Sunday Reflections on Church

Old Church in Dunlap, Missouri, via Robert Huffstutter 

I grew up in a hippy home church. Well, that's how I like to describe it. Just a handful of us coming together to sing hand-clapping, foot-stomping, praise songs. I learned so much from growing up in the home church environment and from an early age, I understood what living a Christian life was and how to do it practically.

When I moved to California in 2010, Kurt and I began looking for a church to attend together. Besides a youth group I'd attended at another church, it was my first time venturing away from my non-denominational home church roots. It was tough for me. I quickly discovered that my biggest battle was against my own judgementalness (why isn't that word?).

I found myself sitting in church with tears running down my face, mainly out of my own frustration with not knowing how to process the experience. I'd never recited the Nicene or Apostles' Creed, only sung a handful of hymns and didn't understand why pastors wore robes. But that wasn't the main thing I noticed; I noticed that I despised these things even though I'd never experienced them and didn't understand them. Perhaps I despised them for those very reasons.

I was also frustrated at myself for allowing church to be the place I was most judgmental. Why did I categorize so much of what I saw as "silly"? Was I just insecure about my lack of knowledge or did I really think deep-down that something about these things was wrong?

I've come to realize it was a lot of the first and a little of the latter.

I started, as many non-believers do, at the beginning: by doing research to discover the reasoning behind the things the church does and whether there's truth to them. I'm still not a fan of pastors wearing robes or Christians wearing their denomination's symbol as a pin on their Sunday best, but I have grown to love and appreciate many other aspects of a more traditional church. 

Hymns, for example, have revolutionized my Christian walk. I still have difficulty singing them and wish I didn't have to rely so heavily on the hymnal, but that's nothing in light of how they've impacted my life over the last two years.

I love that hymns don't try to match our ever-changing culture. They weren't created to please the young person or draw non-believers in, they were written to bring glory and honor to Whom it's due. Reading hymn lyrics and learning the stories behind them has really taught me to love them. They are so rich and have much to offer musically, lyrically and historically. Their beauty resembles the beauty of the King I serve, their lyrics speak deep Christian truths and their history reminds me of the body of Christ that I'm part of. Trust and Obey, Be Still My Soul and Abide With Me, are three of my favorites.

I'm not exactly sure why I sat down to write this post. I suppose I wanted to say that being judgmental really stunts spiritual growth. I'm still learning this daily, but I'm so happy I am. And I also want to say, that despite many failings on the church's part throughout history, that there's still a lot to be proud of and to learn from it. We shouldn't throw the baby out with the bath water when it comes to tradition. We're a part of something bigger than ourselves - an eternal community - that's rich and powerful.

Michaela Rae

I Married a Visionary, What Now?

I love and often aspire to my husband's enthusiasm for life. I think it's one of the most attractive traits a person can possess. I often tell Kurt he's like a little kid, he finds awe in the simple beautiful things in life, things I often overlook. He's also never short on ideas. One week he's talking about moving to South Haven, Michigan to start a Bible college and the next he's google mapping the best location to open a Subway restaurant. On the radar this week? Having an orchard. This one's my personal favorite. When I asked Kurt if he was ok with me writing this post, he said, "Yeah of course, maybe someone will want to invest." (I have no idea which project he was referring to.)

I've heard it said, that the very things you fall in love with can often become the ones that rub you the wrong way. And over this first year of marriage I've found that saying true at times. Amid Kurt's excitement for life and its possibilities, I've found myself trying to take on the roll of bringing earth to Kurt. I haven't enjoyed it, but I've felt it necessary for some reason. After all, life isn't rainbows and butterflies all the time. There's possible failure around every corner. Right?

Yikes, well that reveals a little too much about me. Let's go there anyway. Yes, I'm one of those people who's too hard on themselves. Sometimes I'm so afraid of failure that I don't even try. Thinking on this, I'm reminded of the Martha and Mary story in the Bible. The problem wasn't that Martha wanted to cook Jesus a nice meal, it was that she thought it'd be the end of the world if the bread was burnt. My point is, I too often mistake the tree for the forest.

Thankfully, I've been blessed enough to marry a man who loves the forest and he's always trying to find a new tree to climb.

So this week I've been asking myself some pointed questions. Do I trust God? Do I trust my husband? Do I believe God wants us to enjoy life? Will it be the end of the world if a business venture fails? What does it mean to "build each other up"? What is my role as Kurt's wife?

One thing's become clear: I need to relax. It isn't my job to be Kurt's disciplinary. That's God's job and I'm pretty sure he doesn't want me to usurp it. Certainly Kurt and I should hold each other accountable, but we should also encourage and spur each other on! That's when we flourish. That's why marriage is so beautiful, it's about partnership and commitment even in the face of failure. It's a reminder of Jesus's commitment to us.

Jesus didn't come to earth, die for our sins and promise us eternal life for us to sit on our couch all day, too afraid to adventure. He's called us to climb trees, to have a child-like spirit, and to believe in ourselves. God likes it when we take risks.

Kurt pinching my button nose as he always does.

Michaela Rae

Does God Exist Debate

Methodist Central Hall

This week I attended a debate titled, Does God Exist?. Arguing for the existence of God was William Lane Craig. You may have heard of him; he's a well known philosopher, theologian and apologist. I'd met him a couple of times and Kurt took a class with him at Biola. Philosopher Stephen Law, argued against God's existence. It was my first time going to a debate and I found it really intriguing. I want to share a few after-thoughts on the whole thing.

I think Christians are often turned off by the idea of debating, especially when the debate is about Christianity. I myself was a bit skeptical of it's proper place (if any) when I first met Kurt. Kurt's passionate about apologetics and would tell me about different debates he attended or had read. It puzzled me at first because I think as Christians we often feel we're treading on thin ice. We know we're called to witness and that in doing so it's extremely important to rightly represent Christ. This responsibility can be really intimidating! I, and I'm sure others, am often concerned that I'll offend or push away non-believers if I don't witness in just the right way. It's true that some people respond to certain types of witnessing better than others. But I've found myself trying to run an analysis on each person I meet in order to determine which type of witnessing approach I should take - direct, kind of direct, or very indirect (through example). The truth is, I often spend so much time trying to figure out how I should witness that I never actually witness (directly that is). I'm only left to wonder/hope that my example left some sort of impression.

If there's one thing I was reminded of by attending the debate, it's that people want their biggest questions directly addressed (the enormous Methodist Central Hall was completely packed). And this has been the case for thousands of years. The disciples spent a lot of time directly addressing concerns regarding Christianity and defending it (think Paul, and Luke 1:1-4). What makes that even more impressive, is that the disciples didn't have access to some of the information we have today, say the New Testament, for example. Yes, they'd seen Jesus' work with their own eyes (which I'm sure was a huge source of motivation), but we also have the completed Bible and thousands of years of historical evidence at our finger tips. Not to mention, the Holy Spirit to empower us.

Perhaps growing up in Bible-belt South had a poor effect on me in that I didn't realize the importance of being able to "give a defense" for the hope I have (1 Peter 3:15). Perhaps the world in general has become pre-occupied with tip-toeing around everyones' "raw spots." Perhaps we don't really believe there are good answers to whether or not the universe has an infinite existence or why animals die in wild fires every year. Maybe Christians are just lazy. Or are we afraid of learning; do we think we're incapable of knowing (certainly not everything can be known, but a lot can, that's how God created us)? Do we blame it on lack of time?? That'd be absurd.

These are some things I'm thinking about. I'd love to hear your thoughts as well.

I'll leave you with this fitting verse, 1 Peter 3:14-16.

But even if you should suffer for righteousness’ sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. 

MJ

Link up to my sister's Try New Adventures blog post with your adventure this week.

P.S. I gave my blog a bit of a face-lift for fall :-). What do you think?