The Dark Side of Chocolate ... and Everything Else

Today we have the privilege of coming along side Jennafer Ort - who I introduced last week - and journeying with her as she learned about the global human trafficking problem. There are two more posts after today's - so stay tuned!

Hey there, I’m Jennafer Ort. You’ve probably never heard of me, or – if you have – it was as “Jenna” Young during my 2 years being discipled by Amy Jo in JC’s Village. I’ve been invited to write a 3-part guest series on Amy Jo’s blog. Not because I’m a blogger – I’m not. Not because I’m working with Amy Jo – I’m not. Just because I have something important to share, and it’s too important to limit it to my own sphere of influence. With that, brace yourself. This isn’t a peachy inspirational post. It’s heavy. It’s heart-wrenching – if you let it sink in. But please do because it’s important.

It’s slavery.

If you’re anything like me, your first associations with the word “slavery” might be the Civil War, Africa, William Wilberforce, or some other historical character or time period. You might suppose slavery died with the Emancipation Proclamation of the 1860s. But what if I told you slavery still exists? Then what would you think of? Distant countries? Primitive people groups? Rare horror stories?

Yeah, me too. Until I learned I was wrong.

I first heard about modern-day slavery in my junior year of high school in 2008. At the time, all I knew was the story of a teenage girl giving up chocolate because she learned cocoa was often farmed using slave labor. I was shocked. I admired this girl for giving up chocolate. I considered following her example. And then I promptly forgot about it and moved on with my care-free life. When I heard the same statistic during my sophomore year of college, I was convicted to actually do something by giving up chocolate for a year. I had very little information at the time. And I had absolutely NO IDEA the extent of the slavery problem.

It wasn’t until December of 2015 that I became aware of the vastness of modern-day slavery. Over seven years after I’d first heard slavery still existed, I learned that an estimated 45.8 million people are enslaved across the world.

45.8 MILLION

That’s like the entire populations of Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand combined. That’s a lot of slaves.

And the sad thing is, they’re everywhere. In 2016, the Walk Free Foundation ranked 167 countries from most to least estimated slaves in that country. Sorry, but the United States was not ranked last. It was ranked #72 out of 167, with an estimated 57,700 slaves in the USA.

Granted, it could be more. In fact, compared to the estimated 18 million slaves in India, it’s easy to think we’re doing pretty well. The problem is that many of us in the United States directly support the slave industries of other countries without even knowing it. How do we do this??? Through our purchases.

Chocolate bars, steaming coffee, smart phones, rubber tires, shrimp, fruit, tennis shoes, cheap t-shirts…the list goes on and on. Many of the items we buy or consume every single day have passed through the hands of a slave. It’s not that the companies selling the items are enslaving people. But these companies don’t demand or investigate ethical standards from their suppliers, so they – and we – end up supporting the slavery cycle through our purchases.

Let’s get more personal. Right now – today – there are people around the world working in factories or farms or brothels or fishing boats to support your seemingly harmless lifestyle. To see an estimate of the number of slaves required to support your lifestyle, I challenge you to take this 11-question survey: http://slaveryfootprint.org

When I took the survey on December 24, 2015, my score was 44. Forty-four real people somewhere in the world were working in slavery so I could enjoy my privileged lifestyle as a college student. Something had to change. And it is.

When I took the same survey today, my score was 36.

36 is 36 too many. But it’s nearly a 20% decrease from my first score, so I think I’m onto something. I’d like to share that “something” with you. Please tune in later this week to hear how I’m decreasing my slavery footprint, and how you can decrease yours.

Heroes & Zeros

In the past JC's Village has had many themes to orient our discussions around ... we've had "All In" - and Road Trip ... but this fall we're doing something different. This fall we're playing a game! We're playing "Heroes & Zeros" - an RPG based game that allows us to play all sorts of Heroes of the faith - and some not so heroic sorts from the Bible - "Zeros" you might call them. Everyone will have the opportunity to play a different character each week. There will be quests, power-ups and side-quests - with prizes for the highest score of the week and a grand prize for the high-score for the semester. If you're into growing your walk with Jesus - and have fun while you're at it - then come to UW-L's SU 2100 at 7pm this coming Sunday - September 10th for JC's first meeting of the semester - we'll introduce the game and get going.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Monday Funday!

Happy Labor Day everyone! Here's a Labor-Day/back-to-school selection of chuckles for ya!

The Practices of Silence and Solitude

Do you need a better reason than that to give yourself the gift of a little silence and solitude? That quote is from Oswald Chambers ... the Oswald Chambers - the author of the classic daily devotional book - My Utmost for His Highest" and who saw solitude as key. If you've ever had trouble shutting your thoughts off - or didn't even know you could - then this practice is for you. This is how you can begin to not only think when you want - but on what you want.

Solitude is not at all forcing yourself to be lonely. Loneliness is feeling disconnected from people - and can feel uncomfortable - or even painful. Solitude on the other hand is a welcome experience for someone who wants to know who they really are. Solitude isn't an extroverted or introverted thing. Just like worship is good for us - so is this. The theologian Paul Tillich saw solitude as good. So did John Milton - the 17th century English Poet. Creatives and thinkers have always been turning to this practice. 

Moses did it. David did it. Others did it too. Jesus is recording doing it too - more than anyone else. "It" of course is spending some time in solitude. If the Son of God need it solitude - even as fully God and fully man - then how much more valuable might it be for us? I believe in solitude and silence we can most easily lay our burdens down - and take up Jesus' yoke (Matt 11)

Solitude is one of those practices that can often get lost in unnecessary complexity. It's really no harder than it sounds. Go somewhere you can be alone. There's no minimum or maximum amount of time. If you're new to this - then especially I'd recommend that less is more. There's nothing in particular that you have to do in solitude. You can enjoy solitude in your room, or in a public space - although it might be easier on you to at least to go somewhere you can maybe avoid interruptions and distractions. Eventually - silence and solitude will at least in part be a state of mind for you and you'll be able to enjoy it nearly anywhere.

A word on silence. 

There is a connection between our obsession with busy-ness and our lack of clarity about who we are and what we want. We don't know why we exist at least in part because we've so rarely walked away from our digital devices and become familiar with our own soul. Solitude supports regaining this clarity. Silence does too. This kind of silence isn't refusing to talk when you're around others - but rather - like solitude - seeking out space where you can naturally enjoy silence. Solitude isn't solitude if it's shared with Netflix. Nor is silence. Ditto for Facebook or whatever other social media. There's nothing wrong with those - they just can't really help you learn this practice. Silence isn't about not making sound. Silence is about embracing stillness.

The first time I spent some significant time in solitude - was after my friends Lance and Julie were married. I was about to embark on my first full-time ministry job. I wanted to be quiet, alone - and fast and pray. I wanted to be useful to God in my new job. So - not really knowing what else to do with myself - I drove into the middle of the Upper Pennisula (aka: "The U.P.") - parked my car. And felt immediately overwhelmed by the enormity of the silence. It was May - weeks before Memorial Day. It was cold. It felt like I was the only person on earth - or at least the only person along the National Pictured Rocks Lakeshore. Even though I'd comfortably spent hours and hours alone before - this was the first time I'd planned an over-night of silence and solitude. But - in a little while - this feeling came over me ... of immense freedom. Since then I've frequently returned to nature as a way to enjoy long stretches of both solitude and silence.

You sure don't have to drive into the middle of the U.P. to enjoy some silence and solitude (though it's available in such abundance up there it's like a national resource!). And you sure don't have to go away over night - though once you get the hang of silence and solitude - you might like a week or two of it - or more. 

Think this is impossible? John Francis quit speaking as a teen ... and didn't speak another word for 17 years.  He said it took a full month of not saying a thing for the constant voice in his head to quiet down. (You can watch his TED talk here) Believe it or not he even taught university courses - while not speaking. Interesting guy. I'm not advocating that - just saying that you'd be surprised how good a teacher silence is.

If you've ever spent some time alone with God - in prayer, or reading your Bible - you're already learning how to enjoy solitude and silence - especially if you do so quietly - without loads of music, media, interruption and moving around.

Many people are unnerved by silence - they find themselves not in blissful stillness - but weighed down with a sudden lack of sensory input. We don't even realize the impact it has on us to be surrounded by noise 24/7. Even if you live alone and never play music/watch shows ... you're still surrounded by noise - neighbors, motors, fans, cars, appliances, pets, ... there seems no end. Sometimes in the absence of all this racket - or even just the absence of some of it - we can find our minds flitting from thought to thought - sometimes even thoughts we don't want to think. This is completely normal in the beginning. The truth is - those thoughts were already there but were buried under the noise. The easiest way to make the thoughts you don't want go away - is to focus on what's going on right now around you - what you see - hear and feel. It will also support future times of silence and solitude if you can learn in general to not run from thoughts - but address them head on. In time in that silence and solitude - you can hone your skills of learning to speak truthfully and kindly to yourself. It's also just fine to start off with your experiments with silence and solitude with a walk, a bike-ride, a swim, or hike. Silence and solitude are far easier to do while moving than when being still - at least for most people this is true. You can enjoy it while engaging in any sort of repetitive physical activity. Initially - a nice quiet walk is probably simplest and safest. Even a 5 or 10 minute walk is enough to benefit. There's more benefit to ending your practice wanting more - than hating it because it seems endless. If you don't want to try it - then by all means - please don't. It is an excellent way to grow and deepen your walk immensely - but it's a way for the willing - not the coerced. 

Dr. Dallas Willard - a Baptist preacher, seminary professor and philosophy professor - began his list of 14 spiritual disciplines with solitude. The rest are silence, fasting, frugality, chastity, secrecy, sacrifice, study, worship, celebration, service, prayer, fellowship, confession, submission. The first seven disciplines he calls disciplines of abstinence - meaning they are disciplines we practice by intentionally not doing something; not being with others, not talking/making noise, not eating etc. The second seven disciplines he calls disciplines of engagement - meaning that they are disciplines we practice by intentionally doing something; studying scripture, engaging in worship, participating in service etc. About solitude Willard - on Page 160 of his book The Spirit of the Disciplines" says "The normal course of day-to-day human interactions locks us into patterns of feeling, thought, and action that are geared to a world set against God. Nothing but solitude can allow the development of a freedom the ingrained behaviors that hinder our integration into God's order." A little later he writes, "In solitude we find the psychic distance, the perspective from which we can see, in the light of eternity, the created things that trap, worry, and oppress us."

Silence combined with solitude can bring great strength to our souls. On the night before His death - it was silence and solitude Jesus sought in the garden - that tells us quite a bit regarding the power of those two practices. Putting our outer-selves in a place where we can experience physical solitude - is a prelude to the inner solitude that is commonly referred to as "being at peace with oneself". Putting our outer-selves in a place where we can experience physical silence - is a prelude to the inner solitude that is commonly referred to as "being at peace in one's own mind." Just that development from our experience of physical silence and solitude is a significant gift. If you should choose to experience even more of this gift - you may even discover deeper truths and richer gifts. Comfort with silence and solitude makes praying more natural. 

Though I have before this summer's study on Salty Speech spent plenty of time - days even - in silence and solitude - it'd been a number of years since I'd last done this - and I'd never had had quite the same focus on speech before. This summer's practice in silence and solitude also came after three years of experience with the Grace Habit - and after more than a year of daily meditation. Perhaps for these reasons - or others I can't presently identify - this year's experiences with silence and solitude left me feeling more powerfully engaged with the person God's called me to be. And I now know more than ever that that person wants no part of any form of ungodly speech. Ungodly speech is simply too disruptive to the silence and solitude. Gushing forth ungodly speech at some other point in my day - to me - seems to have the same effect on silence and solitude as a disastrously over-flowed filthy toilet - on the top floor of an immaculate and beautiful home. No thanks. Scripture is living and active - and good for teaching and correction - and so is being still before the Lord. Over the course of this summer - the more I engaged in practicing silence and solitude - the more I realized that there was nothing that any ungodly form of speech could offer me that I wanted more than that inner peace experienced in those moments of silence and solitude.

If you want to try some silence and solitude - pick a quiet place to walk ... around here - that could be in Hixon, or Myrick which can be accessed with a short walk, bike ride or drive from any campus in town.

1. Once on the trail - shut off your phone (or at least silence it)
2. If you want you can set a timer for some desired amount of time (set it for a short period of time.  If your time ends too soon - go again.)
3. Next - take a few deep breaths.
4. Notice the scenery around you.
5. Pick a direction and start off. 
6. Thoughts might pop into mind - don't sweat it. Thoughts don't negate silence and solitude.
7. If you want fewer thoughts to occur - focus on how where you are, what you see, how you feel. Remember - this was how Adam and Eve spent time with God - walking in the garden in the cool of the day (Genesis 3)
8. You might feel like it's strange to be in silence and solitude at first - that's not a symptom of doing anything wrong - but rather just your soul enjoying some real freedom.

Introducing: Mrs. Jennafer Ort

Mrs. Jennafer Ort

Over the next two weeks you'll get to know Jennafer (or Jenna as we called her) Ort - who came to UW-L in the summer of 2013 to attend UW-L's Occupational Therapy program. Jenna is one of the most extroverted and playful students I've ever met - in fact - she taught me a thing or two when it comes to just how awesome play is. The first time I ever hung out with Jenna was because she'd just moved to La Crosse and was looking for a group of Christians to hang out with. The OT program starts in June - but Jenna wasn't going to let that stop her! She sent an e-mail and we met up for fro-yo and next thing I knew - we were study buddies! Jenna has a thoughtful and intentional walk with Christ - and added much to JC's during her time in grad school.

Jenna also taught all of us in JC's about the importance of not just wishing the world were this way or that - but taking personal steps to take a stand for what's right and make it better. First we noticed that Jenna didn't eat chocolate. Not because she didn't like chocolate. Au contraire! She loves it (I mean - who doesn't - right?) Rather - she was intentionally giving up one of her favorite treats because chocolate was associated with human trafficking. This was news to all of us. So as Jenna pursued integrity - we learned too. 

Jenna has since graduated from UW-L, passed the boards, started work as an occupational therapist - and recently - Married Phil Ort (Philabuster!). They now live in Kansas City - but are still sharing insights with us - and now you. So come back next week and read more on what Jenna's learned as she dove into this huge problem that affects us all - and insights she's gained on how we can in fact impact this global problem.  

The Foulest Word in English is "Should"

If you've known me for very long then this post will not surprise you in the least. I've had a growing discomfort - and increasing dislike for this word for a while now.

Should is the foulest word in English because when it's said by adults to adults - it's being said by people who don't want to think for themselves to those they don't want to think for themselves. That's gross. 

Should is intimately connected with comparison. "You should be more like So-and-So." for instance. Comparison is the thief of joy they say. Whoever they are - on this one - they are right! I promise you - unless someone is taking time out to encourage you to be more like Jesus - and there are so many ways to specifically say so - there isn't anyone you should be more like - unless of course we include you yourself. I know they say "Be Batman" - but gimme a break ... Batman can't even get outta his cave before Jesus has whooped him from His!

I do actually believe you should be more like your true self. I'd love that in fact. It'd be enormously encouraging to me as I pursue being more my true self - because - sometimes in the course of learning from Jesus how to be your true self - you have to learn to be okay with being a little weird.

Seems outlandish for creatures with no ability whatsoever to create a human from scratch - just breath, dust and divine will - to suggest that we somehow just "know" to "fix" people. This is not in any way to disparage the very real and very awesome sorts of help offered by trained professionals to those seeking trained professionals of all stripes: Doctors, Counselors, Trainers, Coaches etc. - but rather to say that "should" is typically on first-name basis with Judgment - and doesn't spend much time with Authentic Assistance. 

Speaking of authenticity - should wants none of it. Authenticity is for those bold, adventurous types in possession of a sturdy back-bone. Should wants you to to squish yourself up into some tidy little mold. "Hey you! Square Peg! Get back in that round hole!"

Thanks to it's connection to comparison and in-authenticity - Should amps up insecurity. Does that make you nervous? Hmmmmm? It should.

Even worse - Should is antithetical to actual faith. Please tell me what leap of faith could, or would, ever should? Whip out your Bibles and read through Hebrews 11 - and tell me which of those people was doing what they shoulda. In my opinion - all of them - but that's because I believe in leaps of faith - and there's never been two alike. So don't sweat it if you mess yours up - or nail it - dare I say that there should be more coming?

But - IMHO - the foulest stench wafting off that soul-withering word should comes from it's participation in contempt. And - let's go ahead and admit that it's entirely possible to use the word should without actually shoulding on anyone - so don't go and intentionally lose the point in a pile of legalism - this is not about the word. This is about the heart condition that throws the word around willy nilly.

There is a reason for Jesus saying in the Sermon on the Mount that contempt is like murder. Contempt is actually guilty of murder-suicide though - because when I view another with contempt - I kill us both - at least a little. It doesn't take much of that before your soul starts to feel poisoned. I promise you - there is zero divine illumination about the glorious God-given unique calling He has for your life to be discovered using or living under the word should. If you want to walk in God's light - you're going to have to become something of a unique personality - a little weirdo if you will. 

Congrats! I think that is about the coolest thing possible that could ever happen to anyone anywhere!! 

What might you ask - does all this business about the word should have to do with the wrap-up week for months of study on Godly speech? Just this: I believe I can sum up every "don't" command in every verse about speech by eradicating contempt from my life. If you hold absolutely no one in contempt - not your enemy - not even yourself - a number of speechy-evils will simply be out of your reach. Now that's bliss. 

That's tricky isn't it though. Ever notice how seductive contempt is? Most pulpit banging and fist-pounding that goes on in churches, board-rooms, town-halls, bar-rooms and such - is all about contempt. Ever notice how un-seductive and unsexy humility is? Anger is seductive too - but calm takes work (at least for me). Perhaps that tells us everything we need to know about the capacity for those seductive vices to lead anyone to profound truth, or needful wisdom for humanity. 

So - don't should on yourself friend. Be forgiven. Be redeemed. Be wild. Be free - you awesomely singular weirdo you.

Zip It - Review

Back on July 18th - I said I'd picked up a digital version of Karen Ehman's Zip It - a 40 day devotional book on speech and was going to go through it.

Well - I finished it a bit early - mostly because the book has just 5 readings per week - but I frequently did 6. Anyway - here's what I have to say about Zip It after having read it through - and giving the parts that resonated with me most a second read (and there were quite a few) here's my final word (hehe - couldn't resist) on this book on speech: do it.

If you haven't done a study on speech before - or ever - then this is a great place to start - especially if you don't have a lot of time to devote to the topic. You might, for instance, wonder, how anyone could come up with 40 days worth of stuff to say about speech. You could surely find twice as many topics on speech on your own - but not without a substantial investment of time. Studies such as this are beneficial in the sense that not only do they do collect many of the verses on their given topic - but they also effectively school you on how to do such studies on your own - on topics of your own choosing - which may or may not always be available in a prepared manner - or which you may want to study much deeper - looking into the original language, or traditional church views, or ancient ones, or ... more!

Some of the subtopics/days I particularly enjoyed were

Day 1    "A Matter of Life and Death"

Day 9 "Building Your Word-Robe"

Day 12  "That Time I Spied Ugly in the Mirror"

Week 4   which was focused on taming your temper

Day 21   "The Snowball of Senseless Speech"

Week 7  which was focused on making our words sweet and salty

This study took me less than 20 minutes per day - to read through the day's reading, to look up verses, journal a bit - and pray through the exercise - some days I spent a little more time other a little less. 

That said - I have spent an enormous amount of time nearly every day since beginning the Salty Speech project - 1-2 hours usually - studying speech on many levels - this study was just one aspect. I've also done studies on listening, silence, solitude, quiet, waiting, patience, graciousness in speech, not to mention engaging in anew familiar as well as learning new spiritual discipline practices - which I'll touch on in Friday's post - which will be the last (at least for now) on Salty Speech. 

However we go about it - each of us who has given our lives to Christ, and has been offered His grace, carries the privilege and responsibility of standing in for Him in the minds of those we encounter - as representative of not only Christ, but His Church's people in general. I've never heard of a Christ-follower being ill-received for being too wise in how they speak. There are many words in my past which I'd happily erase. My goal for this study was anything but regret though - rather my goal was to make the most of the future.

"Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks."  Matthew 12:34

Monday Funday!

Alrighty then! Here's your extra large serving of Monday giggles! Enjoy! (As always - there's more on our pinterest funny board)

The Jesuit's Guide to Almost Everything

This book came to my attention as many books do - by being referred to in other books I've read. When multiple books from various disciplines refer to the same book - I usually end up adding that title to my "to-read" list.

Having grown up in a protestant family - I had no idea what a Jesuit even was until I watched that movie that came out forever ago - "The Mission" (any of you all remember that film? Robert De Niro - Jeremy Irons - holywooded-up history?) Even after having lived with an Austrian Catholic family for my entire junior year of high school - I still hadn't figured out who Jesuits were and/or what they were about.

Enter this handy book. What interested me most in this book thought was it's "how-to" discussions on some very old and very very old practices of prayer, self-examination and such. I have a nice little collection of discipleship books across many faith traditions - some from Inter Varsity - of course a couple from Navigators - one from Vineyard, one from a Lutheran church - so it's fair to say that I'm always interested in adding to my understanding of discipleship, disciple-making and Christian practices that have been handed down for centuries. There is so much more to deepening our faith than just reading our Bibles and highlighting or taking notes. So many of these practices were designed hundreds of years ago or even thousands to help Christians of all walks to deepen their walk - and if you go far enough back - there weren't denominational differences - there were just people (mostly illiterate) trying to model their lives after Christ. 

The practice mentioned in this book among dozens of practices - that I enjoyed reading about most was the "Examen" - which he summarized on Page 97 in 5 steps:  

1. Gratitude: Recall anything from the day for which you are especially grateful and give thanks.
2. Review: Recall the events of the day, from start to finish, noticing where you felt God's presence, and where you accepted or turned away form any invitations to grow in love.
3. Sorrow: Recall any actions for which you are sorry.
4. Forgiveness: Ask for God's forgiveness. Decide whether you want to reconcile with anyone you have hurt.
5. Grace: Ask God for the grace you need for the next day and an ability to see God's presence more clearly.

If you've followed along with this blog for very long - then you know that this is similar to the Grace Habit - a habit or practice which was the many topic of many of the first few months of posts on this blog. Before reading this book - I'd asked around in a number of various Christian Catholic and Orthodox traditions if anyone knew of anything like the Grace Habit - and turned up empty handed every time. Had I not turned up empty handed - I probably would've posted about the established (traditional) practice instead of launching into describing a new one. As much as the Examen is similar to the Grace Habit - it's not identical - and while the differences are perhaps slight on first glance - they cumulatively have a different feel ... I'd say it's harder to fall into guilt with the Grace Habit - yet it does offer true reflection.

The book returns to the Examen in nearly every chapter in some way or another - and highlights many other useful practices and so I recommend it - especially if you enjoy reading about other ways to further your walk with God.

I was able to borrow a copy of this book from my local library which is by far my favorite way to put my hands on a book - at least the first couple of times. 

Monday Funday!

Here's your dose of laughs - praying you all have a week full of laughs and fun!

nice gumdrop buttons!

the chillest pooch!

me and my older brother, David - hahahaha

Diary of a Country Priest

Over 80 years ago Georges Bernanos wrote this novel about a fictional priest beginning his work at a fictional parish in northern France. Whether you grew up Catholic or Pentecostal - if you're committed to your faith - you will find a kindred spirit in Bernanos' main character - the newly minted young priest - who's ascetic, earnest, and awkward. He'd fit right in to 2017! Soon - everyone is having fun at the young priest's expense - the villagers find him curious - if not a little frightening. The girls in the catechism conspire to make a mockery of him. Some declare him "the best sort" others make him out to be a drunken instigator. He even receives an anonymous note from a "well wisher" - who has just one suggestion for him: "Leave"

Despite all this - the young priest digs in - and soon finds that his only real friend - is his diary. He tells it all - though not permanently - sometimes filled with fits of regret for what he's written he goes back and scratches out words, lines - and even tears out whole pages. At one point he sets a date for himself to toss it into the fire - and still continues to write and chronicle life in the little community. He also processes within the diary's pages his own humble beginnings - the unfortunate and untimely death of his mother while he was still a boy - his noble father who disowns him - and his time spent being raised in a seedy, run-down bar.

The earnestness of the young priest and how he's such an easy mark for harassment and entertainment isn't what makes the novel so good - all that is what makes it endearing. But what really makes it a compelling read - is the way he not only devotes himself fully to the hard task of winning over the rural community - including turning a woman who'd lost her faith back to the fold - consoling another priest who's closest friend commits suicide - and the way he himself deals with his own terminal diagnosis of stomach cancer. The priest himself waivers between losing and deepening his faith. Bernanos has his character recording all these events and more within the pages of the priest's diary - which reads in general - like conversations that we could have with one another now over topics of great weight and their intersection with faith. The book ends with the priest's last words - with which he more firmly rooted in his faith than ever whispers, "Grace is everywhere."

It's not hard to understand how the book was awarded the Grand Prix for Literature - and was declared by USA Today to be the Best Spiritual Book of the 20th Century. This one wasn't available through my library - but I know where you could borrow a copy.

Monday Funday!

Due to technical difficulties ... Monday Funday is happening on Tuesday this week! Woop Woop! For your inconvenience - the laughs are super-sized this week too.  Have a great week everyone! (and as always - there are more laughs on our Pinterest board: Blessed Are The Funny

Chasing Daylight

I believe ages ago - while away at a conference - I heard Erwin McManus speak and picked up this copy of Chasing Daylight: Seize the Power of Every Moment. This all took place so long ago that I had no idea this gem was hiding anywhere in the house. This past week as an international student was packing up her things and preparing to move out - my eyes landed on on this book - and I thought - "why not?" Don't know about you - but that is for me - not the usual way I start reading through a book - usually I'm very clear about why I want to read it - and why I want to read it now. But - this one - I opened with a shrug and a "well, okay"

What a treat then to find encouragement upon encouragement as I turned page after page. I couldn't put it down! McManus is a creative type - and leads a church in L.A. called "Mosaic" that has a creative twist to it. I've done a little checking on-line and am pretty tempted to plan a road-trip - wanna come? Let's go this winter - when the weather here is well - quintessential Wisconsin - and after we get to meet the new students who - right now - all over the midwest are packing bags and looking at syllabi and getting ready to leave their homes to move here and start their college careers - or continue them at another school. 

There's more to recommend in this book than I can cover in just one post - but I'll cover two specific aspects of McManus's book that really resonated. 

No. 1 - He makes a distinction between "first dimension faith" and "second dimension faith" - I'll quote directly from the book which starts on page 73 and continues through to page 83.

As I have lived this journey of faith and served within the community of faith, I have noticed that faith has two practical dimensions, I describe them as first-dimension faith and second dimension faith. First-dimension faith is involved when we step out into any area of trust in God outside our experience, but the challenge set before us is clearly in the realm of possibilities. God is asking us to do something that He has done in the lives of others; we just haven't experienced it. Sometimes it's as practical as God calling us outside our personal experience and comfort zone. ... Most of life's challenges are a test of first-dimension faith. ... The texture of this dimension of faith has everything to do with character. It's about trust in God's character and God's testing your character. That's why you cannot speak about faith without talking about obedience.

On page 74 McManus continues this thought:

The critical issue here is that when we become paralyzed in this first-dimension of faith, we are often told we just didn't believe hard enough. Yet Jesus was saying the opposite. In most cases, first-dimension faith is about obeying what God has already spoken. It is about building our lives and moving forward with confidence fueled by commitment to God's truth.

McManus dedicates all of Chapter 3 - appropriately called "Uncertainty" to really parse out this important "next level" of faith - so he devotes pages and pages to conveying what first dimension faith is all about. On page 81 - he starts to move into discussing second-dimension faith.

When we make the choices necessary to live a life that maximizes first-dimension faith, then the fun really starts. If first-dimension faith takes us outside our experience, second-dimension faith takes us outside the explainable. While first dimension faith sees realities in the realm of possibilities, second-dimension faith sees realities in the realm of impossibilities. In first-dimension faith, the context for miracles is internal. God is working in us and through us. In second-dimension faith, the context is often external. God's hand is clearly all around us.

Okay - so this distinction - however convenient - isn't spelled out in scripture ... you can't flip open your Bibles - all church-camp Bible-drill style to First Bereans and read in chapter 2, verse 22 all about the first and second dimensions of faith. I suppose there isn't a verse in the Bible anywhere that parses out faith in this way - because in God's eyes - these are both just "faith" - or "trusting Him". From a human perspective - sitting here in 2017 at my desk - in a time when faith all too often means "making God say what you want Him to" - the link between faith and obedience - whatever you may want to call it - is key. Without obedience - faith is useless. Think I'm making that up? Check out the second half of James 2. We need to be reminded - that first-dimension faith, or obedience, or follow-through on belief - is the pattern of behavior in our life that will make us Kingdom people God can use in Kingdom ways. 

The No. 2 discussion that was fantastic; Jonathan vs. Gideon. Woven in and out of the points of each chapter throughout the book - McManus examines the response of Jonathan, son of King Saul, to the crucial moment 1 Samuel 14 - where Israel is at war - it's not going well for them - and Saul is kind of ... well ... stuck. Saul is stuck - but Jonathan - is not. Jonathan is clear about what needs to happen - and while everyone else is either already stuck with King Saul - or on their way to being stuck with him - while everyone else was literally and figuratively sleeping - Jonathan went out in faith to survey the enemy. From that position - he saw and opportunity - and in faith - he took it - and changed the fate of his country and his people. He compares this response on Jonathan's part to Gideon - who's faith was nowhere near as strong - to the point that Gideon doesn't just test God once - but twice. And even then he goes out with such force - that God sends over 90% of his forces home. 

Between these two ideas and discussions - I found my faith continually encouraged page after page. 

If you're looking for a book to start reading - you could do far worse than by picking this book up.

Monday Funday!

Welcome to week #32 of 2017! Whatever number week it is you need more laughs! All the laughs!! 

Inspiring Verses on Godly Speech

Speech is so tricky - like simplicity and humility - so illusive - and yet what a gift Salty Speech - seasoned abundantly with Grace is to give ourselves, those we love and those we share our days with.

Psalm 34:13  "Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit."

Psalm 141:3  "Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth; keep watch over the door of my lips!"

Proverbs 10:11, 19  "The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, but the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.  When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise."

Proverbs 12:6, 18  "The words of the wicked lie in wait for blood, but the mouth of the upright will deliver them. There is one whose rash words are like thrusts of a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing."

Proverbs 13:3  "The one who guards his mouth preserves life; the one who opens wide his lips comes to ruin."

Proverbs 15:1-2, 4, 23, 28  "A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. The tongue of the wise makes knowledge acceptable, but the mouth of fools spouts folly.  A gentle tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit. A man has joy in an apt answer, and how delightful is a timely word! The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked pours out evil things."

Proverbs 17:27-28 "He who restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding. Even a food, when he keeps silent, is considered wise; when he closes his lips, he is considered prudent."

Proverbs 18:20-21  "From the fruit of a man's mouth his stomach is satisfied; he is satisfied by the yield of his lips. Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit."

Proverbs 21:23  "He who guards his mouth and his tongue guards his soul from troubles."

Proverbs 25:11, 15  "Like apples of gold in settings of silver is a word rightly spoken. With patience a ruler may be persuaded, and a soft tongue can break bone."

Proverbs 31:26  "She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue."

Matthew 15:11  "It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person."

Mark 15:5  "But Jesus made no further answer; so Pilate was amazed."

Ephesians 4:15, 29, 32  "Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into Him who is the head, into Christ. Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for the edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you."

Philippians 2:14  "Do all things without grumbling or questioning."

Colossians 4:6  "Let your speech always be gracious, season with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person."

2 Timothy 2:16  "But avoid irreverent babble, for it will lead people into more and more ungodliness."

1 Peter 3:15  "But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and reverence."

James 1:19, 26  "This you know my beloved brethren, but everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger.  If anyone thinks himself to be religious and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man's religion is worthless."

The Power of Words and the Wonder of God

In the course of gathering and reading through articles, essays and posts on godly speech - I came across this book which is well written, well formatted and offers food for thought on the topic of godly speech for free. I'm still unsure why it didn't get wider release - or why it's available now for free - but it is. You can download it here - though if you'd prefer to pay some coin to Amazon - they'll happily let you do so and give you a kindle version or paper copy - just go here. 

The book is divided into an introduction and six chapters - each written by a different contributor examining a different assumption or passage on speech. At the end of the last chapter (which is on words of and for worship) - there are two "conversations" - or further discussions between the various contributors regarding the importance of this discipline and embracing the impact that it has (good and bad) and intentionally choosing what impact we want our words to have on our world.

Like me, the authors found that it is often our own words about our lives and the lives and intentions of those around us that influence us - far more than we realize. The words we speak to ourselves are so incredibly important. Taking full ownership of our words seriously and allowing God to search our hearts - not just in the heat of the moment but reflectively through the practice of silence and to a continually deeper level of understanding can literally revolutionize our understanding of God's transforming grace at work in the lives of His people. The more I study this topic - the more I realize that there are perhaps several revolutions not only available - but helpfully beckoning to us. I'm finding as I continue to study that my speech is sometimes the noise that keeps God's whispers of truth from landing on my heart. I'm also finding that the more I surrender my speech to Him - the more able He is to use my mouth to offer freedom to myself and others. To that end I find the conversations, exegesis and discussions in this book helpful and thought provoking. 

The authors are clear and open in what they write - and it seems that if you wanted to have a group discussion on godly speech this would be an excellent resource to start with - and hard to beat on price! Sometimes free resources are just a mess - this one seems to be more of a gem and will offer some food for solid discussion and challenge everyone at multiple points. I recommend it for individual study too - and have found it worth a couple of reads since I first posted about it a few weeks back. I can easily imagine reading it again in the near-ish future or breaking down the chapters for individual discussion here. Even discussing a particular point of this book with one friend or another over the last few weeks has led to fruitful insights. 

I don't know how long it will remain available as a free-to-download pdf - so maybe download a copy now for future study.

Enjoy!

Monday Funday!

What a gorgeous weekend! Praying you all have a fabulous week - and as always - there are more funnies over on our Blessed are the Funny pinterest board.

I am sooooo Elizabeth on this one

Monday Funday!

Here's some laughs for you this afternoon - and as always - there's more where these came from on our Pinterest humor board - "Blessed Are the Funny"Praying you have a fantastic week!

Seriously Strong Salt

A while back I reviewed the book The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard. This book launched a revolution for me in terms of how I think about my faith - and even though it came out almost 20 years ago - I'm still reaping rewards from his insights. 

They say you get what you pay for - except some times you really don't - for instance - what we "pay" for Grace is nothing compared to what we gain. And - here's a great deal for all you deal-lovers out there: there is a series of lectures by Dallas Willard on The Divine Conspiracy - so if you're not a reader and you'd love to enjoy a brain-engaging theology class - here's the whole 12 part lecture series - for free. I've watched them all and taken copious notes - and spent quite a few of my daily dog-walks pondering all the ponderables. What I've always appreciated about Dallas Willard is that he was not only a professor of theology - but a professor of philosophy and he was a minister - he uniquely merged these instead of teaching as if only one of those disciplines existed.

While there is nothing specifically in any of the titles of these lectures about speech - they all deal pretty directly with Christian character and conduct - and how to actually experience the authentic transformation we long for in our character and conduct. That said there is plenty Dallas has to say about the way we speak along the way. These lectures have been wonderfully helpful. 

There is easily 15 hours of video to watch here - and I'm already watching them for the second time. They are worth the time. A big thanks to Dan Carlson for passing this series along - I had no idea it was out there. I'm so grateful that these are available. All of the links below will open up in YouTube.

Enjoy!

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

Part 9

Part 10

Part 11

Part 12  

Zip-It

A couple of days ago I mentioned on FaceBook that I was going to start a 40-day speech challenge based on this book and thought it'd be good to give a little more background information on this book, it's author and the ministry that she works for.

Karen Ehman is a blogger, author and speaker who works for Proverbs 31 ministries - which was founded by Lisa TerKeurst. I first came across TerKeurst and Proverbs 31 6 years ago - almost to the day - when I started a study with a few women from my church. This was the first time in 15 years that I'd been able to participate in such a group and it was a real treat. 

Karen Ehman's on-line home can be found here and the first banner item is her book Zip It. Zip It is a follow up challenge in response to the book Keep It Shut - which resulted from Karen - a self-reported "bossy girl" who "landed in trouble" due to her words - and worked to turn that habit around. Her blog posts on that topic before - and especially after that book came out resulted in an even deeper awareness of the many facets of the problems we can speak our way into - and Zip It is the result. I've read through a few of the blog posts on this - but they're way back in the blog-o-clock - so the book makes the content much easier to access. I just checked and the Kindle edition of Zip-It is still just $2 on amazon and the Nook version is just $2 from Barnes & Noble. I'm not making a dime on any of that - it's all just FYI. Karen Ehman is a wife, mom and minister - all of which is reflected in her blog which is full of recipes and devotions, things you can do with your kids, discussions on things relevant to family and marriage - so if you're looking for inspiration on those topics you might want to check it out.

The first couple of days of Zip It's 40-day challenge are intro-ish. Each day's challenge point ends with a specific task. No surprises there.

Here's the thing about speech ... it requires so little thought to just blurt things out - but once out there - they are just gone forever - released into the air - and hearing of all those around us. There's no undo-button or delete key - to real those words back in - a syllable at a time. Once spoken - they just kick around. 

I've been thinking lately - have I ever been hurt by someone - who's hurt was perpetrated without words? There are precious few such incidents in my life. 99.9% of the times in my life that someone hurt me - it was with their words.

And - as for my words - the picture is grim. I learned from an early age how to hurt with my words. As a kid I was always small for my age - physically - it was no contest - but when it came to words it was clear pretty early on that if you put the right words together and aimed them at someone just right - it didn't matter how small you were.

All of my adult life I've been engaged in ministry in one way or another - and have most of that time wanted to use my speech to work good for Christ. Sitting here today's sunshine and looking back - it's easy to gloss and disparage - but I will say that in the past I didn't take to heart the power of words to heal, bless, encourage, and uplift nearly as much as I could have. It's not just enough to not say awful things - there are scores of opportunities we have every day to bring light, hope, healing, peace, gratitude - and so much more.

Day 1 of Zip It is really Ehman's own version of the above - and the take-away for day 1 is to vow to learn to "align our words with God's holy word". Vow - is a pretty weighty word - but given what words' potential - good or bad - I do believe at a minimum a commitment is warranted - and a vow is not ridiculous - though I sure do not use or even mention that word lightly. The thing about speech is - I have a sneaking suspicious that it's our words that Satan repeats back into the ears of those we've shocked, slighted, or slain with our speech - and once our words fly out of our mouths and land on someone's ears - we've lost all power over them. We can back-pedal - but it's up to our hearers to release our words from their memories.

Day 2 looks at Psalm 139:4 - which says that "Before a word is on my tongue You, Lord, know it completely." ... and the reality that God knows what we're about to say - as we're thinking it - and knows the impact of those words completely before they've even finished forming in our conscious minds. I don't know about you - but the amount of time between when I think about saying something - and when it actually starts to come out of my mouth isn't even as long as a blink. One of the things I've actually been practicing since starting the Salty Speech project is lengthening that bit of time. It's hard. Good or bad - speech comes easily to me - so the more I can draw that time out the easier it is for me to use my faculties for speech for the good. Ehman also talks about - even when we don't utter those "zingers" - when they make us smirk at our own wit or shoot a look towards a friend that says "boy have I got a good one!" - God's still profoundly interested in what's happening to our hearts in these moments.

Day 3 is titled "Shutting Down the MotorMouth" examines Proverbs 10:19 which says "when words are many transgression is unavoidable". (FYI - Proverbs 10 is chock-full of verses on speech, the tongue and the power of words.)

I do not plan on giving a blow-by-blow of Zip It - and am reviewing the first few days here to give a fuller picture of what the book is about and what it's like. You could use any Bible search reference book or on-line tool to create your own challenge (likely - far more than 40 days!) by just writing down the verses your search pulls up and meditating on them one a day until you're through that search and go onto the next one. I also want to just encourage us all to be mindful of our words. This pursuit - on first glance - may seem too basic or simplistic - especially if you know your way around the Bible or have done this before, but in my experience it's not the esoteric and mysterious aspects of my faith that I falter on regularly - it's the absolutely most basic things - especially the basics that deal with what's currently going on in my heart.