Observations of a Church Brat: Renegade.

Introduction

We're covering a ton of ground here. Thus far, we've said that God demands we love him with all our hearts, souls, minds, strength; and that we love each other as ourselves; that he demands holiness, righteousness, justice, mercy, and faithfulness.

(Yes, it took me six posts of ungodly length to say all of that - If you're curious, my Word document version of Observations, not including this post, Political, or Like-minded, is 27 pages long.)

We've also said that God expects us to look to our own salvation with fear and trembling, not to the salvation status of someone else; and that God neither tolerates hypocrisy or self-righteousness.

Anyway - the weekend before last really caught my attention. It was honestly nothing like I expected - likely a good thing. 0=) I'll be honest, this post is mostly me trying to think through that weekend than much else, so it might not be as direct as some of the other.


Sovereignty of God Retreat

Friday night was one of worship. We began the weekend with the Lord's Supper - which I thought was kinda cool. Jesus said to do this as often as we wanted, and few seem to either know that or take it seriously.

But the real cool moment was Saturday morning - albeit I was tired. I came into this retreat fully expecting to get another crash course on Calvinism, basically. Don't ask me why - maybe it was the title. Instead, the area pastor (our church is kinda big, so we have the head pastor, then area pastors - you get the idea) simply read Scripture to us.

This is an ancient practice that I think is a bit lost these days. I don't like being read to. But here's the thing: Instead of simply going all Edwards, Calvin, or Piper on us and giving us a lecture on the total omnipotence, sovereignty, and magnitude of the Most High...He...made it come alive. I can't quite explain this other than it's the difference between someone describing Yellowstone National Park to you and actually seeing it. The beauty is not in the intellectual rehashing or the pretty prose, but in the stark weight of the whole thing.

This was true meditation, in my mind. Rather than an hour of brain gymnastics (that, honestly, for a bunch of college students would either have been tedious or purely academic), we spent an hour literally listening to the breath of life.

It was striking to me, because it's far easier for me to sit there and rattle off a bunch of facts than it is to marinate in Scripture like that. And it's a far rare occasion to do it in a group setting. Made me wonder what it was like when the apostles' letters were circulating, to listen to them read aloud for the first time, to hear the very breath of God pronounced.

The other thing was how much free time we wound up with - I think largely because there was a student mentoring training session the same day, and they didn't want people to not attend in that by being forced to choose between the two.

So it became a true Sabbath, out on a campground alternating between sitting in the sun beneath a tree talking, reading, resting, and times of worship, prayer, instruction, and meditation. Slightly surreal, but the true nature of a retreat, methinks.

It make the story in Packer's Knowing God introduction all the more true. In it, he tells the tale of two men on a balcony, eating, drinking, and talking who watch two pilgrims walking on the road past their home. As the pilgrims walk, the two men watch them, criticizing the pilgrims, how they go about their journey, what they would do differently, etc.

But the point, of course, is, that that two men on the road are merely observing the journey, never taking the journey for themselves. I won't belabor the point - read it for yourself if you think you've missed something important.


So I came away refreshed, convicted, and silenced. Of course, he spent much time on 'the problem with evil,' but you know I don't consider that a question to be asked. He did a good job of it - I just choose not to delve into that.

The rest of the weekend was spent on a practical application Q&A session. If God is totally sovereign, how does that play out in our lives?

I'm actually looking for a quote that I either failed to write down or can't find right now.


Church Brats and Absurd Questions

The other highlight (I am tying all this together) was in between sessions. We were sitting on the grass under a tree, just resting, relaxing, and I was talking idly to a couple girls. One way or another one of the girls asked me what I thought would happen to the local churches if Christians started doing what they were supposed to.

I thought a moment, thinking, Well, same as it always has, I reckon, and finally asked what she meant by it. So she explained she basically thought the church (meaning the gathering in the building) would dissolve into house churches.

I said, "Well, it really hasn't changed much. Churches started out meeting in homes, and when a bunch of them got together it was at the local rich Christian guy's house because he had enough room. So it's really always been the same idea, only more formal."

She thought a minute, then said, "Well, but what's a church for?" I kinda blinked at her, so she went on, and eventually either she or I got around to teaching the Scriptures.

"Well," she said, "They did that because people couldn't read."

"Well," I joked, "People can read now and they don't."

"Because people do it for them," she added, with distaste in her voice.

After that we drifted off and changed the subject - Largely because, one, I didn't want to fight with her, and, two, that's really something that's between her and God. I don't know her beyond that weekend and didn't feel led to pursue the conversation. Beyond that, I wasn't sure she would listen to me on the matter.

And I know the feeling. I've said several time, at fifteen I said I wasn't listening to what other people had to say about God anymore, and I was in college before I really started to make the shift where I could/would listen to other people again. And if anyone had pushed me on that, they'd have lost me.


In all honesty, the teaching question (and answer) was...absurd. It's only a good question if you're seeking to understand your own faith, to become more discerning of who you listen to - and I think that girl will.

(I am not saying I've arrived or matured past any point - Just saying I know the feeling and sympathize to a degree. It's not a matter of maturity - just...where you are. And it seems that an increasing number of twentysomethings wind up that route - for better or worse.)

Interestingly enough, Sunday morning the 9am service at The Village let out early enough I made it to Denton Bible's single's Bible study class (and caught Elizabeth, which was the point since I knew she'd be there), which just so happened to be on II Timothy 3, titled in my notes as "Theology and Application."

The highlight of the whole thing was this: Without the principle, there is no application. You can use the same principle applied a dozen different ways in a dozen different scenarios, but the principle itself cannot be broken. Without it, all these disciplines, rituals, regulations, and the like we put ourselves through are....pointless.

So the renegade in me sees all these applications -- church service, tithing, fasting, praying, singing, preaching, teaching, Bible study, fellowship -- and thinks "What the heck is all of this for?"

So we must go back to the principle of the thing.

Why do we attend church? No, really. Like my pastor said, "Church is a lame hobby." Why do I sit there for twenty-five minutes to over an hour (or a whole weekend) listening to some guy parrot about his interpretation of Scripture?

Because we are to engage in the public reading of Scripture, in teaching, preaching, admonishing, in edifying the body, whether by encouragement or exhortation. Because you will never be able to understand what the death and resurrection of Christ 2000 years ago means today otherwise.

Because God commands such.

Because everything must withstand the test of Scripture.

Here's the thing: That girl was right - no one person gets to dictate their own version of Scripture unchecked, for we are indeed a royal priesthood, and our only mediator is Christ.

But consider this: Just as one preacher's public interpretation and instruction on Scripture must be subject to full scrutiny by others, so must my private rendering of the text.

In other words, to suggest that we don't need teachers because we can read and interpret Scripture for ourselves is to become the very thing we despise. Protestants disdain Catholics because they demand a single understanding as interpreted by the Roman Catholic Church itself. However, Protestants who turn totally renegade, each leaning on his own unchallenged understanding of Scripture, falls prey to the exact same thing.


Fellowship

After Bible study Elizabeth and I found Robin and went to lunch. I'm really just throwing this in here to finish the story. So I spent the retreat meditating on this idea of sovereignty and what exactly that meant, what the implications might be (terrifying) and talked to a girl totally not into the institutionalized church. That said, Sunday honed on the point of, one, the Kingdom (Beau's sermon) and the principle v. application of Scripture (a stark answer to the question posed the day before).

Lunch continued the trend, ironically enough. We talked about how people tend to neglect the Old Testament, and how you miss so much of the riches of the New without it, using, ironically, Hebrews as case in point.

All of that is an incredibly long and roundabout way of saying this:

God is totally sovereign. He orders our steps and numbers our days. In truth, my entire weekend was but one question and answer at a time, like an ongoing dialogue between God and me. Thus, not only did I have the teaching of his sovereignty, he flat out showed such to me.

Let all be silent before him.


Wrestling God

Here's the thing: There is a right and wrong way to do most things. Yes, anyone can, theoretically, interpret Scripture (or anything else) however they choose. That does not, however, mean all interpretations are equally valid or accurate. I'm a writer. I can make Scripture say whatever I want, whenever I want, all in the name of creating a nice vile antagonist with a warped theology and perverted morality.

But just because I can twist it that way and make some sense out of the logic doesn't mean it's right. Deconstructionism doesn't work - especially with Scripture, otherwise you make a mockery of God.

But here's one thing out of all of this: Sometimes God says "Trust me."

And what I love about him, or one thing I love, is that God likes to wrestle as much as we do. God wrestles his kids. "Israel" means "God-wrestler." (Just be careful - he has a habit of pulling limbs out of sockets to make a point.)


So, I guess to the disillusioned, to the renegade, unorthodox God-wrestler, that's what I have to say. There is such comfort in his sovereignty, such confidence in his grace, and such steadfastness, such solace and strength, in his truth.

Look for answers, but be willing to accept the answer, "Trust me." He makes everything beautiful in its time, restores what's been destroyed, and even if you walk with a limp,

If we have died with him, we will also live with him;

if we endure, we will also reign with him;

if we deny him, he also will deny us;

if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself (II Timothy 2).

Remember also: Many people over thousands of years have asked the questions already. And in the end Jesus usually pulls a hip out of its socket, names you a God-wrestler, and says "Trust me."

"Cease striving, and know that I am God;

I will be exalted among the nations;

I will be exalted in all the earth" (Psalm 46).

"Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is difficult for you to kick against the goads."

~Acts 9

Next time: Political (aka - How to Make Non-Christians Despise You)

Observations of a Church Brat: Dirty.

Before we begin...

As an aside, I really have canceled what was to be "Dirty" on this thing, I think. After much thought, I really believe everything I intended to say got handled fairly well in "Religious." Oh, and I just got back from a retreat heralding the topic "The Sovereignty of God." Postage on that...soon. Quite enlightening, I thought.

On that note, I'm keeping the title but altering the subject matter. So instead of a paint-peeling, toe-curling lambasting of all things Tradition and all things that could possibly be rendered Legalistic, I'm instead going to tackle two things:

1. Church leaders who sin.
2. The average Christian who sins.





Recap

So, basically, God requires justice and holiness; and we can do neither without him. It's akin to trying to breathe without air. We simply weren't built that way. Again, I'll tackle the sin nature in depth on AMG, and for the time being I'm only dealing with temptation and sin post-salvation.

I personally think the question "Can a Christian sin?" is a bad one.

1. I really only sit on the fence (by choice) when it comes to trying to determine a Christian's salvation. At some point I do think we have to fall on Jesus' parable about the wheat and tares.

For those of you unfamiliar, Jesus tells a story about a man who sends his workers out to plant a field. In the night his enemies come and plant tares (a weed that looks very similar to wheat stalks) in the wheat. The next day the man's workers find out about it and ask their employer if they should pull the tares out. But the man says, "No, if you do, you'll harm the wheat. Leave it, and when harvest comes we'll separate them, bring in the wheat, and burn the tares." And so that's what they do.

And, of course, there's the famous (or infamous) sheep and goats parable, but I digress.

2. I find the idea of trying to see how far we can get from God rather diabolical and rebellious. The creator of the universe, author of life, the magnificent king of kings, grants a bunch of treacherous rebels pardon - grants mercy, holiness, righteousness, and redemption, and the first words out of our mouths are, "So if I turn my back on you, would you do it again?

God help me, that is disgusting.


What if I stumble, what if I fall?

But still people ask what to do with the Christian who sleeps with his girlfriend and the Christian who can't get past the despair of feeling constantly dirty. What do you do with that pastor who stole church funds and ran off with his assistant? Again, I have to ask the question: Is not a stumble still a fall?

More importantly, to quote Proverbs: "Though a righteous man falls seven times, he will rise" (my paraphrase - I think I quoted it a few posts back).

Or rather, how do you reconcile "those who love me obey me" with "he who says he is without sin is a liar"?

Personally - Again, we have no choice but to fall on this matter of the heart. Again, we must decide that "It is better to fall into the hands of God than of men," and again we must fall on this concept of working out your salvation in fear and trembling, and of understanding (or trying) this idea that to fall into the hands of God is terrifying (Hebrews 10).

A few things:

1. We are known by our love - for God, for humanity. I may tackle 'love' one of these days. It's hardly the warm fuzzies.
2. We are known by the fruit of the Spirit produced within us.
3. We are not tempted beyond that which is common to man - These things are normal, but that does not mean we should give them any place in our lives.
4. False teachers exist. We are to avoid them like the Plague.
5. Scripture both warns against falling away and assures us that him who overcomes shall not have done so for nothing - and that Christ has overcome the world, and Christ is in us, and that he will finish what he began.


In any case, when someone bearing the name of Christ sins, you have a rather limited number of possibilities:

1. They could be peddlers of the Word who aren't truly saved and exploit believers to their own gain.

2. They are ignorant and need to be educated.

3. They've allowed that which is common temptation to overpower them, either in the manner of Jonah (rebellion), David (complacency/laziness), Peter (fear), or Annanias and Sapphira (I'm not sure what category this falls under - either ignorance or faithlessness; since I listed ignorance separate we'll call it faithlessness).

I'll be perfectly honest, one of the most difficult passages I have ever read in Scripture comes from II Timothy 2. It reads:

Remember Jesus Christ, risen from the dead, the offspring of David, as preached in my gospel, for which I am suffering, bound with chains as a criminal. But the word of God is not bound! Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect, that they also may obtain the salvation that is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory. The saying is trustworthy, for:

If we have died with him, we will also live with him;

if we endure, we will also reign with him;

if we deny him, he also will deny us;

if we are faithless, he remains faithful—

for he cannot deny himself.

Good luck. The first half is fairly self-explanatory, but the second remains a mystery to me. The only thing I can figure is that there's a difference between denying Christ and being faithless. But then you get to guys like Peter and I'm still stumped.

At any rate - I do think there's a key here I'm likely missing. Colossians calls the mystery of God the very fact that Christ is in us, and this is our hope of glory (end of chapter 2).

What I can figure is this: the prophets, the Law, Jesus, and the apostles harp incessantly on this idea of circumcision of the heart. And God claims that only he knows the heart. Furthermore, Jesus said 'preach the gospel to the whole world.'

He did not say 'try to determine who is and who is not saved.'

Rather, much time is given to showing us how to live lives worthy of God (Colossians...1 or 2, restated in either Romans or Corinthians - I think). To correct, teach, rebuke, encourage, edify, build up, and strengthen the body (Timothy).

In other words, Truth is universal and neither 'christian' nor 'unchristian." It simply is, in the same way it is simply fact that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west (don't go scientific on me - you know what I mean).

I'm not saying "don't make judgments." We make judgment calls every day. And we're to do so (don't quote Matthew at me, you'll do it out of context, and then I'll slap a few other verses at you). We call this discernment.

In fact, Jesus tells the disciples to listen to what the Pharisees had to say about dealing with sin and the Law and such (John something - I think), because they really did know, but not to engage in their practice, because their practice was unScriptural.

So what do you do when you find all these sinners running around in Jesus' name?

Know God, and make him known.



Foxes in the henhouse

"Okay, Kaci, but you've still got to tell me what to do with these idiots onstage that exploit me and my family. I got my friend to church only to have him treated horribly. The people who treated me the worst were praying to Jesus."

A few things:

1. "Not everyone who says to me, 'Lord, Lord,' has me for a master."
2. In the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector, Jesus made note that the Pharisee was praying to himself, not Jesus. That's an observation my pastor made that I thought was worth noting.
3. Make very, very certain you do not lightly enter the same sin you're condemning. One of the most chilling epiphanies you will ever have is when you've despised someone for their sins and God reveals your own wickedness. Do not become that which you despise.
4. As harsh as this is going to sound: Get over it.

No, really. Get over it. Do not let the sun go down on your anger. Do not let an ant bite cripple you for the rest of your life. Are you really going to let the one pastor who made the one mistake color your perspective of pastors for all time?

Really. You want me to tell you what God thinks of that, or would you rather look it up yourself?

You know what, at 15 I had such a bad taste in my mouth with some female church leaders that I honestly had to fight in college to accept any female Christian leadership - I still do. It is my sin and I will not allow such to rule me.

Period.

You know something else, one of my oldest and best friends pointed out yesterday at lunch that we are not the same people we were in high school, or college, or as children. Leadership is both blessing and curse - that's why the burnout rate skyrockets.

That's why the apostles begged for prayers, for strength, courage, encouragement, endurance. Indeed, one of Paul's most striking requests is the simple cry for prayer - for help. And James, big bad James, half-brother of the Messiah, half-brother of Jesus, leader in the church in Jerusalem, makes an almost-passing comment that Elijah was a man just like us.

Elijah was a man just like us.
Peter was a man just like us.
Matt Chandler is a man just like us.
Preacher X and Elder X are men just like us.

So when you see that kind of abuse going on: Instead of going home crying, behave as men and women set apart by God and made holy.

• Always attempt to reconcile the problem first, with love and compassion, with truth and discernment, with prayer and fasting
• Do not play the Holy Spirit in a man's life
• If the man is unrepentant and you have exhausted all channels of appeal with no resolution, then you have a choice: Be the solution yourself, or remove yourself.
• If the man is repentant, help him and restore him.
• Forgive him.
  
• This means you can't run around talking about it, either. What happens inside the body, stays in the body. Period.
  

But do not sit around whining about what a hypocrite that man is. Remember, a leader and a teacher are held to stricter standards than the rest of us. If I teach my friend, who often queries me since I've been a Christian longer, something that is wrong, I am responsible for whatever she does as a result. If she sins as a result of my counsel, then I bear her guilt.


Traitors among the ranks

"Okay, you're not helping me. I still see hypocrites everywhere. Wasn't it Ghandi who said he'd become a Christian were it not for the Christians?"

First of all, most of the "Christians" in Ghandi's quote fell into the ignorance or peddler categories. Second, Ghandi, however you think of him, was not a man of God, and the truth was not in him. Third, Scripture tells us that because of #1 and #2 we are to always be mindful of everything we do - because it is no small matter to be a spokesman for God himself.

Furthermore, your first problem is looking for the hypocrites. You know, when I substitute teach, I often get told "well, so &so is doing it!" And from there I have a response I learned from my father: It doesn't actually matter what they're doing. It matters what you are doing, and what I have told you to do.

Largely what matters when a Christian does something stupid and counter to everything he believes, counter to his love for Christ, what matters is the aftermath. Whether within the hour or several years later - at some point God will rip him a new one and repentance will occur. Such is the lesson of David and Bathsheba.

"Behold your sin will find you out."

My mother prays we'll get caught in our sin. As deterring as that knowledge can be, it doesn't always stop either of us. But over time I've grown both appreciative and honored by this. It was bad enough, for instance, that David wasn't with his men in battle (Maybe he was tired. I always thought it was un-David-like to miss a fight). But then things progressed, spiralled downward, accelerated...

And what started out as David being tired turned into a whirlwind of problems as he tried to cover up his shame (he was ashamed - that's why he tried to hide it). Dad says David justified it in his heart - and he likely did...but I imagine whenever things grew quiet, whenever he looked at Bathsheba, whenever he saw Joab, whenever he saw his men...he remembered. Then shoved it with an excuse.

So when God busts him nine months later with the prophet Nathan it's an act of mercy and justice all at the same time. And David breaks down weeping in the court.


That's the part that matters.



White-washed tombs

Jesus called the Pharisees, Sadducees, and teachers of the law 'white washed tombs,' among other things. They looked good on the outside but their 'throats are open graves.' The short list of what they were doing was some combination of:

• gratifying their own lusts (selfishness, greed, etc)
• strangling other people in their own attempts of attaining holiness (legalism)
• doing the right for the wrong reason
• trampling people to get to God
• aiming to please men rather than God
• persecuting the very people of God they claimed to desire (see Saul of Tarsus)

Some of these men were likely not doing anything out of malice. Gamaliel (Saul's teacher) warned the rest of the Sanhedrin to leave the Christians alone lest they find themselves opposing God. Nicodemus sought Jesus out privately longing for the second birth, for redemption. Joseph of Aramithea (I think he was one of them, not sure) took Jesus' body, got it semi-ready for burial, and put it in his own tomb. Zacharias, father of John the Baptist. (Yes, he did have that moment that ticked off an angel, but, face it, the guy was high priest that year and he survived his trek into the holy place. He was also blessed with a son who was called by God the greatest man to ever live.)

So some of these guys were trying to trip Jesus up and being malicious in their intentions. But some of these were genuine, I think it's safe to say. Obviously, those did not fall into the 'white washed tomb' category.

For those who did, however, Jesus had stern words. He also said:

"The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat. So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach. They tie up heavy loads and put them on men's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them." (Matthew 23).

The real problem with these men is that they are resounding gongs without love. They know and teach the oracles of God rightly, they sacrifice everything, they do everything in keeping with the external Law - - - But they do not have the circumcision of the heart. Their hearts are not Christ's, therefore they do not know his voice, therefore they cannot keep his commands.


Or rather, "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former. You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel" (Matthew 23.22-24). I'll not quote all of Matthew 23, but go read it if you're still curious.

In short:

• They keep people from entering the Kingdom.
• They make converts, then turn them into 'twice the son of hell' they themselves are.
• They are blind guides without truth, light, or wisdom.
• They are the external epitome of 'good man,' but they're evil inside, full of greed and self-indulgence.
• They look alive in Christ but are dead to him still.
• They appear righteous but are hypocritical and wicked.
• The sins of their fathers who murdered the prophets before them are on their heads. They have blood on their hands and are guilty of shedding innocent blood.
• They persecute and kill the people of God.
  

So we're going far beyond social justice here. Remember:

But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.

Once more we've gotten back to this idea of the heart. Jesus is not saying that tithing, desiring a holy life, wanting to please God and keep the Law, is not important. Rather, he's saying that those things are born out of obedience and out of an overflow of the heart.

The practice of Justice, Mercy, and Faithfulness, then, is one of discipline and duty - not to be neglected. A soldier doesn't sleep on the watch, and a teacher doesn't forget to prep for his class. Those are duties. But a good soldier goes well beyond keeping awake while on watch, and a good teacher goes well beyond spouting facts and truth at students.

They are just.
They are merciful.
They are faithful.


Brood of vipers


I just wanted to use that phrase. 0=)

Anyway. I felt it more beneficial, in the end, to discuss dealing with the trouble in the ranks rather than simply venting and spewing the nastiness all over the place. The Scriptures have incredibly stern words for people who put blemish on the name of Christ, and the consequences are equally stern. Hypocrites, agitators, peddlers, false teachers, wolves in sheepskins, given over to debased minds, foolish, darkened, lovers of pleasure and self...etc.

I simply think it's more important to remember James' words:

My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.

Next time: Observations of a Church Brat: Renegade.

Quotable

Just a link to the blog of a favorite of mine. She kinda hits it on the head, so I won't ruin it by trying to summarize. The thing with Karen is she often posts what's in my head. And the more of her I read, the more I appreciate the depth of what she writes.

So here you go, on the myriad of interruptions and distractions...and spiritual warfare.

Some things grow clear.

Again, my apologies for the lack of updates. The editing is wearing me out.

Just for fun.

Since I've pretty well exploded on everyone, and I thought this was funny off Becky Miller's blog, I figured I'd give us all a break and do something fun. No, that wasn't a run-on. 0=)

What is your favorite word?
Asinine. I just like the way it sounds.

What is your least favorite word?
Suck. Really, it sounds weird.

What inspires you (creatively, spiritually or emotionally)?
Technically, anything is potential fuel for the fire. Especially when it comes to "creatively." Spiritually, I tend to be more attracted to what affects both the mind and the emotions. Emotionally...Well, it depends on which emotion we're talking about.

What dampens your enthusiasm (creatively, spiritually or emotionally)?
Disappointment, or an anti-climax. It really knocks the wind out of my sails.

What sound or noise do you love?
Anything easy on the ears.

What sound or noise do you hate?
High-pitched sounds. Ouch.

What is your favorite curse word?
Heh. I don't. I tend to favor the word 'shrew,' though.

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?
I like what I do. But I also enjoy tutoring for some reason. And editing. There's a reason my Lit major, editor, and writer selves don't get along. 0=)

What profession would you not like to do?
I'm stealing Becky's answer: Anything that requires little thought.

What one book, other than the Bible, do you read again and again for inspiration?
I've gotten way behind on my book list, so no more re-reading for awhile. Some I'd like to:

Karen Hancock's Legends of the Guardian King series

Donita Paul's DragonKeeper series

Andrew Murray on Prayer

Pivotal Prayer

AW Tozer's The Pursuit of God

Ted Dekker's The Circle Trilogy

Stephen Lawhead's Song of Albion and King Raven series

Oh, I was supposed to pick one...

What would you like to hear God say when you arrive in Heaven?
I never understand questions like this. At least it isn't "Why should I let you into heaven," which has to be the worst possible speculative question ever dreamed up.

Ahem. End rant.

Honestly, I think he's going to look at me and laugh at some inside joke only the two of us get. 0=)