation and the gos...

I'm hoping to finish posting on the Ligonier conference next week once I finish deciphering my notes. My less than legible handwriting would be a good excuse for getting some sort of tablet thingy as I can type faster than I can write and there would be no key clicking to distract others. Spring in Virginia is so pretty but so short. I loved seeing the wild dogwood and redbud blooming along I-64 this evening. However, it makes no sense to me why redbuds are called redbuds as the blooms are purple. Spring in Virginia also means a thick coating of oak and pine pollen everywhere. There was a package waiting on my doorstep from Westminster Bookstore . There were 3 new books for the church library plus this and this Time now for a little reading...

Do you ever have so many thoughts and questions that fill your mind that you need to get them out? This is my attempt to at least do a partial cranial core dump. I've been listening to John McArthur's Charismatic Chaos series. Why are we drawn to extra-Biblical experiences? What is the lure of finding something new or its counterpart, the discovery of some ancient hidden truth hitherto unknown? Are we gnostics at heart? A week ago at small group, I noticed that I was the oldest person there, theoretically old enough to be the mother of almost everyone in the room. I don't feel old . It was just a weird realization. My daughter kindly said to me, "You're not old. You're middle aged." Thank you, my dear, for making that clear distinction. My daughter is reading Out of the Silent Planet by C. S. Lewis. I told her that I read the novel for a college class on Lewis' writings. When she asked me how long ago that was, it was 29 years ago. Oh my! No wonder I...

A good friend came over Thursday to help me tackle the craft room. It's really the tiny third bedroom, but I use it as a sewing room. My mom taught me to sew in junior high, so I have been sewing clothes and other things ever since. Through the years, I picked up counted cross stitch, counted-thread needle work, knitting, quilting, and beading. Quilting can be a dangerous hobby. Not because you can cut yourself on the rotary cutter or prick your fingers when hand quilting, but because it can lead to fabric addiction. They say that the first step in overcoming an addition is admitting it. So I confess. In addition to being a biblioholic, I am a fabric-holic. Even though I sent away two copy paper boxes worth of fabric to Iraq, I still have at least 7 boxes of assorted fabric and 2 underbed storage containers of fat quarters and scraps. The main difficulty in organizing the craft room was figuring out what to do with all that fabric. My friend was able to stow the boxes out of sight...

The ladies' Bible study is going to start a study of 1 Peter using Living in the Real World from the Good Book Company. I am looking forward to it. 1 Peter has been one of my favorite books of late because he deals so much with the issue of suffering in the life of the believer. On a sillier note, I have been wondering if prosperity gospel preachers practice what they preach? After all, if one can control the weather and cure horrible diseases, surely something like gray hair and wrinkles would be a piece of cake. If so, if they practiced what they preached, they wouldn't need hair dye or Botox. You could even take it a further step and not need to brush your teeth. What is plaque and gingivitis compared to turning a glass eye into a real one? By faith, one could command the gray hairs, the wrinkles, and the tooth decay to be gone. On a more serious note, this is a quote from Gospel Fear by Jeremiah Burroughs, Soli Deo Gloria, from pages, 17-19. These Puritans are like a good...