Worship

So I'm reading a book called Life Together.  It's been an interesting take on a lot of things.  One thing I found really interesting about it was the section on how to worship.  He talked about how reading psalms is a part of singing songs, and how we should incorporate them into every session.  That we should spend time in the morning and at night to sing to God.  He also talked about how singing songs is just a way to unite.  It is the combination of all voices coming together to say the same things.  Words are so important, and they are the only thing that separates us from everything else.  It allows us to communicate to God, and it's amazing to think that singing is just a way to combine ourselves.  Unity can be a huge part with worship.

Make Art

So I went to the Willow Creek Leadership Summit and a man named Seth Godin talked a lot about creativity.  About how society has made us to be a "cookie-cutter" mold of people.  We are meant to be nobody so they can ignore us and move on.  God has created us all to be somebody and it is truly by embracing the things that make us different do we see how God is working in our lives.  We need to constantly strive to create new things, to find things that bother us and to change them.  To go hard and not look back.  Understanding that when we fail, it is just an opportunity to learn something no one else knows.  We should not fear failure, but embrase it and look forward to it.  It can teach us many things.

This coupled with another talk about the power of God have just truly motivated my heart.  He talked about Elisha and how he said that filling ditches without rain or anything would be an easy task for the Lord.  How often do we insult God with our prayers for such small things.  I want to be a man known for his reckless faith, who prays for crazy things and actually believes God will do something amazing.  He is just waiting for us to dig the ditches and to pray and earnestly seek him.  I know God is going to do amazing things here in Founders this year, and I can't wait to see how God unfolds his Vision for all the RD's, RA's and to the students.  I believe God will unify us, and if he doesn't we'll try again next year.  We cannot stop till God truly comes through and changes our lives and the lives' of everyone around us.  Redemption is one of God's favorite things; God redeem Bethel and founders.  We need you to move, and I believe you will.  Use me, use the other RA's to work together to get where we need to be.  Teach us and move in us.  Allow it to not be about me, nor about others, but about true glorification of God here.  We are waiting and praying God.  Do something amazing!

Both of these are working together to have a profound impact on me trying to be creative and working towards what God is doing.  To try new things and to strive to make art.  To make something beautiful for Christ.  Let's change the world!

Peace...

I'm dealing a lot with my view on "just war."  I wonder if there is such a thing.  I mean I see how the Old Testament is ridden with war, but I wonder how Jesus' teaching deals with that.  It seems that we have just lost some of our creativity, and that we need to redefine terms like Jesus always did.  The best way to disarm violence is to surprise it.  When sued for our coat, surprise them by giving them more than they asked.  Surprise them, and expose their greed.  It is amazing that when we get creative how different things really can be.  I pray that I can become a creative genius.  I've never thought myself to be very creative, but Lord knows that I what I want to become.  I pray God will continue to develop things in me to teach me how to come at situations differently than anyone has ever done.  I need God to open things up to my mind.  I pray that I will never settle for just reacting, but that my life would truly be seen as "namaste."  It means to see God in someone.  That my life would continually be seen as Jesus.  I want my love to surpass all things, and my grace to be unending.  God I need you to fill me, to guide and direct me, present yourself to me in new ways so that I can understand more, and share more.  I want to see you in all the areas of my life God, I'm so tired of wanting it and not finishing.  I am on my way, but I'm not even close.  I'm afraid to pray this prayer, but God I know I need to be humbled, and I need to feel desperation.  I pray that you would send me, take me, move in me in ways that make me understand you more fully, so that I can cope and understand others better.  I don't know what I need, but you do, and I pray that you would rain down on me.  To use your chisel, and to knock me off so hard that I never get back to it.  Make my life about your love, and who you are, not how I'll look, or who I am.  I want to give it all to you, I'm offering it all right now, don't let me take my word back.  Even when it's hard and I'm exhausted, I need to find you.  Build more character in me, refine me, mold me God.  I desire you, and only you.  Thank you God.

Economics

So, I've been reading a book called Irresistible Revolution by Shane Claiborne, and God is doing something in my heart.  I'm so amazed by the thinking process he is taking me through.  To challenge charity, generosity, economy, everything really.  Looking at how things are done, and how we maintain richness, and poverty.  Learning how to go beyond just teaching someone how to fish, how do we go take over the pond we fish from.  How can we defeat the grip of money on us?  He talks about how they trade and barter different things, like time, resources, giftings to help one another out.

I have lived my whole life trying to sustain myself, to not "need others."  I have been missing out on one of the most important functions of the church.  I am not meant to live in a way where I am sustaining myself, I need to live in a community that sustains me.  While I can learn different things to share, they will share with me what I need.  I want to live like that.  How can I move into a place where I live interdependently?  I want to give God everything I have, and I want to take what he has blessed me with to others.  I want to live in a way that honors God, and that allows me to experience life together.  I'm tired of the needless and pointlessness of our Christianity today.  I want something more, I want to follow the Way.

I don't want to just copy what Shane is doing either though.  I want to incorporate things he does into things I already know, and I want to continue learning about the subject of community and loving one another.  I am excited to see how God works all these things out in my life trying to unite the Church.  Go Jesus!