An Inconvenient Christianity

A friend of mine recently told me about a phone call she received from an individual who had seriously wronged her and betrayed her trust. Ostensibly, he called to apologize, but the more he talked, the more she realized his "apology" wasn't an apology at all. He was actually trying to ascertain whether she was going to take legal action against him (yep, it was THAT bad). As she was telling me about the incident, I couldn't help but feeling convicted. How many times had I offered just such an apology to God? That story was a painful wake-up call to me. All too often, we (read: I) go to God with what appears to be a broken spirit and a contrite heart and offer up what sounds like a heartfelt apology...when in actuality, we are simply hoping to avoid some tangible punishment for our actions. Unfortunately for us, just like my friend did, God sees through the fake apology to what is actually in our hearts. Yet it is by His undying mercy that we are not all...

*I wrote this blogpost on April 22, 2006. Just thought I would share it again. i'm sitting here at my desk, listening to israel and new breed, researching case law for my newest brief and crying at the same time. hoo-rah for multi-tasking, right? but i'm crying because i'm thinking of how great God is and how much the opposite of that i am. i messed up yesterday...bad. and i know that God is willing and able to forgive me, but i'm wondering now why He would want to. if i were Him (and i note that i am not), i would have long since cut me off because i just don't listen! you ever get fed up with someone that you keep bailing out of the same situations? don't you just get to a point where you want to wash your hands of that person and say,  look, you do it again and you are on your own. don't come crying to me!  well, that's what i would do. but God does not do that. why? because He is great and i am not. time and time and time and time again i fail...

Today, I was chitchatting with my best friend. It was another one of those easy, casual conversations that we always have. But it shared another characteristic of our regular conversations: there was a bit of spiritual conviction. It came out of no where. There we were talking and I mentioned something to her that I had been doing and suddenly, she exclaimed, "An inconvenient Christianity?! More like an an inconvenient friend!" We both burst out laughing at that. The fact of the matter is we have inadvertently convicted each other time and time again over the 10 years of so that we've known each other. It happens so casually, that it's almost scary to think that the Holy Spirit is moving and speaking to us even through the simplest of conversations. The Bible tells us that iron sharpens iron (Prov. 27:17). Perhaps because it is such a common sense statement, I never really took the time to think about what it means. Have you ever tried to sharpen a knife? Can yo...

So...I'm jumping out of my skin to see Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (don't you dare judge me! lol!). Now, when I'm not on my soapbox about this or that, I enjoy magical fantasy...vampires especially (we can debate about why a Christian such as myself would enjoy this sort of thing on another blog post). Yet oddly enough, when I first saw a trailer for this movie, I immediately dismissed it as rubbish. If I recall correctly, my exact words were, "Okay, this vampire thing has gone way too far now." But...now I'm dying to see it! Why? Because a colleague of mine (yes, you @LexEsquire), whose opinion I greatly respect, praised it. In her opinion, it is very good. And based on that recommendation, I have gone from dismissive to definitely gonna see it. That happens to me more often than I care to share. Solely based on the recommendation of another, and not necessarily a trusted friend/acquaintance, I get excited over something or other that I previously tho...

*Sorry, didn't plan for this one to be so long! I need to turn my soapbox into kindling. Today is my parents' 45th wedding anniversary. I would like to say they've enjoyed 45 years of wedded bliss, but that would make me a liar. Like every other couple, they had their ups and downs....but through it all, they stuck by each other. The sole reason for that is their undying commitment to God. From as far back as I can remember, my parents have clung to the belief that marriage is honourable and divorce was not an option. Growing up, I always believed that too, but I also believed that my future marriage might end in divorce because of life's circumstances (whatever they might be). It was not until I reached adulthood, that I gained the spiritual insight to see that my parents' dogged tenacity (is that redundant?) when it comes to their vows was more than a staunch refusal to walk out on the marriage. Their commitment to each other is a direct reflection of th...

Yesterday, TLC had an Undercover Boss marathon. In case you've never heard of it, it's a reality TV show where a the president and/or CEO of a major corporation goes undercover as a lay-worker to see how the employees work and to gain a better understanding of the day-to-day operations of the corporation. I watched about six or seven episodes and cried like a baby at each one. There were some really heart-rending stories of economic hardship, overcoming obstacles and genuine human compassion. At the end of each episode the "boss" would reveal himself (I only saw male bosses) to the employees with whom he worked and then overcome by a fit of generosity he would reward them. I only saw one employee get reprimanded rather than rewarded. The employees, for their part, were really surprised by the revelation. You could almost see them trying to remember what they said or did in front of the boss, trying to make sure that nothing that was said or done would cost the...

Aimee Copeland Some of you might be wondering who she is. I'll tell you. Aimee Copeland  is a University of West Georgia grad student whose body was attacked by a flesh-eating virus after a zip-lining accident in early May. The above picture was taken the day she was released from the hospital. The virus took both her hands and a leg, yet there she is with a smile on her face. Her smile was the first thing I noticed when I first saw the photo. To be honest, I didn't notice the bandages on her arms until afterwards. I was mesmerized by her smile. I kept wondering to myself if I would have a smile on my face after going through what she's been through. The answer is no. I've been frowned up for days over much less. And I'm so ashamed. When I pointed out Aimee's smile to my father, he shrugged and said, "What else can she do?" In my head I thought. she could cry...she could yell to keep the cameras out of her face...she could be depressed...she...

I love this phrase. There are quite a few subtle variations on the meaning, but it is an urban colloquialism that means loyalty, no matter what. I thank God that I have been blessed with a few people that have that kind of loyalty to me and I to them. It's a rich blessing that have true friends. They are with me and in my corner no matter what (or "regardless of what" as one of them would say). This week we had Vacation Bible School at my church and I was privileged to be a teacher. The first lesson was taken from Daniel chapter three. The very well known story of the three Hebrew boys: Shadrach, Meschach and Abednego. It is a wonderful story of faith, but something jumped out at me so profoundly that it almost knocked me over. We always focus on the deliverance. But the Hebrew boys did not. Their focus was on God and Him alone. They were ride or die for the Lord. Literally. If you read the story, they never once pray for deliverance. They talk about God's a...