Crazy!

It is highly unusual for me to post two blog articles in one day! I also don't really like copying and pasting things into the blog that aren't mine, but this is too good to hold back from you lot. Enjoy it + be inspired by it! Another lesson in simplicity..

"How to Explain God" was written by Danny Dutton, age 8, from Chula Vista, California, for his third grade homework assignment: "Explain God" The following piece was published in Christianity Today:

"One of God's main jobs is making people. He makes them to replace the ones that die so there will be enough people to take care of things on earth. He doesn't make grown-ups, just babies. I think because they are smaller and easier to make. That way He doesn't have to take up His valuable time teaching them to talk and walk. He can just leave that to mothers and fathers.
"God's second most important job is listening to prayers. An awful lot of this goes on, since some people, like preachers and things, pray at times besides bedtime. God doesn't have time to listen to the radio or TV because of this. Because He hears everything, there must be a terrible lot of noise in His ears, unless He has thought of a way to turn it off.
"God sees everything and hears everything and is everywhere which keeps Him pretty busy. So you shouldn't go wasting His time by going over your mum and dad's head asking for something they said you couldn't have.
"Atheists are people who don't believe in God. I don't think there are any in Chula Vista. At least there aren't any who come to our church.
"Jesus is God's Son. He used to do all the hard work like walking on water and performing miracles and trying to teach the people who didn't want to learn about God. They finally got tired of Him preaching to them and they crucified Him. But He was good and kind, like His Father and He told His Father that they didn't know what they were doing and to forgive them and God said okay. His Dad (God) appreciated everything that He had done and all His hard work on earth so He told Him He didn't have to go out on the road anymore. He could stay in heaven. So He did. And now He helps His Dad out by listening to prayers and seeing things which are important for God to take care of and which ones He can take care of Himself without having to bother God. Like a secretary, only more important.
“You can pray anytime you want and they are sure to help you because they got it worked out so one of them is on duty all the time.
"You should always go to Church on Sunday because it makes God happy, and if there's anybody you want to make happy, it's God. Don't skip church to do something you think will be more fun like going to the beach. This is wrong. And besides the sun doesn't come out at the beach until noon anyway.
"If you don't believe in God, besides being an atheist, you will be very lonely, because your parents can't go everywhere with you, like to camp, but God can. It is good to know He's around you when you're scared in the dark or when you can't swim and you get thrown into real deep water by big kids. But you shouldn't just always think of what God can do for you. I figure God put me here and He can take me back anytime He pleases. And that's why I believe in God.”

Just like the wee kiddos.

So, after a brief break from Facebook I have (a little reluctantly) reactivated my account. What a terrible idea. I've just spent the past 2 hours trying to fix the stupid new timeline 'activity log' so that my privacy is the way I want it to be. Okay okay, I did spend a bit of time choosing a new 'cover picture' (a lovely close-up picture of daisies in my back garden, for those of you who are interested)...and yes, it does look kinda cool...

In the quest for the perfect cover picture, I looked through every single one of my photo albums and came across pictures from the prayer room in church last year. We had a wee kids corner set up with loads of paints and crayons and markers and fun foamy sticky things that they could use to create pretty pictures. When I cleared the prayer room out it was so sad to have to take their wee works of art down, and I couldn't bear to throw it all out...some of it was SO profound. These kids were tiny, and to be quite honest, I was astounded by the depth of the simplicity of the things they had written and painted and drawn.

So you can probably read the wee white thought bubble that says "Thank you Lord" in the bottom right hand corner. But on the green spiky sticky foam bubble at the top, it says "It has started". WOAH. Is that not just incredible?! How did that little brain come out with something like that?! 

"At that time the disciples came up and asked Jesus, Who then is [really] the greatest in the kingdom of heaven? And He called a little child to Himself and put him in the midst of them, and said, Truly I say to you, unless you repent (change, turn about) and become like little children [trusting, lowly, loving, forgiving], you can never enter the kingdom of heaven [at all].." - Matthew 18:1-3

I like the way the Amplified Bible describes little children: trusting, lowly, loving and forgiving. Us old people can learn so much from kids...their simplicity is just beautiful.

Simplicity

Studying theology over the past 2.5 years has been a challenging and eye-opening experience. My faith has not been watered down - but I have found myself becoming more mellow. I have always been quietly critical of how theology is done in churches and with individuals, but these days I'm realising the importance of getting back to basics. I think that people have a tendency to complicate Christianity with their theologies - I'm starting to realise that faith is much more simple than we ever could imagine, but probably the most difficult (and therefore rewarding) journey that we will ever embark on. I'm not saying that preachers and teachers should dumb things down - people aren't stupid. In fact, I think that people are ready and eager to know more. But fancy sounding spiritual language and new fangled theologies (in my opinion) only divide and exclude people. Theology is awesome and I absolutely love learning about different thinkers - both ancient and brand new - but in order to actually, properly, passionately live out this faith, I think we need to let go of some of the theological baggage we've accumulated and just walk with Christ. Theological babble won't change the world, and theology won't save your soul.

scary stuff

Something that is really astounding me these days is how quickly time passes...and how quickly I seem to waste my time. A few months ago I applied to go on a charity trip to Uganda, and in 2 weeks time, I'll be on my way there. Gulp. (I feel far more inadequate for the task now than I did when applying for it. Hence the 'gulp'!) A few years ago, I started going out with this silly boy that I quite liked and i've found it amazing how much your love can grow for someone over such a (relatively) short period of time. Okay, okay, soppy I know...but it really does make me go WOW inside.

Another thing that is astounding (and kind of frustrating) is that I'm pretty sure I'm more focused on my future than my present. I've decided that I'd quite like to teach RE to secondary school kids when I've got my wee theology degree, and it makes me so excited that I think about it quite a lot. I also think about who (if anybody) I'll be with (well I know who I'd like to be with), where I'll live (somewhere in England probably), what school I'll teach in, whether I'll have a cottage or an apartment, whether I'll earn enough to be able to buy said cottage/apartment, whether I'll actually make a difference to the lives of the students I'll teach...

It's terrible. Well, it's good to dream but you know what they say about too much of a good thing. It actually feels like my present is being snatched from under my nose by my future. And that's definitely not a good thing because in missing the present, we miss all the beauty of all the moments we find ourselves in right here, right now.

So I'm making it my mission - not to forget completely about the future, because the endless possibilities drive me to be the best I can be - but to fix my focus on the step I'm on right now, and to appreciate the light that God shines on each one, one at a time :)

Care to join me?

Northern Irish politics + why it's bothering me.

I'm at a place right now where a few things are frustrating me. Not just a wee silly frustration, I mean a deeply rooted in your soul frustration. One such thing is the political state of this country.

I've been ranting at people about this for a few days now (poor Stuart getting the most of it), but I just feel the need to get it out there and see what other people think, cos me and Stu tend to agree about a lot of political issues :)

So, up until recently I would have regarded myself as a Unionist. Not a hard core loyalist Orangewoman kind of Unionist...more like a 'yeah, i quite like the fact we're in the UK' kind of Unionist. A very slightly off centre stance. So what's changed my mind? Well, politicians have had a bit to do with it, but the main thing has been the hardcore followers of Unionist parties (the DUP in particular). Obviously, the leaders of those parties aren't going to live forever. People will have to take their places at some stage, and when they do take over, the future of Northern Ireland will depend on them. That scares the life out of me, because current leaders seem quite happy to work alongside parties with opposing political/religious/cultural views...but the young people who will be the future of this country seem to be so incredibly marinated in their own narrow-minded views that they just point blank refuse to have anything to do with 'the other side'. It's absolutely ridiculous, and I can't stand it. I realise that scores of people were killed and injured and hurt by the troubles, and I can't even begin to imagine how hard it would be to be affected by it all...i know it's easy for me to say this, because I haven't been affected by any of it, but for this country to move on, do we not have to move on from the troubles and who has the right to march where and who was involved in what bombings? We are in 2011, post-recession, where taxes are rising and public spending is falling. Should it matter whether the Orangemen aren't allowed to walk down a stretch of road, or whether a Sinn Fein party member is representing a certain part of the country? As young people who have lived in a relatively peaceful Northern Ireland, should we not be more concerned about how we're going to make this country the best possible place to live for ourselves and the next generation? I realise I'm focusing my argument at the Unionists here, but honestly, I'm ashamed to even consider myself a Unionist now. Tom Elliot didn't make things any better with his statement the other day, referring to Sinn Fein as 'scum'. No more blue and red for me, I'm flying the flag for yellow because nothing will ever get done in NI until we accept what happened in the past and keep on moving on.

And this is where God comes in. My story of being completely put off my own political stance by the people representing it in my generation lies parallel to the stories I hear daily of people being put off Jesus because of others who are supposed to be representing Him. When we strip it down and get back to basics...are we being Christ or being cliquey, hypocritical Christians? Are we representing Christ well or are we just talking the talk? Are we even representing Him at all? Gandhi made one of the most challenging, profound and heartbreaking statements ever when he said: "I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ."

Just some food for thought.

why i love tearfund #2

So, we've seen how important integral mission is, but that raises quite a big question: how exactly should a charity with integral mission at its heart function?

Charity is a very worthwhile thing, but it can also be really frustrating. People give money so that others can get money - but this is only a temporary solution for those living in developing countries. The money will eventually run out, yes. But an even more important issue arises when thinking of the people receiving the money. Just like you and me, they're human. And just like you and me, they want to be able to provide for themselves. They want to work at whatever they can do so that they can set food on the table for their families. How does giving really provide for that need? I guess it can be explained in a simple analogy. Some give fish to eat, others give nets so people can catch the fish to eat. What will last longer? The net of course. When I was a bit younger, I became completely obsessed with The Fairtrade Foundation. Why? Because I saw that it focused on the long-term - it was something that could really work and change lives for the better. Tearfund have the same sort of long-term view on aid as the Fairtrade Foundation do. But, as a Christian organisation with integral mission at the heart of everything they do, Tearfund have come up with a pretty ingenious way of operating.

How they do it is simple. They don't want to send a bunch of foreigners in to try to change things - there are people there already who have a passion to see things turned around! So who would work best? Yep, you've guessed it - the Church. So basically, Tearfund offers to support local churches (financially and prayerfully), who are right in the very heart of the situation, know the specific needs of their communities, and who can then provide for their spiritual, emotional and physical needs. It's awesome :)

Watch this video and look at the hope that has been given. All of it happened through us praying and giving so that the church could be empowered to help those in the most desperate situations. It's all about relationships, and even though we aren't there in the thick of it, we get to be a part of it :)

You know, the Church has always been a little disheartening for me. There seem to be new denominations emerging everywhere I turn, meaning more division over petty theological issues that in reality, probably don't even matter that much. Tearfund gives me hope :) it shows me that this wee inward looking Western church that we all seem to be so attached to can actually be a part of something bigger - the global church! It gives me glimpse of something even bigger still...the Kingdom of God in action.

why i love tearfund #1

These next few posts will focus on something I'm really passionate about. It's all aboutTearfund, a charity that I really honestly believe can (and will) change the world, and I want you to be passionate about the things that Tearfund believes in and fights for. It's worthwhile and biblical and life-changing...

Integral mission. Ever heard of it? No? Read this explanation of what it is:

"Integral mission or holistic transformation is the proclamation and demonstration of the gospel.It is not simply that evangelism and social involvement are to be done alongside each other. Rather, in integral mission our proclamation has social consequences as we call people to love and repentance in all areas of life. And our social involvement has evangelistic consequences as we bear witness to the transforming grace of Jesus Christ. If we ignore the world, we betray the word of God which sends us out to serve the world. If we ignore the word of God, we have nothing to bring to the world. Justice and justification by faith, worship and political action, the spiritual and the material, personal change and structural change belong together. As in the life of Jesus, being, doing and saying are at the heart of our integral task." -http://www.micahnetwork.org/en/integral-mission/micah-declaration

Integral mission is something that's really been challenging me lately and a cause that I firmly believe in. Why so often do we separate spiritual needs from physical needs? Why do we sometimes place one over the other? I guess for a lot of people this is a sticky subject and it raises the question of what the heart of mission should be. I've become a bit of a Tearfund freak over the past few months, and integral mission is something that they strongly advocate and practice. I guess I like them so much because honestly, it seems to me like they've cracked integral mission. They feed stomachs with nutritious food and souls with the amazing life-changing news of Jesus Christ. Yup, that's what it's all about :)