Since everyone else is doing it...

Jess: Wes was practically begged by one of our friends (who shall remain unnamed) to write this post today. So here goes.

Bin Laden is dead. Okay. That's one more person who has died in this war of almost 10 years. Yes, he did some really, really awful stuff. Yes, thousands of people in our country have died because of the stuff he did. Yet Christians are called to love one another. If I'm not mistaken, "love" is one of the most common words in the Bible. Jesus says, "If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even ‘sinners’ do that." (Luke 6:32-33). We are called to love one another, good or bad, nice or mean, friend or enemy. That means that when someone dies, we should mourn.

Again, I realize that Bin Laden was a evil man. His thoughts and actions prompted many more people to think, say, and do evil things. But if we respond to his death with celebrations in the street, Facebook and Twitter posts about how awesome America is, and happiness, then we are just more of the people who have thought, said, and done evil things because of Bin Laden. I know it's an overused Bible passage, but Jesus told us to turn the other cheek. Yes, as Dr. Ruge-Jones taught many of us TLU-ers, there is a message of passive resistance in that verse. But the main point in the message is that we are not to exchange stealing for stealing, cruelty for cruelty, or violence for violence. We are called to be peacemakers, not killers.

There are some who say that Christians are called to fight evil, that there are passages in the Bible that prove this. But Jesus never commanded violence; he came not to fight against oppression, not to overthrow the Romans, but to die for all of us sinful humans. Bin Laden is definitely one of those sinful humans--he's up there with Hitler on a lot of people's lists. But I am just as sinful. So are you. Yes, I've never killed anyone. I've never plotted the murder and destruction of people just because of their nationality. Again, Jesus says that my division of sins into "worse" or "not quite so bad" just isn't the way it works: “You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not murder, and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.’ But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment."

So my anger with my (real or spiritual) brother is just as bad as Bin Laden's murder. That's a tough pill to take. It doesn't make sense to us. Yet it doesn't need to make sense to us. Our law is not the same as God's law. I completely agree that we need laws to keep the world from falling into chaos. We're not perfect, so we need worldly laws as well as God's. But we absolutely MUST realize that they are not the same. In the same way, God's punishments do not mesh with ours (see our last blog post about Rob Bell for more on this).

My main thought all day today has been disappointment. Am I disappointed that Bin Laden is dead? Not particularly. Am I disappointed in myself for thinking that way? Absolutely. And I'm disappointed that I can't see any other news on Yahoo--what about our brothers and sisters who are being ravaged by tornadoes? What about Syria? What about...anything else? I'm disappointed that my favorite radio station has played almost nothing but "America is awesome" songs all day long, mixing in quotations from Obama's speech last night. I'm sad that people are dancing in the streets. A human being is dead. And that should make us all sad.

Wes: Well, as always, Jess said pretty much everything that needed to be said. Which doesn't leave me with much to talk about. I'll take a swing at filling in a few of the gaps that she so graciously left for me.

I am not one of those people who wakes up every morning and turns on the news or reads a newspaper. I wish that I was. I really do. By the time I'm awake enough to formulate coherent thoughts, though, I'm usually halfway through with my drive to school. So my newsmongering usually comes later in the day, when I jump onto a few online news sites and see what's what in the world today. Therefore, I did not know about bin Ladin until one of my friends texted me about it while I was in class. I waited impatiently for my break and then jumped on the news to see what the heck was going on.

My first impression after receiving a text saying he'd been captured: Great. We caught one of the top leaders of a militant, fundamentalist, extremist group that had taken credit for a large number of terrorist attacks around the world. For a country that needs a morale boost, this is exactly what we needed.

Then I read that he had been killed. Then I read that people were celebrating in the streets of NYC, on the Washington DC Mall, and throughout the world. Not celebrating that he had been captured, but that the sorry so-and-so had been killed. We were cheering, singing, shouting for joy over the death of person.

Someone on a news article likened it to the way certain extremists celebrated in the Middle East after the planes crashed into the World Trade Center buildings and into the Pentagon.

Celebrating. Really?

Then I jumped on my facebook and started seeing posts from my different friends. I saw the expected satirical commentary from a few people (shout out to Corbin!!!), which I only expected because I know that they are some of the deepest thinking people I know and they could truly balance the truth and the satire. I saw some Bible verses of hope and love from others. And then I saw a long string of hateful remarks, mis-used Scripture, and more celebration from a number of my friends.

Most of them either spiritual leaders--pastors and youth pastors--or strong leaders within their faith communities.

I didn't know what to think. I didn't know what to say. I was disappointed in my fellow brothers and sisters. I was hurt that they were inserting God's hand of justice into an act of killing.

I kept thinking of this quotation from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.:

"I will mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that."

So I posted it. One of my good friends, a man I look up to greatly, mentioned that I was speaking from a place of privalege. I've always been an outsider looking in on most of the injustices of the world. I have the luxury of living on the other side of the battles, of the war, of the death of bin Ladin. And he's right. I do. I've never had to see the hatred in the eyes of a man that believes completely that I am evil and I have a God-ordained death sentence. I've never had to suffer through the horrors of war like so many have. I've never known life outside of my privalege.

But if people like Dr. King can say this, if people like Gandhi (spoiler alert: not even a Christian!) can uphold a lifestyle of love in the midst of terrible, horrific oppression, I would hope that people like myself could do so as well. We as Christians are called to uplift justice, but never to rejoice in the loss of life. It might be a thin line at times, but the line is there.

I rejoice in justice. I do. But I do not rejoice in the loss of a life, even the life of Osama bin Ladin. I hope that God has more grace and compassion for him than we do. For I whole-heartedly admit that he deserves death, but so do I.

One of Jess' and my friends from TLU make an amazingly spot-on comment about how a week ago, we were celebrating Easter, celebrating life and the victory of God's love over death's power. Now we are celebrating death.

Not much different than those who shouted "Hosanna" one day and "Crucify" soon after...

May love, now and always, win.


Next blog will be light-hearted. I promise. For now, you stay classy, World Wide Web.


-Jess and Wes

---UPDATE---

The above quotation from Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is not correct. Due to a crazy Facebook sensation that started with some American woman teaching elementary school in Japan, the quotation was amended. I apologize for the mis-quote, but would like to offer the correct quotation below:

"Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that."

Another great quotation from the late Dr. King is the following:

‎"The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, norestablish the truth. Through violence you may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In fact, violence merely increases hate. So it goes. Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that." - MLK, Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, pp. 62–63 (1967)

Controversy!

Jess: I hope everyone read the title of this entry in a sing-song Peter Griffin voice. If you didn't, please go back and read it again before moving on. This is extremely important to me...

Alright, so now it's time for Wes and I to tackle Rob Bell's new book, Love Wins. If you haven't heard about this book, I don't know where you've been. Bell's video promo of the book led to him being attacked as a heretic, not a Christian, and basically just a bad guy. He's been on Good Morning America, the cover of Time Magazine, and I don't even know what else since the publication of this book. And that's ignoring the internet (is that even possible?). Here's Bell's 2.5 minute introduction to the book.

Anyway, this book should be in no way shocking to any well-trained, intelligent pastor; it shouldn't even be that crazy for most Christians who have seriously considered their beliefs and have more than just a "blind" faith. Whether or not you believe in it is (for this paragraph, at least), irrelevant. The book's ideas should not shock you if you have spent your Christian life wondering who God is and what God does. Bell himself says, "...nothing in this book hasn't been taught, suggested, or celebrated by many before me." Yet he is being called a heretic on a daily basis. People are insisting that Rob Bell can't possibly be correct. Pastors are being fired for saying that Bell isn't necessarily wrong.

My biggest problem with this book isn't the book at all. I think it's well-written; Bell bases his argument in Scripture, history, and both past and current theologies. The points are fairly complex, yet he presents them in everyday, easy to understand language. A child could pick up this book and understand most of it. Yet what Bell says is tearing Christians apart--but doesn't everything? That's my problem. Wes and I have talked about this before: we're Christians. We're called to love God and love our neighbors. But how can we do this when we attack our neighbors for having opinions? For highlighting the many possibilities that God's love brings?

When we put God in a box, when we define who God is and what God can or can't do, that's when we're making our biggest mistake. I don't care if you agree or disagree with my belief that the prevailing message of God's actions throughout history is love. What I do care about is how you react through your agreement or disagreement. If you can sit down and have a conversation with me about the topic, great. If you sit me down and tell me I'm wrong and you're right, and that I'm going to hell because of my beliefs...not great. We as Christians are called to "make disciples of all nations." How can we do that if we're driving people away from Jesus? One of the greatest points Bell makes isn't about heaven or hell at all--it's that Christians are killing Christianity. We like to tell people what is and isn't true about Jesus, and for that reason, "Some people have so much baggage with regard to the name 'Jesus' that when they encounter the mystery present in all of creation-- grace, peace, love, acceptance, healing, forgiveness--the last thing they are inclined to name it is 'Jesus'"

So are we destroying the real, loving, saving Jesus through our constant need to tell people who and what God through Jesus is? I think so. I admire Rob Bell for his strength to put his name on this book. Many "Christians" today want to know that being a Christian is about going to church on Sunday, then going home and living just like they did before the Sunday service. Or they want to know that being a Christian is about telling other people their beliefs are wrong. But they don't want to hear that being a Christian being like Christ. Heaven forbid.

I have a hard time believing in a God who would lovingly send his son to die for the sake of all humanity, yet let most of those same humans spend an eternity in hell for the same sins. But I haven't yet come to terms with the possibility of God letting just anyone into heaven. It's a tough thing to accept. If God is loving enough to let me, a sinner, into heaven, then that means that God is loving enough to let let the people who made my life a living hell in junior high into heaven. Then God is loving enough to my neighbor who has never gone to church and has rejected God all her life into heaven. And that means that God is loving enough to let Hitler into heaven.

That's a lot to handle. But if Hitler sinned "too much" to get into heaven, where's the line? What if I commit one sin too many in my life? I hope that God is loving enough to accept Hitler into heaven, because that means God is loving enough to accept me.

Wes: So it seems like everyone is writing about this issue. Why not us as well? But, I must admit that no post of ours will ever hit the spot like Donald Miller's did. If you haven't read it, check it out!

Anyways, here's the deal. I've been struggling with the question of Heaven and Hell for years. The more I read Holy Scripture, and the more I grow in faith, the more I struggle with the notion of there being a place beyond death that is completely devoid of God's love. The more time I spend in worship of the Almighty, and the more I come to understand His love and mercy, the more I struggle with the idea that there is a place where God refuses to go, a depth that God refuses to dive, a realm where God refuses to give yet another chance of redemption to one of His creation. This does not compute for me. How can God be all loving and all powerful and still send people to Hell? Even more disheartening for me is this: How can God be all loving and all powerful and not allow redemption even for those in Hell?

This question started nagging on me when I was asked by a young man in my youth group whether or not God would ever forgive and redeem the devil if Satan repented. My by-rote answer was that God had condemned Satan to Hell for blaspheming and trying to usurp God, something that is unforgivable. But I started thinking over this and realized that I don't know if I believe that. Is the chasm between God and Hell so vast that His love cannot bridge it? One can always respond with something like, "Well Satan would never repent, so it doesn't matter."

Satan might not, I don't know. But I am sure that, given the opportunity, there's gotta be at least one person confined to Hades who would repent if given the chance. Would God really deny them the opportunity to receive His grace? Are we so bold as to claim a limit on God's love, even a limit so vast as Hell?

"Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: 'For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.' No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."--Romans 8:35-39

I have to hold on to these words. I have to believe that there is no place or state of being that is too far removed that God could not be there with us if we turned toward Him. Not even death. Not even hell.

But here's the kicker: As much as I pulled a message of comfort from Bell's book on this subject, and as much as it helped me to better articulate my faith struggles in this area, I fully believe that this was nowhere near his point in writing this book. Yes, he works to tackle the question of Heaven and Hell. Yes, he asks some tough questions and poses some interesting answers. But this is not the point of his book.

Rob Bell is trying to drive home the point that the Kingdom of God and kingdom of sin are present and prevalent in the world around us now. We are able to see--to even enter into--Heaven or Hell in our lives today. Like the story of the prodigal father and his two sons, we have the choice to either enter the party--to accept and live within the grace and love and justice of God as it is given to us in the here and now--or stay outside and rail against it. We have the choice either to join with God in His saving works and revel in them or to refuse and live life on our own.

This book is about the now much more than it is about the then.

I hope that, whether you are like me and find a message of hope and love in this book or you struggle with his words and find hope in another understanding of the Gospel message, you are able to read this book for what it is worth and see it for what it is: one man of faith's attempt to convey part of his beliefs with others. Bell does not compel others to believe the same. He does not say that anyone must believe what he has written to be truth. He is simply presenting his findings and his understandings with others in the hope that this book will in some way help them come to a better understanding of their faiths. You don't have to believe him. You can even openly and adamantly disagree with him. But I pray that you can do it in the right way if this is the case. Talk through this book with someone who believes differently than you. Try to find some middle ground in it for both of you to stand on. And remember God called us above all else to love one another, so find love-based ways to interact with Bell, this book, and this situation.

Because the truth is God's alone. And whether or not we as Christians can agree on anything else, I pray that we can agree with the fact that God is love.

And love wins.

;)


You stay classy, World Wide Web!


-Jess and Wes

Holy Week

Jess: As I have previously mentioned, Lent used to be my least favorite part of the church year. The high point during the whole season was Palm Sunday, because we went back to celebrating Jesus' great power and kingliness. I loved getting to wave my palm branch around, tickling my brother with it, and trying to remember how to fold it into a cross. The songs were great, and I remembered why I enjoyed church, rather than thinking about how depressing Lent was.

Even if I still held onto these particularly material things about Palm Sunday, I think Wes' sermon this Sunday would have knocked me out of that illusion. I'll let him talk about the substance of the sermon, but suffice it to say that Wes completely nailed the whole point of Palm Sunday. He brought us back into the reality of Jesus' life, death, and preaching.

I always loved Maundy-Thursday because most of the ones I remember, we did some sort of meal based on Jesus' last supper. We would sit around a table in the back of the sanctuary, and share the bread and the cup just like the disciples would have with Jesus. No one "played" roles or anything, we just shared a meal as a church family.

And the low point of the low season was Good Friday. The service was depressing, it was dark, and at the end, my dad always slammed a giant Bible shut and scared the crap out of me. I knew it was coming, yet I always jumped about a foot off my seat and almost screamed.

These days, I'm a little (ahem a whole freaking lot) more aware that there are reasons for the seaons we celebrate in the church. Without Good Friday, there can be no Easter. I am always saddened by how few people attend Good Friday services, yet the church has more people than any other Sunday on Easter. We are missing the point if we celebrate the high numbers on Easter and ignore the poor attendance on Good Friday. Jesus HAD to die before he could be raised and conquer death. If we are not willing to share the message of Jesus crucifixion and terrible, bloody death, does the resurrection hold any meaning at all? I'm not saying we should go out and spread the news that Jesus died a disgusting, humiliating, terrifying death and completely ignore its meaning. But it is important that we remember and celebrate Jesus' death, not rushing through the season of Lent or Good Friday to get to the good news of Easter. The death in itself is good news. Jesus died for my sins--for your sins--for all of our sins. Without that message, it doesn't matter that he rose again.

Well, there's my little preaching moment. Jesus died. But that's not the end...thanks be to God.

Wes: I would like to start out by saying that throughout this Lenten season, I've had the pleasure of spending an hour each Tuesday with a great group of people from the churches going through the book, The 24 Hours that Changed the World. It's about, you guessed it, Jesus' last day alive. We've been entrenched in the horror of this day, and one phrase has helped us pull through: It's Friday, but Sunday is coming. I am very happy to say that, after a 40 day season of being immersed in Friday, Sunday is almost here.

As Jess mentioned above, I tried to do something a little bit different for Palm Sunday this year. I moved all everything out of the sanctuaries of my churches. And when I say everything, I mean absolutely everything that was not nailed down was moved. The altar table: gone. The pulpit: gone. The cross: gone. The flowers, flags, pictures: gone. The only things left in the sanctuary by the time we gathered on Sunday were the pews and the people. (The pews would have been gone, but they are bolted in...). I showed up to service in a bright green polo shirt, jeans, and no shoes. Yeah. I was honestly worried that I would either be run out or the parishioners would get up, leave, and never come back.

My sermon focused on the fact that Jesus came into the world and turned everything that people wanted and expected on their heads, and that this is seen clearly in the Palm Sunday text. Instead of riding in on a warhorse, Christ comes in on a donkey. Instead of leading a victorious army, Christ is followed by a ragtag group of dirty, smelly fishermen. Instead of going to a palace or a military stronghold, Christ goes to the Temple to pray and teach. And finally, instead of raising up an army to spark a rebellion, Christ goes to the cross. The people of God understood their needs all wrong. They had an expectation that was not fulfilled, because Jesus chose to be the Savior they needed rather than the one they wanted. We, like the people of Jesus' time, need things turned on our heads every once and while. We need to be reminded why we come to church, and why Who it is that we are worshipping. The church is not the building we gather in. The church is not the paintings or flags or crosses or flowers that adorn the sanctuary. The church is the people of God.

We cannot lose sight of this.

If you want to read my sermon in its entirety, check out my other blog: http://flip-flopprophet.blogspot.com/. Realize, though, that this is not exactly what I preach, since I make a manuscript and then usually immediately deviate from it. :-)

Tomorrow's community Good Friday service should be epic. I'm sure that we'll have a follow-up blog about it and everything that the two of us have done for it in preparation and execution.

Well, happy Holy Week, everyone! I hope that God reveals to you anew the glory of the Risen Christ this Easter Sunday, and until then, remember, it's Friday but Sunday is coming!


You stay classy, World Wide Web!


-Jess and Wes

Playing Blogger Ketchup

Jess: I guess we've been slacking here for a couple of weeks, and we apologize greatly for that. Sorry, everyone. We'll call that our bad.

Not much has really happened outside of the normal routine at the Cain house. I've been babysitting about 30 hours a week, Wes has been going to class, church is going well, and we've actually been eating at our dining room table--which is kind of a feat. The only out of the ordinary occurrence was a couple of deaths in the congregations, which I will let Wes explain.

We're gearing up for spring/summer, though, so I'm pretty excited about that. Sometime in the next couple of weeks, we'll be planting potatoes, beans, tomatoes, carrots, and peppers. I don't know how well it's going to fit in our little garden, so the final tallies might look different. I'll be bleaching the siding and cleaning the windows inside and out this weekend, as well. The house looks pretty neat right now because of all the flowers growing. We'll see about the whole outdoor work weekend, though. The forecast is full of rain, which makes it a little difficult to work outside. If it falls through, there's always the inside windows, dressers to polish, a faucet to fix, and more. I never knew how much went into having a house--especially an old house.

Other than that, I headed out to Ohio last weekend for my mom's bridal shower. We spent all four days talking, and I think we sort of drove her fiance, Chris, a little crazy. The bridal shower was a good time. I always love getting the chance to go back to my hometown and see my old teachers, friends, and congregants. I miss a lot of them, and I haven't been back since Wes and I got married, so it was a nice treat. Apparently, Wes DOES miss me when I'm gone, because, as he said,"I noticed how dirty the house gets when you're gone." It's so nice to be appreciated...

On the money end of life, things are going pretty fantasmically (yes, I made up a word). We're going to be buying our car at the end of next month, and we're going to pay half of it off UP FRONT! I'm so proud of us for spending this first half of the year working hard to save money, and it gives us great hope for the time we'll spend saving for our adoption application next year.

Well, that's all I have to say right now. Up next: THE Wes Cain.

Wes: Aloha everybody! I want to share with you some of the things that have happened over at the churches in the past couple of weeks.

So, as Jess mentioned, the big event, and the hardest with which to deal, was the death of one of the most beloved members of Crosswicks UMC. Walt Ellis was a wonderful man, and our worshipping community will not be the same without him. His funeral was last Friday, so while Jess was hanging out with her mom, I was trying to hold it together and be supportive for his wife, Nancy, and their family. The funeral was rough for me. It was only my second funeral to officiate, and it was the first one in which I knew and had a relationship with the deceased. Walt and I had shared many wonderful conversations during both my visits to his and Nancy's house as well as after church. I would always tease him about falling asleep during my sermons and he would always respond with a deep question or comment on my message to show me that he was not only listening, but engaging the sermon. I appreciated that more than he'll ever know. It was nice to know that someone cared enough about what I said and about the Word of God to talk with me about it after the fact. He was a good man, and even though our time together was short, I do miss him a lot. Any prayers you would like to lift up for his wife, Nancy, would be greatly appreciated.

Two weeks ago, I spent the weekend doing conference youth ministry stuff. On Friday, I had the immense honor of helping lead and teach a youth lay speaking retreat for the youth of the conference who wish to become more involved in the worship life of their faith community. We had a great time and I left feeling refreshed and excited about the ministry opportunities that are arising with this current generation. Amazing things will be happening. Mark my word. I also got to attend and help lead the spring meeting for the ministries for young people team, which is comprised of both youth and young adults from the conference. I felt kinda bad because I was extremely distracted during the meeting. I had just found out that one of my parishioner's father had passed, and then half-way through received news about Walt. I wanted to be there, and wanted to help the team engage in ministry, but my heart was elsewhere, breaking open for those close to me that I knew were suffering. As soon as they invent a way to be in two places at once, ministry will be so much easier... Just saying.

I am also very happy to announce that as of 10:20 today, my classes for the long-term semester are over! I have two weeks off to focus on church stuff--Yay Holy Week!--before I hit it hard with my short-term class. I honestly do not know what to expect in this class. It's a class on evangelism, and I'm really hoping that it is hands on and fun.

Well, that's all for now, folks! Tune in next week to hear about our Palm Sunday adventures! I am doing something a little... different... so pray that it goes well, and I'll tell you all about it in a few days!

You stay classy, World Wide Web!

-Jess and Wes

The Versatile Blogger

Jess: Wes and I have been tagged by Lisa Ramsey as a "Versatile Blog." Thanks so much, Lisa, for forcing us to actually write two blogs in one week! Now we have a few things we have to do:

- Thank the person who gave you the award- check!

- Share 7 things about yourself.

- Pass the award to up to 10 versatile bloggers.

- Let those bloggers know that you gave them the award.

Wes and I are each going to share 7 things about ourselves, and then we'll reveal the wonderful people who have the pleasure of writing an extra blog this week.

My seven things:

1. I love to do crosswords, but rarely finish them after Wednesday. I still try my best, but I'm pretty good at giving up and hoping Monday comes around again quickly.

2. Reading has always been one of my passions, but ever since I started my senior year of high school, I haven't gotten to do as much "fun" reading. I used to read at least an hour every day, and my mom would literally have to pick me up and put me outside during the summer. Instead of playing, though, I just sat outside and read. I'm not really sure that was her goal.

3. Before I started working at Starbucks a few years ago, I hated coffee. I thought the smell was okay, but I never touched the stuff. Now I know more random facts about coffee than anyone should ever know, I can taste every subtle hint of flavor in a cup of coffee, and I drink it on a regular basis- and not the "girlie" stuff. Plain coffee with a little cream and sugar.

4. I love milk, but anything other than nonfat makes me want to gag. I can handle a little half and half or whole milk in my coffee or tea, but I can't stand drinking anything but skim. I blame my mom.

5. I used to be a disaster. My room was so messy at one point during my childhood that my parents stopped coming in to tuck me in at night. After this drove them crazy enough, they promised to get me a new computer game if I could keep my part of the house cleaned for a month. It took me a couple of months, but I finally got my Ducktales floppy disk--which I still claim is the greatest game I ever got. Now, I'm borderline obsessive about keeping things clean. Wes will agree.

6. I wanted to be a teacher for most of my life, until I decided I wanted to make more money than that. Then I considered being a lawyer, and even did my ninth grade career project on becoming a lawyer. Finally, I discerned God's call for my life and realized I am supposed to be a pastor...I'm sure I'll make more money than a teacher that way. Lol.

7. If I hadn't discerned God's call on my life, I would have done something with childcare for the rest of my life. I may have started a day care, or worked my way up through one until I was in charge--something along those lines. I love kids and love seeing them grow and develop, and I'm still trying to figure out how that fits with God's plan, or how God wants me to use my childcare gifts as a pastor. We'll see!

Wes: So... Seven things about me:

1. Eric Matthews is one of my idols. If I could be just like him, I would be a very happy man. That is how much Boy Meets World has impacted my life.

2. I have walked on my toes my entire life. I do not know why I do this or how I started, but usually if anyone asks, I lie to them and tell them that I had to be pulled out of the womb feet first, which messed up my Achille's Tendon. This is why it looks like I am bouncing when I walk.

3. And speaking of bouncing, when I get really excited or agitated, this is exactly what I do. If I'm standing, my entire body will bounce up and down. If I'm sitting down, my legs will bounce up and down.

4. My first vehicle was a truck, and honestly, I cannot stop coveting any and every truck that I see on the road, from brand new, steroid enhanced super trucks to old, beat up chevys. Jess won't let me have one, though...

5. My favorite meal is a tie between steak and mashed potatoes, and chicken fetuccini alfredo.

6. I used to teach a SAT/ACT math prep course when I was a junior and senior in high school. This is funny because I absolutely hate math, even if I am fairly competent at it.

7. I've been baptized twice, the second time because I didn't know that I had been baptized already and my parents didn't tell me. I've been told by three different pastors--two who were the pastors of churches I attended--that I was going to hell because of this.

Jess and Wes: Ok. The people who have now do this:

1. Corbin Stephenson

http://pixelated-vision.blogspot.com/

2. Brent Philips

http://brentandbroken.blogspot.com/

3. Kevin Baker

http://believablebaker.blogspot.com

Well, that's all for now! You stay classy, World Wide Web!

-Jess and Wes

Contemplating Our Lives

Jess: For those of you who don't know or haven't been paying attention in church, we're in the glorious season of Lent right now. Some denominations don't really observe it, while others have blanket rules about the season. In the Lutheran church, for example, we do not use the word "Alleluia" in worship during the Sundays in Lent. I'm not sure how I feel about this particular rule, because the Sundays in Lent are supposed to be separate from the season--Sundays are always a celebration of Christ's resurrection. But I digress...

Lent used to be my least favorite season of the year. Why would I want to spend six weeks being sad? The only thing I understood about Lent was that when it was finally over, we celebrated Easter, my favorite service of the year. I understood parts of the season: 40 days to match Jesus' 40 days in the wilderness, Maunday Thursday and Good Friday to remind us of Jesus' last days and suffering, etc. Yet I didn't get the point of the season overall.

Once I got to college, I started to realize that Lent wasn't just the stuff we had to get through to get to Easter. It's not just about giving something up and celebrating more on Easter by having that thing again. It's not about anything I do--much like everything else in life, Lent is about Jesus, his sacrifice, and his place in our lives. Lent is a time for me to reflect about what Jesus has done for me and what I am doing to honor and glorify him. If Jesus is not the center of my life, now is the time to change things so that he is. If that involves abstaining from something that has taken his place as my top priority, so be it. If that means doing something outside of my normal routine to glorify him and be his hands and feet, then I should do that.

I also recognize that I don't need a church calendar season to reflect on my life and whether I am living it the way Christ wishes. This should be a part of my daily life, prayer, and worship. If I want to live a truly Christ-centered life, I shouldn't wait for the late winter/early spring to do so. God is waiting for me every day, not just during Lent. I hope that this is the message people are receiving during this season, and one I can preach effectively in my ministry.

In the past, I have given up junk food, TV, caffeine, etc. for Lent. Last year, Wes and I each took on a new God-centered task; mine was reading the Gospel of Mark in Greek. This year, we have decided to work our way through The Love Dare, a Christ-centered approach to strengthen our marriage. It's going well so far and really making us take a close look at the way we interact. I look forward to the new challenges each day brings, and I am sure we will reach the end of this season with a healthier, happier marriage.

Wes: I would like to start things off by saying ALLELUIA! HA! Take that, Lutherans!

Now that this is out of the way, let us look lovingly and longingly at Lent. (This use of alliteration is brought to you by the letter "L"). I've always enjoyed Lent. For the longest time, I saw it as the time when God challenged me to give something up for 40 days, just to see if I could. Well, being the kind of person to never back down from a challenge (except Sunday morning crossword puzzles), I heroically stepped up to the plate, ready to show God that 40 days without soda, or gum, or video games, was easy. Come on, God! Bring on the challenge!

There were a number of years while I was in high school where I would give up a handful of things, just to make sure that I made it all 40 days still abstaining from at least one of them. I'd give up things like pizza, candy, soda, gum, wearing hats, listening to my cd player (I know... anachronistic...), etc... And, without fail, I would always mess up and divulge in all but one of them. I remember one of the years, my theater group had a pizza party. Not thinking about it, I enjoyed a greasy piece of stuffed crust deliciousness. Then, about 6 bites in, I realized I had screwed up and indulged in the unindulgeable. But I thought to myself, "Oh well... I can't let this pizza go to waste! Especially when I only have the stuffed crust left!" So, there went giving up pizza.

My senior year of high school, I did something really cool for Lent. I fasted every Wednesday lunch period and prayed for everyone in my school--students, faculty, and staff--by name. I didn't do this alone, though. One of my friends, Chuck, joined me most Wednesdays for prayer and fasted with me. It was a great time that helped me grow closer to my friend and closer to my God. This year sparked a change in my Lenten disciplines. Since then, I have worked to take something on instead of give something up. Last year (partly for a class assignment if I'm being truthful), I prayed every day for 30 minutes straight the Jesus Prayer, which is a very simple, very powerful prayer: "Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." I would pray this over and over again for a half hour, and I must say that it was very centering for me. I really felt like I was doing something worthwhile, something with real spiritual depth.

Lent for me, though, has always been a stumbling block. I struggle with Lent for the same reasons that Jessica mentioned above. So many people--me included--tend to place the focus of Lent on themselves. It is a time for us to show God how much we love Him by giving something up or covenanting to pray for so long. It is about what we do, not what God does for us. Even in my sermon at Ash Wednesday, I unknowingly preached this idea by talking about Lent as a time for introspection, a time for the person to learn more about themselves and learn more about their God. I fully believe this is the purpose, but it is by no means the entire purpose, or the main one.

What I am striving to do this Lenten season is to come to realize it as what it is: a time to take a step back and see what God is doing in the world and in me. I hope that through this time, I will begin to view the world through the lens of Christ, so that I might always be putting God in the center of everything, even and especially my own life. I am hosting a Bible study for my churches that goes through the book The 24 Hours that Changed the World by Adam Hamilton. Along with this, we begin our time together by engaging in a part of the practice of examen: We share with each other where we felt close to God in the past week and where we felt far away from God in the past week. It for me has become one of the ways that I recenter my world around God, reminding myself over and again that even if I feel far away from God, the truth is that God is always right there.


We hope that your Lenten season is a fruitful one, and that God works wonders through your devotional practice, whatever it might be.

You stay classy, World Wide Web!



-Jess and Wes

Our achy breaky hearts

Jess: Last week, Wes and I had the privilege to go to Texas for the Rutledge-Stone wedding. We were so excited to get to visit all of our friends in family in the great nation of Texas. The last time we visited was for the Haug-Lys wedding last July. It's been about 35 degrees here for most of the last couple of months and we haven't seen our friends and family for awhile, so we were understandably jumping up and down with excitement to go down.

Our journey began on Wednesday, when we flew from Philly to Atlanta to San Antonio, where our wonderful friend Ryan picked us up and took us to crash at his apartment. For the 20 minute trip, we yelled out every Texas-related thing we saw on the way: "HEB!" "USAA!" "Mexican food!" "BBQ!" "I-35!" Since it was late, the yelling quickly degenerated to "Sonic!" "McDonalds!" "Bank of America!" "Grass!" We then passed a wonderful couple of hours alternating between talking about how tired we were and catching up on the last few months. Thusly did our wonderful Texas vacation begin.

Over the course of the rest of the week, we spent time with our friends and family, eating Mexican food, eating barbeque, not sleeping enough, wearing shorts and flip-flops, and generally enjoying ourselves. We got to see two of our good friends get married and start a new life together, and we even got to see my friends James and Christi who had been AWOL in our lives since our wedding. It was an absolutely wonderful trip, and we enjoyed every minute of it.

Then came the inevitable: we had to say goodbye to everyone for another long stretch, and get back on the plane to Philly. Katherine (Wes' little sister) cried the whole time we were in the airport, and I think there were a few more of us with less than dry eyes. The plane ride home was long, sad, and tiring. We had to get up about 4 hours after going to bed early Wednesday morning, and going back to work and school was extremely tough.

I've never had friends like I have in Texas. Like I told my mom today, every time we go back there, even after months of being gone, it's like we've always been there. After the initial excitement of being back home, we just fall back into our lives there. It makes New Jersey seem like no fun when we come back. We are really enjoying our time up here, and we know that we have fun and will look back on this time fondly, but going down to Texas reminds us where we belong.

Wes: So I was a groomsman in this wedding for which we flew down. That of course means that I was privy to all of the wild and crazy Bachelor Party shenanigans. And let me tell you, we had fun. In the interest of protecting the newly wed Justin (and in the interest of protecting national security), I'll only divulge the events of part 1 of the festivities. Our first excursion was to the Comal River for what I thought was going to be the worst float of my life. I mean, who goes and floats the river in February?? I must say, though, that the water was amazing, the sun was out, and we had a wonderful time. To top it off, we were the only ones on the river for the most part, and it was great having the whole thing to ourselves.

One of the highlights of the trip for me (outside of seeing friends and family of course) was getting to worship again at my home church in San Antonio. It was great to walk into University United Methodist and feel like I had never left. People I didn't know were coming up to welcome me back and the people that I have looked up to for years were some of the first to welcome us with open arms. Worshiping there was like coming home for me. I have really missed beign able to sing with Mark Swayze and hear about how God is at work in the lives of so many people down there. And even though the sermon was not delivered by the man I consider to be my pastor (who is currently in Rwanda on a three-month sabbatical/mission trip), Pastor Charles spoke an amazing message that I cannot wait to steal and share with my congregants at Crosswicks and Ellisdale. It was a wonderful time that I have dearly missed.

I really enjoyed being back in Texas, and it made me realize how much I miss all of my friends and family who live down there. It is really hard to be up here and away from so many loved ones. Now, for those few people up here in Jersey who read our blog, please do not think this at all means that we don't love and appreciate you. People like Josh and Sarah, all of our friends at Theology on Tap, our church family, and everyone else around here are the reasons that being up here is not only bearable but enjoyable, even fun. But I do have to admit that as much as I love our house, love my job, and love our friends up here, it just does not seem like home. We'll enjoy every minute we have up here, but we know where God is calling us next (or at least where it feels like He is!), and we are ready to answer that call.

Well, that was our Texas trip! Hopefully, it won't be another 8 months before we're able to make it back again. Until then, though, we'll keep chugging away up here, and we'll keep enjoying every minute of our lives together.

Thanks for tuning in! Check back soon for our take on corporate Christian accountability and how it pertains to the world today.

You stay classy, World Wide Web!


-Jess and Wes