Rachie, this blog is dedicated to you...
I loved that term when i was studying communication. The term means that a person holds two beliefs or ideas that are conflicting. I have felt it for a long time when it comes to the economics of my life. Live like Mother Theresa, or the California dream. Rachel brought me a few fun things when she came(like reeses peanut butter cups!), and one of the items was a new that was just released by a man named Shane Clairborne. He basically wrote a book about how he came to live in this program called the "Simple Way". They are revolutionary in their honest aaproach to following Jesus. I can't go into details but basically the book is bringing me back to the dissonance that has rested in the back of my mind for years. I remember when i wanted to spend a year homeless in the streets of San Francisco (Ashlee, stop laughing). Or the just the fact that I came down here. I just feel so uncomfortable with the life that the American Church seems to exult. The minivan, the nice house, the whole thing. Not there is anything wrong with these things in particular (mom, I am not saying that salvation rests on the lack of a minivan), but there is this picture of what the right Christian family looks like. How many of us have an extra room in our house labelled the Guest Room? Why not invite a homeless granny to live there? How many of us invite the hungry kids off the street and bring them over for dinner? My heart is breaking because I know that I don't. There are so many people suffering out there, and where are the arms of Christ? Where are the Christians? Where have I been hiding all these years. Yeah, I can make excuses of myself, we all can, but those excuses are not really what is stopping us. Really, we are just ocmfortable. I am not saying that every Christian needs to live a homeless life. But...
Shane brings up a good point in his book. In John 3 Jesus says that we must be born again to enter the kingdom of God. And we believers like to quote that. But Jesus also says that we must sell all our possesions and follow him. I could go off on this, but for the sake of your sanity, I will bring this to a close. Besides, at this point I have probably already offended a few of you, and I will be expecting a phone call from my mom who wants to make sure her oldest daughter has not gone fanatical. I am just convicted, thats all. And please don't pull out Romans 14 and tell me that some people are called to be convicted on different things, becuase the CHURCH is COMMANDED to love the poor widow and orphans. So before we head off to Starbucks and pay $5 for a Vanilla Latte, think about that. Maybe grab the homeless lady off the street and take her with you. And check out the book (Irresistable Revolution), if you have the guts to read it.
"How can we worship a homeless man on Sunday, and ignore one on Monday?"
I loved that term when i was studying communication. The term means that a person holds two beliefs or ideas that are conflicting. I have felt it for a long time when it comes to the economics of my life. Live like Mother Theresa, or the California dream. Rachel brought me a few fun things when she came(like reeses peanut butter cups!), and one of the items was a new that was just released by a man named Shane Clairborne. He basically wrote a book about how he came to live in this program called the "Simple Way". They are revolutionary in their honest aaproach to following Jesus. I can't go into details but basically the book is bringing me back to the dissonance that has rested in the back of my mind for years. I remember when i wanted to spend a year homeless in the streets of San Francisco (Ashlee, stop laughing). Or the just the fact that I came down here. I just feel so uncomfortable with the life that the American Church seems to exult. The minivan, the nice house, the whole thing. Not there is anything wrong with these things in particular (mom, I am not saying that salvation rests on the lack of a minivan), but there is this picture of what the right Christian family looks like. How many of us have an extra room in our house labelled the Guest Room? Why not invite a homeless granny to live there? How many of us invite the hungry kids off the street and bring them over for dinner? My heart is breaking because I know that I don't. There are so many people suffering out there, and where are the arms of Christ? Where are the Christians? Where have I been hiding all these years. Yeah, I can make excuses of myself, we all can, but those excuses are not really what is stopping us. Really, we are just ocmfortable. I am not saying that every Christian needs to live a homeless life. But...
Shane brings up a good point in his book. In John 3 Jesus says that we must be born again to enter the kingdom of God. And we believers like to quote that. But Jesus also says that we must sell all our possesions and follow him. I could go off on this, but for the sake of your sanity, I will bring this to a close. Besides, at this point I have probably already offended a few of you, and I will be expecting a phone call from my mom who wants to make sure her oldest daughter has not gone fanatical. I am just convicted, thats all. And please don't pull out Romans 14 and tell me that some people are called to be convicted on different things, becuase the CHURCH is COMMANDED to love the poor widow and orphans. So before we head off to Starbucks and pay $5 for a Vanilla Latte, think about that. Maybe grab the homeless lady off the street and take her with you. And check out the book (Irresistable Revolution), if you have the guts to read it.
"How can we worship a homeless man on Sunday, and ignore one on Monday?"
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