God. Our. Sins. Paying. Everyone. Life.

Life in 6 Words by Propaganda
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ymfh6RJezQ4&feature=share&list=ULYmfh6RJezQ4

A great video explaining the Gospel. Watch it!

Unvisited Tombs

“But the effect of her being on those around her was incalculably diffusive: for the growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who lived faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs.”

― George Eliot, Middlemarch: A Study of Provincial Life

Singletons

I think this is a fantastic article. I found another blog to follow! http://gracefortheroad.com/2012/02/03/idontwait/

What will I sacrifice?

"The Holy Spirit gave Peter power to the point that he was able to lay down his life for the cause of Christ...but there are some of you in this room that don't even have the power to lay down a bad habit for the cause of Christ. Can (or will) you lay down the sin that is so easily ensnaring you?" ~ Pastor Chris

Dear Past Self,

Did you know that this blog would work to encourage Future Self after a bad day and a pity party? Well, it did.

With appreciation, Present Self

Love

"Do not hesitate to love and to love deeply. You might be afraid of the pain that deep love can cause. When those you love deeply reject you, leave you, or die, your heart will be broken. But that should not hold you back from loving deeply. The pain that comes from deep love makes your love ever more fruitful. It is like a plow that breaks the ground to allow the seed to take root and grow into a strong plant. Every time you experience the pain of rejection, absence, or death, you are faced with a choice. You can become bitter and decide not to love again, or you can stand straight in your pain and let the soil on which you stand become richer and more able to give life to new seeds…Yes, as you love deeply the ground of your heart will be broken more and more, but you will rejoice in the abundance of the fruit it will bear."

-Henri Nouwen

Dance Hero

Tara Trafzer = my dance hero.

Tara and Nick were the Jack and Jill winners in Medford. They were matched with each other randomly, but they chose the music. Start the video at 1:49. So fun!

Life Together = Messy

I once heard a pastor say, "The church is a whore. But God died for that whore."

Brutal.

But I like the intention behind those words. A lot of people seem to be walking away from church life these days because it's not what they expect church to be. I'd probably agree with them, but I don't know if that's reason enough to leave (most of the time).

I read an excerpt from Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Life Together and I thought I'd write down a few quotes to convict me if I find myself in a similar slump in the future.

Notes to future disgruntled self:

"Just as surely as God desires to lead us to a knowledge of genuine Christian fellowship, so surely must we be overwhelmed by a great disillusionment with others, with Christians in general, and, if we are fortunate, with ourselves."

"Every human wish dream that is injected into the Christian community is a hindrance to genuine community and must be banished if genuine community is to survive. He who loves his dream of community more than Christian community itself becomes a destroyer of the latter, even though his personal intentions may be ever so honest and earnest and sacrificial."

"When things do not go his way, he calls the effort a failure. When his ideal picture is destroyed, he sees the community going to smash."

"...we enter into that common life not as demanders but as thankful recipients."

"...examine [yourself] first to see whether the trouble is not due to [your] wish dream that should be shattered by God; and if this be the case, thank God for leading [you] into this predicament."

"Christian community is like the Christian's sanctification. It is a gift of God which we cannot claim."

"Christian brotherhood is not an ideal which we must realize; it is rather a reality created by God in Christ in which we may participate."

All quotes from the chapter Not an Ideal but a Divine Reality.

31 Status. Featuring Janette...ikz

Being a Proverbs 31 woman. Do you think it's possible?

Oh Valentine

It's a slideshow! Click on the photos for more...

challenge

"Attempt something large enough that failure is guaranteed unless God steps in." -Pastor Bill

life is hard

The older I get, the more I believe that life is supposed to be hard. We should not be striving to obtain the American Dream mantra that is advertised our whole lives. Life should be hard. We should have struggles. We should be loving people that are difficult to love. We should be bearing the burdens of others. We should be spending time with people who make us uncomfortable. We should be giving away something that requires real sacrifice. We should be doing something that scares us, that we feel ill equipped for. For it is in this state that we see God's grace, His mercy, and He gets the glory. Next time someone asks you how things are going, will you say, "Just fine!" Should you?