I want to say thank you to the 44 who took time to respond to our survey. I don’t know if that number strikes you as large or small, and, honestly, I don’t know if I think of it in terms of size. What I know is that we received some really good feedback, and enough of it to see some consistent patterns in our readers and their thoughts on the Reforming the Feminine blog.

We’re stealing about 12% of the Vox Pop Network’s traffic (this is where I’d hope we be - I don’t want all the attention, but I am glad we are read!), and between July 11 and August 10th this summer, we got 5828 unique page views.

It’s totally humbling that so many of you took the time to fill in the survey boxes with your thoughts. I am humbled that you read our words and pay attention to what we have to say. Thank you for listening. It’s an honor.

So what did we learn from you?

1. 53% of you have no immediate connection to (more…)

Six women in my community group have begun meeting regularly to discuss the book Women of the Bible: A One-Year Devotional Study of Women in Scripture, by Ann Spangler and Jean E. Syswerda. The devotional offers an insightful journey into the lives of 52 women of the Bible, and provides cultural and historical context for the Scriptures concerning each of them. A central aspect of the study is the extensive Scripture references included  - attempting to launch into reading about the lives of these women without open Bible in hand would steal from the depth and beauty of this book.

Reading and contemplating what these feminine characters’ lives might have been like, for me, has begun to spark new interest and appreciation for them and for Jesus’ faithfulness, clearly evident in their lives. I would recommend this resource to any woman looking for a closer look into Biblical characters, specifically feminine characters, and God’s story through their lives.

I would not recommend this book to women looking for a deep, intensive study of Scripture. Those looking for Greek and Hebrew cross references will probably be disappointed. However, the storytelling tone of the book has been ideal, as I have begun reading it at 6:00 each weekday morning, curled up on the couch with a cup of coffee and enjoying a short time in the Word before my hubby wakes up. The short daily study, combined with a good dose of Scripture, has been starting my day out with a fresh perspective.

Know how you meet people later in life who remind you of someone from your past?  Their laugh…mannerisms…looks…walk?  Never in my life have I met anyone who reminded me of Ruthie.  Until recently when I was late to work, circling 5^th & Columbia.  I caught Ruthie out of the corner of my eye.  The sexy walk gave her away.  She turned the corner while I waited at a red light.  On green, I gunned it and turned too.  Yup.  It was Ruthie alright.

People used to say Ruthie faked that walk, but I lived with her for 9 months, and I know:  That walk was naturally Ruthie.  Arriver comme mars en careme.  That’s French for as sure as night follows day.  Ruthie was just born to walk that way.  

Girls like Ruthie fascinate us, and like most young women, I constantly compared (more…)

I’m sitting in my apartment right now, normally my haven of rest. But this last week it has been my Jonah-in-the-whale experience. I am debating over clicking “publish” after I write these things, because they are not resolved and they don’t make me look good.

I’m thinking through the book of Jonah - I had to read ahead of our preaching because a) it was a story and b) it’s short. Here’s my brief summary:

1. God tells Jonah to go to Ninevah to tell them they’re doomed; Jonah is racist and elitist and by his own admission (in chapter 4) doesn’t want to go because he doesn’t want God to have mercy on them if and when they repent.

2. God puts Jonah in the underwater slammer of sorts, to repent. Jonah comes to a place where he acknowledges he is small and defenseless, and God is huge and powerful, and his only hope. But try to find any “I’m sorry”s or heart changes.

3. God tells Jonah to go to Ninevah again. This time he goes, only walks into the city partway, announces doom and gloom. The people repent, and God spares them.

4. Jonah is royally ticked off and a conversation ensues between himself and God revealing Jonah’s judgmental, self-righteous and wicked heart that looks nothing like God’s merciful and compassionate one. The line that keeps sticking out to me is God saying “Do you do well to be angry?” and Jonah’s clearly irrational and emotional response, “Yes, I do well to be angry, angry enough to DIE.”

I’m writing you in the midst of (more…)

Today a Mars Hill member writes on her struggles in worshiping and fearing her family more than Jesus. Can you relate? Maybe you don’t have an “obvious idol” - like pornography or overeating or drunkenness. But what about the beautiful gift of family? Do you love them more than Jesus?

God created us to worship.  It’s how we’re made.  So when we’re not properly worshiping Him, our hearts are quickly drawn to a cheap replacement.  For me, that has been my family.  Which is rather confusing since family in itself is a good thing.  But it can easily take the form of idolatry when I choose family over Jesus.  Let me explain.

As a single woman, I have held my family above Christ by refusing to speak truth at the risk of disrupting my family’s so-called peace or potentially losing relationship with them altogether.  I knew God was calling me to bring into the light past family sin that had never been discussed since it occurred 27 years ago.  I could see how it could be used to show them God’s grace by coming to them in truth and forgiveness.  And although there was great possibility to see lives transformed, I sinned against God by instead choosing my family and my own comfort because the risk was too high.

Not having a husband or children of my own, the thought of being left “alone” was (more…)

Hers was the last bootie shaking.  Through the din of the crowd’s cheering and whistles, you could barely hear the fading lines of Billboard’s #1 hit, Eye of the Tiger, before the contest was over and the redneck crowd erupted in unanimous thunder, announcing its winner by shouting our roommate’s name.  It was the same cacophonous pitch we heard most every Friday night after the Best Bootie Contest in the muggy Coyote Ugly bar we hung out at in South Texas in the fall of 1982. (more…)

As a mother, I’m often overwhelmed at the gazillion gidgets and gadgets for sale touting “safety.”  I understand the necessity of car seats, gates in front of the stairs, cabinet locks, and all those products that make life safe and prudent.  I just scratch my head at the sheer volume of products that line the shelves, from what is reasonable to what is truly insane.  All in an attempt to alleviate our deepest physical fears as parents.  

Maybe the more children you have, the more you relax.  People say we’re “laid back” as parents.  Maybe so.  Not much surprises us.  [SIDENOTE:  Before I got married I had six theories on raising children.  Now I have six children and no theories.]  

It’s pretty much a given you’ll be neurotic with your first.  The pacifier bounces on the floor, and you scald the nipple [and everything else she touches].  By your third, as the line goes in Parenthood, you’re yawning while they juggle knives.

Webster’s 1828 American Dictionary definese SAFE as:  

Free from danger of any kind; as safe from enemies; safe from disease; safe from storms; safe from the malice of foes.  Free from hurt, injury or damage.  Not exposing to danger;  No longer dangerous; placed beyond the power of doing harm.  Without injury.  Exemption from hurt, injury or loss.    

It seems the world is always seeking total exemption from hurt, injury or loss.  Which is completely unreasonable when comparing my Bible and the world under a Curse.  Sure we should strive for prudent physical safety with our kids.  But it takes real guts to believe Jesus for our kids physical and spiritual safety:  John 17, “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name - the name you gave me - so that they may be one as we are one. ..My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. ”

The world was not a friendly or safe place for Jesus, or his followers, ever.  Even before He was born, men sought to kill him.  Following Jesus meant putting oneself at risk - then and now.  I’d even go so far as to say that satan might have a special target on our kids.  The comforting confidence is that protection and safety was paramount in Jesus’ prayers.  It’s amazing to think that Jesus prayed for my kids’ protection 2,000 years ago.  And Romans 8:34 promises that He’s He’s still at it.

I watched (through tears) the Steven Curtis Chapman family interview on Larry King Live the other night. 

What was most remarkable, and comforting, to me through this family’s tragedy was God’s ability to protect their belief in His goodness, His faithfulness, His sovereignty.  To keep their faith SAFE despite the fact that many in the world accuse Him of failing to keep their daughter safe.     http://trevinwax.com/2008/08/08/steven-curtis-chapman-on-larry-king-live/  Real faith, like the Chapmans, is always at risk.  The risk is part of what makes it real.  Or as Jesus said in his prayer:  “As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.” 

The world was not a safe place for Jesus.  If “He is our example…” [1 Peter 2:21], why would we think it would be any different for us?

Hello readers,

I really appreciate all your love and support and the way you encourage us in our writing. I am so thankful that you honor us by taking time out of your day to read about our lives. I am humbled by the feedback we get when you tell us that we spoke truth into your hearts.

We’ve been online for 1.5 years!

With that said, I am asking you to pray for me as I think ahead to the future and how we can better serve you women through this blog. Will you take just a minute to pray for me? Pray for wisdom and ears to hear. 

Last, I want to welcome feedback from our readers. Would you consider filling out this form? It shouldn’t take more than 5-10 minutes max.

-Adriel

“Twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four…” I slowly counted in my mind the number of little drops of sweat running down my back. 106 degrees in the shade is pretty warm, even sitting under a beautiful Neem tree. It was the last day of my recent trip to India and I was taking a break and talking with Jaipaul, the missionary who graciously hosted me for the first few weeks of July during my stay in a little Indian village. Between swatting mosquitos and flies and counting drops of sweat (and the minutes until I was going to fly away in an air conditioned plane) I was only half paying attention as we talked about the Widow’s program, orphanage, and life in Seattle. (If you aren’t familiar with my trip, there are a couple blogs that will tell you more about it on reforming the feminine and my personal trip blog.)

Suddenly Jaipaul got a little more serious in his discussion about Jesus and Cross-centered living. He reached over for my journal and pen. Quietly he wrote one sentence.

It really got my attention. Each time I look at it, it still resonates really deeply in my soul … more deeply than I really think I’m aware of. “Abandon anything that is not giving any Joy of the Lord or giving you energy”

Wow. Of course I know there are lots of little things, hindrances, habits, whatever, that aren’t always the best choice, but I think I like to excuse the “little things” with the concept of grace far too often. I thought about this sentence and realized just how many little and big things that I could abandon in exchange for peace and joy, but instead I sit here and choose all these little things that rob me of Joy!

Processing all the things that I saw and heard on my trip is taking a while, but as I was reading my journal and saw that I realized this is a truth that I will be letting sink in deeper into my soul probably the rest of my life. I can’t encourage you to do this because I have done it 100% and am on the other side and can say “Hey it’s GREAT over here, come on over!” Nope. I definitely am sitting on the same side as you are, looking at all the little things I don’t want to abandon and wondering if it really is more joyous over there. But I hope I can encourage you that from what I know to be true about Jesus and his Word I think there is a lot of hope and truth in this sentence and my prayer is that every day the Holy Spirit will enable me to abandon those things that are not giving me Joy and run to him and embrace the things that will give me joy and strength.

I can’t believe its been a year since my mental reconciliation of the French tattoo artist carving a sugar skull tattoo on my daughter’s forearm.  And for those of you who’ve never been to the, now’s your chance!  Plus, this year you can register to win a Les Paul Vintage Sunburst guitar!  If that’s not reason enough, let me tempt you with my other Top Ten Reasons for Attending :

 10.  Live Music.  Bands who came up with names, on purpose, like DragStrip Riot , Viva Hate and Witchburn absolutely must be seen.  In person.

9. Low-key.  I’ve went for several years, and it’s not like there are hoards of people trouncing over each other.  Especially if you go on Friday. 

8.  A trip through  Fun Forest or the Seattle Center afterwards.  If you’ve been keeping up with politics in Seattle, they may end up closing this historic attraction after Labor Day in 2009.  When was the last time you rode Windstorm or took the kids on the carousel?  Got your toes wet in in the fountains or watched the seniors dance in the pavillion? 

7.Kat Von D.  Liar Liar Pants On Fire.  Okay, she isn’t really going to be there.  But it’d be cool.

6.  One of the main organizers loves Jesus and contributed content to one of Pastor Mark’s books.  And if you’re still wrestling with the whole “Christians:  To Tattoo or Not to Tattoo” issue, check out the VoxPop article, p. 7.

5.  You could enter to win the Les Paul Vintage Sunburst and give it to your favorite Mars Hill band member. 

4.  Contests.  Best Leg, Best Sleeve, Best Religious, Worst Tattoo.  Speaking of which, in my honky-tonk era of youthful folly, I brazenly allowed  Porky (the name says it all) to tattoo a cowboy boot & hat on my shoulder.  Turns out prison isn’t exactly the best place to learn the this trade, because over time his work bled and melded into what looked like a fat, er, mouse?  Thank you Jesus for laser removal technology.  P.S.  Lasers hurt WAY MORE than tattoo needles.  P.P.S.  A 2003 study revealed 17% of Americans with tattoos regretted getting them, per a recent program I watched on the History Channel.

3. If you’re over 18 and seriously thinking about getting a tattoo, this is a good place to get educated, even if you don’t actually go through with it.  Browse the books for a good look at the artist’s work.  (And if it’s full of pictures only, move on).  This is sort of like a wine tasting event ~ you really start getting the different flavors of the art and artists and what they excel at.  Especially if you don’t really know what you want, you’ll come away with a lot of new ideas.  If, however, you’re serious about going under the needle, go early.  The best artists are booked fairly quickly for the entire weekend.

2. People who attend.  Wow.  Seriously cool folks to pray for.  People are what matter.

And my Number One reason for attending is,

1.  The Tattoo Artists.  Evidence the variety of God’s amazing creativity first-hand.  These body artists fascinate me, and they travel from as near as Pike’s Market to as far as Jacksonville and London.  Eclectic bunch.  Hard core.  Traditional.  Chatty.  Quiet.  Funny.  Thoughtful.  Crazy.  Endearing.  I’ve seen them wearing everything from self-portraits to the Mona Lisa.  I’ve read shoulders with poems by e.e. cummings, and Latin Bible verses around one guys throat.  These are incredibly talented, professional artists who do things with a needle and skin that most of us could never imagine, and it’s fabulous to watch them work.  Did I mention people are what matter in life?  Yeah baby, and these artists rock.