Laughter and Bread

I Moved!

2008-02-06T18:33:00.000-08:00

Hi friends...

I just finished packing up and moved my blog to:

www.bostern.wordpress.com.

A Way Through the Roof

2008-02-01T22:15:00.001-08:00

Luke 5:18-20 Some men arrived carrying a paraplegic on a stretcher. They were looking for a way to get into the house and set him before Jesus. When they couldn't find a way in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof, removed some tiles and let him down in the middle of everyone, right in front of Jesus. Impressed by their bold belief, He said, "Friend, I forgive your sins."

They couldn’t get in because of the crowd.

Strong's word for crowd is “multitude” and it means “rabble” or a low class of people.

While I have often been just as paralyzed as this guy: no direction, no vision, no hope of forward motion with Jesus, my issue in reaching Him is just the opposite. It’s not the rabble pressing in on Jesus that limits my proximity…it’s the rabble pressing in on me. While I have this awesome and every-day opportunity to seek and find Him, to ask for healing from my immobility…I let the crowd hold me back. Not everything in the crowd is “rabble” ( a low class of distraction). My family, my home, my job are all certainly worthy of my attention, but lots of things are not. All of these pieces of the crowd – in varying degrees of intensity – push in to absorb my time, my day and even my desire to find a way in to seek Jesus. Actually, I think a LOT of people - especially Americans - give up too quickly when seeking Jesus gets hard to do.

So I love how this guy and his friends just will not give up.

They don’t.

They won’t.

They devise a plan to get him in and quite a plan it is…it’s a gutsy move. He could get hurt, he could be rejected by the angry mob – or even an angry Jesus. Somewhere, it’s clear that this guy developed such a desperation for healing that the risk was worth it. Of all the characters in the enormous Word of God, I think I may identify with this one the most. Somewhere inside of 2007, I got desperate to find Jesus. Desperate to be built by Him…even if that meant being taken apart first. Even if it meant risking everything.

For so many years, I have stayed hidden in the crowd and suffocated by - yet secretly thankful for - their company. Finally, I decided to find a way through the roof. Though it would have seemed ridiculous and impossible a few years ago, the tile that had to be moved was the tile called: MORNING. The very small door labeled “before sunrise” was the opening through the roof that I needed to get through the crowd. In fact, I’ve discovered that the streets are pretty quiet and the ordinarily busy and bustling world is nowhere to be found at that time. The only one pressing in for time with me at that hour is the very One I’ve been desperate to talk to. And finding Him here has been the best thing in my life.

Absolutely the best thing ever.

Kenya.

2008-01-29T12:23:00.001-08:00

Steve's brother, Jon, and his family live in Kenya, where they run Kings Kids Village - an orphanage for children who have lost their families to AIDS. Please pray for them as they are in the middle of rampant violence and unrest and are responsible for many children and workers. Here is the latest update from Jon Stern - it's long, but important in understanding the scope of the situation. Our God is GREAT and His power will prevail...but I believe that prayer is going to be the key that turns the lock. Here's the letter from Jon:

Hello everyone, and sorry we haven't written an update
lately.......we've heard from some of you that you are hearing the news
and following that way - you are probably getting as much as we are -
EXCEPT for what's on the ground here at KKV......so that's why we are
writing an update today. The unrest is getting worse and worse, and
there is talk that now things will be really bad for the rest of the
week......and it has slowly encroached on to Nairobi and anarchy
ensues. The country is shaken to it's very foundations.

It is very confusing indeed, as no one seems
to know "who is the enemy" - people are running and moving out of their
living places, but don't know where they are going? Where can someone
hide? If you are one tribe you are being killed and if you are
another, you are killed also.......it's definite ethnic cleansing, but
with a political twist - people in high places are using the political
situation to bring in their own agendas.

Needless to say, we are praying to God that the real,
evil plans that are bringing this spirit of violent murder to our
country will be EXPOSED and brought down............roads are closed so
that goods cannot be bought or sold and transported and folks are
separated from their families from one side of the country to the
other.....today, one of the Ministers of Parliament was killed ......
people's businesses destroyed, whole housing estates burned leaving
people with no where to go...

Here at KKV, like I said before, we have been in a haven of peace. But
today, the unrest comes close. Many of our workers who live in this
area are fleeing their homes with only what they can carry - threats are
coming that whole housing areas will be burned. We have taken in all
of our employees and their families from these areas........today, we
went and bought mattresses for the floor and a good stock of food to
cover the extra mouths.....hopefully, enough for a whole week.....and we
are yet to see if more will still come - as many went home early to get
their children out of the schools and to see if their area is
threatened.

The saddest thing is the tension that is here - right here
among us......pointing of fingers and accusations and side taking. WE
told them ALL that if they are to come here to stay, they must leave all
that outside.....we are Switzerland - TOTALLY NEUTRAL, both tribally and
politically. These kids need to grow up believing they are Kenyans and
see how to work things out in a good, calm manner - not with prejudice
and violence. We will pour into them and pray and counsel the best we
know how - but we need much wisdom. We had heard about Rwanda - it was
said that it was 80% Christian in 1994 when the genocide happened. You
ask yourself, "HOW?" I never thought it could happen here in Kenya.
WE were discussing the other day that it was like someone opened up
"Pandora's Box"...... I can't even explain it, but this thing is strong
and it is deep. BUT OUR GOD IS GREATER and we are trusting Him to
rout this thing OUT of our beloved Kenya. On thing for sure - as
Christians we have our finest opportunities to minister and be a light
and blessing in these days ahead. We will take them seriously!

Otherwise, i don't know how to tell you to pray - just pray in the
Spirit and let Him guide you.....but please DO pray - we need God's
protection and KNOW we will have it AND we believe that God has the
only answers......no one else seems to get to the real bottom of the issues.

Thanks and blessings,
Jon and Molly Stern

My Friend, Janna

2008-01-24T15:41:00.000-08:00

This is my friend, Janna Meyen, who's life is a clear picture of the strong & beautiful grace of Jesus. She's totally famous and was in TWO newspapers this week - here's the link to the one that quotes ME! :) http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080124/SPORTS05/801240427/1013/SPORTS&nav_category=SPORTS

I'm so proud of you, Janna.

Politics and the Passionate Woman

2008-01-23T14:52:00.000-08:00

I get frustrated with women who don't know anything about politics...seriously, friends, you live in the greatest country in the entire world, take a little time to get to know it! I actually LOVE the political process and have been continually surprised to run into women who know nothing about what's going on in the nation they call home. Many have asked me to write a political blog, but every time I try it just sucks the fun out of it for me. SO, instead of a blog, I give you this post!

A few things that will help you in this pursuit:

1) West Wing -Tori and I watch it on DVD and have converted Whitney and Corey and many others. Whether or not you agree with the political bent of the series (I don't), you will definitely be captivated by the clever dialogue and suck-you-into-the-story plot lines. You can pick up a whole season (22 hours of episodes!) for about $15 at Costco or you can find it on www.half.com for a little more than that. Great stuff to kill a rainy Saturday, especially as we head into a full-blown election year. If you like An American President or A Few Good Men, you'll love West Wing. If you don't know either of those movies, you gotta get out more!

2) www.polichicksonline.com. It's a relatively unbiased site for women who want to know some - but not ALL - about the political process. Also, it took some time of weeping in my office to get over the fact that I didn't think of that clever domain name first!

3) www.realclearpolitics.com TONS of information - most of it slanted one way or the other. Still, if you read a couple of commentaries each morning, you'll get a fairly good idea of what people are thinking and saying about the elections.

One thing I've found: women who know even a little about politics are given an automatic 20 point bump on their AIQ (Assumed IQ). Go for it - you may be surprised to find that you like it and then you'll be running for president instead of Hillary someday.

And hey - if you find any great sites for the lowdown on politics, let me know!

AND...here is my favorite political moment this week:

The Shack

2008-01-21T09:25:00.001-08:00

I'm right in the middle of reading The Shack by William Young. This book is just unlike anything I've ever read. The unpublished author, William Young, was unable to sell the manuscript and had to self-publish - the book is now in the TOP 100 at Amazon. It's absolutely exploding through the book world and I tell you: you gotta read it! It's very difficult to describe, which makes it all the more miraculous that it's soared to the top. The reason for it's great popularity, I believe, is that it deals with going to the dark and painful places of your history, and meeting God there. While it's official genre is "religious fiction", it's very prophetic in addressing the stuff we keep hidden in the back rooms of our lives that are secretly shaping and distorting our picture of who God is.

Pick it up at Barnes and Noble and let me know what you think. I promise it'll challenge you and mess with your thinking...don't give up on it, though. I think it's a really important book for everyone who's ever been hurt or felt abandoned.

Are We Still Talking About the Apple? Seriously?

2008-01-17T14:08:00.000-08:00

I recently read one theologian's viewpoint on why women should not teach, preach or pastor. Turns out, it all goes back to that crazy apple (I Tim. 2:8-15). Eve was deceived and ate the apple and disqualified every other woman from ever having significant insight to impart to a man, henceforth and forever. Amen. So be it. Selah.

It's interesting to note how many other scriptures have to be eliminated or re-invented in order to build a whole philosophy on I Timothy 2:14. These include Galatians 3:28, Ephesians 4:12 ("the" and "saint" are gender-inclusive words so Paul is saying, "Equip men and women for the work of the ministry"), as well as all the Biblical accounts of women who did amazing things like Deborah, Jael, Miriam, Huldah, Esther, Phoebe &Priscilla. (He mentions these women, but says they're too rare to establish a pattern. Sigh. Don't even get me started, Mr. Theologian.)

Anyway, I'm not here to duke this one out...just interested in how we arrive at our opinions. Most people I know who have disqualified women from leadership would not really be able to tell you why. They usually have picked a comfortable viewpoint without applying much muscle to analysis and you'll generally discover a wide load philosophy teetering on the tiny shoulders of I Timothy 2. (If you wonder how I know this, you're welcome to stand next to me on a Sunday after I speak and listen to the conversations that ensue.)

It's taken a long time for me to build a philosophy as well. I'm blessed to be married to a man who loves what God is doing in my life as much as he loves it in his own. I'm also grateful to have a pastor who frees me to speak without fear of reprisal or rebuke. If these human men in a fallen world want that much for me...wouldn't my Father in heaven want even more? Or am I - 2000 years after the greatest act of redemption and release in all of history - still silenced by an apple?

Beautiful Anna

2008-01-09T15:34:00.000-08:00

Luke 2:36-38 (The Message)

36-38Anna the prophetess was also there, a daughter of Phanuel from the tribe of Asher. She was by now a very old woman. She had been married seven years and a widow for eighty-four. She never left the Temple area, worshiping night and day with her fastings and prayers. At the very time Simeon was praying, she showed up, broke into an anthem of praise to God, and talked about the child to all who were waiting expectantly for the freeing of Jerusalem.

I love Anna and I love her story.

Born in the last quarter of a 400-year silence, her life - with all of it's tears and tragedy - is wedged somewhere between Malachi and Matthew (a dark season if ever there was one.) In addition, she has the distinction of having been married just seven years before becoming a widow - not for 5 years or 10 years, but for 84 - for all the years she has left. The woman has so many reasons to give up or get mad, but she chooses a completely different plan. Instead of sitting around, soaking in the puddle of her circumstances, she runs to the House of the Lord for refuge...and it becomes her reason for living.

Day and night, night and day, Anna prays.
And worships.
And waits.

All that time in the presence of the invisible God positions her to recognize the flesh-and-blood-God the minute she sees Him. In fact, it seems like her spirit sees Him long before her aging eyes ever catch a glimpse, and as soon as the facts sink in, she's telling the world about what she just found. I don't think Anna would have traded her 84 years of aloneness for that one look at God.

There must be some seriously significant principles in this tiny little story, because rarely do I run into a life story that looks so sad and yet makes me so envious. I want to see God. I want to run to His House and find my hope there. I want to announce His arrival to a dying generation. I want to worship day and night, night and day, in the good and bad and dark and light and quiet and noisy seasons of my life. Such a lovely story.

Beautiful Anna.

One by One

2008-01-07T18:09:00.000-08:00

Luke 4:40-41 When the sun went down, everyone who had anyone sick with some ailment or other brought them to Him. One by one He placed his hands on them and healed them.

I love the words, "one by one". Earlier in the chapter, Satan offers Jesus many ways to use and demonstrate His power and all of them involve some kind of mass-produced, impersonal result. Jesus refused to wield His power apart from relationship. He is focused on the needs of each individual and His relationship to them is critical to His "Lord of All" character. Clearly, He could have waved His arms and healed everyone and fixed everything, but He instead insisted upon demonstrating that He is the God of every person...not just the God of mankind. This awareness builds the groundwork upon which we construct our understanding of His most powerful act of all. As we watch Him take the long walk to the cross, we know that this is not just for "all people", but for every person. It was for me. And Steve. And Josiah. And my neighbor, Berta.

One by one, He healed them all. One by one, He still does.

However, I wonder: when we serve the "one by one" God, why we so often work mostly to become like each other. He constantly demonstrated a passionate desire to maintain a real relationship with individuals...and yet we tend to model our lives after those around us, hoping that our friendship with Him will look just like their friendship with Him. Someone told me recently that they absolutely would not read a certain translation of the Bible because their small group leader didn't like it. Another person mentioned a specific philosophy that they had disregarded without evaluation because their mentor was not a fan. I understand following leaders. I get that we all need discipleship...in fact, I'm really passionate about that fact. I don't, however, want to ever assume that as followers of Jesus we will all look, speak, pray or even believe exactly like one another. The image of God - stamped on each one of us - allows for some really beautiful and startling diversity if we'll truly get to know the one-by-one God.

Watch for Flying Time...

2007-06-24T18:37:00.001-07:00

Tonight I landed on my blog through a link on someone else's. That's not - in itself - remarkable, but the journey to this post made me really nostalgic.

I saw Luke and Kristin's beautiful engagement picture and so vividly remembered the day he talked with Steve & I in Steve's office and asked our thoughts about him asking Kristin out for coffee. If I remember right, our answer was "Go for it!" but our real thoughts were, "Good luck!" cuz we didn't really think that was gonna go anywhere. Now, they're going to be married in 2 weeks and I just goes to show: we're wrong a lot, and that's why we often say, "Uh, yeah...give it a shot!" : )

I also ran into the blog of Caleb & Ashley Brown. Caleb put in a full year of weekly meetings with me - mostly because he found that girls were mad at him a lot. He talked to me about Ashley - one of my favorite girls EVER - before she even returned from Australia, as he stared lovingly at her picture on my fridge. I think with him, I actually said, "Uh, yeah...well, she's WAY over your head, but go ahead and ask her!" And sure enough, it was good and God and they are serving Kingdom purpose in Kansas and are going to be a family of renown.

Brent and Virginia Earwicker. Jump with me into the wayback machine and travel to 19something - before Brent even had a drivers license. We met him and loved him immediately and wondered and prayed about the way he would someday change the world. Now - wow - look at him doing just that in Africa, alongside the incredible woman of God that he convinced to marry him. AND - can we all just imagine for a moment the level of cuteness and prophetically-gifted-musicianship their baby is going to possess upon arrival? Wow and wow again!

And I mosied through the blogosphere of one Samuel Spedick. Can I just say that this is my favorite boy in the "under 7" division? He's just been so "him" from the moment he was born and I have a special and significant affection for him. So, I watched the video of his first steps and so clearly remembered the meetings that Jenni and I had when she and Chris were falling in love and the profound discoveries she was making as God led her through the process. And also - this one great road trip that we took with our friend, Russ Devos, and this heavily-pierced guy to see a Master's Commission program in Olympia. Steve and I talked extensively about the qualities that we saw in Chris and how we hoped for young men exactly like him in Westside's internship. Turns out, God totally answered our prayers with exactly a guy like Chris in our first year of CMC! Now, we see his wife and son and realize: his legacy is in full flight.

And I also remembered meeting Eric Parnell for the first time at Applebees...and Tara Jean at Red Robin...and Lindsay when she visited while she was still in high school and I thought, "that's the cutest girl EVER."...and Clif while HE was still in high school and was still deciding whether or not Jesus would really be worth it (and man, I admire his choice more than ANYTHING)....and Annalisa, when she tossed away her return ticket home and stayed to do CLC, even though she knew no one and it cost her just about everything.

These are the people that remind me that God is a generational God and what He does is for now and for tomorrow and for years to come. So it makes me wonder: who haven't we met yet? What stories are yet to unfold? And who will be the children of the children of these people who's lives I have watched grow and change and become?

I don't know - but bottom line: I have just about the best job ever.

Kill the Suckling Pig!

2007-06-05T09:34:00.001-07:00

It's been a long time, friends. My schedule pretty much swallowed my spring...but summer is here and I'm done speaking for a bit and I'm so excited to be with my kids and do some serious nothing! One plan that Katie and I have had for awhile is for a celebratory dinner when CLC is over. And not just any dinner will be worthy of such a victory...nope, our plan is to have a dinner of rotiserrie suckling pig at Merenda. We've taken a lot of criticism for this decision - mostly from my son-in-law - because it would seem that "suckling" mostly means "young" and Corey has very passionately expressed his resistance (I quote: "WE DON'T EAT BABIES!") Whatever, it's the closest thing to killing the fatted calf (also a baby, by the way, and even the Bible endorses it!) While we've been really excited about this idea for many looooong months...our plan has been foiled by another event on the same night (Merenda only cooks baby pigs on Fridays). So, we're double booked for celebration and it won't happen THIS Friday, but mark my words...it will happen. Our faith commands it.

2007-06-05T09:21:00.000-07:00

Ah...family...the best gift of all! I decided to post Whit's birthday picture and when I did, I ran into this one of Josiah which seemed worthy of inclusion as well. Happy Birthday, Whitney - you're a treasure to us!

22

2007-02-03T10:02:00.000-08:00

February 2, 2007

Steve and I are at the beach, celebrating our 22nd anniversary which seems completely ridiculous. Not that we’re celebrating - but that it’s been 22 years since we took the big walk down the long aisle and said two enormous words: I DO. It’s funny how much I thought I knew about love and life and commitment and family back then.

Turns out, um…not so much.

I was woefully unprepared and way too young for everything that we would face. And yet, face it we did. And I think we’ve managed to conquer most of the stuff that wanted to conquer us and I know that we have a deeper respect and appreciation for one another then we did when our love was young and untested. Steve has put up with a lot from me. I’m not very organized. I hate house work. I’m self-focused a lot. And probably the biggest thing is that I’ve struggled with fear for most of my life. He has walked with me every step of the sometimes-arduous road toward freedom and I just can’t begin to say how much his strength and love has meant to me. In fact, I’ve probably leaned more on him than I should, which is my weakness. And he has always stayed faithful and steady, which is his strength. In that way - and so many others - he’s just a lot like Jesus.

It’s interesting when I hear young women talk about the kind of man they want to marry. What I found in Steve is just so much more than I even knew to ask for at 18. What I found in marriage is so much deeper and more real and intimate and vulnerable than I ever imagined. And what I’ve learned about the overwhelming love of Jesus by being loved by the man of His choosing has made me who I am.

Wow, Steve, thanks. I can’t begin to say how much you’ve meant to me. The best is yet to come…

The one that almost got away..

2007-01-26T10:30:00.000-08:00

Do you ever feel like the area in your brain that receives and processes information has gotten really swampy? That's me right now. Since the Word of God is awesome and powerful, new treasure is still getting thrown in, but because my mind is so overloaded it just kind of sinks to the bottom like a shoe in a swamp and I can only hope that when I need it, I'll be able to retrieve it.

For example, on Monday I was reading in Luke and one sentence poked it's head out of the chapter and demanded attention. I literally had goose bumps when I read it the second and third time, it was so FILLED with life-changing possibilities. Just then, my office door opened and a crisis walked inside. After that, my day was filled with stuff way noisier than Luke.

So now it's Friday and here's what I've discovered: the word of God is high-impact, but low-maintenance. It's not the crying kid in the grocery store. It's not the horrific alarm clock cricket noises. It's not the honking horns or ringing bells or fire drills of every day life. It's really more charming and romantic and alluring. It's strength-of-steel and life-altering power packaged in an unassuming little wrapper that is not equipped with a big screen or a sound track or commercial breaks to run upstairs and get a snack. Much like the walls of a damp and dark mine, it doesn't have a lot to grab your attention except this one thing: the heart-pumping, pulse-racing possibility that there could be a diamond inside. For those who are willing to strap on the silly-looking head lamp thing and forge ahead, there are secrets and treasure to be found.

I'm going to start with my treasure from Monday - the one that almost got away. Luke 22:29. Check it out - it's not flashy and may even look a little average at first glance. But read it again. And then again. And then out loud. And then ask yourself: do I really believe this? Because if I believe it, this verse will mess up life as I know it. It's a million bucks in the bank and I don't want to toss that kind of cash in the swamp.

Oh also - welcome to my blog!