Worship - a forgotten word

Worship.

I say I am a christian. I say I love God. I say I read my Bible. But rarely do I choose the words, "I worship the one true God." It is a strong statement and I think my timidness keeps me from it. I worry that timidness also keeps far from God.

I read a online Bible lesson on worship and it never truly defined what it looks like to worship. I know some see it as singing, as praising our Lord publicly, as dancing in the isles, raising hands, and shouting from our seats with joy. But I am too timid to stand out in this way. The Bible says in John 4:23-24, "But the hour is coming, and now is, when true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is a spirit and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth."

Furthermore, in 1 John 3:24:  Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.

 Here is what I have deduced: If to worship God means to worship in truth and spirit and his spirit is in us to help us live by his commands and in him, is it then worship to be obedient and live in him? Does one need to raise one's hands? Does one need to dance in the isles? I wonder if I question this out of sincere curiosity, out of the genuine fear of the Lord, or because I just don't want to dance in the isle. I have felt it on my heart to be more vocal about the Lord. To pronounce him. To not shy away from bringing up my faith in everyday conversations or to not shy away from urging others to take their salvation into consideration.

I want to worship in truth and spirit. I don't think it is the key to obtain eternal life, but I do believe that it is a witnessing of your love for God. I just need to find my fire.



Jimmy Needham seems to know me in this song. But my heart wants to speak 'round here. I hope to serve. I hope to love with deeds, hands, and with what I speak.

A Day Downtown

Downtown Harrisonburg is adorable. So far, not as adorable as downtown Staunton, but I still like it. Kyle and I made a trip down last Saturday to shop the farmer's market, get lunch at an artsy fartsy cafe, and check out a fabric store. Oh, and we took some pictures.

A Wall Dilemma

So, I was excited to finally get to hang some decorations on my living room wall. But now, well I don't like the layout. But I am not sure what to do. I think when it comes to decorating I sometimes step a little outside the box and it is hard to make my design choices work. I painted my walls salmon! The couch is yellow and green and I went with salmon. I am nuts.

Here is what it looks like now.

You see the large space in the middle. The dead space - it bugs me.

This is the desk side. I am not sure if I like the distressed white effect I gave the mirror and I am not sure I like the cheapness of the shelves. Not sure..not sure.

Then there is this side. I love the dresser. I love the baskets. I love the framed pictures. But maybe not all together. 

And here is my dead zone. My dilemma.

What to do? What to do?

Wat R U Reeding?

I fear for the English language. I look around a room of 25 ninth graders, 14 year-olds, with young adult literature open on their desks and I wonder who is truly reading and who is just skimming to get through the class. The ones I know read, the ones who tell me about their novels daily, have a tighter grasp on the English language. They master words, phrases, and sentences. They can explain themselves more fully and their minds can more creatively infer what literature or even a prompt is really getting at. They could be natural more gifted at language, but I can't tell that. What I can see is that - they read!

I read an article recently about the decline of reading. Americans, when polled, explained that they are too busy, that visual media has usurped their time. They watch the news; they don't read the Times. They wait for the movie to come out; they don't read the book (even though 97% of the time I am convinced the book is better). The article even indicated that some parents would rather sit their children in front of an educational video, i.e. Baby Einstein, instead of read to them.

This all worries me. My ninth graders have trouble spelling many common words - when, what, believe, beginning, friendship, character, write, peace. However, the students who enjoy reading, who read at home, are better writers. I tell them this. I tell them to be better writers, they need to read, but I don't think they have "time."

I don't know if I sound pompous saying all of this. I guess it has just been on my mind.

Three Years!

I'm happy to be stuck with you.

P.S. I stole this idea from Kori. However, his is a lot cooler. : )

About these wolves

Ever since I watched those two movies and wrote that last post, I have been thinking about evil in the world. I was listening to the Christian radio station and a woman came on from an organization called Proverbs 31 Ministries. Proverbs 31:8 says, "Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy." The woman said, "Hurt people hurt people."

That's what she said: "Hurt people hurt people."

Kyle likes to watch this show called "Dexter." I think it is horrible show because the main character is a serial killer and he is the protagonist, which goes against the accepted form of fiction. I asked Kyle though what made him kill. Kyle explained that Dexter underwent a horrible trauma when he was a boy - he watched his mother be brutally murdered in front of him.

It is weird to write about this on my Bible blog, but this is an accepted truth in our world. That sometimes people who have been hurt can go on to hurt others. In my last post, I talked of "monsters." But what if somewhere along the line these "monsters" weren't monsters. What if they still aren't monsters? They are God made. They are still human. Being hurt in the past doesn't forgive their actions now. But God can forgive.

So the question I have been pondering is where does evil start? Why are some so easily influenced by evil? The devil tried to tempt Jesus. The devil failed.

But, Judas. With Judas, the bible says the devil suceeded.
Luke 22:3 explains: "Then Satan entered Judas, called Iscariot, one of the Twelve. And Judas went to the chief priests and the officers of the temple guard and discussed with them how he might betray Jesus. They were delighted and agreed to give him money. He consented, and watched for an opportunity to hand Jesus over to them when no crowd was present."

Proverbs 6 explains that God hates evil.
Proverbs 6:16-19
 "There are six things the LORD hates,
       seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes,
       a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes,
       feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies
       and a man who stirs up dissension among brothers."


To better understand evil. I researched it some more.
God created evil. God also can destroy. The book of Isaiah explains this.
Isaiah 54:16-17 (New International Version)
      "See, it is I who created the blacksmith
       who fans the coals into flame
       and forges a weapon fit for its work.
       And it is I who have created the destroyer to work havoc; no weapon forged against you will prevail,
       and you will refute every tongue that accuses you.
       This is the heritage of the servants of the LORD,
       and this is their vindication from me,"
       declares the LORD."

Then, Jesus gave the parable of weeds. This parable gives a kind of answer to why evil exists and how it exists.
Matthew 13:24-30 

"Jesus told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field. But while everyone was sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and went away. When the wheat sprouted and formed heads, then the weeds also appeared.
"The owner's servants came to him and said, 'Sir, didn't you sow good seed in your field? Where then did the weeds come from?'
" 'An enemy did this,' he replied.
      "The servants asked him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'
 'No,' he answered, 'because while you are pulling the weeds, you may root up the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest. At that time I will tell the harvesters: First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles to be burned; then gather the wheat and bring it into my barn.' "

This gives me some answers on evil. But, I am too easily affected. I read books about tragedy (Little Bee). I have to teach books about tragedy (Night). I watch movies about tragedy. I watch TV shows about tragedy. And I am blessed with a life of ease. I am so blessed, so very very blessed, yet so aware of the evil in this world. It is hard to know what to do with the knowledge that there evil is out there. It is hard to know how to help this world. I guess it goes back to Proverbs 31:8.

I hate that I fear that evil.

La La Lists

Okay, so this first list might sound like complaining...but it is just a simple list. A list of things that STINK! : )

A Short List of Things That Stink

1. Accidentally walking into the boys' bathroom
2. Breaking out because of stress
3. Having like 5 home improvement tasks ahead of you with no energy to start any of them
4. The way flats make your feet sweat and ...stink ...literally
5. Kyle working weekends
6. International Delight Fat Free Vanilla Latte creamer....yuck!
7. A student who disguises a mean question as a general question. For example (you know this happened today and prompted this whole list) a student said, with a sneer, "Is this class only a semester long or does it last all year?" Just made me want to stick my tongue out at him. Ha!

Okay...now for a positive note.  Here are the things-that-don't-stink list. 

A Wee but Worthy List of Wonderful Things

1. God saving me from embarrassment and making sure that boys' bathroom was empty. Really, who are these new teachers August County is hiring? Sheesh.
2. Alliteration ...and everyone who knows what that is. Google if you don't. : )
3. Catching up with Pooja Mathew
4. Generous family members who give their furniture away when they plan to buy new
5. The one ninth grader who calls "Teacher! Teacher!" when he wants me to check his writing. It is so cute.
6. 3 years.
7. Finally finding bedding I like.