Richly Blessed...

The past month has been super busy for Errik and I. I just don't know how that happens. I think we are both getting used to the fact that Errik doesn't have to work weekends anymore so we have been taking advantage of that! We love getting out of Columbia and exploring all thats out there. Here's what we've been up to!

Oct 2: We took the day and drove up to Hendersonville, NC. It's a quint small mountain town near Asheville, not too far from here. We had the privelage of hanging out with the newly engaged Brittany Jones and Zach Brady. They are way too fun. They showed us around town...the cute little local shops. Lots of antique stores much to Errik's dismay but I loved it and I think he is beginning to also. The leaves were just beginning to change and we were SO happy to be wearing very light jackets (it was still 90 in Columbia!). I just absolutely love driving through the mountains. It's always breathtaking and I just can't seem to look around and not think there is a God. A God who so masterfully handcrafted something so beautiful for us to take part in. As we drove through, "Oh, how He loves us" by David Crowder was playing. That's just perfectly sums it up for me. After hanging out in hendersonville, we took a short drive to an apple orchard that sits on top of a mountain. Simply breathtaking.

Oct 9: Are you ready for some foooooootball!! College Gameday arrived to town! Let me remind you of what happened THAT weekend. The #1 ranked team in college football rolllllled into town (Alabama). My Gamecocks (yes mine) pulled out a sweet sweet victory. It was one of the best sporting events I have been to, apart from Illinois coming back from a 20 point deficit in the NCAA bball tourney a few years back. I had a great time. It was a balmy 87 degree afternoon. Unfortunately, I couldnt get Errik a ticket (they were going for hundreds of dollars, I mean these people take their football seriously!). I went with some of my friends that I have met through Nursing school. They are such a blessing and crazy fun. They will most likely help me survive school.

Oct 16: The SC state fair is in town for a week or so. Always good people watching...ha and Errik and I went to the Josh Kelley, Eric Church and Miranda Lambert concert. It was a perfect evening. We enjoyed the music, the food and of course people watching. Saturday was drove back up to the mountains. I was told that this was going to be PRIME fall colors weekend in the mountains. So, Errik and I decided to go hiking in the mountains near Asheville, NC for the day. Our first plan was to drive up to Mt. Mitchell, the highest point East of the Mississippi River. However, as we were driving up there, I decided to check the weather report again and it was a meer 19 degrees with windchill. EEEK. We wanted to hike but we were certainly not ready for that in our light pants and jacket. A cold front had come through there just 2 days earlier and there were black bear warnings all over the place. I'll pass. Mount Pisgah provided perfect scenery for us to enjoy. The day was absolutely perfect. Sunny and near 70 with a light breeze. The trees were almost at peak colors. We enjoyed a short 1.5 hour hike to the top, enjoyed the view, scampered back down and drove the scenic Blue Ridge Parkway into Asheville. We enjoyed downtown Asheville, very artsy and ecletic.

Oct 23: We had the PLEASURE of driving down to good ol' Macon, GA! Great friends of ours (the Browns) just moved down there a few months ago and we had the opportunity to go and visit. We had an amazing time. Just hanging out, playing with their kids, getting wooped by the boys in cards (whatever) and just being outside. We went with them and their cute kiddos on saturday to a "working farm" (do they know were from the midwest). Rock Ranch. It was pretty awesome...cane fishing (?), pumpkins shooting a million yards out of a cannon, bob and larry (veggie tales!), tiny town, paddle boats, giant jumping pillow thing, absolutely perfect weather....the list goes on. The point: We had a blast! We absolutely love spending time with them and their kids. Our time is generally filled with constant laughter, there is nothing better. We miss them but are so blessed by their love and faith in Christ and the awesome examples they set for us as well as their kids. And thank you bella for falling asleep in my arms. :)

This weekend: Harvest Party at church, a great opportunity to hang out with the high schoolers and be able to bless our community with a little fun and games. And Errik and I are going to the Carolina/Tennessee game on Saturday! Whew. What a month!

Hypocrisy

So last night I had the privilege of going to a on-campus ministry meeting at USC. It brought back old college memories. I was talking with some of the girls that invited me to come about this funny place in life Errik and I are at. We are in this funny place of being married, not having kids and too care free to sit and worry about adult responsibilities. What I mean by that is we don't feel grown up even though everything around us would point to that. But I'll talk more about that later. What was so awesome about last night was that I heard one of the best sermons I have heard in awhile. However, it was a tough topic but something people deal with at all stages of life. I hope to share some of it with you the best I can.

He spoke on Acts 4:32-5:11. In short, its a passage that talks about Barnabas (Joseph) and Ananias. Barnabas sold a field and brought all the money and laid it at the apostles' feet to help his church. BUT Ananias sold a piece of property, kept some of the proceeds and brought only part of it to the apostles. Peter asked him why he lied in his heart to the Holy Spirit and keep some of it back for himself. He lied to God and fell down dead. Later, Sapphira came in and lied about how much the property was worth. They tested the Spirit of the Lord. She fell down and breathed her last.

As you can see, Barnabas gave everything he had. He was all in with helping the church and the needy. Ananias, on the other hand, wanted the credit of giving everything even though he didn't. He wanted people to think he was as great as Barnabas and have his same reputation. That's the problem with Christian culture these days. People preach one thing but act completely different. The pastor brought up an article he read about how this writer took up being immersed in the Christian culture for 7 straight days. He read Christian books, listened to Christian music, went to Church, the whole bit. At the end of those 7 days, he said the Christian culture was the most inauthentic thing he has ever been a part of. It's pop culture without the cuss words and some Jesus words thrown in.

Wow. That hit me hard. Is that the image we are displaying for all the world to see? I think it's time we become honest with ourselves and find out who we really are. So much of us wants to live that Christian life but want to keep a hold of idols in our life. We want to change the outside appearance, which is much easier to do, than change whats on the inside. And how much we read the bible or know about the bible does not reflect our relationship with Jesus, not that I am saying you shouldn't read the bible. God hates hypocrisy. And guess what? God sees EVERYTHING. There isn't a single thing you can hide from him. Does that scare you? Because it shouldn't, you shouldn't have anything to hide. If you don't believe me, read about the Pharisees or read the Gospels. The Pharisees were the most religious people and God was often speaking to them. The Gospels aren't fluffy wonderful stories, they are about the bad junk that is made clean. These are the questions I had to ask myself. Am I living in a Christian bubble? Do I live two different lives? Because most likely, our hidden lives are who we actually are. Ouch.