Half the Church - Carolyn Custis James

I have recently completed reading the words of Carolyn Custis James in her new book Half The Church - Recovering God's Global Vision for Women.

I agreed to read and review this book for Zondervan with some trepidation, for indeed the debate about women and the church rages hot, as the author explains:

Since the late twentieth century two polarized groups - complementarian and egalitarians - have defined the evangelical landscape for women, particularly in the West.  The debate between the two groups creates a fault line that runs straight through the body of Christ.  Evangelical churches, denominations, and individuals have taken sides.  It is a cause of profound division among us.

Instead of taking one side or the other, James attempts to present a complete overview of the issue.  What most connected with my spirit was her cry for those so often forgotten in the debate, women from outside our Western world.

Bringing these women into this discussion changes everything.  In our culture, the church has tended to concentrate on a tiny segment of the female population - a narrow, prosperous, protected, well-educated female demographic located in the comfortable midsection of human society.  The prosperity we enjoy shapes both the questions we ask and the answers we embrace.  And we - both the women who are asking and the Christian leaders who are defining the answers - are clueless that this is happening.  We can ask questions like, "Do I plan to use my college degree or set it aside?" and "Should I be a stay-at-home mom, or work outside the home?"  But for the rest of the world, these questions are unimaginable luxuries.  For them, education is a lifeline that promises a better life for a woman and her children and will doubtless benefit her community.

Working outside the home is not an option where grinding povery exists and there are hungry mouths to feed.  Everybody works.  Our cloistered discussions about God's purposes for women and the resulting infighting that ensues among us leave women elsewhere in the world scratching thier heads.

No matter what side you may find yourself on today, you can find insight and truth in James exploration.  You may find that God moves your heart in ways aligned with the beating of His own, and that, indeed, makes the investment much more than worthwhile.

I received this book free from Zondervan. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

Resting in His care

These last days, weeks, months have been a journey into deeper places.  I am battle worn and tired, and yes, a bit shell shocked.  I am raw and broken and uncertain of almost all but the love of my God.

This morning, in our quiet time, He shared His prescription:

Rest.  I Am big enough to hold you.  You need not understand.  Be still and know, little one, that I Am always Is.

Let be and be still, and know (recognize and understand) that I am God. Psalm 46:10a Amplified

Trust God from the bottom of your heart; don't try to figure out everything on your own. Listen for God's voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;he's the one who will keep you on track.
Prov 3:5-6 The Message

And if all would forsake you, yet I Am.

And if the skies dawn black or red as blood, yet I Am.

Just as I attempted to tell my disciples there are things that must come, be aware but fret not.  They did not want to hear or think or accept My coming death -- but was it not for greater good?  For the salvation of the world?

So too is there a greater plan in all that lies ahead.

Remain in Me, as I in you. 

Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. John 15:4 NIV

Rest. Listen for My lullabye.

Stop by Emily's to partake of more words imperfect

Do I do what I should do?

This week we're looking at Chapter 3 of Mere Christianity, The Reality of the Law, where C. S. Lewis writes:

The law of gravity tells you what stones do if you drop them; but the Law of Human Nature tells you what human beings ought to do and do not.  In other words, when you are dealing with humans, something else comes in above and beyond the actual facts.  You have the facts (how men do behave) and you also have something else (how they ought to behave).  In the rest of the universe there need not be anything but the facts.

I can but only
stop
and rest a moment
in the place of gratitude
for grace
seeds freedom
allowing me to be
what nature would not

So the trouble is not with the law, for it is spiritual and good. The trouble is with me, for I am all too human, a slave to sin. I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t.  I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.  I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong.  Romans 7:14-21 NLT

By His Spirit alone
alive in me
am I anything
that is good,
holy, loving

Breathe in the joy
of being His.

Stop by Sarah's Living Between the Lines to join today's discussion, where I find her pondering the same passage of scripture.

Priceless

It cannot be wrapped
this gift
beyond price

best served fresh
with no invoice
or strings

stronger than steel
intricate and fragile
as spider lace

both vast
and intimate
enfolding and releasing

treasure most precious
whether given
or recieved

freedom, mercy, peace
braided
God breathed

Spirit sealed
holy offering
forgiving and forgiven

Do not judge others, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn others, or it will all come back against you. Forgive others, and you will be forgiven. Give, and you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full—pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, running over, and poured into your lap. The amount you give will determine the amount you get back.  Luke 6:37-38 NLT

I am triple dipping with this post today  - linking to the following:

Stop by Peter Pollock's to read more on Treasure

Visit One Stop Poetry for more Wednesday One Shot poems

Submitting this to the next High Calling Blogs Random Acts of Poetry on Forgiveness

Monday night vision

Image via Wikipedia

 
Last night, as I was trying to settle into sleep, an image popped into my mind that would not fade:

I was looking down a road that stretched out into the distance.  I noticed the legs of an animal sitcking out from shrubbery and brush along one side.  At first I thought it was a deer, the limbs were long and lean.  As I began to see more, I realized it was horse, lying on its side, dead.

I shared the vision with my husband, who asked "Is it still being flogged?" and I recalled the old saying about beating a dead horse.

My heart and spirit shifted and I began to weep, for all at once, I identified with the the loss of the animal. I felt the pain of the beatings and knew that there is something, once so vibrant within me, that has died.

This drives me again to the feet of my Lord, with no answers at all, but ever increasing questions.

I lift up my eyes to the mountains— where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. Psalm 121:1-2 NIV

April release

So much has been frozen
for days, weeks, months
now traces
of thaw appear.

The sound of birds
sweet calls mix
with water dripping
from eaves.

Life
still green
now uncovered
proclaims its survival.

Soon, yes soon
the world will sing.

My beloved spoke and said to me, “Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, come with me. See! The winter is past; the rains are over and gone. Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land.  Song of Solomon 2:10-12 NIV

Dry eyes

Image via Wikipedia

For the last little while I've been having trouble with my right eye.  I am continually wiping away clear strings of matter that annoy me and sometimes blur my vision.  Wondering what was going on, I googled the problem.

It seems that the cause could be infection or some sort of allergy, resulting in an eye that is too dry.  Eye drops were the solution of choice.  Artificial tears.  We had drops in the medicine cabinet and I have been using them.

Yesterday, with my emotions touched by one thing or another, I began to weep.  As the water flowed from my eyes, I blinked.  The tears were soothing, refreshing.

Like a slap in the face, it hit me.  I don't need artificial tears.  I need real tears.

I am one who is known for crying, and we keep a box of tissues in every room of our house.  But in that moment I realized that for some reason, lately the release of tears has been blocked for me.

So I pray for true weeping, Lord, moved by joy or sorrow or both.  Let my eyes and my spirit be washed in what is real and what is true.