Faith

LUKE 5 (The Message)
12 One day in one of the villages there was a man covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus he fell down before him in prayer and said, "If you want to, you can cleanse me."

13 Jesus put out his hand, touched him, and said, "I want to. Be clean." Then and there his skin was smooth, the leprosy gone.

Andy talked about this today at church and before he said it, I was thinking that this very short little blurb from the gospels really is the picture of all of our conversion stories. The NIV version has the leper saying, "If you are willing, you can make me clean," with Jesus responding, "I am willing."

Isn't that just the heart of the matter? Jesus is willing to change us both inside and out. In those days, leprosy was seen as a horrible skin disease, of course originating inside the body. Not only was the man in this story healed emotionally (inwardly), but experienced an obvious change outwardly in the physical sense. Jesus changed him tangibly that day in just a matter of moments. He can do the same for us when we place our faith in him. I know this is oversimplifying things, but sometimes it's the simplest things that can be so meaningful.

Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.
~Saint Augustine

His Commands are not burdensome...

These are some verses I've been digging into lately. They are all about a simple truth: If you love God, you obey what he says to do. Simple as that. Not rocket science. Now the trick is being familiar enough with his Word that I know what it is he wants me to do. Easier said than done, but a challenge I'm up for!

John 14:15 (NIV)
"If you love me, you will obey what I command."

1 John 2:3 (NIV)
"We know that we have come to know him if we obey his commands."

Matthew 16:24-25 (NIV)
Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it."

1 John 5:2-3 (NIV)
This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,

Gosh, that's some good stuff, isn't it?

Teachers Needed!

Anybody ever want to live and teach abroad? My friends Sarah and Glenn Stallsmith have lived and worked as ethnomusicologists in the Phillipines with Wycliffe Bible Translators for several years now. I have just received the following e-mail from them:

By the way, do you have any teacher friends who want to spend a year in the Philippines ???? We need one elementary teacher (4^th/5^th) and one Jr.High teacher (7^th/8^th) here at our little center school.Spread the word!

If you know anyone who is a Christian and would like to teach abroad, let me know! The area is called Bugabog and is outside of Manila. I can get more info as needed.

10 Random Facts

For your entertainment, here are 10 random facts about me. My roommate did this a few months ago, and so I'm going to follow suit. Those who know me well may know a few of these tidbits, but I've tried to put in some more interesting, lesser-known facts too! Hope you enjoy!

1. My father is a professional magician and writer. And yes, I did say MAGICIAN, not musician. He does, however, play the guitar very occasionally and sings all the time in the car. Dad performs around 400 educational school magic programs each year and has written around 80 books on entertaining and educating children through magic. He also travels around the world lecturing on magic and selling magical props, books, and other resources. Don't believe me? Check out his website: www.ginnmagic.com

2. I really love travel bags and accessories. Meaning, I like backpacks, magazine bags, any kind of travel bag really. And other travel accessories like Nalgene bottles, packing cubes, etc. I have to remind myself that I do not need a new bag for each trip. The Eddie Bauer backpack from Target has lasted me through Australia, France and all over the U.K. so far!

3. I have a need to be clean. If you know me at all, you are probably rolling your eyes or nodding your head until it nearly falls off. But see, when I was a kid, I played in the creek behind my house and made mud pies. This is shocking because I used to run around and get sweaty and dirty, but now, not so much. I used to catch salamanders, but Mom would never let me keep them. I clean my house...often. I enjoy purchasing cleaning products. I think I get this from my Mom. However, through the kitchen renovation, God has brought me to a new places where now "clean" doesn't have to mean "perfect." I've let it go a lot. I'm a work in progress.

4. I love HGTV and TLC. My roommate can attest to this. I actually really enjoy watching the real estate and home makeover shows. And What Not to Wear. Classic.

5. I have a degree in music but I can't really play the piano much. Yes, it's true. I took piano lessons from grade 2, but after I got the basics, I think I lost interest. I can practice and play things okay, but honestly, I prefer not to!

6. I used to want to be a writer. Except all my stories were lame and had the same plot. They were about big families with cleverly named children who lived in houses like the one in Father of the Bride on the perfect street in the perfect neighborhood. I think they were about that because I was an only child and I had a small family and lived in a normal-sized house. I also used to want to train whales like at Sea World. But then I realized you had to know a lot about science to do that, and I don't really dig science too much...

7. My love languages are Quality Time and Physical Touch. So basically I love getting hugs and hanging out. I love being around people. I love talking and listening to people. I thrive on activities with others. I'm not a loner.

8. Somewhere inside me, I honestly wish that life worked out like most romantic comedies or Broadway musicals. I mean, to have your life depicted through song and enjoy the sappy, amazing ending? Come on. We all want that, right?

9. I have terrible stage fright. Now don't get me wrong. I can sing on stage, mike in hand, no problem. But as far as acting, or talking on stage...it freaks me out. I was only in one musical in high school and I was in the "ensemble," which is a fancy word for "background chorus." It's a weird phenomenon. When I was a child, I was often given speaking parts in our church and school plays, and even played the lead in a version of A Christmas Carol. I could memorize anything. The problem now is that I realize that I might forget my lines, and people may actually laugh at me. Can't bear that.

10. The first songs I ever learned to sing (in the car with my Dad, no doubt) were Mr. Robato by Styx and De Do Do Do De Da Da Da by The Police. That's where my music education really began.

All in a Day's Work...

This afternoon a 3rd grader and I have the
following conversation:

HER: Did you know that Christmas is
Jesus' birthday?

ME:  Yes, I did.

HER:  I'm not sure when God's birthday is. I was
supposed to ask my Mom. But I think it's probably
on Valentine's Day.

Out of the mouths of babes...

Things I Used to Believe about God

This weekend was Passion Regionals in Atlanta and I had the opportunity to volunteer. It was an amazing weekend of renewal mixed with personal challenge. Speakers included Louie Giglio and Francis Chan and worship leaders Chris Tomlin, Charlie Hall and David Crowder. God was certainly glorified!

So today I started reading Francis's new book, Crazy Love, which I picked up at the conference. I've only read the first chapter, and already I'm starting to remember the untruths I believed about God, Christians and the Church when I was growing up. I'm not blaming my church; without them I wouldn't have necessarily experienced the fundamentals that I now take for granted (I'm learning that over and over, and repenting for it!). Don't get me wrong; my parents never taught me these things overtly, nor did the church. However, here are the top 5 myths about God, Christians and the Church that I came up with:

1. God is big and powerful, and he lives up in Heaven, but is somewhat disconnected from us.

2. To be a Christian, there are all kinds of rules to follow, most of which involve a long list of things not to do.

3. Church is where Christians go on Sunday and if you don't go, you'd better be hospitalized or gravely ill.

4. Don't hang around people who don't go to church because they will be a bad influence on you.

5. Worship = Hymns (verses 1, 2 and 4) or Latin Songs that nobody understands.

Now this may all seem absurd to some of you, but how many of us are still living as if these "myths" are reality? For example, how many of us have meaningful relationships with people who aren't believers? Or how many feel that God takes attendance at church every Sunday and if you're not there, you'll be punished? And I'd venture to say that lots of believers say that they have a relationship with God, but still feel at times, really disconnected from Him.

I'm confessing now with a repentant heart that I do not believe these lies anymore. God is very near to my heart now, and having a relationship with Him isn't about what NOT to do, but rather how to ENJOY His love and all He can do through me. I missed church today, but still had fellowship with Him and other believers. I am intentional in developing relationships with those who don't yet know the love of Christ. And I know worship can involve singing, clapping, jumping (as demonstrated by the students at Passion!), or...watch out now...raising your hands! Who would have known?!

Psalm 100 (The Message)

A Thanksgiving Psalm

1-2 On your feet now—applaud God! Bring a gift of laughter,
sing yourselves into his presence.

3 Know this: God is God, and God, God.
He made us; we didn't make him.
We're his people, his well-tended sheep.

4 Enter with the password: "Thank you!"
Make yourselves at home, talking praise.
Thank him. Worship him.

5 For God is sheer beauty,
all-generous in love,
loyal always and ever.

Granite...finally!

New granite worktops installed! Yay!
And here's the undermount sink from eBay...just about $100! What a deal!

I Heart Goat Cheese!

I got this from Kathy and I really enjoy it. I've even made it for small group. So I thought I'd share! Hope you like it!


Chavrie & Pesto Dip

Take one package of Chavrie (spreadable goat cheese) and empty the entire contents onto a regular dinner plate. Spread it out around the plate to fill the base of the plate.
Next, take your pesto and empty the contents on top of the chavrie, spreading it out evenly to cover the chavrie.
Surround the entire mixture with Stacy's Pita Chips or Wheat Thins as desired. It's a great h'ors d'veure that not lots of people make. It's a perfect mix of smooth and crunchy! Enjoy!

PS: I've included pictures of the products so you can find them. The pesto is usually on the pasta aisle; the chavrie is with the hummus and exotic cheeses.