Journey of the Soul
Oh, this is good. You've got to go to Fraserworld and read Sean Fraser's summary of the entire Road Trip experience. Two Week Journey of the Soul can be found on their "whatznew?" page. Be sure not to miss the wonderful collage of photos.
For those of you that won't click, two things strike me about the Journey of the Soul update. First, there is the issue of our calling. Sean writes: "Such a call is not to remove the struggles of life which form us as God intends, but instead to distance ourselves from the hectic life that gives us excuses we create for NOT living according to God's call." Not having read this comment, this very issue is something we spoke about in Epicenter just yesterday with the junior highers at Canyon Hills Church. In short, Jesus spoke of only one priority. "Priority" was not a puralized word when he spoke of it. For Christ it was the "Kingdom of God" that seemed to be the focus. We may not know what we are "called" to career wise, or where God is "calling" us to live, but, as Christians, the Kingdom of God is our call. Ironically, it's something I have been thinking about and then I just read a new post Road Trip -Part 2 on the Taylor Family's blog and this is something Mike Taylor mentions in that excellent update. It's very intriguing.
Back to the Fraser's update. The second thing that stood out for me is the question: "Will they have the faith and conviction to allow such change to infect the lives they're systemically used to in Southern California?" That is the sixty-four thousand dollar question isn't it? Chrisy already briefly broached this subject with me via a very brief e-mail. She said there were things she really wants to do differently. She said she was scared that she may fail, but she wants to try. Then she told me they spoke of this certainty while they were in South Africa. She said that the group told her, you do it, you mess-up, and you do over again. And again. And again. I don't know what these "changes" are. I haven't heard yet. I'm excited.
The word "call" was used in the Fraser's post, Chrisy spoke of "changes" whereas in my junior high group we talked of a "priority" in life. Jesus talked about God's Kingdom being the goal, the focus. I don't know if this is at all on target for what has happened in the hearts of those who spent two weeks in South Africa, but the questions I have been asking myself are such as these: "How do I make God THE priority when I'm setting the dinner table with my kids? How do I make God THE priority in a staff meeting at work? How do I make God THE priority when a neighbor's dog takes a dump on my lawn? How do I make God THE priority when my daughter asks for cereal, I serve it, and she says she doesn't want it? How do I make God THE priority when anything difficult happens?" I'm anxious to talk with Chrisy about what is going on in her heart.
Listening to Chrisy "talk" in her e-mails, reading the Fraser's update, reading the Taylor's post, thinking about my own mistakes, what came to mind was Paul's writing in Philippians. Here is what he said . . . .
"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." --Philippians 3:12-14
That is essentially saying you make this choice to live according to God's call, you mess-up, you ask for forgiveness, you forget it, you do it again. And again. And again. You just don't forget the original goal, that thing God said to you there in your soul. God's expressed calling, that primary priority for our lives never changes, regardless of external circumstances.
I hope you will read both the Taylor Family Adventure update as well as the Fraserworld update. They'll give you a better understanding of what it was like for Chrisy these past two weeks. That will help hold you over until you get a chance to talk to her.
Well, as I type this my wife is in route from Switzerland and about to land in New York. I will be seeing her at LAX in about 9 hours. I'm looking forward to the ride home from the airport. That will be our own little one-hour journey of the souls.
For those of you that won't click, two things strike me about the Journey of the Soul update. First, there is the issue of our calling. Sean writes: "Such a call is not to remove the struggles of life which form us as God intends, but instead to distance ourselves from the hectic life that gives us excuses we create for NOT living according to God's call." Not having read this comment, this very issue is something we spoke about in Epicenter just yesterday with the junior highers at Canyon Hills Church. In short, Jesus spoke of only one priority. "Priority" was not a puralized word when he spoke of it. For Christ it was the "Kingdom of God" that seemed to be the focus. We may not know what we are "called" to career wise, or where God is "calling" us to live, but, as Christians, the Kingdom of God is our call. Ironically, it's something I have been thinking about and then I just read a new post Road Trip -Part 2 on the Taylor Family's blog and this is something Mike Taylor mentions in that excellent update. It's very intriguing.
Back to the Fraser's update. The second thing that stood out for me is the question: "Will they have the faith and conviction to allow such change to infect the lives they're systemically used to in Southern California?" That is the sixty-four thousand dollar question isn't it? Chrisy already briefly broached this subject with me via a very brief e-mail. She said there were things she really wants to do differently. She said she was scared that she may fail, but she wants to try. Then she told me they spoke of this certainty while they were in South Africa. She said that the group told her, you do it, you mess-up, and you do over again. And again. And again. I don't know what these "changes" are. I haven't heard yet. I'm excited.
The word "call" was used in the Fraser's post, Chrisy spoke of "changes" whereas in my junior high group we talked of a "priority" in life. Jesus talked about God's Kingdom being the goal, the focus. I don't know if this is at all on target for what has happened in the hearts of those who spent two weeks in South Africa, but the questions I have been asking myself are such as these: "How do I make God THE priority when I'm setting the dinner table with my kids? How do I make God THE priority in a staff meeting at work? How do I make God THE priority when a neighbor's dog takes a dump on my lawn? How do I make God THE priority when my daughter asks for cereal, I serve it, and she says she doesn't want it? How do I make God THE priority when anything difficult happens?" I'm anxious to talk with Chrisy about what is going on in her heart.
Listening to Chrisy "talk" in her e-mails, reading the Fraser's update, reading the Taylor's post, thinking about my own mistakes, what came to mind was Paul's writing in Philippians. Here is what he said . . . .
"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus." --Philippians 3:12-14
That is essentially saying you make this choice to live according to God's call, you mess-up, you ask for forgiveness, you forget it, you do it again. And again. And again. You just don't forget the original goal, that thing God said to you there in your soul. God's expressed calling, that primary priority for our lives never changes, regardless of external circumstances.
I hope you will read both the Taylor Family Adventure update as well as the Fraserworld update. They'll give you a better understanding of what it was like for Chrisy these past two weeks. That will help hold you over until you get a chance to talk to her.
Well, as I type this my wife is in route from Switzerland and about to land in New York. I will be seeing her at LAX in about 9 hours. I'm looking forward to the ride home from the airport. That will be our own little one-hour journey of the souls.
Labels: Bible, mission, religion, South Africa
posted by Doah at 11:26 AM
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