Update

...since it's been a while.

This is why I have a sign on my desk that some friends made for me that says "Welcome back!" It is both a warmth, and a "you've been away and we realize that and don't expect perfection, but there's work to be done, so let's get started."

Here's the update:

Prayer update:

• Spouse and I finally started our home group/Bible study! I'll say it again, because it's been a year and a half in the making: Spouse and I started a home group/Bible Study!!! And even though there's only one other couple right now (in fact we hold it at their house), it's everything we dreamed of. We found ourselves opening up, being honest, and showing what it honestly looks like to live like Christians, or how to follow Christ living in the world we do. We talked a lot about cultural Christianity and the unspoken social rules that aren't even Biblical (like don't smoke, don't drink, etc.) but that people take as law and look askance if you violate. We talked about do you have to go to church as a Christian? and what should church look like, especially in terms of more ritualized traditions vs. more spontaneous traditions and the benefits and drawbacks of each. We laughed a lot, and sympathized a lot, and said some things you'd never hear "Christians" say (except we're all Christians there, so Christians, ahem, do say them). We shared some about our pasts, and some things we were taught (in church! by well-meaning but clueless people) that were hurtful or misled us. Prayers for both community and Bible Study answered!

In my life Update:

• I've been working on this idea of living life as an authentic Christian. What does that look like? If you throw out the picture of Cultural Christianity (you know the people I'm talking about, the ones who only listen to Christian music, who can be nice or not but whose only sin or struggle they ever admit is "I should pray more" or "I should read the Bible more" (i.e. no real struggles ever)), that's all well and good, but what do you replace it with? What does living an authentic life, or being yourself, and being a Christian look like? I know in my own life, many times I don't even tell people I'm a Christian, or I'll get labeled with Cultural Christian and immediately tuned out or shunned. And heck, I don't really want to associate with those people either. It's unfortunate the label of "Christian" implies that automatically these days. I want to tell people, I'm not a "Christian" as you think of it, I just believe the Jews were right and their messiah came! In other words, trying to strip the word "Christian" away from all the extra baggage we've come to associate with it, and just get down to the bare essentials. Even if I'm not a fan of cultural Christians, I'm thinking it's best to look at it as choosing to follow the Jewish Messiah who called himself Yeshua. I just wish there was another term, since the word "Christian" or any mention of Christ or sin immediately turns people off and stops them listening. It closes down any dialogue, and that's a mad thing in my opinion.
• Also working on being more time-organized. I'm space organized, Spouse is time-organized, and I think it would help my life to be time-organized. Less stressful, for sure. So that's neither here nor there, but it's another thing in my life the last couple weeks.