When God is Gross

Two weeks ago, as I was beginning my nephews' Bible lesson, the eight year-old was trying desperately to get me to skip the chapter on Abraham. He claimed that he and his brother had already read it during the week. I hardly believed him and presented the challenge that if he could tell me one thing about Abraham and what he had "read", we would skip that chapter and move on to the next. 

Older brother sweated nervously as his Sunday school fate lied in his baby brother's questionable sense of recall. You could practically hear the eight year-old's brain shuffle as it rolodexed through stored memory, grasping for any tidbit he could recall on Father Abraham. He gasped suddenly and answered, very matter-of-factly, "Abraham Lincoln freed all the slaves." 

Older brother then slapped his own forehead in disappointment and we retreated back to Genesis 12.

That week's lesson was just the introduction to Abram, Sarai, his promised legacy of becoming the "father of many nations" and ending with he and Lot's land dispute.

They had dodged a bullet for one week, but the next Sunday I was met with the same dread after we had finished up chapters on the destruction of Sodom, the dismissal of Hagar and Ishmael and the birth of Isaac.

I was beginning to understand the distress that had been plaguing the boys ever since I'd mentioned the "A" word. I then realized that they knew the story of Abraham's willingness to sacrifice Isaac was approaching. They had remembered something about Abraham from past lessons and suddenly I was being treated as if I were forcing them to watch a horror movie in Bible class.

This is probably the biggest struggle I face when taking on the role of these kids' spiritual advisor. Trying to teach them everything I can about God while they're still young enough that I can hold their interest. But, then coming to terms with the fact that, sometimes, the Bible is just pretty gross.

There's animal sacrifices all over the Old Testament, murder, rape, genocide, plagues, those sickos in Sodom who begged to molest a pair of angels, dogs eating Jezebel, demon possession, suicide, the cruelties and abuses that Jesus and the other martyrs faced and, let's see, the entire book of Revelations!

I grew up in church singing songs about "There's power in the blood" and "Nothing but the blood of Jesus...", chewing on unleavened bread that represented Jesus's flesh and drinking grape juice that represented His blood (eww, blood... more blood!) and constantly hearing about a lake of fire that all my unrepentant friends were on the verge of being tossed into. Often creeped out, tormented and lying awake at night dwelling on these things; but never brave enough to simply ask:

Why so much horror? Why all the blood?!

I recently asked the oldest living Christian I know this and explained how I come to dread teaching the kids these things when I know one of these difficult chapters is approaching.

I got the typical biblical answer of "Only blood can atone for sin." [Leviticus 17:11] That we all are sinners. [Romans 3:23] That we cannot be saved by works. [Ephesians 2:8-9] That our sins have earned us death and only through Jesus's perfect sacrifice can we be forgiven and see Heaven one day. [Romans 6:23, Hebrews 9:11-18] 

I knew this. I've heard all the same Sunday school answers my whole life... but what I really meant was why why?

Why blood? Why something so messy and revolting? What was God thinking?!

I prayed on this and what was pressed on my heart was a question of an answer:

Does it even matter why?

The Bible tells us that we're not supposed to understand everything while in our human minds on earth. [II Corinthians 4:18] Do we really need to? Does our faith have no value without complete comprehension of all things holy?

I know mine does! I may not have all the answers, but I can guarantee my faith is real. God has proven to me several times over His existence, that He is here for my benefit and I have seen His love and protection at work in my life. Constantly! I don't need the whys. I just need God! 

It's a "don't knock it 'til you've tried it" journey that no one can relate to unless they're willing to personally experience it on their own.

So, I've chosen to educate the kids in a very different manner than what I was presented with as a child. They have come to love God and Jesus outside of all the blood and Lake of Fire talk. They chose salvation and Christianity before they had even heard me utter the word "hell". (And, believe me, the first time I read a verse with that word in it, they covered their mouths and pointed at me as if I'd just cursed at them!)

I don't skirt the issues, but don't focus on them as a main ingredient to our beliefs. There's so much more that our faith has to offer. We won't understand all things while on earth. But, we will live a great life here with God as a part of it. That's the most important part of my faith to me. Not just dodging hellfire.

That said, I'm not for omitting Scripture that makes me uncomfortable either. It's all in there for some reason. Even if we don't yet understand why.

On a practical level, when a chapter on blood sacrifice comes up and is upsetting to the animal-loving kids, I remind them that in the biblical days, everyone slaughtered their own meat. Sacrifice wasn't a thing of gore like it is to our modern mindsets, but an act of giving away the purest of their goods to God. This wasn't just a blood sacrifice, but an act of offering back to God something that was true goods and currency in their day. On these lesson days, we are always sure to thank God that he chose for us to live in the days post Jesus's resurrection, relieving us of the bloody duty.

If you have any tips, guidance or funny stories about navigating the gory biblical stuff, please feel free to leave your comments in the designated field below. Teachers must always remain students if they're striving to be good ones. And, I know my readers and myself would love the additional insight.

Marks of a Pharisee

We've been studying the Gospels in the weekly Bible study that I lead with my brother's kids. Their takeaway seems to have two major sticking points: 1.) Jesus's Parables (ie. "story problems") and 2.) What jerks the Pharisees were.

The Pharisees have left a particularly bad impression on my youngest nephew, who is seven. Every time I read a passage indicating another haughty act of the Pharisees, he gets personally offended and groans out various versions of, "Ugh. They think they're so cool!" and "Augh! Why do they think they know everything?!" while dramatically rolling his eyes.

Then, there's always that point later in the day when he tosses off a, "My brother didn't clean him room, but I did." or "So-and-so at school did this, I would never do something like that!" I always immediately ask him, "Are you a Pharisee?" 

"No! They're jerks!"

"Then why are you acting like one?"

[insert shameful head hang]

The Pharisees were a great enemy to many of us in our Sunday School days. Then many of us grew up to act just like one.

How can we avoid becoming a Pharisee?  Watch out for these indicators:

Appearance's Sake: The Pharisees were famously always looking outward. We've learned this repeatedly from stories like Luke 7:36-50, where the woman "embarrassingly" wept at Jesus's feet. (That hussy!) In Matthew 9 when they were aghast that Jesus wasn't sitting at the "cool table". (Tax collectors, harlots and sinners, oh my!) In Matthew 23, where we see them prancing about town with their money and swag, while Jesus points out that they were much too invested in making lavish and public offerings, meanwhile rejecting the importance of justice, mercy and faithfulness. Or, that horrendously conceited prayer of the Pharisee in Luke 18:10-14 where he bragged to the Lord about of his own good deeds while taking it upon himself to loudly condemn the tax collector who prayed humbly and weepily nearby. 

Remember Christ's lesson in verse 14 that "...everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted." 

This is still a modern day temptation. Some Christians may want to reach out to the lost; just not the dirty, the slutty, the addicted or the annoying.

Placing Rules Above Love: The Pharisees were very "black or white" in their practices. As far as they were concerned, there were no gray areas in the Law (to which they felt the need to add hundreds of their own on top of the Original Ten.) 

They wondered aloud why Jesus's followers didn't fast so much in Luke 5. They wondered why the disciples didn't wash their hands in accordance with their traditions in Mark 7. In Matthew 12 they gasped when the disciples were hungry on the Sabbath and dared to "work" by picking something to eat from a field. And, oh, the conspiracy that was propagated by the Pharisees in Matthew 12:10-14 when Jesus had the nerve to perform healing on the sacred day of rest! 

I remember, in my childhood Sunday School class, the conundrum of Rahab, the Cannanite, lying to spare the Hebrew spies lives came up. The teacher was stumped by our innocent questioning of "Well, isn't lying a sin?!" and she went to a church elder to seek out an answer to the complicated question we had posed. She came back with the deacon's reply that "Rahab shouldn't have lied. Lying is a sin. God probably would have protected the spies in some other way" and my stomach went sour.

I now realize, it was probably the Spirit cringing within me because Jesus clearly taught us in Matthew 22:36-40 that the greatest commandment is love. First, loving God with all of your heart, soul and mind; and secondly loving others as much as you love yourself. He tells us that "all of the Laws and the Prophets hang on these two commandments" of love (v. 40, NIV.) So wasn't Rahab showing love in her act? I think Jesus would say, yes. And, this is why she and her family were spared in the city's destruction and welcomed into God's people's tribe. (Not, to mention, blessed to be a part of Christ's lineage.) 

I still hear the lie of Rahab being debated today. It kind of makes me sad that her act of mercy is still being judged by sticklers of the Law thousands of years later, while she's been busy enjoying the glory of Heaven. 

Hindering the Cause: While the Pharisees were busy being judgy-McJudger-pants, they were simultaneously disrupting the progress of God's Kingdom. Jesus ripped into them big-time throughout Matthew 23, calling them blind guides, lazy, hypocrites and repeatedly threw at them the ultimate biblical burn of, "Woe to you!" (It's a great rant that fills up the entire chapter, filled with images of vipers, blood and plenty of exclamation points. Samuel L. Jackson couldn't perform righteous anger better!) What was it about the Pharisees that got Christ so worked up?

They were the leaders of the church at the time! Or, misleaders, as they should be called. Jesus warned the people that the Pharisees do not practice they preach. They want the honor, but not the dirt on their hands from the work. (I love Jesus's analogy that they, "...strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!" vs. 24, NAS. My nephews would be overjoyed to learn that Jesus worked bathroom humor.) 

In John 9 the Pharisees started kicking people out of church who claimed Jesus as Messiah. Particularly the blind man to whom Jesus had restored his sight. Instead of allowing all believers into the synagogue to worship, they decided to splinter the church instead. 

Division in the church, is obviously still an issue today. We hear of gays and their family members being excluded or abandoned. Political divisiveness is often a problem. Choice of worship music, the inclusion of percussion and/or instruments that run on electricity, turn some away and divide a congregation. Stances on war or pacifism can get the opposition worked up in the pews. 

This all in the place where we come to seek salvation, learn about Christ's teachings and be reminded of His commandment of love. Remember the purpose of the church, no matter what your neighbor may check on a ballot. The pettiness and misguidance of the Pharisees (as well as those acting the same in modern times) confuses the lost, misdirects the flock and disrupts the calling of Heaven.

So let's go through a checklist and see how we rate:

• Do you care more about labels on clothing, the scent of a stranger, vocabulary, manners, or who has the cutest hat on Sunday, than you do about welcoming a new sheep into the fold? Then, you might be a Pharisee.
• How do you feel about smokers, drinkers and swearers' spiritual statuses when they tell you that they're believers too? Do you have your doubts? Then, you might be a Pharisee.
• Do you repeat things you read about your friends and acquaintances on social media to others, usually starting with the phrase, "Can you believe that so-and-so thinks/said/believes/voted for/lets their kids do..." You sound like a gossip. And, you might be a Pharisee.
• When your wife asks you if she looks fat in these pants, are you "convicted" to state in all honesty, "You look fat in every pant" instead of saying with love that, "You always look beautiful to me"? Then, you might be a Pharisee.
• Do you pick apart grammatical errors in friend's Facebook posts that were otherwise intended to be uplifting? Then, you might be a Pharisee.
• Do you avoid interacting with those who have different opinions, politics, morals, backgrounds or social standings than your own? Then, you might be a Pharisee.
• Are you overly-concerned with whether your friends immunize their children, breastfeed, eat gluten, watch ABC Family with their kids, allow secular music in their household or are otherwise getting too involved with their loving (but questionable, in your mind) parenting practices? You may be hipster. But, you might also be a Pharisee.
• Do you compare your tithe, community service and charitable givings with others? You may be missing their secret service in your tally. And, friend, you might be a Pharisee!

I don't pretend to speak all of this from a higher standing. I was a Pharisee at least once this week. My grandmother was telling me over the phone about how alot of people wear jeans and tshirts to her church on Sunday mornings, to which I replied, "Ugh. It's God's house. Show a little effort!"

I was later convicted by the fact that they did show some effort. They showed up! And that I, too, could be such a Pharisee sometimes.


(Feel free to share your Pharisee story in the comments field below. We've all been there and we can conquer this together!)

Would-Like-to-Do-tions

I'm not a resolution kind of gal.  I'm not into making promises that I don't intend to keep. The Bible says that God delights in those who keep their promises (Proverbs 12:22), so I've always been a woman of my word. Of few words. Of very few promised and spoken words. 

If I ever make you a promise, know I've thought it through carefully and take it uber seriously. (With an act-of-God clause attached, of course.) It's nice to delight the Lord and others. It's not so nice to fake out.

Therefore in 2014, I resolve nothing. I see everyone posting their vows today and it's all very inspiring. So in substitution, I'll instead announce my Would-Like-to-Do-tions for this year:

• Follow the THINK rule (above) more often before speaking. Stop trying to convince myself that "is it funny?" is one of them. If there were an F in think, it'd be fink. Don't be one!
• Blog more. BOTH blogs. People are forgetting that I know more than just the state of pop culture.
• Sew more. The Christmas gift rush of quilts was back-breaking work, but satisfying. Practice makes perfect. One day the binding will come out even and the quilt-stitching free of lumpy seams!
• Taper off on the holiday feeding frenzy. More protein, less carbs. And what is a hypoglycemic doing with all of those sugary snacks? No wonder I'm feeling so lop-sided and sleepy. Nightly nacho snacks are also a holiday binge. There are no holidays left this season. Cut it down to maybe 2-3 times a week.
• Exercise more. Because everybody says this. And, let's face it, I need to.
• Go see a couple movies. Award season is upon us.
• Save my way closer to home ownership. I'd like to finally see if all of this stuff can fit into one place.
• Even though I've been scratching and saving, I should allow myself at least one vacation this year. Even if it's just a weekend trip. Even if it's just one county over. Responsibility is making me a little stir crazing.

Wait! I do have one resolution I know I can follow through on and that I am not ashamed to solemly vow for fear of punking out later:

• I vow to trim my bangs. They are starting to get in my eyes.

Happy 2014! Make it true. Make is helpful. Make it inspiring. Make it necessary. Make it kind. (And, maybe a little bit funny too...)

Favorite Passages: Proverbs 30:7-9

My favorite books of the Bible have always been Proverbs and James.  Mainly because my learning style never required story problems or parables, just cold hard facts and truths.  These two books rise to the top for me for their practicality alone.  I love how they're full of "do this" and "don't do that"s.  It makes figuring out right from wrong a no-brainer and so they are the two books I turn to the most often when biblical joy-reading.

One of my favorite passages is found near the end of Proverbs, right before the famous 31st chapter. 

"Two things I ask of You, do not refuse me before I die: Keep deception and lies far from me, give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, that I may not be full and deny You and say, 'Who is the Lord'; or that I not be in want and steal and profane the name of my God." Proverbs 30:7-9 (NASB)

The thirtieth chapter of Proverbs was written by a man named Agur, who describes himself this way in verses 2-3, "Surely I am more stupid than any man... neither have I learned wisdom."

I love how a man with this self-description was entrusted to pen a chapter in the ultimate book of wisdom.  A major running theme throughout God's Word is that you don't have to be a theological genius to understand or obey It.

The simple idea of rejecting lies and the struggles of money and asking God to protect you from outside forces in these areas is the epitome of "simple wisdom."  I bet Agur was a very contented man who led a very joyful life.

I jotted this passage down on a note card over a decade ago when I was in a horrible job situation and taped it to my mirror.  It became a daily prayer of mine for many years.  Quickly after discovering this prayer (with my eyes and heart) I found myself miraculously in a much better workplace, not to mention mindset.  I was feeling like Agur!

Well, I let this passage slide from my forethoughts over the following years.  I rotated different passages on my mirror... sometimes forgetting about them altogether so they became more like decorative touches than inspiration and instruction.  And have rediscovered it now at a time when I find myself, once again, looking for good work.  Only this time in a very bad job market.

In the good ol' days it took 2-3 weeks to find a job when just casually looking.  I'm going on five months now of joblessness and wish I would have had the attitude of Agur earlier on in the process. 

When you're desperate and grasping, you're not often thinking in proportion.  You're not looking for your "portion" of money, but all the money in the world.  You become obsessed with being set for life instead of being set for now because, what if the next job's bottom falls out? What if you only can find temporary work?  What if this all happens again, taking even longer to recover next time?  Desperation hinders wisdom and, more often than naught, common sense even.

Truth be told, I have been given my portion.  For every day of the five months I've been unemployed.  I have yet to ask for loans or charity and my portion mathematically should satisfy me for the coming few months, if need be.  I've been eating steadily, have a roof over my head, a car to get to job interviews in and have been blessed not to have gotten sick or injured while not medically insured.  I've had enough to make ends meet.  How long this will last shouldn't be of concern because, as Christ instructed, "Do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself.  Each day has enough trouble of its own." (Matthew 6:34)  And today, July 5, 2012 is cared for.

Well, I guess I found the answer to my Publisher's Clearinghouse prayers, since in my original prayers for portion I forgot to mention a heaping one!

Jesus Wasn't Baptist: Division in the Church

"Jesus wasn't Baptist, Jesus wasn't Catholic, Jesus wasn't Adventist, Jesus wasn't Presbyterian, Jesus wasn't Mormon and Jesus wasn't Methodist. What does an enemy do when he can't conquer?  He divides."

The above was a Facebook status update I composed about a year ago which, as you can safely assume, didn't get very many "likes".  People like their religious titles and people like to think they are the best.  And, they really don't like it being implied that Satan's sneakiness has penetrated any kind of breach in their holy ways.

It wasn't meant to be a judgmental statement, just one that made people stop and realize that there is a division in the Christian church.  If there wasn't, we wouldn't have different words on the signs out in front of them.

You see, I grew up thinking that Catholics weren't going to heaven, that some Lutherans weren't (particularly the ones who sprinkled their babies instead of dunking their grown-ups) and that pretty much only the Baptists had things entirely figured out. Maybe some Presbyterians.  (The ones who didn't drink alcohol, at least.)

I don't know why, as a child, I thought these things to be true. Whether I assumed them, was explicitly told them, if it was preached to me or if I simply just dreamed these rules up on my own.  I didn't even wholly believe it in my heart.  Most of my school friends were Catholic!  I just for some reason thought, to be a "good" Christian, I was supposed to train myself to feel that way.  And, it's very embarrassing to admit to it decades later... let me make that absolutely clear! 

***Also let me slip in this disclaimer before the hate mail floods in: This is not Baptist church doctrine. Just something I misunderstood as a youth and knew many others who misunderstood this as well.***

Do you ever stop and wonder if Christ is sitting on the right hand of our Lord right now, wondering what in His name did happen to His church?

"The church" in biblical days was simply the body of believers as a whole.  Somehow, over the centuries, the bones of this body have splintered off into too many fractures to count.  One building disagreed with another building and formed their own title to separate themselves from the others.  One preferred to focus on confession, one preferred to be solely evangelistic, while another decided that speaking in tongues was the bees knees.  This congregation will be drinking grape juice, not wine with their communion.  That congregation thinks unleavened bread tastes like flesh.  These pews have hat-wearers, those pews have covered knees and that auditorium has no pews, but folding chairs occupied with denim and tattoos. 

Some tweak the doctrine to suit their own needs. This group, omitting Scripture that is no longer politically correct.  Others, using that same Scripture (via megaphone) as a vessel for judging and condemning the politically correct.  This group is angry, that group is blissful, this group will protest, another group will meet at the bar after services.  Some meet on Sundays, some meet on Saturdays, others are overly ambitious and show up every morning or night.  And, too many think that all the others are wrong.

On my ride to teach my niece and nephews Sunday School each weekend, I can pass no less than a half-dozen churches in my fifteen minute drive.  All Christian, all different denominations.  This could be thought of as a sad thing; that these believers, all living in the same community, can't agree enough on what the Bible says to meet under one large communal roof.  But, instead I choose to be grateful that, in this day and age, people are still choosing to read the Bible at all.

It's great that believers can select a place of worship of their choosing; one where the music and preaching style suits their learning curve best.  We just have to be careful to stop saving one another from the others' congregation.  There's no bigger religious pet peeve of mine than other churches showing up on my doorstep and trying to convince my family that we're not truly saved, because we haven't been saved by their church yet.

Christ commissioned that we, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel..." (Mark 16:15)  Not that we should seek out those who say they already believe, tweak their convictions ever so slightly so they believe more correctly, and then transfer their tithes to your own church's building fund.

Division is not of God.  Christ made that clear in John 18:20-23.  The biggest confusion about the devil is believing that he's an Atheist.  He believes in God, he's just opposed to God.  Satan knows of God's existence.  He's met Him.  He knows that Jesus is God's son.  He can quote Scripture better than most humans and proved this when tempting Christ in the wilderness.  Christ was perfect and strong enough not to be fooled by twisted theology.  Many humans are not and that's when the enemy claims his small victories.

When the numbers are too large an enemy's best strategy is to divide.  So he whispers to the weak, making them feel stronger in the misbelief that they are better then the rest of the pack and need to break away.  He convinces the self-righteous that they're allowed to judge the holy and publicly condemn them.  He deceived our ancestors long ago into splintering the bones of the body of the church and left them in hundreds of piles to oppose their own.  And, it was to the enemy's delight when a little girl cast doubt that her friends might not be really believers because they went to catechism during the week instead of to Sunday school.

Children create big ideas out of small impressions.  Sending them to Sunday school (or catechism) is not enough.  Be sure to lead a non-judgemental example in the home as well.  Children, as well as new or immature believers of age, need to be milk fed before given meat, as I Corinthians 3 implores.

Put whatever sign you want on the front of your church, but remember that all churches teaching God's Word is what makes up the body of Christ.  Be on the same team whether your head is covered, your knees are showing or your denim is torn. 

Praying Hard

Years ago---in the year 2000, to be exact---I started a website on Yahoo's now defunct Geocities called Pray Hard.  Prayer has always been my main ministry in The Body (I'm shy, I'm feeble and I'm certainly no speaker!)  I had been studying intercession around that time and had one of those godly callings in the middle of the night.  You know?  Those times when you're fast asleep and are suddenly awaken by a fully formed idea that pops into your head uninvited.  One that is too wise to have been formulated on its own and that, other than in the case of divine intervention, has no business being there.

Well, the revelation that caused me to get out of bed and write it down in the middle of the night, lest I forget it by morning, was that we simply don't pray enough for others.  Maybe we pray for a selected band of others; our families, our loved ones, those people with specific requests on those pamphlets they hand out at church... and, of course, ourselves.  But, what if everyone in the world had someone praying for them.  Regularly.  Not just people you know.  Not just people you like. 

Well, being the sometimes overly-organized person I can be, I immediately devised a system.  With I Timothy 2:1-2 as my mission statement: "I exhort therefore, that...intercessions, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty." the Pray Hard system was set into motion.

It's a simple system.  But, to really work, it's a system that takes commitment.  I implemented it in my own life and set time aside for it every morning, still, these twelve years later.  Are you ready?

Here's how it works [lifted and abridged from the old website]:

THE IDEA: If every believer would pray for a different 20 people every day, within 28-day cycles, we would each cover 560 people a month in prayer.  If 100 people would commit to doing this, 56,000 lives would be touched.  1,000 people would reach over half-a-million lives!  But, don't worry about the math, I've got that covered.  You say you don't even know 560 people?  Keep reading...

THE BENEFACTORS: This system covers so much more than just your inner circle.  Each day you're to include: Five family members: Don't forget extended family and the in-laws; Five friends: People you converse with on a pretty regular basis; Five aquaintances: People you may not be as close to as your regular confidants. These can be co-workers, neighbors, people you grew up with but have lost contact with, people whose names "ring a bell"... any name that can be placed with a face; One church leader: Your pastors, teachers, mentors, Christian organizations you may be involved with (ie. Church camps, your alma-mater, charities, missionaries) and their administrators; Three public figures: Movie stars, tv personalities, musicians, political figures... go for the gold here. They may just  seem like faces on billboards to you, but they're people too.  And, they're included in the "all  men" that I Timothy mentions. Be sure to use people whose work you admire as well as people you can't stand hearing about.  Add some Christian entertainers to the mix too.  They could certainly use our spiritual support, being all out there, exposed, targeted by the enemy;  One stranger: You may not know their names and that's fine. God knows them personally.  It can be a homeless person you tossed a dime to, a woman you saw crying in the restroom, a friendly store clerk, a person you saw on a talk show that you just took pity on... doesn't matter.  Be creative, be compassionate, be sincere.

THE PROCESS: Realistically, you're going to have to write this stuff down.  Reserve a notebook strictly for your intercessions.  Have a page for each day of the cycle.  (Remember, a cycle consists of 28 days. Four Mondays, four Tuesdays, four Wednesdays... you get it. A month!)  Label the top of each page from "Monday 1", "Tuesday 1"... all the way through "Sunday 4" (ie. Monday of the first week through Sunday of the 4th week.) and fill in the names of the people you're going to be praying for each day.  It is hard to think of 560 people at first, so feel free to recycle names.  You may have a small family and not have five new names for all 28 days of the month, so go ahead and repeat if you need to.  Praying for somebody more than once a month doesn't hurt!  New names will come to you as you get into the groove.

Prayer Book sample page

I use a small spiral notebook for my prayer book that I keep in my nightstand for easy, early morning, access.  You may prefer a Word doc, a spreadsheet, a computerized task list or... is there an app for that?  As long as you jot it down somehow.  You will not remember 560 names on recall.  I don't care if you're Rain Man.  Just, make your life easier and write it down! 

Praying for twenty people a day, you'll find is quite bite-sized.  It can take a mere few minutes, using a simple sentenced prayer for each person, or you can spend as long as you like in time and detail.

I've seen amazing things happen over the course of my twelve years of praying hard.  It doesn't take up much of my day, but it has a great effect on it!  Seeing prayers answered is such a sweet feeling.  It's a particularly new feeling when you begin to see people on your Public Figures lives changed.  Some celebrities on my list have shocked me by going to rehab (when I didn't realize they had a problem), made public confessions (when I didn't know they were hurting) and made professions of faith (when I didn't know they were searching).  Don't get me wrong, I'm not taking the credit.  After all, it wasn't even my idea!  But, when you begin to pray for anyone on a regular basis, you form an unspoken bond with them where you can't help but cheer them on.  Even the ones I made you put on your list that you don't even like!

In the past, people have contacted me through the old webpage to see if they could borrow this system for their Sunday School classes or church prayer groups.  Yes!  This is not intellectual property.  Remember, it wasn't even my idea!  The whole purpose is to get as many people committing to their 560 people as possible.  Use the system if you feel called to.  Share it, tweak it, improve upon it... Then, go forth and pray hard!

(And, if you have a fun or inspiring "answered prayer" story, share it in the comments field below.  Because, everybody loves that kind of stuff!)

An Aunt's Walk

I have, hereby, formally decided to create a separate blog for my "religious" posts.  Why?

For one, placing posts about my Christian walk intermixed amongst my rants about The Housewives and other such guilty pleasures seems to sully the integrity of matters that, quite honestly, should be set apart.

So, now that I've made the decision, there flashes that orange button again, begging me for a blog title.  The natural progression of An Aunt's Life, upon entering theological territory, would be An Aunt's Walk.  Although,  I figured that those stumbling upon the page while blog-jogging most likely don't give a hoot about my aunthood.  So, I've condensed things to just "walk" period.  

Clever?  Maybe not.  But, what's done is done and I'm choosing to move forward.

The intention of walk. is to give my spiritual journey its own due place, apart from the secular one.  I intend to post recently discovered articles I'd written years ago, that never got published elsewhere, insights from my recent Bible studies, prayer tools, theological ideas (of which I have many) and I'll also be merging some of the Aunt's Life Christian archives over from the other page as well.

Am I likely to offend?  Probably.  Am I likely to inspire?  One can only hope.  Will such a page even warrant any kind of audience?  Who knows... but, I'm still unemployed and I need something to do!

So, if you feel like it, come along and join me on my walk.  If not, hit up the other page and read about the Brady Bunch.

Either way, God bless!