Radical

This weekend I went to Dallas for a surprise baby shower for my sister-in-law, Kristen, and to spend some time with good ole Kim. Kim is one of my dearest friends in the world, and throughout college she kept me accountable...aka, she pretty much kept me sane, HA! Anyway, Kim is what I like to call a bosom friend or kindred spirit (if you've ever read or watched Ann of Green Gables, you know what I mean). We've always just had this connection, we get each other without even having to use words. Oh how I have missed my friend dearly. You see, Kim has been gone for two years, working in another country. She has had some crazy adventures that I'm kind of glad I didn't know about until she got back. She experienced God in a way that I don't think I have ever experienced, but yet I totally understood. We both know what it's like to live in another country and return to find that the country we've always known and loved was not exactly what we've always known and loved. Does that make sense? I'm sure Kim understands! Anyway, she has been urging me to read this book

So I did it, I finally bought the book. Can I just say that I'm only on the second chapter and it has already proven to be an incredibly powerful book?! It has not only begun to change my perspective on the American church, but on Christianity as a whole! Why have I not realized these things before? It seems so simple and it is spelled out so clearly in the Bible how we should live our lives and do our ministry, but our view of life, even as Christians, has been so messed up by what our society says is ok and right, that we are actually living the opposite of how God calls us to live! Platt describes himself as a "megachurch leader trying to follow a minichurch leader", what he means by this is that we spend so much time catering to ourselves and being comfortable in our faith, as so many Christians and American churches have done, when in all reality Christiany is about abandoning ourselves, as so few have done. Christ calls us to radical abandonment, and it is scarey and uncomfortable, I will admit that, but Jesus was not intereseted in finding believers who were comfortable. When you think about it, he was a minichurch leader. He had few followers, because what he asked for was not popular, it was not desired. I mean to give up your home, your family, your everyday comforts, we would today consider that "unhealthy".

Reading the first chapter of this book has motivated me more than ever to get back out onto the mission field. I know that God has us here (in Amarillo) for a time, and I humbly submit to that, but I know that He has called us out and we will not be living this cushy life forever. I know that radically abandoning the kind of life I have known my whole life will store up for me treasures in Heaven, but not only that, God will use that to bring light to a dark world! Isn't that incredible?!

Well my friends, I must leave you now, as I have gotten so caught up in this blog post that I forgot about dinner in the oven...I think I smell it burning, eeeek!