Church?

What is the purpose of church? 

I'm going to explore this topic more in depth by breaking it down into two separate posts. This first one is a response from Pastor Jim Murphy when I posed the following questions to him:

• What is the purpose of church? As in, going to church, meeting together at a set time, etc.
• What are some Biblical references where I can begin to study it for myself?
• As well, what insights and thoughts do have on this topic?

Here is his response, which I agree whole-heartedly with:

I see these reasons for attending a church:

--to worship God in the fellowship of His people. There's no doubt you can worship God in your home or on a mountain, but something is different about corporate worship. It may be Jesus' promise that when two or more are gathered in His name, He is there. Certainly the subjective experience of worshiping alone, or even in a small group, is different from what we experience when we are with a larger group.

Psalms 122:1 I rejoiced with those who said to me, "Let us go to the house of the Lord." That verse speaks about what a good thing it is to join with God's people in worship together.

--to strengthen our faith. We live in a culture that is increasingly opposed to biblical truth and faith. It reinforces our convictions to fellowship with other believers who share our beliefs - and this is especially important when we work in a secular environment and may get some opposition during the week.

Hebrews 10:24-25 "And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. 25 Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another--and all the more as you see the Day approaching." --this isn't speaking specifically about "going to church to a worship service", but what it says certainly applies to that setting as well as to fellowship groups, etc. When we gather at church, we have the opportunity to encourage each other in the faith.

--the 4th commandment is to set aside one day in seven as a "sabbath" to the Lord. This day has two purposes: one is to refrain from work, which is an act of faith, expressing our confidence that God will provide for our needs even though we are not working. The other is to worship Him - it is a "Sabbath to the Lord". It's not intended to be just a day to play, but a day to focus on God, to establish a rhythm to our week that intentionally and deliberately includes the Lord, thereby anchoring our lives in Him, rather than in ourselves or our culture.

So that's some of what I see as the purposes for "going to church". But really, if it is seen that way, I think it misses the whole point. Somehow that phrase puts it in the realm of a duty, an obligation, something I am supposed to do, and if I don't do it, I'm a bad person. Rather, I see it as something I WANT to do. I LOVE worshiping with the Lord's people. I LOVE fellowshipping with His people. The question I have is, Why would someone NOT want to do that?

Inch By Inch

Spring Cleaning!

Yep, going through the house INCH BY INCH and purging our lives of so much "stuff." You know, the stuff that sits in the closets and the corners for who knows how long, hasn't been used, that you forgot you even had. That stuff! And it feels good! Two rooms and two closets down... turns out it takes a while to go through EVERYTHING. But I enjoy looking into a cleaned out closet or a clean room thats been rid of clutter. The goal from here on out is to keep it that way - organized and clutter free. Isn't that always the goal with these deep cleanings, though? I mean it this time, seriously! Ha ha.

Now, I just need the stamina to finish the rest of the house. :)

More Goals

Here are the rest of my goals continuing from my previous post, Highly Motivated?

Physical Goals

• Lose one pound per week, reaching my goal weight on July 4th, 2011
• Exercise - be active
• Interval training 3x per week
• Basic weights 3x per week
• Find an activity I really enjoy and do it
• Watch what I put in my mouth and body
• Eat at least 5 servings of vegetables per day
• Drink at least 60 ounces of water per day
• Cut sugar down considerably and avoid High Fructose Corn Syrup
• Cut out breads, pastas, etc. I am currently aiming to be gluten free for a while.
• Take supplements daily
• Eat out less often

Mental/Emotional Goals
These are things that I feel will help maintain my health mentally and emotionally.

• Take a class - online or in person
• Read for pleasure
• Watch less TV. Currently, Ryan and I are only watching "scheduled" TV which means no just sitting around watching whatever is on. We watch recorded shows, movies or live sports.
• Journal or blog once per week
• Talk with friends once per week or have lunch with those friends who are nearby
• Volunteer in the community and at church
• Pray
• Learn photography and web design

 

A Few Pictures

Tall Family Picture - February 2011

 And of course, pictures of the nephew, Jensen (15 1/2 months)

What's Dat?

Reading With Gampa

Mmmmm...EVERYTHING goes in my mouth. :)

Uncle Ryan is SO fun!

Corned Beef and Cabbage Day!

This is the day I look forward to every year. Yep, Corned Beef and Cabbage Day, also known as St. Patrick's Day to most. Ha. I can't explain it and Ryan really can't understand it, but corned beef and cabbage is perhaps my favorite meal. I could literally eat myself sick and usually come close to that every year. Sad I know, but that is the truth. Mmmmmm......

Happy St. Patricks Day!

Highly Motivated?

Goal-oriented is not a word that I would use to describe myself in general, which may translate into not being a highly motivated person either. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy making goals and writing them down in lists with ways to achieve those goals. However, there is a disconnect somewhere between the brainstorming of them, the writing them down and actually accomplishing them. One reason may be that I don’t review my goals often or even think about them. One way to put it may be that I am not intentional or purposeful with them.

I was watching a show yesterday and they had an expert on with a list of 5 Secrets of Motivated People. Put anything in list form and I am bound to like it. Ha ha. Honestly, though, I liked what she had to say in her list, so I thought I would share them here.

Secret #1: Anticipate speed bumps in your plan. Before even trying to achieve a goal, plan for potential pitfalls and either preempt them if you can, or come up with a strategy to deal with them if they arise.

Secret #2: Go public with your goal. It’s harder to abandon a dream when you know that people are tracking your progress.

Secret #3: Challenge yourself, and change things up. It’s hard to remain enthusiastic when everything stays the same.

Secret #4: Consider how what you’re doing benefits others.

Secret #5: Make it meaningful.

More details on each item are listed here as I have only included some of the details.

Well, in going along with Secret #2 above, I figured I should "go public" with my goals. When I sat down in January, my thought process was that I needed to be more intentional in everything that I do - that it should all have purpose. As a result, I came up with five categories of goals: spiritual, physical, mental/emotional, church, and marriage. For today, I will just share my spiritual goals and save the others for the next few days.

Spiritual Goals

• Closer relationship with God
• Daily Bible study
• Start my day with prayer
• Develop Christ-like character
• Study and know Christ and His life
• Consciously think about His character and choose to live that way
• Pray to be changed into His likeness
• Grow in my understanding of God
• Pray - listen and talk to God regularly
• Set aside at least 15 minutes a day
• Write out prayers when possible (helps to maintain focus and also to go back and see how God is working)
• Talk with God throughout my day
• Miscellaneous Goals
• Read through the Bible this year
• Memorize a verse every 2 weeks

Just for the record, with these (and all the other goals for that matter), I have failed miserably at some and others I'm actually not doing too bad. It was great to re-read these as I was sharing them as a refresher for myself.
 
Aiming to be more intentional in my life and live a life of purpose is truly my ultimate goal, whether it be in how I love others, spend my time, or use my resources. These helpful steps and subsequent goals are hopefully just the beginning.

5 Things

5 Things I Am Grateful for Today

• The foot massage I am currently getting from my husband
• Warmer weather and longer days
• Getting some spring cleaning done
• A wonderful time of Bible Study this afternoon
• A chance to get to know some of my co-workers a little more today

5 Things I'm Looking Forward to This Week

• Bible Study tomorrow night with some of my former co-workers
• Corned beef and cabbage for dinner on St. Patty's Day. Yum!
• The snow to keep melting and possibly be gone by the end of the week (hey, I can always hope)
• More spring cleaning and organizing around the house
• Learning more about God's love and His purposes

5 Things I'm Looking Forward to in the Next 30 Minutes

• Washing my face
• Brushing my teeth
• Getting in to bed
• Cuddling with my hubby
• And going to sleep! I'm beat. G'night all. :)

Scrumptious Chicken Chili

The first time I made this Ryan told me it was the one of the best things he'd ever eaten. Enjoy!

Chicken Chili

½ onion, chopped
1.5 cloves garlic, minced
1-2 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles
½ Tbsp. ground cumin
½ Tbsp. dried oregano
½ tsp. ground cinnamon
Ground cayenne pepper to taste
Ground black pepper to taste
3 (15 oz) cans cannellini beans
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

In a large pot over medium heat, combine the onion and garlic and saute for 5 minutes. Add the chicken, green chiles, cumin, oregano, cinnamon, cayenne pepper and black pepper to taste and saute for 5 more minutes.

Add two cans of the beans and the chicken broth to the pot. Take the third can of beans and puree them in a blender or food processor. Add this to the pot along with the cheese. Stir well and simmer for at least 10 minutes, allowing the cheese to melt.

2 Days in the City

Well, I only successfully managed to post 2 days in a row before I missed a day, but oh well. We went to Salt Lake Friday and Saturday, so I'm ok with it. :)

What took us to the city was Ryan's nerdy side (those are his words...ha ha). The Highlands Bagpipe Experience drew Ryan to downtown Salt Lake with me at his side. Oh, and my parents came along for the ride. Actually, it turned out to be really fun. The Utah Pipeband played some bagpipe music with some cute dancing Scottish girls. It was an interactive experience learning about a little bit of Scottish history, more about the bagpipe and Scottish dress. Plus, I just like the feel of being downtown.

Afterwards we hung out with my brother and nephew, which is always fun. My nephew is a VERY active 16 month old little boy with quite the personality. He's at a stage where he is learning lots and its fun to see his little brain work and all the words he is learning. And he is finally starting to remember his Aunt Nonnie and Uncle Wine. :)

Today, we spent the day at the Spring Home and Garden Show with my parents walking around and attending a few presentations about gardening. Sounds nerdy, but we all enjoyed it. We followed that up eating at one of my favorite restaurants, Iggy's. My wonderful husband then took me shopping at Payless and to get a frozen coffee drink from Beans N Brews, another one of my favorites. He is too sweet!

We had quite the eventful drive home encountering an unexpected snow storm in the canyon with low visibility, but we made it home safe and sound thankfully.

Reading through this, it doesn't sound that exciting, but it was actually such a fun weekend and just what I needed. But I have to say that one of my favorite parts of the weekend was the great conversations my hubby and I had on the drive out. I love how different we are and where our conversations go. :)

Lent

“Yet even now, says the Lord, repent and return to me with all your heart” Joel 2:13 Today is Ash Wednesday—the beginning of the Church’s observance of the Lenten season. It is a space in time in which we are called to stop whatever we are doing, no matter how important it might be, and enter more intentionally into the disciplines of prayer, self-examination and repentance. But these disciplines—as significant as they are—are not ends in themselves. They are a means to an end and that end is that we would return to God with all our hearts." Ruth Haley Barton

Yes, I know I'm a day late as Lent started yesterday, but I liked this quote a friend posted on Facebook yesterday, so I thought I'd post it anyway.

I’ve never observed Lent before, at least that I can remember. I guess it wasn’t something I ever really stopped to consider doing, however, I think that it is important if thought about in the context above. So, this year I am going to take this time before Easter to observe Lent by giving up something and intentionally turning towards God with all my heart.

I challenge anyone reading this to also think about observing Lent this year.