Wednesday, July 16, 2014

fleece



I keep thinking about what David (oh how I hope that’s his name, our guest speaker on Sunday!) about the idea of a fleece.  It shows such a lack of faith for us to ask for one, and yet God met Gideon where he was and provided evidence. I wonder how God would feel about us setting out a fleece now. How absurd would it feel to set out a bathmat and say “God, if you want me to do this, soak the bathmat but leave the rest of the grass dry?” Do we even have enough faith to trust the answer? Or would we attribute a wet rug to a strange anomaly?
            I haven’t written about “Hearing God” in a while for a rather dumb reason. I lost my place in my Kindle. However, wherever I was when I was last reading, Williard talked about a good way to verify that we are hearing God is to receive confirmation from someone who knows nothing of the issue. I’ve never had that happen, but I think it would be pretty amazing. Maybe a little spooky, but mostly amazing and God-honoring.
            Let’s be the kind of community that can help each other navigate the waters of faith and signs. Whether we set out a fleece or not, let us listen and look for God to speak to us.
Beth Kropf

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Wednesday, July 2, 2014

the circle



I really enjoy our new series, and I am always moved by the story of the adulterous woman that everyone but Jesus wanted to stone. It speaks to how strong the group mentality is. Obviously this was a different culture, and adultery was taken much more seriously then. However, it saddens me to think that no one else rose to this woman’s defense. No lover, no friend, no family member. No one else thought she deserved a chance to change. I wish we could know how she felt to see this man Jesus step inside the circle to save her.
            I am sure I have written about this before, but it is so important: Let us not throw stones. It seems an obvious statement when taken literally. But they wanted to throw stones for punishment and judgment. What does that look like in our culture today? Punishment and judgment is not the responsibility of the individual. Let us not hurl words to injure and alienate. Let us step inside the circle. Because we have all sinned. It is only through admitting this that Jesus can save us.

Beth Kropf

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