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Uniquely You

Does he like NASCAR?

Does he like drive a truck, drink sweet tea, own a gun, and like NASCAR?

Driving in my car, listening to the radio playing Brad Paisley’s relatively new single, Southern Comfort Zone. He’s singing about how “not everyone drives a truck, not everybody drinks sweet tea, not everybody owns a gun, wears a ball cap, boots, and jeans….” The lyrics reminded me of when our kids were in high school, or when I was, even longer ago. Everyone had a label, and if you didn’t belong to a group, you were a miserable nobody.

My school had surfers, Jesus freaks, druggies, jocks, etc. My kids’ school included skaters, cowboys, nerds, and (still) jocks. Nothing much had changed in 25 years. I assumed we’d get past all this as we became adults, but I’m not sure we have.

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A Church in a Church in a Church

Over the past few months I’ve written a couple of blogs about my confusion over how to “do” church—one in April and one in May. I explained that at our current mega-church, I felt more like a member of an audience than a member of a family, and that I was exploring other options. At the same time, my husband emphatically wanted to stay right where we are, and I wasn’t going to make any changes without him.

It seemed like a stalemate. Happily, God is pretty amazing. In His wisdom, He had the situation under control and a solution was waiting for just this moment.

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Unreached Peoples

You may have noticed my new little widget on the sidebar here. It shows a photo of an “Unreached People of the Day” along with a few facts to inform your prayers. If you click on the photo, the link takes you to the Joshua Project website, where you can learn more. Joshua Project is a ministry that seeks to highlight the ethnic peoples of the world with the fewest followers of Jesus.

When Pete and I talk about missions,  we are often asked about the phrase unreached peoples. “What do you mean, unreached? My neighbor here is unreached. He never goes to church. I don’t need to go anywhere—there are plenty of unreached people right here in my city.”

This type of confusion is what happens when mission researchers (who can be rather geeky at times) interact with the general public.

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