El renacimiento de la vida

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It scares me how greatly my earthly body wants to know that life will have cushions and pillows, and I’ll be propped up and pampered, without having to lift a finger. The more I think that that sounds like “the good life”, the less good is sounds, and the lazier it seems to me. Last night, Nathan shared his heart for ministry with me, like he has done in the past, but for some reason, I had a flesh reaction instead of a spirit reaction, and I was not at all nice like I should have been. In my mind, it would be the ultimate life to let him go to work and “bring home the bacon”, and for me to be a stay home mom, with nothing to worry about but the kids and the house and helping Nathan with his ministry. But in order for that to become reality, there’s a possibility that Nathan would have to ask for more money for his salary, money that does not belong to us, but to the church and to ministry opportunities. My flesh doesn’t like it, but my spirit resoundingly says, YES. This is right. There is no need to rob the church of their money when you are called to be a minister of the gospel. There is no reason that a minister should be paid $100,000 yearly. There are other ministries where that money is more needed. If Father Tim in Mitford (my newest favorite hero of the faith) can do it, we can too!

After the dust storm that brought in the new year yesterday, today was an invigoratingly fresh day that the Lord used to bless West Texas. After spending the morning running "car" errands, I came home and began to straighten my house. As I was in the process, I realized that the sun was shining, there was a slight breeze, and so I opened every window in the house, turned the thermostat off, and allowed the breeze to circle through my house and bring in a fresh breath of life. Once I was done cleaning, I sat down to read and enjoy my front living room. What an indescribable luxury! I felt truly blessed that I had the day off and the opportunity to enjoy such a moment to begin this new year.

This has been one of the most relaxing saturday mornings that I have had in a long time. During the past month, our weekends have been jammed with 1) a wedding, 2) going to see the seminary in Forth Worth and our friends in Arlington and Dallas, 3) Thanksgiving, 4) visit from the in-laws!!! After 4 weeks of little rest on a weekend, I hit what is called a saturation point, and became very tired and frustrated with my job. I became irritable at home, snapped at my students and husband, and then my body gave out and I got sick. I understand why the Lord gave us a day of rest each week - WE NEED IT!

After missing two days of work, and a whole lot of sleep, I am feeling much better. Colors are brighter, the sun is shinier, the puppy is cuter, and my husband is sweeter and more wonderful than ever! We are going to eat some yummy enchiladas tonight with some good friends, and then we're off to see Narnia! I am so excited, it is going to be GOOD! Last night, I saw Harry Potter for the first time. I hear rumors that the author is a Christian, but she is keeping her faith hidden so that she can bring her stories to a surprising close of some sort. I'm not sure how she's going to do that, but if she can do something brilliant with the stories, I'm all for that kind of plot twist.

I can't update my blog from work, so be patient with me, I'll update when I can at home. This week, all my evening blog time will be taken over by the Journey's crazy Christmas rush week! That's my new name for this week. The Rush to hang out before Christmas comes! Pray that the time spent at the Fox and Hound will be fruitful! Over and out.

“The church has forgotten what it means to equip the Christian mind. It is more concerned with putting on productions than putting out disciples. The end result is a bunch of whiney adults who don’t like the way the power-point presentation looked last week, or complain that the coffee bar needs to have more flavors to choose from. We have successfully dumbed down the Word of God. Intimacy with the Almighty is not something we strive for anymore. We scream “Relevance!” and sacrifice the minds Christ has given us.” (http://www.relevantmagazine.com/pc_article.php?id=7075)

Oh wow, what a powerful statement! Why can’t Christians see the box that they have placed themselves in! Today, my heart is burning in sadness for the American Church, the “pizza party, and cool band church” that I grew up in and thought was “all that.” How true is it that we try so hard to put on a production that we fail to make disciples, which is one of our first and most important callings as Christians. Did our multi-thousand dollar coffee bar not quite serve up the coffee to par this week? GET RID OF IT. Strip away the excessive junk that our contemporary churches are full of and shift the focus. When we build our churches to serve man, and only focus on pleasing man, we will fail every time. The focus needs to be one the Lord. There should be no mistake on who we are trying to please, no doubt in our mission, and no foggy thoughts in our brains on our purpose in life. We are on a mission, and the people around are too precious to sacrifice to the altar of the coffee bar.

Here's this year's Christmas Card from the Futrell family. If you are getting one in the mail, I'm sorry to ruin the surprise. Love to all!

The redemption of man is a constant plea coming from the lips of those who do not know Christ. Reflecting on Thanksgiving break with my family, I am reminded of the changing times and my place in God’s plan. On the way to the lake, Nathan and I had a chance to share what the Lord has placed on our hearts with my grandparents. We told them about how the church is trying to reach younger generations with the same methods that they used to reach my grandparent’s generation, and that this is failing. My grandparents understood. They see the need for change in the church, though they obviously didn’t understand or see how that could be done. At least they get it. My parents are a different story. They are just close enough to our generation, and they are situated in a pretty charismatic church that makes them think that the church is doing a good job reaching people. Maybe their church is an exception, but they just don’t see what’s on our hearts and minds as we travel into the Journey and beyond the borders that traditional churches have created. This week, I am thankful for Nathan, and the passion for the Lord that is in his heart. He is constantly thinking about how to further the kingdom of God, and for that I am thankful. Though my parents do not see, hear, or understand everything that he is talking about, I know that one day they just might be able to grasp this concept of reaching beyond our self-imposed borders into the world around us. This Monday morning, I am excited that I am a part of a movement that the Lord has put into place to reach those on the fringe, those who may never be reached by a traditional church. The Lord is not through with us, but He is only beginning to work in and through us to make Himself known.

This week has seemed a happy blur. Last weekend, our dear friends Marcus and Katlyn Pedroza tied the knot! Their wedding was a blast, combining the traditional with the contemporary, and getting a bunch of Baptists to kick up their heels and enjoy dancing together. Nathan was a completely silly that night, and we had fun dancing together for one of the first times. We had danced before, but not really. This was just silliness. I wouldn’t have traded Nathan’s and my quiet wedding for anything, but this was a just plain fun wedding. I pray blessings on the two of them as they travel and begin to learn how have life together works this week.

I need some inspiration. Life has inspired me to be better this week, but I am having trouble being motivated to spend lots of time with the Lord. Honestly, I find a million other things to do in the moments when I have free time, which is only from about 5:30-9 at night. It seems almost impossible to squeeze in time to spend in the Word. And my spirit and soul are feeling the lag that comes with this. Please pray for me that I will find the dedication and motivation to enrich my soul with the Word when I am tired and want to do nothing that occupies my mind. My life needs this. My students need me to find that time. My husband definitely needs me to feed my spirit. One moment in the Word and prayer a week is definitely not enough for me to make it. I need daily time, daily quiet, daily feedings for my dry and weary soul. Pray for me, and Lord, inspire me.