On Being Inspired

"Genius is one per cent inspiration, ninety-nine per cent perspiration" Edison in 1902

Recently Eric and I had the opportunity to participate in The Gathering, a conference for pastors, ministry leaders and their spouses. It was a wonderful week for us, and not only because we were able to connect with old friends. That was an important part of the event, and I appreciate that the organizers provide time and space for that, but for me it is valuable because of the opportunity to be wholly inspired.

Out of necessity, most of us spend the bulk of our time working- perspiring. To do our work well, it is necessary to take time out to be inspired. There are many things that inspire me in small ways every week- articles I read, beautiful photography in magazines, people who create things, conversations with friends, time with my children and of course Scripture and Biblical teaching.

But when it comes to long-term, big thinking kind of inspiration, conditions have to be just right- kind of like how you can make instant pancakes from the box every Saturday for weeks and be satisfied, but every once in a while, a big batch of homemade from scratch pancakes with the best ingredients, real whipped cream and fresh strawberries makes the instant kind seem old and artificial.

Good Biblical teaching + extended time to process the teaching with Eric + time to process the teaching with friends + no children or work responsibilities to also think about during processing time + pushing ourselves to write down some concrete take-aways= the perfect recipe for large scale inspiration. Thank you to everyone who helped create these favorable conditions.

Lauren Winners

Amberly introduced me to her (Lauren Winners), and I've been doing some reading up on her. What an accomplished and thoughtful lady she seems to be. I found this list from a recent conference where she spoke, and I thought it was interesting.
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Twenty-One Things the World Will Say About Christians

Lauren Winner shares her vision during the Christianity21 conference.

by Hollie Baker-Lutz

Friends, I'm up late in a hotel room writing what is too good not to share, just like any good live-blogger does. Day One of the Christianity21 conference in Minneapolis has been full of provocative ideas, revelations, and creativity. I spent the chilly afternoon sipping Peace Coffee (I stepped on an ICE patch in the parking lot, thank you very much), listening to 21-minute sessions, and limping under the weight of my computer bag as I interviewed greats like Phyllis Tickle and Mimi Haddad (more reasons to stay tuned to Kyria in the months ahead!). While I can't describe every way the Lord is working in one late-night blog post, I'd like to share Lauren Winner's 21 characteristics that - if we all are faithful now - the world will say about Christians by the end of this century. In other words, she hopes that the average person on the street in the year 2092 might think of these qualities when asked what Christians are like.

By the end of the 21st century, Christians will...
1. Be peacemakers.
2. Be expected to be the first ones to show up when disaster strikes.
3. Rest, because they know they're not the ones in charge.
4. While resting, reconfigure their work.
5. Live well in their bodies, whether by their diet, their sex lives, or the clothes they wear.
6. Practice boredom. They will not succumb to the "fetish of the new or the cult of novelty" when it comes to their faith.

7. Be truth-tellers, even if the answer is "I don't know." Even "authenticity" and confession can be a pose.
8. Practice silence in small and big ways, including in solitude.
9. Live in communities where everyone has access to power, and everyone can and will share it with others.
10. Live in communities where women can do anything.
11. Go to church with the people they live near.
12. Persist in making Kingdom demands. This means taking the same request to God, over and over!
13. When we think about God, we think about what needs to change next. This is largely informed by Tozer: what we think about when we think about God is the most important thing about ourselves.
14. Eat fewer strawberries. We will tread lightly on the planet and not risk the energy and harm to our planet just so we can have strawberries in January.
15. See ourselves as small characters in a larger story. As Winner's colleagues at Duke suggest, a "saint" can fail in a way that a "hero" cannot, which opens the doors to ideas like forgiveness and new possibilities of God.
16. Lament. ("We don't do this well. Jews do it a bit better.")
17. Throw good parties. Afterall, we're here to practice for the heavenly banquet!
18. Not gossip. This means talking about someone who is not present. Period.
19. Have unity without obliterating diversity, and that's because of the Trinity.
20. Understand something about grace (despite our 19 wonderful attributes above).
21. Describe reality and the spiritual sacraments in such a way as to "make mouths water and hearts hunger."

Many thanks to Lauren Winner for these prophetic words."

Women and Church (Big C)

Concerning the significance of experiencing the Holy Spirit at work in our lives personally: "A man with an experience is never at the mercy of a man with an argument." Anthony Graham- Chapel speaker at ATS 9/11/08.

Rev. Graham this morning, got my wheels turning. He spoke about the need for the Holy Spirit in our lives today, that it's not enough to have the knowledge. We must be lead by the Spirit. There was much more to his message and as he encouraged us all, men and women, to pursue our educations and become effective leaders in the church, I wondered about what the church (universal) would look like if women were as representative as leaders as men.

I feel like, from my church experiences with male pastors, the tendency of the church today is to approach the Bible from the standpoint of a scholar looking for information. How should I live? What are my gifts? How should I lead? How much should I tithe? and on and on. Who hasn't heard the metaphor that the Bible is our guidebook for life- "Life's Big Instruction Book." Ugh!

I wonder... What if women had been as accepted and encouraged men as early as... say Constantine? What if women had been trained and given opportunity to teach along side of Aristotle, Augustine, Luther, Calvin and Wesley? Would our views of scripture be different? Would the learned women of centuries past have urged, "Yes, knowing the truth about God is important, but what has the Holy Spirit whispered to your heart this week?" Would they have provided necessary notes in the chord to probe others toward a harmony that better recognizes the role of the Holy Spirit within us?

I don't presume that many men haven't been asking these questions and playing this role for centuries. But surely these men are slightly outnumbered by those who are more comfortable with a more intellectual approach. This would certainly seem to be the case from my church experiences in the last 20 years.

Maybe part of our roles as women in the church today is to be sensate. To sense the God that is at work around us every day. And not to feel too silly, weak or hormonal to share our encounters with the Holy Spirit. And it doesn't have to be "voice in the wilderness" kind of stuff. I'm talking day-to-day awareness of the Kingdom of heaven on earth kind of stuff. God is sooo here, and He has created women as the more sensing part of the Body for a reason. A picture of God that doesn't include beauty, pain, color, tears, laughter, detail and relationship is incomplete. Who better to share this perspective than His women?

Random Stuff

Since the last time I posted-

* All 5 of us had the stomach flu this week- Micah a week ago Saturday, Eric Monday afternoon, Isaiah and Elijah Monday evening and finally me Tuesday morning. It took a few days for us all to feel normal again, but we're good now.

* Spouse and Family had a luau for new and returning families Monday night. It was our first event of the year and went really well.

* Eric's birthday was Friday and we had a party for him and another friend who's birthday was Wednesday.

* We are LOVING the Olympics!

* Cassie's mom was here this week and made dinner for all of us one night- YUM!

* We got lots of calls on the rental house and we're headed to IN next weekend to hopefully rent it out to new folks.

* Elijah is ready to head to school on Wednesday, but he is- in his own words, "A little nervous."

* Micah's teacher comes for the home visit Thursday.

I'd love to post about church this morning, but I'm not sure how to put it into words yet. Eric and I have both been moved by services lately... now sure how to describe the movement, but it is good- very good.

My Brother

Is there a church out there for my brother?
He is skeptical of everything from the existence of God to the reliability of the Bible.
He doesn't necessarily need answers; he needs people who are willing to ask questions.
He works with his hands; he needs to see the church practically meeting needs.
He needs relationships with other guys like him- guys who go snowboarding, play paint ball, enjoy concerts, and love the outdoors.
He doesn't need pressure to look or act a certain way.
He needs the freedom to ask questions where no one gives pat answers or gets defensive.
He needs to see with his own eyes why spirituality matters.
He needs opportunity to serve others.
He is 26 years old, lives with his girlfriend and has the kindest, most selfless spirit of anyone you'll meet.
He drinks occasionally.
He used to smoke.
He drives fast and really likes his car.
He likes Metallica, Ozzy Osbourne, and The Hip.
He looks after our mom.
He worries about money and having enough of it.
He loves animals.
He can fix almost anything.
He respects the planet and recycles.
He owns his own kayak.
He already has lots of good friends.
Is there a church for him?

Expectations

At the church we attend here in Wilmore, children stay in the service until the sermon time, then children under school age go to "Extended Session," a more child friendly sermon experience for them. For the past year we have been brining a few toys and coloring for Elijah and sometimes Micah to play with during the first part of the service. (Isaiah is in nursery and Micah has been sometimes joining us, sometimes staying in nursery.) One of the hardest things about parenting for me is knowing how much to expect from a child at a certain time in his life. What is a reasonable expectations for a ____ year old when it comes to ____. You could fill in these blanks with a thousand different things. And, where do our expectations for these things come from? Other parents? Our own families? Media? What would God expect from my 5 year old in church? I thought about this a lot last Sunday and realized that I had higher expectations for Elijah's behavior at school than I do at church. I don't send him to school with toys to entertain himself during his teachers' lessons. I don't put off his homework because I'm having trouble getting his other brothers to bed like I might put off his nightly Bible story and prayer time. And, I spend a good bit of time preparing him- helping him know what is expected of him at school- not just good behavior but that I expect him to learn every day.

With my newfound revelation, I decided that we needed to take a little field trip. So this morning, Elijah and I left home 30 minutes before the rest of the family and walked to church. It wasn't too hot yet and he actually told me twice on our walk, "Mommy, I needed some time alone with you." We talked about all kinds of things, but as we approached the church I told him that I had a special reason for inviting him on our walk today. I explained that he was growing so much that I wanted him to understand more about how special Sunday is for our family. I asked him if he knew why we go to church and what we were doing during the music and prayer times. We talked about what he thought and I tried to deepen his understanding of how blessed we are to be able to worship God freely together with other people, and that because he was getting so big, I think he is ready to start participating with us. This means no more toys in church. It means no more laying on the floor under the bench or crawling back and forth on top of it while we're standing. It means sitting on the bench, or standing next to us, and it means having nothing to distract him from listening and watching, and of course asking questions about the things he doesn't understand. I realize completely that he won't understand a fraction of what happens on the average Sunday morning, but I also realize that by encouraging him to stay distracted, I am preventing him from soaking in his surroundings.

So, how did it go? He was upset at first, as he is with all changes however small, but by the time we got to church his tears were dry, and it actually went really well. Micah was with us today, and he sat just as well and just as quietly (if not more so) than Elijah. They did take full advantage of a bathroom break during worship, but aside from that, Elijah adjusted wonderfully because he knew exactly what was expected of him. Learning to parent well is such a process. I think about all of the times I have developed my expectations on the spot- while we're in the church service, while we're at the restaurant... and how correcting behaviors at that point is like putting out a forest fire with a bucket. The older Elijah gets the more I understand the effect of prevention- especially with him. If all three of them understand exactly what Mommy and Daddy are expecting them to look, sound and act like, the forest fires barely have a chance to start.