6/4/2019 2 Comments Get Ready!Here's a short one for you. In preparation for our weekend at Olmstead, which you all should attend, think about what it means to have an outward mindset. Initially, you may think that's easy; care for the world and think less of yourselves. Take a second more and deeply ponder what it really means to you. How can you implement that in your lives? What does this actually look like in a typical Christian's life?
In a pre-college essay competion I was asked to write on the subject of faith integration in learning. Easy, I thought. Look at the world through God's eyes. Love others in our work. Seek to do God's will. However, as my time progressed and I became slightly wiser and more worldly, I learned that there is so much more to life. The way we live out our faith is much more complex than the simple words we use to describe our actions. Love. Well, what all is involved in love? Believe. What grounds our beliefs? Looking back, I wrote a pretty superficial essay. But then again, what is college if not for learning! With this in mind, take a moment and think what an outward mindset looks like in your life. Share some thoughts with us and we'll use the ideas to direct our discussions at the retreat.
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5/11/2019 0 Comments Wells You did not DigI attended a college graduation ceremony this morning. Side comment: Praise God for a beautiful day to gather together to celebrate the good works of his people. It was a gorgeous morning with a wonderful message to the graduates and to the families and friends as well. The commencement speaker used verses from Deuteronomy 6 as the basis for his speech.
10 When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, to give you—a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build, 11 houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide, wells you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves you did not plant—then when you eat and are satisfied,12 be careful that you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. In this passage, we read that as Israel is traversing to the Promised Land, they are promised a multitude of blessings which they did not work for. They did not plant the seeds, dig the wells, build the structures. They were blessed because of their ancestors and what the Lord had done. The message to the graduates was to remember the foundation which previous generations had built. The sages which taught, the parents which nurtured, the friends which supported; they all set forth what the graduates needed to build upon for success. The graduates were told to remember with gratitude what had been done just as the Israelites were to remember their ancestors. A second point was to think of how they could lay the foundation for the generations to come; to plant more seeds, dig more wells, and share God's blessings. When we think of what we can do as Unstoppable, we should consider these two messages. Rather than thinking, "It's too hard. The problems won't be solved in our life times. This won't make a difference," we should remember the efforts of the women before and consider how small acts of kindness and love can make a difference in the lives of future young women. Dig wells for them. What wells in your life were dug by your ancestors and are flourishing today? 4/15/2019 0 Comments Sons and Daughters Sons of man. Daughters of Zion. Brothers and sisters. Children of God. How many ways can we describe our relationship to God and to each other? A few weekends ago I listened to a sermon about the Prodigal Son (Luke 15). What struck me this time as I listened was the pastor's use of "prodigal sons and daughters." In this day and age we are striving to be inclusive and politically correct so as to leave no one out. Some Bible translators have tried to do this by including "sons and daughters" instead of simply "sons." For some time, I had no problem with this. It helped to clarify that we were all included. “‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’” (Luke 15: 31-32, NIV) Then I was in a Bible study one morning which changed my perspective completely. In this particular study we were discussing inheritance. In the parable of the Prodigal Son, the sons will receive an inheritance or a portion of their father's wealth. Why does he receive this? He is a son. Culturally, the sons received the wealth. This is the point that my study leader brought up. She said that she does not want to be a Prodigal Daughter. Daughters, sorry, you're not as important as the sons when it comes down to dividing up the estate. You need to be a son to gain the inheritance. There is immense meaning in the terminology "Prodigal Son." It is more than a gender identifier. Yes, it is talking about a male son in the parable, and yes, "son" also refers to all of us, however "son" develops the theme of inheritance. Placing our contemporary views of gender equality in place of the original text is to cloud the message.
Am I saying Bible translators are wrong, no, not necessarily. Rather, I believe we need to be cognizant of the cultural context to more fully understand the truth that God is bringing to us through his Word. Unstoppable young women, we are sons of God--we will inherit the Kingdom of God and God's blessings so long as we trust in Him and follow his teachings. Hold fast to this truth as we live each day for the Lord. 3/31/2019 0 Comments Strong ties and weak tiesEvery day at lunch I quickly finish my sandwich and fruit, and then delve into the next great book. This time is precious and I savor every minute of my half-hour break. I've been reading through The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg. I would encourage you all to read it sometime. Habits are habitual (brilliant idea!), so I was not aware how influential the subconscious patterns of my life were in shaping who I am and what I do.
The chapter which struck me the most as I think of the goals of Unstoppable included an analysis of the Montgomery Bus Boycott through the lens of habits. How was Rosa Parks able to initiate change through her one act of rebellion? How did she use her voice to reach thousands? Duhigg identifies the underlying forces as "strong ties and weak ties." Parks had her close-knit group of friends who supported her, but she also gained the support of the man across town whom she had never met. She had "strong ties" with her friends; these folks would help her at the drop of hat. The man across town, let's call him Dave, was a "weak tie", a sort of friend of a friend. Dave may not have come running to help Rosa Parks if she called him, however, if there were a friend in need, say Rob, then Dave would be there. If Rob supported Rosa Parks, there's a good chance that Dave would step up and stand by Rob. This is how Rosa Parks was able to start a movement. Passion passed from Rosa Parks, to her strong ties, to her weak ties, and pretty soon, there was a multitude of individuals fighting together. Had Rosa Parks solely relied on her friends, there's a good chance her influence would have piddled out quickly. As Unstoppables, we strive to reach our communities and also our world. With that being said, and thinking of Rosa Parks, if we work only in the small group that we are, we're not going to make it. We may help a small portion of our world, and that is wonderful, but if we want to grow our influence, we need help. We need the boldness to share our visions with our friends so that they may carry our voice to their circles. That's what I hope we can do here. We are friends, sisters in Christ, fellow ambassadors. Share with one another your passions and let us help you to change the world! What's on your heart today? 3/26/2019 0 Comments Have Ideas? |
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