Author: LAH

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People of Church

Forget “People of Walmart.” Try “People of Church.” While I haven’t seen anyone at my church wearing four-sizes-too-small glowing pink-and-purple spandex, we are definitely a motley bunch. In any church (and especially one as large as ours) there are bound to be some “interesting” people.

Some are exuberant worshipers, dancing in the aisles, while others refuse to even lip-sync the words, standing with arms folded across their chests. We have Mohawks and buzz cuts, long haired hippies and intimidating (until you get to know them) bikers in their church leathers. Maybe we even have you!

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I’ll Do That Later

I wish I hadn’t procrastinated.

The room was still dark when I woke up this morning. Squinting at the clock, I read the glowing numbers: 4:25. Ugh. I rolled over and tried to go back to sleep, but my brain had already switched on—then immediately kicked into overdrive. I tried to tell it that I didn’t need to get up for another two hours, but it wasn’t listening. “Taxxxxesssss,” my brain hissed, reminding me of Gollum.

That’s right. Today is the deadline. I can’t put it off any longer. I have to fill our my quarterly sales tax forms—one for the city and one for the county/state. I imagine the FBI knocking on my door in the middle of the night and dragging me away for sales tax delinquency. I shiver.

“Sales tax? That’s all?” you ask. “What’s the big deal?”

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What Shall We Then Eat? (Part 3)

A while back, I posted a couple of blogs about eating responsibly—“What Should We Then Eat?” (Part 1 was about eating to be healthy, and Part 2 was about eating with the environment in mind.) Today, I’d finally like to finish this mini-series with “Part 3: Eating with a Social Conscience.”

Here in the U.S., it’s easy to forget that our food choices have a global impact. A quick trip through the market can remind us. There are bananas from central America, coffee from Kenya, and apples from Australia. Tropical species (such as chocolate) have to be imported. Out of season produce is grown in the southern hemisphere and flown north so we can eat oranges all summer and grapes all winter. All in all, when it comes to food choices, we’re pretty spoiled.

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Pruning for Fruitfulness

I’ve been moping around the house a lot lately, feeling moderately miserable. It’s nothing earth-shattering—nothing that won’t mend in time. I’ve just been feeling a bit of emotional pain.

God’s been after me with a pair of pruning shears.

Yeah, ouch.

As a gardener, I’m very familiar with the whys and wherefores of pruning. Jesus must have been familiar with pruning as well. He uses the analogy a number of times, especially in John 15, when he says: “I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful” (John 15:1-2, italics mine).

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Engaging Thoughts

Last week I asked for your opinions about engagements and betrothals. Is an engagement necessary? What does the Bible have to say on this topic? What benefits do we get from spending some time promised but not married? How long should the wait be, and why?

Several people commented that being engaged gives people time to seriously work through issues they had avoided until then.  I agree—and thought of a few more things. Here is what I came up with on this subject.

It helps to realize that for the most part, God is silent on how long this waiting period needs to be. The Bible describes cultural norms that called for a period of time between a betrothal and actually living together. While Paul (who strongly urged believers to stay single for the sake of the Gospel) told the Corinthians that it’s better to marry than to burn with passion (1 Cor. 7:9), there are no instructions on the proper length of engagements (a modern construct) or betrothals.

So what are we to do? In our culture, most people are engaged for some period of time between making a decision to wed and actually making life-long vows. There are definite benefits we gain during this time.

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Hot Broccoli Cheese Dip

The “party season” is coming up, and this hot broccoli dip is perfect for a crisp—or snowy—autumn evening. It somewhat resembles the more common spinach artichoke dip, which I can’t eat because I’m allergic to spinach. You can trade the Jack cheese for another variety if you like, but don’t overpower the taste of the vegetables.

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Celebrating an Engage-a-versary

Thursday is September 30, which just happens to be Pete’s and my “engage-a-versary.” Yup, thirty-two years ago this week, my husband and I got engaged. It didn’t quite go like in the movies. In fact, we more or less got engaged that day by accident.

Mind you, we were already planning to get married. We’d been talking about it since spring. Pete had even formally proposed that summer—in a field of wildflowers on the slopes of Washington’s Mt. Rainier. We had then asked my best friend if she’d be my maid of honor, as she was moving out of state and I wanted to talk to her in person. But the engagement wasn’t official, and we hadn’t talked to anyone else.

Wanting to honor his parents, Pete called to ask them for their advice—what sorts of things should we be considering in making this very important decision? He particularly wanted to give his dad a chance to express his opinion. His dad was noted for having strong opinions when his offspring were considering marriage.

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Missionaries Worth Your Support

Everyone knows about organizations such as World Vision and Compassion. How many people are aware of The Seed Company, and Alex and Laura Crum?

Every so often I come across a ministry that I believe is worthy of support, but is not well known. Perhaps they’re small, or working in a part of the world that can’t be publicized. Or perhaps they’re just starting out, as this young couple is, and could use a helping hand.

Of course, I realize that there are thousands of places to give your financial, prayer  and other support—Pete and I can’t afford to support all the ministries we’d like to, either. We wish we were wealthy, just so we could give away more money. Giving is so much fun!

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Suffering the Consequences

I screwed up, and now I’ve got to suffer the consequences.

How often do we think that?

Even as believers, we sometimes view God as a strict disciplinarian, making sure we “learn our lesson” each time we fail. But is this an accurate view of God? Is He really the angry and wrathful person we imagine Him to be?

A close friend recently called me, upset and worried about a lack of finances. As a full-time student, he doesn’t have a job, and a long-awaited check was smaller than expected. Car insurance, gas to get to school, and other expenses aren’t going away, and there just won’t be enough money to see him through the end of the term.

His immediate reaction was one I’m very familiar with—where did I go wrong? Did I spend too much money over the summer? Should I have looked harder to get a job? (He’s moving out of state as soon as the semester ends, and has been unable to find a temporary, part-time position.) Is God letting me suffer the consequences of missing His will?

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The Unhealthiest Hour?

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I call it “Carb Café.” Of course, that isn’t the official name, but it’s the most descriptive. Like many larger churches, our church has an area where you can buy boutique coffee, breakfast, lunch, and snacks. Breakfast options include cinnamon buns topped with gooey white frosting, huge cake-like muffins in several flavors (including chocolate), and biscuits (white flour and shortening leavened with baking powder) topped with high-fat white gravy. There are over-sized cookies, sausage breakfast burritos (high in fats and cholesterol), and, for a time, Belgian waffles. A bit more healthy are the recently-added bagels with (full fat) cream cheese, sweetened yogurt, and “breakfast sandwiches.” To be fair, they also have apples, oranges, or bananas for a dollar each.

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