sin

Yesterday, hubby & I cleaned. Not just the normal, straighten-dust-done kind of cleaning. We did the start from scratch-wash everything-deep cleaning thing. Now, if you've ever been to my house, you know that this is a bit...well, rare. But things had gotten out of control. We were starting to misplace stuff, feel claustrophobic, and had stopped inviting people over. 

Who do you know who is a gracious stumbler?  No, I’m not talking physically, but in life.  Where are the role models for handling stumbles whether they be sin stumbles, failure stumbles (different than sin stumbles), mistake stumbles (again, different than sin stumbles) or any other kind of stumble? 

This past weekend my husband and I joined two other couples for a weekend away.  We live in different cities now,  but became friends a number of years ago when we all lived in Wheaton, Illinois.  Our assignment for the weekend was to read Unchristian by David Kinnaman and be prepared to discuss the book during the weekend.

Kinnaman’s conclusions based on extensive research reveal how younger generations tend to perceive christians as judgmental, unloving and too involved in politics.  These younger generations believe christians are hypocritical and inauthentic.

Most of us learned of Governor Sanford’s personal failure this week with a deep sense of sorrow, both for his family and for once again seeing the cause of Christ ridiculed as one of our own succumbed to temptation.  Yet, I trust that we were also warned in our spirit of similar temptation and dangers that confront us as well.

In II Cor 5:18-20 Paul reminds us that God has taken care of the problem of sin for the whole world and calls us to be ambassadors of that message to our world. To be honest, I tend to focus more on the prevalence of sin in the world rather than on the message of reconciliation I am to represent.   With a 24-hour news cycle there is always something to be alarmed about. I find it easy to slip into a critical and judgmental

It’s done. I’ve finished moving. Moving, but not unpacking. The end there may never be seen.  It’s been a tiring and daunting thing to pack up and move, but I have done something even more daring than just any plain ol’ move. I have moved in with my in-laws.

A few months ago I shared some of my favorite Christmas traditions including our family "Christmas Candles." Well, just in case the title didn't give it away, we also have Easter candles!

Something was wrong. I love to teach the bible, it is one of my favorite things. I enjoy diving into the text and context breathing a prayer that the Teacher will teach me, enlighten me, as to what the women I teach need to hear.   But this day, I began preparation of the week’s lesson and sensed in my spirit an inner resistance.  It was a hard message, an unpopular one, and a painful one. 

Last week my husband finally had the XM Radio, his birthday present from September, installed in his car.  In order to connect, I called the company to send an activation signal.   Along with the signal came instructions to 1) turn on the power 2) drive the car out of the garage 3) make sure there was a clear view of the sky so the signal could be received from the satellite.