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.

Where we love is home, home that our feet may leave but not our hearts.

Well, I am back from Chicago. Being in Chicago was amazing but going "home" is still such a strange oddity to me. This was the first trip that I really began to feel like Columbia is becoming our home. This summer I was really homesick. I mean REALLY homesick. I have never felt that way before and cant really pinpoint why. I do think that one of the hardest parts about being away is that we have 3 of the most adorable nieces with 2 more on the way! I wish I could be there to watch them grow up and hear all the funny things they say but I do know that Columbia is right where we need to be...for the time being at least.

Well, I was very blessed to have the opportunity to go back "home" and "recharge my batteries" as Errik put it. And I did just that. I was able to do almost all the things I wanted to do while I was home...visit with friends and family a lot, go downtown, eat at portillos, have chicago style pizza (VERY hard to find in the south...) and celebrate my sisters 30th birthday. I even was a full scale tourist in the city with a camera around my neck and all (yeah, im cool). We took the architectural tour down the chicago river, right through the heart of the city. I was speechless. Amazing, everyone should do it even if you have lived in chicago your whole life.

However, leaving "home" provided mixed emotions this time. I enjoyed every minute of being there and playing with my 2 1/2 yr old niece Olivia but after a week seemed ready to be back in real life. Back to the hot south where the air conditioning has been full blast since the beginning of June, where people talk funny, where sweet tea is offered at every meal and where my husband and Aspen are waiting for me. What I noticed was that home wasnt the sense of the geographical surroundings. It didnt matter where I was but who I was with. I am not only blessed with one home but two.