Resolutions

What should be my New Year’s Resolution for 2009? Many resolutions deal with doing more with less and piling more activities and events into an already hectic schedule. My resolution this year is going to be very different. My goal this year is to simplify and not do as many things as I have in the past. The events of the past few years have caught up with me and have really forced me to look at where I am at and what I am doing.  I have neglected to really take care of myself. This year will involve me learning how to handle stress in a more effective manner, rather than just internalizing everything (which as one of my mentor’s Chris Roe will say, “How’s that working for you?”). Also, I am going to find activities that help me relax and unwind, so that means carving out some personal time. This may mean that I do not participate in as many activities as in previous years. While sounding like a very odd resolution,  I think that this is a step in the right direction for me.

I do plan on blogging more (I really don’t think it is possible for me to blog less). I have many different ideas on blogging, but I plan to share more of what I am grappling rather than just writing commentaries (although I am sure that some of those will be written as well). Also, I think that my blog title will change, but the focus will stay the same (my journey on the road to recovery from spiritual abuse). In addition, I plan on starting a new blog that will focus solely on technology and my experiences there in early 09.

At the end of the year, I always look back and I can see the “theme of the year”: 2005 – Adventure; 2006 - Chaos; 2007 – Survival; 2008 – Healing.  I feel that 2009’s theme will be Restoration. 

Happy New Year!

Christmas Memories

It seems like in today society, that we are always trying to do things bigger and better. This mentality has caught a lot of traction in the church world as well where Christmas and Easter services have turned into gigantic productions. I was thinking last week about the most memorable Christmas Eve services that I have attended throughout my life. Two memories immediately came to mind. First, I remember growing up in a church where the pastor would invite the children onto the stage and read the Christmas story. Granted, it is a brave man who asks for children to come forward unsupervised and sit on the stage. Every single year this was done. It is very simple and not flashy, but I still remember it. The other Christmas Eve service I remember was a very simple service where light was provided by candles and poinsettias decorated the stage. The Christmas story was shared and communion was available. One again, very simple. The gigantic productions (and granted I have worked on MANY of them over my life time) do not even come to mind.  I remember working on the productions, but I do not remember them at all.

I have seen churches outdo the previous year’s Christmas service with a “better” production the following year. However, I wonder is this the best way? Is the simple way maybe not the better way? It seems like with everything that I have experienced over the past few years that I have more questions than answers, and that may be a good thing.

Feel of Christmas

Whenever I hear the word Christmas, it triggers certain images ,sounds and even smells. Many of us think of family and friends coming together amidst the glow of a warm fire. Smells of a wondrous feast cooking in the kitchen that we will all be eating. However, most of these images are completely distant from that first Christmas. The contrast occurred to me as I attended our local zoos Christmas light show. At one part of the zoo, they have a petting area with sheep, goats, and many other animals in a building that could double as a very nice manger. Needless to say, the sights and smells there did not bring back memories of Christmas past. However, as I was leaving I realized that the sounds and the “fragrance” of the petting zoo area are very much the sights and sounds of that first Christmas. It really made me think of the manger scene with animals and hay all around. This is very different from the Christmas memories that we have today. Visiting the petting zoo area may be an annual thing for me just to help me focus on the true meaning of Christmas.

I hope that you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

God is Good

“God is good, all the time, all the time, God is good” states one line of a song that we hear in many churches today. Whenever things goes well, it is easy to declare that “God is good”, but what about those times when things aren’t so good? What about the times of feelings of loneliness or times of need? I’ve really thought a lot about the statement “God is good” over the past day or so. Is this a phrase that Christians use as an adjective to express feeling of joy over a “good day” or really something that we as Christians hold onto as a fact? One thing I have learned over the past few years (and yes they have been hard years) is that it takes a lot to say “God is good” during trying times. I have learned that “God is good” needs to become a fact that I hold on to no matter what the circumstances in my life may be.