Finished a book called "Bathroom Crime Puzzles". I bought it last year while I was in Houston, TX at a great bookstore called "Half Priced Books". (Here is yet another store I found that I can lose all my money in. It's kind of like Amazon.com but I get instant gratification after I buy the books.)
As you might have guessed, I read the short mystery crime puzzles and solved them while "taking care of business". It was a challenging read and took me a whole year to get through. At least I know that I'm not supposed to be a crime detective!
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Vision
I recently came across a cool "power quote" that inspires me and keeps me motivated to dream and think about what could be....
"You must have long term goals
to keep you from being frustrated
by short term failures"
-Charles C. Noble
"You must have long term goals
to keep you from being frustrated
by short term failures"
-Charles C. Noble
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Desperate Pastors Wives
Mimi is looking for peace. Felicia is looking for fulfillment. Jennifer is desperate for faith. Lisa is desperate for love. 4 women, all pastor's wives, get together and talk about the frustrations of being the wives of pastors.
This is a very insightful and humurous book about the challenges of being a pastor's wife. I would highly encourage a pastor and their wife to read this book together and laugh with it and have a heart-to-heart about what's really going on in their marriage.
And, I would highly recommend parishioners of congregations to read this book and gain insight into the challenges of being the wife of a pastor who is often overlooked and whose voice is unheard.
This is a very insightful and humurous book about the challenges of being a pastor's wife. I would highly encourage a pastor and their wife to read this book together and laugh with it and have a heart-to-heart about what's really going on in their marriage.
And, I would highly recommend parishioners of congregations to read this book and gain insight into the challenges of being the wife of a pastor who is often overlooked and whose voice is unheard.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
The More I Get to Know Jesus The More I Hate Christians
Yesterday I found out that while school is winding down, there is a huge controversy building up in the religious community of Columbia.
Columbia Academy, a private PK-12 grade school and managed by the Church of Christ, recently adjusted the contracts of 5 teachers because they attended a church that allows musical instruments. The teachers now have to choose between being a member of their current church and lose their job or dissolve their membership at church and keep their job.
What caused this reaction by the school board? Apparently, the church that the teachers attend had a worship service where they used musical instruments in worship. What's the big deal with that? Well, the Church of Christ has a belief and long-standing tradition that states that when there is a worship service, all the singing should be done a capella. There are no musical instruments allowed whatsoever: no pianos, no organs, no guitars, no drums, no nuthin.
They base this on an interpretation of Scripture (which I totally disagree with) and the logic goes like this: stringed instruments are mentioned in the Old Testament but not in the New Testament. Since we are a New Testament church, we do not need to follow how the Old Testament describes worship. We need to follow how the New Testament describes worship. The New Testament never mentions instruments. The closest it comes to describing music in worship is a verse from Ephesians 5.19-20 which says: "Speak to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord." So that means the only instruments that should be used in worship should be voices and nothing else.
I totally disagree with this interpretation. It would be similar to saying that since cars aren't mentioned in the Bible, then I don't have to go the posted speed limit. Or, since the Old Testament mentions rainbows, then they must not exist right now in the New Testament era. C'mon!
The church that used musical instruments in worship is Maury Hills. They have been attacked from many members and leaders in the Church of Christ community, most notably Northview Church of Christ. I have been very impressed with the response of the Maury Hills leaders to the criticism and attacks laid against them. (a link to their worship statement is below).
http://www.mauryhills.com/pdf/hilltops/Dear%20Maury%20Hills%20Family.pdf
In the end, we Lutherans thought that fighting over traditional verses contemporary worship was a huge battle we face, but when you look at this, our battles seem like no-brainers!
Also, I can't even imagine what a non-believer thinks about the whole situation. If I were not a Christian and I saw this in the paper, it would just be another reason why I wouldn't want to be a Christian, let alone a member of a church.
I heard this thought a while ago and I share it now more than ever:
"The more I get to know Jesus, the more I hate Christians."
While this statement is a strong statement, it forces me to really look at my walk with Jesus and to re-evaluate what really matters in worship. What really matters is the focus of worship: is it about me or about God? If it's about God, then we can use any instrument, format, style, etc. to serve worshipping God.
Of course, I wonder what the students think of all this at Columbia Academy. They've created a Facebook group that expresses some of the students' frustration and anger about this action. I'm sure this has colored graduation ceremonies and celebrations. How unfortunate.
I pray that as I walk with Christ, I would avoid being judgemental and narrow-minded but that I focus on what really matters: living an authentic and genuine walk with Jesus and watching God's grace work in my life despite all the times I mess up.
It was in the local paper. Here's a link:
Columbia Academy, a private PK-12 grade school and managed by the Church of Christ, recently adjusted the contracts of 5 teachers because they attended a church that allows musical instruments. The teachers now have to choose between being a member of their current church and lose their job or dissolve their membership at church and keep their job.
What caused this reaction by the school board? Apparently, the church that the teachers attend had a worship service where they used musical instruments in worship. What's the big deal with that? Well, the Church of Christ has a belief and long-standing tradition that states that when there is a worship service, all the singing should be done a capella. There are no musical instruments allowed whatsoever: no pianos, no organs, no guitars, no drums, no nuthin.
They base this on an interpretation of Scripture (which I totally disagree with) and the logic goes like this: stringed instruments are mentioned in the Old Testament but not in the New Testament. Since we are a New Testament church, we do not need to follow how the Old Testament describes worship. We need to follow how the New Testament describes worship. The New Testament never mentions instruments. The closest it comes to describing music in worship is a verse from Ephesians 5.19-20 which says: "Speak to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord." So that means the only instruments that should be used in worship should be voices and nothing else.
I totally disagree with this interpretation. It would be similar to saying that since cars aren't mentioned in the Bible, then I don't have to go the posted speed limit. Or, since the Old Testament mentions rainbows, then they must not exist right now in the New Testament era. C'mon!
A great worship statement that comes the closest to what we Lutherans believe is one out of Gloria Dei in Houston Texas. Link is below:
The church that used musical instruments in worship is Maury Hills. They have been attacked from many members and leaders in the Church of Christ community, most notably Northview Church of Christ. I have been very impressed with the response of the Maury Hills leaders to the criticism and attacks laid against them. (a link to their worship statement is below).
http://www.mauryhills.com/pdf/hilltops/Dear%20Maury%20Hills%20Family.pdf
In the end, we Lutherans thought that fighting over traditional verses contemporary worship was a huge battle we face, but when you look at this, our battles seem like no-brainers!
Also, I can't even imagine what a non-believer thinks about the whole situation. If I were not a Christian and I saw this in the paper, it would just be another reason why I wouldn't want to be a Christian, let alone a member of a church.
I heard this thought a while ago and I share it now more than ever:
"The more I get to know Jesus, the more I hate Christians."
While this statement is a strong statement, it forces me to really look at my walk with Jesus and to re-evaluate what really matters in worship. What really matters is the focus of worship: is it about me or about God? If it's about God, then we can use any instrument, format, style, etc. to serve worshipping God.
Of course, I wonder what the students think of all this at Columbia Academy. They've created a Facebook group that expresses some of the students' frustration and anger about this action. I'm sure this has colored graduation ceremonies and celebrations. How unfortunate.
I pray that as I walk with Christ, I would avoid being judgemental and narrow-minded but that I focus on what really matters: living an authentic and genuine walk with Jesus and watching God's grace work in my life despite all the times I mess up.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
A Trip to the Art Museum
A few weeks ago, I took my kids to the local art museum in Nashville called The Frist and had a wonderful time! (link below)
They are currently hosting a wonderful exhibit called: "Monet to Dali". Monet and Dali are two of my favorite painters and it was cool to see the originals. My favorite of Monet is "Haystacks" because of all the different views, colors and tones that Monet used to paint something as simple as haystacks. It is always refreshing to see the same object from many points of view.
You might think taking a 3 year old and a 5 year old was insane, but the girls actually did quite well. There was a children's area where you could paint in the same style that Monet painted in. It was a lot of fun! Sure they may have lasted only an hour, but they played with lots of colors, shapes and materials. I hope that I can instill in them an appreciation for art and to always tap into their creative juices.
I really enjoy art because it stimulates our eyes and minds to see beyond our own little self-created world. We get so caught up in "our way of doing things" and in maintaining our definition of what our world should look like. Art helps me realize that there's more around me than what I usually see.
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