Random thoughts from my brain to yours this week . . . have at them.
“Jesus for President” is one of the coolest books. I am thankful for our study group. The discussion has been awesome. Quotes that got me thinking:
“It is hard to imagine a gospel that is more of an antitheses of Jesus’ gospel and the Beatitudes than what we hear today in the church: “Blessed are the rich”; “Blessed are the troops”; “We will have no mercy on the evildoers.”
So are we saying the United States of America is not a Christian nation? The United States is Christian inasmuch as it looks like Christ.p174
The more the early Christians reflected on the life and message of their rabbi-messiah, and the more they tried to live the way of the gospel, the harder they collided with the state and its hopes and dreams, militaries and markets. In fact, Christians in those first few hundred years were called atheists because they no longer believed in the Roman gospel; they no longer had any faith in the state as savior of the world. p141
[John] did not simply argue that various aspects of the market exploit this or that; rather he placed his concerns in light of a cosmological struggle between right and wrong…is is possible we can’t see the destructiveness of our economy not because we don’t know it’s terrible but because deep down, we feel that it’s necessary and that therefore it’s hopeless to criticize it?p153
Restaurant chips and salsa are the bane of my diet, or should I say lack thereof? Following a close second are those chocolate covered coffee beans Sylvia brought to study group last Sunday. Ack! Although, I was able to beat my whole team in three games straight later that night at bowling league. Secret weapon? Hmmm.
There simply needs to be more time in a day so I can catch up on books. Of course, if I’d stop acquiring them, then I might actually do it in 24. Yeah, right.
Change is good. Change can hurt. Change is really the only constant in life. How’s that for an oxymoron? Nothing like living in THAT tension.
Looking forward to the CSM mission trip to Philly. I’ve got a feeling this is will be life-changing service in less than a month for all of us. They always are, anyways.
How can people refuse aid to help all the suffering in Myanmar? How horrible to be thirsty and have children suffering like that. What makes people refuse aid? I don’t get it. I just don’t get it.
Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly. Martin Luther King, Jr.
I got a bowling ball for Mother’s Day. The color is called “Black Raspberry”
I am reading a book now call, “The Gutter: Where Life is Meant to be Lived,” by Craig Gross What are my gutters? Where am I afraid to go that Jesus is calling me to go? Am I listening and following? I really do live in the Suburb desert. Gross. Quotes from that book:
“When I accepted Christ as my saviour, I was lifted out of the gutter, but I was not made better than those who remained.”
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“Don’t blame the dark for being dark. Blame the light for not shining on the dark.”
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“While the Church at large is great at telling people to avoid their gutters, I’ve found that this approach just doesn’t work anymore. … Things have changed, and people don’t do things just because they’re told to do them or because those things are expected of them. So we as a Church have to change our approach and get dirty. Modern Christians must take risks and get out of their comfortable pews and classrooms and do something for God. If we don’t, who will?”
From the Save Darfur website today: “Reports indicate that the government is detaining, torturing and killing Darfuris in and around Khartoum, and that janjaweed militias have commenced attacks in North Darfur. The international community must demand an immediate end to atrocities, speed up deployment of peacekeepers, and make clear to all sides that there is no violent solution to this conflict.”
I can’t stop thinking about the people of Darfur. I wonder if I am doing enough to help them. I know I am not. I am not sure what else to do. I would go to Sudan if I could swing it in a minute. (Now that’s something I would have never said a year ago.)
The green of spring trees and plans, the chartreuse of nature is my favorite color followed closely by the orange-red of fall. Nobody does it better than God in nature. Nobody.
Goal: Debt-free in 5 years. Goal: Look for something else to do with my life in 5 years besides feed the corporate machine.
Storms of spring this year bring a rollercoaster of emotion. Betrayal. Bitterness. Joy. Love. Heartbreak. Depression. Happiness. Purpose. Shame. Wait a minute, it will change again. Funny thing about riding a rollercoaster is that if I stick my arms up in the air and scream, no one will really know if it is fear, pain or joy. I am not looking forward to Wednesday night.
I want to design a shirt from a saying I saw in Chicago. It said, “Social Justice isn’t Just for Rock Stars.”
UMCOR, UNICEF, Darfur….a dollar. All for world aid stand up and holler!
I bought a hand bag today that is so big that I could cut two holes in it and stick it on my head all the way and wear it like a mask, but it’s GREEN. The only thing that frightens me a little is that I can truly stick ¾ of my arm in it digging around. I wonder if clerks think I’m going to pull a rabbit out of it?
I owe both my sponsor children Stella in Tanzania and Betty in Uganda letters and pictures. I have to get that done by Saturday. Jeez, I used to be much better at writing letters before the internet and email.
Wayne finally went with Kevin to a pawn shop and picked up the most beautiful abalone shell inlaid blue guitar. I am jealous. I want to learn to play it too!
We must not allow ourselves to become like the system we oppose. Bishop Desmond Tutu
The Lord will give strength unto his people; the Lord will bless his people with peace..
- Psalms 29:11
Ohana,
Here is a paragraph from Jesus for President that really chokes me up:
“In times of war, our leaders always speak of their prayers. They wish us to know that they say prayers because they wish us to believe that they are deeply worried and that they take their responsibilities seriously. Perhaps they believe or hope that prayer will help. But within the circumstances of war, prayer becomes a word as befuddled in meaning as liberate or order or victory or peace. These prayers are usually understood to be Christian prayers. But Christian prayers are made to or in the name of Jesus, who loved, prayed for, and forgave his enemies and who instructed his followers to do likewise. A Christian supplicant, therefore, who has resolved to kill those whom he is enjoined to love, to bless, to do good to, to pray for, and to forgive as he hopes to be forgiven is not conceivably in a situation in which he can be at peace with himself. Anyone who has tried to apply this doctrine to a merely personal enmity will be aware of the enormous anguish that it could cause a national leader in wartime. No wonder that national leaders have ignored it for nearly two thousand years.”
Very Powerful Statement. Jesus for President is the most thought-provoking book I’ve read this year…in several years. Thank you for leading the book study group.
Luv ya,
Ohana
ye says : I absolutely agree with this !