Wow, time has really flown by and already we are coming to an end with only 3 more weeks left of our time in Colombia. Overall, my time here has been enjoyable. I have really enjoyed getting to know the Guevara family and seeing what all really goes into running a church. I used to think it would be cool to be so involved in church but now I find that it tires me out and I lose motivation to go to church so I need a balance between church and non church activities. I have also strengthened my own opinions on several issues and have become OK with having my own thoughts and beliefs even if others around me don´t always agree and I have become OK with making decisions based on what I believe to be true versus what others think. That is a very freeing for me. This time apart has also strengthened Nanen and I´s relationship and brought us closer together. I have also enjoyed the friendships that I have made here as well as the things I have been able to learn from the Colombians. I have also enjoyed getting to know my teamates more. Melina (one of the girls on my team)and I took on another project this month of teaching English in a school in a nearby town. We will be finishing up these classes this week as well as the music classes at the children´s home.
Plans for June include a youth retreat this weekend, my parents visiting for 4 days as well as the school semester ending the 23rd and returning to the states the 24th. Then there is a re-entry retreat at the end of June.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Saturday, May 17, 2008
Thoughts on sermon
Last night at our weekly meeting with Aaron and Laura Kauffman we listened to a sermon by Rob Bell from Mars Hill Community Church in Michigan. The sermon was on the resurrection and it was one that I found really intriguing. Rob asked the question of why is the resurrection so key in the Christian faith? I am going to write on what it means to me.
The resurrection for me shows several things; it shows just how great God`s grace really is, it is a cornerstone on which to build my faith. Just like a house has four cornerstones the resurrection is one on which I build my house of faith. It also shows that the new kingdom that was profecied in the old testament has already begun to be fulfilled through one man-Jesus and it also gives me a reason to believe in miracles.
Starting with the idea of grace. The resurrection shows how much God really loves this world. He loves it so much that he doesn`t give up. The idea of repenting is not just something we do to feel good or because it is required but rather it is a chance for God`s grace to shine through, a chance to show once again that God loves us. To quote Rob Bell " Resurrection is the opposite of dispair. No matter how bad it gets, no matter how dark it is things will get better. God has not given up." No matter what we go through both good and bad God`s grace is always there. It is so big that even the worst people in history can still receive God`s grace.
So when people ask "How can you really believe in the resurrection? What significance does it really have?" My response would be to take a look at the gospels. Matt. 28, Mark 16, Luke 24 and John 20 all say that the first ones to see an empty tomb were women and the first people that Jesus appeared to were women. Some would respond "So? What does that have to do with anything?" Well if a person takes a look at the culture of that time, women were not considered credible sources so then why did the writers of bible times risk their own credibility to use women as the first witnesses if the resurrection had not actually happened and if it had not drastically changed something. A writer of that time would have to have been 100% sure of what he is writing about to use women as witnesses, especially first witnesses. Also in my study of human culture I have found the following quote to be true. " Anthropological perspective says that it takes many years and dialogues to change a massive group of people's beliefs unless there was a great event like the resurrection."-Rob Bell Mars Hill Community Church, Michigan
The resurrection for me shows several things; it shows just how great God`s grace really is, it is a cornerstone on which to build my faith. Just like a house has four cornerstones the resurrection is one on which I build my house of faith. It also shows that the new kingdom that was profecied in the old testament has already begun to be fulfilled through one man-Jesus and it also gives me a reason to believe in miracles.
Starting with the idea of grace. The resurrection shows how much God really loves this world. He loves it so much that he doesn`t give up. The idea of repenting is not just something we do to feel good or because it is required but rather it is a chance for God`s grace to shine through, a chance to show once again that God loves us. To quote Rob Bell " Resurrection is the opposite of dispair. No matter how bad it gets, no matter how dark it is things will get better. God has not given up." No matter what we go through both good and bad God`s grace is always there. It is so big that even the worst people in history can still receive God`s grace.
So when people ask "How can you really believe in the resurrection? What significance does it really have?" My response would be to take a look at the gospels. Matt. 28, Mark 16, Luke 24 and John 20 all say that the first ones to see an empty tomb were women and the first people that Jesus appeared to were women. Some would respond "So? What does that have to do with anything?" Well if a person takes a look at the culture of that time, women were not considered credible sources so then why did the writers of bible times risk their own credibility to use women as the first witnesses if the resurrection had not actually happened and if it had not drastically changed something. A writer of that time would have to have been 100% sure of what he is writing about to use women as witnesses, especially first witnesses. Also in my study of human culture I have found the following quote to be true. " Anthropological perspective says that it takes many years and dialogues to change a massive group of people's beliefs unless there was a great event like the resurrection."-Rob Bell Mars Hill Community Church, Michigan
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