http://www.theknot.com/ourwedding/Lauren…

Community is hard. You make yourself vulnerable to your friends, they learn all about you, and then you share life together. And the people you live with live in a broken world full of hurt and pain, and as their lives fuse with yours (living in close quarters, sharing food and shelter daily) its common to get hurt. Wesley staff consists of 17 young adults with diverse personalities living in servanthood to the rest of the church and to anyone who comes over to visit. That lifestyle, combined with other leadership positions in ministry and school or full-time work, can create a high-pressure environment where only the love of Christ holds relationships together.

But God offers us a great gift for persevering through such trials: intimacy with Him. In Hebrews chapter 10, the writer tells us that as Christians we can have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place (verse 19) because the blood of Jesus covers us. In verse 35, he says to not throw away that confidence and that it will be richly rewarded. What’s the reward for entering the Most Holy Place? Its intimacy with God. In Israel, the Temple had a room called the Most Holy Place where the presence of God dwelt.

So what does intimacy with God have to do with trials in community? As a Christian, you have a personal relationship with God. He knows your name, He formed you in your mother’s womb, He has a plan and a future for you (Jer 29:11), He loves you. And that can become a two-way relationship, as I have discovered. I live with 16 other Christians who all are in intimate relationship with their Creator. The only problem with living in the West is that our culture’s focus on individualism can influence Christians to only focus on their personal intimate relationship with God, and in doing so they miss out on the treasures under their very roofs.

What I have learned this year is that as Christians, we can share in each other’s intimacy with God (and experience Him through our brother or sister) when  1) we pray for each other 2) we encourage each other and 3) we share in the consequences of each other’s decisions, for both good and bad decisions. Its worth the cost. “Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for He who promised is faithful.” Heb 10:23

I used to be pro-choice. Then I was pro-life. I respect the opinions of good people anywhere on this issue and I don’t judge anyone based on where they stand, I can relate to both sides. I invite you to comment and thanks for taking the time to read.

Until this summer I never considered God’s heart regarding this issue. If I was ever sharing my faith, I avoided this topic at all costs since it was usually such a turn-off. That’s the closest I got to thinking about it from a Kingdom standpoint. I used to think about it in terms of the struggles women would face in raising children in tough circumstances that led them to abortion as a solution, or I would think of it in terms of orphans and un-adopted children. I simply couldn’t see another solution, so abortion must be the answer. Not seeing an alternative, I settled for abortion.

But I have noticed that people in Western culture have a tendency to take matters into their own hands when they see no other options. God calls us to rely on Him in such times. Obviously, this is where I lose you if you are not a Christian. But that still doesn’t change what is right, whether someone believes it or not.

In Mark 4:21-25 in the Bible, Jesus talks of letting your light shine. But its even more than I realized. As I talk about in my About page and Outreach page, Jesus is talking about singing your life-song (metaphor) for the world to hear. Everyone has a song to sing, whether they believe in the God Who made them or not. He still made them to sing, and He made the world to hear their song. Jesus says to ‘put it on a stand’ (Let everyone see!!!) and that your song is ‘meant to be disclosed’ (don’t hide it, who cares if someone judges you!) and ‘if anyone has ears to hear, let him hear’ (’Shhh. Everyone, stop and listen, my daughter is about to sing, I’m so excited’). Jesus living in us is what brings out our song, helps us to sing. But everyone has a song to sing.

The goal of missions is the worship of God.

The goal of an evangelist is that relationship whereby the Creator draws that beautiful life-song out of His creation: you and me.

I cannot be an evangelist and be ok with abortion because abortion kills God’s children and the heart of evangelism is to hear them sing.

“For You created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, Your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be.” -Psalm 139: 13-16

Could it be that our society strayed from God’s way on this issue? Could it be that our laws are unjust? Millions of abortions have occurred in our nation alone in the last 35 years since Roe v Wade was passed. God loves His children. I don’t always understand why some things happen, but I do know that God loves and delights in me. Why would He not in every other person He creates?

One final thing occurred to me early this year. I realized that if nothing changes with abortion, I will still have Lauren, my fiance as of this month. I will still have my family, and my friends from Wesley. I will still have a promising future. But the Kingdom will suffer. Jesus died so that those little ones may live, and living, bring glory to His name. Does He not deserve those for whom He died? What I realized is that my only loss is His loss.

As Christians I think we all have the responsibility to pray for God to end abortion and also to speak up among our peers and just share (not argue) where we stand. That is how to be a witness. You don’t have to convince anyone, your actions speak louder than words. But do they know where you stand?

So seek what God’s heart really is on this matter, don’t be afraid of what He may say. He’s gracious and He can take care of it, even something like this. It’s time for Jesus’ disciples to trust Him as God again. To pray with Christians across America about this, visit bound4life.com or theCall.com

And like I said, I won’t think less of anyone for their opinion on this. It takes a lot of faith to trust God with a baby you don’t know how to take care of. But I think its right. Please discuss with me if you would like to, and thanks for reading.

“Every Spring God re-creates Genesis.  An acorn falls to the ground…and out of it grows a huge oak tree!  If God can do that, can’t He give you and I life after death?”

It was really encouraging to hear from Coach Bowden.  I feel a lot of rejection sometimes out on campus trying to invite people to Wesley or approach them with the Good News.  People are so busy, and they usually mistake me for trying to sell them something.  Even when we handed out free hot chocolate just to bless people on a cold day, we got some bad looks.  This morning, heading out to campus, I was reminded that the Kingdom is like ’sowing seed’.  As in Mark 4:26  the farmer just scatters seed and whether he sleeps or works it just sprouts and grows, though he doesn’t know how.  And when I go out on campus and can’t even plant a seed, just getting Wesley’s name out there, and bringing up the term “Christian” tills the ground, preparing it for future plantings and harvests for Jesus Christ.

Hearing Bobby describe that in his daily life really encouraged me.

I also greatly desire for the Church to “Arise”, for Christians to ‘awake’ in the power they have to do good works of justice and move mountains in prayer with their Father.  I think today’s Christians aren’t held down by selfishness or apathy or even busyness, as much as they are held down by condemnation and guilt.  It is my observation that Christians that I have met don’t rely on the Blood of Jesus enough.  We don’t really fathom just how ‘covered’ we are, just how much God atoned for our sin.  We don’t realize what Jesus has done on the cross and we still live trying to work our way toward God, instead of intimately soaking in His acceptance of us.  And we still work our days burdened with shame and feelings of inadequacy which produces a timid fearful faith, instead of the bold fearless excitement the Apostles and early Christians had.  “So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!” -John 8:36  Live as if God will never leave you, live as if He is excited about you.

Last night at Wesley worship, after Leah spoke, I learned that I greatly desire for people to acknowledge God, give Him the credit, worship Him.  God is so good.  It actually hurts my heart when people look at the trees, the sky, the stars and don’t acknowledge the Creator who made them.  This is my biggest motivation for wanting people to become Christians.

“All I have is yours, and all you have is mine.  And glory has come to me through them.”  Here is the revelation I got this week from this verse:  In the midst of all our work, our faith, are struggles, our mess-ups, the grace we receive daily, and all we’re hoping for–we are bringing Jesus great Glory!  I am glorifying the King of Glory.  That is what my life is doing.  Oh the peace, how my anxieties evaporate at the thought!

I share these and would love some dialogue from you all, I want to hear, I want to learn more from these scriptures!