Currently....

Listening... to an episode of "Perception" that my husband is watching.  I really don't think he is watching it either since he is scheduling his meetings for the week.  I guess we both need a little background noise while we are getting a little detail work done.   The only other sounds are the clothes tumbling in the dryer and the occasional meow of our cat when we don't pet her as often as she thinks we should.

Loving... that tomorrow morning I do not have to set an alarm.   I plan to get up and drink one two cups of coffee and just read a book in complete silence before the boys get up.  

Thinking... about the girls in my Sunday School class.   I adore them.   I never know what they are going to ask or say on Sunday mornings, but that is part of what I love about them and our class.   They keep me on my toes.   I wish they could see themselves the way I see them.   More than that I wish they could see themselves the way God see them.  

Wanting... to snap my fingers, blink my eyes, twitch my nose or whatever it takes to magically have my house all put back together.   Walls repaired and repainted.   New floors installed.   Doors replaced.    This is like the foundation repair project that will never end.    

Needing... a money tree.  

Best. Week. Ever. 2013

WinShape Camps for 2013 is in the books.    It is almost impossible to describe a week of WinShape without experiencing it.   It is an incredible camp hosted by Chick-Fil-A and offers the highest quality of events for kids in grades 1st through 6th.  

Here are some pictures from our week.  The first photo is the amazing WinShape staff: 23 young men and women who gave up their summer to travel to nine different communities to conduct these camps and share God's love with kids!  AWESOME!

Church vs Boy Scouts: A Sad Battle

When I think of the  Boy Scout organization I think of amazing young men like Stephen, Cade and Wil.   All three of these young men grew up in scouting and achieved the highest ranking that the Boy Scouts offers - Eagle Scout.   They each had to earn at least 21 merit badges and stay true to demonstrating what is called the "Scout Spirit" through the Boy Scout Oath and Law, service, and leadership.   The final step to achieving Eagle is planning, organizing, leading, executing and managing an extensive project which benefits the community.  

All of those details have faded in the shadow of the current debate which is now prominent in our news.   The Boy Scouts have made the decision to allow gay members.   The Southern Baptist Convention issued a statement saying that homosexual conduct is contrary to a scout's oath to do his duty to God.   It  approved a non-binding resolution opposing the Boy Scout policy at its annual convention in Houston. The resolution requires no action by member churches but leaves them to decide individually whether to stop sponsoring scout troops.   

Since then I have seen article after article in the news about churches who are not allowing Boy Scouts to meet in their church.   

There is something sadly ironic about this decision to me.   A church is supposed to be a hospital.  A place to find help and healing.   Every Sunday our pews are filled with people who are sinners.   It is no secret that a lot of time people hide their hurting because they feel like they have to be "perfect" to be at church.

Do these decisions by churches to push out the Boy Scouts further reinforce this feeling?  Are we missing a prime opportunity to minister and show God's love?    

When I think about this decision and all it means, my heart thinks about all the young men and women we work with on Tuesday evenings.    Young adults struggling with homosexuality, drug addiction, alcoholism, rejection from their families, anger -- you name it.    So many of them are scared of the church and "Christians" because they have felt judged by them because they did not feel good enough. 

I love Jesus' words in Matthew 11:28...


"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." 

Our churches need to return to being a place where a weary and burdened world can come and get help.   Not a battle ground that tells them that we have drawn a line in the sand.