Tag Archives: truth

Nothing to Lose…

What do I have to lose?

You might be wondering what I am talking about.

This last year has been one of those journeys that I used to only read about. The “great awakening”!! It has been a year where the tears and laughter have flowed, but also the full spectrum of emotion has also been experienced. From the dizzying heights to “the depths of despair”, as so well said by Anne Shirley. 🙂 I have learned to say what I believe, instead of skirting issues. Standing up for what I believe has been harder, and easier, than I thought it would be. Avoiding conflict and controversy was the way I used to protect myself before. It made life easier to deal with…but darkness was simmering below the surface the whole time. Just waiting to explode. Continue reading Nothing to Lose…

Love vs Truth?

People so often distrust christianity and through that, christians, because of the judgement they grew up with. And it’s true, I also grew up feeling the judgement, and the fear of being “left behind”. Any sin that one was caught in was something that drove a wedge between God and man. There was no grace. There was little love. So society took over, and labeled us as “intolerant”. Many of my friends left the faith because they couldn’t handle the pressure of being “a good christian”.

So, those of us who stayed in the pews, many of us numb and disillusioned, were there out of tradition and guilt. We read our bibles, taught Sunday school, and tried our best to not preach intolerance. We wanted to preach love and acceptance, because that is what we wanted so badly ourselves. A few revivals swept through and infused us with fresh hope, but it didn’t seem to make much of an affect in the society around us. Continue reading Love vs Truth?

Love and Truth

The other day I was given the gift of music. (These things make us so happy here in the bush!) I chose an album that my son recommended and there were a few songs on there that touched me to the core. One of the songs was, “Loving You With the Truth.” It talks about having the guts to share ones faith with a friend who doesn’t share the same faith.

So many of us believers are afraid, of rejection, humiliation, and maybe even of losing a friend. So we skirt the issues of faith…and we say the generic terms of “praying for you”, and ” I am spiritual.” We definitely don’t want to be compared to those “crazy” holy-rollers that people see on TV, right? Continue reading Love and Truth

Heat…

We are now driving through the middle of Tanzania. Two days of heat and packed sandy scenery. It’s raw and beautiful. It’s amazing how many people live in such harsh conditions. Survival is the key, no luxury available, and if you’re lucky you can afford a cold coca-cola once in awhile. How many of us could actually survive this heat without fans and air conditioning? It’s amazing what we take for granted…what we are used to, and what we also demand.

Continue reading Heat…