Sara, you got your wish. After a long silent period, I'm going to begin writing again in this blog. (And with my husband's help, in the related blog, Everyday Secrets.)
The inspiration to do so is probably a good sign indicating I am on the road to recovery from the dark abyss that was law school. Yes, I survived it!
And my creativity and personality and hopefulness is returning. And now that I am free to spend my time as a human being, here are all kinds of exciting things I want to do with it. I am ... 1) starting an immigration law practice 2) living nearer my family and enjoying it 3) teaching belly dance classes 4) also leaving plenty of room in my imagination for all kinds of new possibilities.
So, as I return to the human race I will try to document: my returning excitement for life, my journey through it, my attempt at faith, and my grief. Grieving the pain in the world is a necessary part of being human, so I will be doing some of that too.
Sunday, December 27, 2009
Our Faith Journey
I believe we are all on a journey. I believe God knows our path, even though we can not see where it is we are going. With a step towards that kind of faith, Jon and I decided to move (which took place a week ago) back to my hometown of New Braunfels, TX. It is a leap of faith because in some ways, it would have been easier to stay put in Houston. In Houston, we had a group of friends who think like we do, like the things we like, and in a big diverse city, I guess that was not a surprise to find. We are very thankful for the years we spent there and the friends we made. They will be our friends and support-base forever, just like our friends from college are.
With the move to New Braunfels, I had to have faith that God had made this path clear for us for a reason. We are going to miss our friends in Houston very much. And I was slightly afraid that all of my experiences up until this point, that have expanded my world and humbled me, may have all been for nothing. That the things I have come to feel are important might have no context here.
For example.
In some ways, the city was easier for my Christian faith as well as my social life. Christianity only makes sense to me if the end result is love in action (not that I have ever been good at this, but it is a goal). Through my journey so far through the world, I have come to believe that this love should be counter-cultural: by wiping out all cultural, racial, and socio-economic divides. At City of Refuge Church in Houston, I was surrounded by a body of Christian believers who believed the same thing, and were attempting to do this on a daily basis. I was afraid I would not find this type of community in New Braunfels. All of the churches looked the same to me, and none of them seemed to be shaking things up too much. Even though this is not Houston, there are always race and class issues to be addressed, and I don't see that happening. And to be honest, this is a challenge to those churches but to me as well. What am I going to do about it? How am I going to live out my personal faith calling in this context? How could I humbly share my opinion with the faith community here, without thinking that I am better than them? Of course, I would have to do it by example.
Well...I still do not know what this will look like. But I'm blogging about it because something has confirmed to me that I am not the only one who thinks these things are important, even in the Texas Hill Country. (If this is getting too long, skip down to the link at the bottom). I am not the only in this area one who thinks Christianity should look radical, and might mean doing something that seems crazy for the sake of a radical God.
Perhaps intentional diversity does not make as much sense here as it does in the city. Even still, I know that even in this town (and those around it) there are those that feel outcast, those that don't fit in, and those that feel invisible. And there is much more to be done about it than praying with them on Sunday morning.
To expand a little bit on the idea of being counter-cultural- Jon and I think that your faith should affect the way you live in harmony with others and the way you live in harmony with the earth. We have been talking for a long time about starting a community, modeled after the church in Acts, where all assets are shared and everyone is taken care of and everyone is welcome. Living in community is definitely counter-cultural in the culture we live in. And to be in harmony with the earth and to treat our bodies as God created them to be treated, eating all natural food of his creation instead of the poisonous stuff our society has come up with, is another challenge we're always thinking about. Finally, in order to do all of this, you have to adopt a simple lifestyle, where you are not too busy to plant your own vegetables, and where the best entertainment is time spent in conversation with your friends and neighbors.
This is all to say that even though we don't claim to be good examples, we at least believe that Christianity should be more than a Sunday activity. That is why we were stunned and amazed to find Everything Jesus Ranch in Seguin, TX.
Check out this website, and I'll keep you posted as our journey continues.
http://www.genesischristianchurch.org/new2/index.php?lead_in=wu_grow/brochure.htm
With the move to New Braunfels, I had to have faith that God had made this path clear for us for a reason. We are going to miss our friends in Houston very much. And I was slightly afraid that all of my experiences up until this point, that have expanded my world and humbled me, may have all been for nothing. That the things I have come to feel are important might have no context here.
For example.
In some ways, the city was easier for my Christian faith as well as my social life. Christianity only makes sense to me if the end result is love in action (not that I have ever been good at this, but it is a goal). Through my journey so far through the world, I have come to believe that this love should be counter-cultural: by wiping out all cultural, racial, and socio-economic divides. At City of Refuge Church in Houston, I was surrounded by a body of Christian believers who believed the same thing, and were attempting to do this on a daily basis. I was afraid I would not find this type of community in New Braunfels. All of the churches looked the same to me, and none of them seemed to be shaking things up too much. Even though this is not Houston, there are always race and class issues to be addressed, and I don't see that happening. And to be honest, this is a challenge to those churches but to me as well. What am I going to do about it? How am I going to live out my personal faith calling in this context? How could I humbly share my opinion with the faith community here, without thinking that I am better than them? Of course, I would have to do it by example.
Well...I still do not know what this will look like. But I'm blogging about it because something has confirmed to me that I am not the only one who thinks these things are important, even in the Texas Hill Country. (If this is getting too long, skip down to the link at the bottom). I am not the only in this area one who thinks Christianity should look radical, and might mean doing something that seems crazy for the sake of a radical God.
Perhaps intentional diversity does not make as much sense here as it does in the city. Even still, I know that even in this town (and those around it) there are those that feel outcast, those that don't fit in, and those that feel invisible. And there is much more to be done about it than praying with them on Sunday morning.
To expand a little bit on the idea of being counter-cultural- Jon and I think that your faith should affect the way you live in harmony with others and the way you live in harmony with the earth. We have been talking for a long time about starting a community, modeled after the church in Acts, where all assets are shared and everyone is taken care of and everyone is welcome. Living in community is definitely counter-cultural in the culture we live in. And to be in harmony with the earth and to treat our bodies as God created them to be treated, eating all natural food of his creation instead of the poisonous stuff our society has come up with, is another challenge we're always thinking about. Finally, in order to do all of this, you have to adopt a simple lifestyle, where you are not too busy to plant your own vegetables, and where the best entertainment is time spent in conversation with your friends and neighbors.
This is all to say that even though we don't claim to be good examples, we at least believe that Christianity should be more than a Sunday activity. That is why we were stunned and amazed to find Everything Jesus Ranch in Seguin, TX.
Check out this website, and I'll keep you posted as our journey continues.
http://www.genesischristianchurch.org/new2/index.php?lead_in=wu_grow/brochure.htm
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