3 posts in a month... but 1 from me

Hi all! Welcome to my first ever blog post. My name is Christin and I'm a first time blogger. I know - shocker. I'm not really sure what I'm doing, so we'll see if this works. Keep your fingers crossed.
Jon has kept y'all updated the last few months. I honestly forget that we have a blog.

It's finally becoming more cool out and I'm so excited! I love the changing of seasons. I could never live in an area that only has one season. I love them all, but I must confess that Fall and Winter are my favorites. It's kind of funny that I love the darkest months of the year when I'm pretty sure I have a little seasonal depression. You'd think I'd love the summer then... but you'd be wrong. I love the clothing we get to wear in the colder months like jeans, sweaters, hoodies, and flannel PJ pants. I love the smell in the air when the leaves are changing color and falling, or on the morning of the first snow fall. It's incredible. Every time a season begins to change I am in awe of God's amazing and beautiful creation.

Now to change the subject. (Like my transition?) I recently read an article on CNN about a Christian bookstore. Although I have never heard of this bookstore, it's apparently one of the biggest in the country. This Christian bookstore carries a particular magazine and when the most recent edition of this magazine came out... the bookstore pulled it from its shelves. Why? What was so bad about this magazine that the bookstore pulled it and wouldn't sell it? I'll tell you. This edition had several female pastors on the cover. Female pastors. The store pulled the magazine off the shelves because female pastors were on the cover. The owners of the bookstore chain do not believe that women should be pastors.

Now, I do not like the term feminist because I don't like the connotations with that word, but I basically am. I am a FIRM believer that women are equal in our society. Women are perfectly capable of pastoring a church, just like a man is. I don't understand churchs who have rules that women can't be elders, can't preach, can't achieve any level of leadership above teaching grade school Sunday School classes. Women can't teach adults? I know I am a leader and I thrive in leadership roles. God created me to be a leader in different areas. I used to be a teacher and I taught adults in some of my classes. I was a team captain in Mission Year on a coed team. Was that wrong? Am I disobeying God by leading in different areas of my life? I don't think so. I believe God gave me leadership gifts to use for His glory and I will continue to use them where He calls me to.

I believe that many women have been given gifts in many areas that may call them to work above (in a hierarchical structure) men and children. Is that wrong? Is that going against God? No. God calls women to leadership roles just as He calls men. If a woman can't teach an age above 5th grade, then should there be no female professors in colleges and universities? Should there be no head female chefs in restaurants? Should there be no lead female attorneys or judges? Should there be no women Senators or Representatives in the House? I believe that men and women are different, for sure, but both are created in the image of God. No person should take a position because they feel entitled to it or in order to prove a point. All people should do what they are good at and what brings them joy. If that's teaching Sunday School, male or female, then do it. If that's pastoring a church, male or female, then do it. Do what God created you to do and nothing less.

I realize I can get on a soapbox about these kinds of issues, and I know this sounds like a rant. Maybe it is. But I can't help but feel upset when I read these kinds of things. I am so glad I'm part of a denomination that accepts women and men at all levels of leadership.

2 posts in one month!!!

Wow, I am actually getting a post in here before the month is out. We are five weeks into the semester and I think that it is actually shaping up to be the best one ever. I have had four quizes in Greek and scored 30/30, 24.5/30, 27.5/30, and 28/30. I never scored that well last year, which is why I am trying it again, and I actually know what the heck is going on. This feels amazing. I can actually sit in class, follow the lecture and translate what I need to. The other classes are going well too, although, I do not have weekly quizzes to gauge my performance by like in Greek. I feel like I am doing well in the other courses though. I am accomplishing most of the reading, following the lectures and taking comprehensive notes and have an overall understanding of whats going on. I am nervous for the next couple of weeks though, I have multiple midterms or first exams in about two weeks. I expect to do very well on them, but I am still nervous about it.

Christin and I are doing well. It's kind of strange that when I am working harder on school and spending more time on it, the time that she and I are together is actually less, but better. Neither of us are stressed about whether or not I should be working. Alright, who am I kidding, when did I worry about getting something done? Christin is a lot less stressed about me getting everything accomplished, because she sees that I actually am getting things done. Overall, this semester is working out much better. Christin is an amazing, patient wife, and I am blessed to be able to have her as mine.

The annual Lund Lectures at the Seminary started yesterday. A professor from the U.K. spoke for roughly two hours about the connection of Romans 9-11 with the Wisdom of Solomon. Two hours of speaking to basically, as far as I can make out, conclude that grace is a gift, not a reward, bestowed on whomever God chooses. I know that there was more there, but I have not studied enough to really follow all that he spoke about yesterday. I sometimes sit at school and think to myself, are we over analyzing something that is not ment to be so stinkin difficult. Apparently this has been the nature of Biblical studies all along. The centuries have shown that humanity has been struggling with all types of aspects of Christianity, the Bible, and Jesus. I know that it is also no different for the Jews before us. They have whole books on the discernment of how to keep the law, and yet, it is still debated by some today. And what I am finding is that even learning a dead language or two is not going to really help the situation within my own understanding. It may help some, but I am still working with translating from one language into English, which is quiet frankly, barbaric in its conveyance of emotion and thought. I know that I am missing intentions of the authors when I try to ascribe an English word to an originally Greek thought or even worse, to Hebrew. The depth is not there. I know that earlier theologians working with an understanding drawn from living at that time, also struggled and wrestled with these concerns. This is not to say that I am not going to continue my studies, just that it is a reality check that I most likely will not gain some momentus insight that will change the face of Christianity as we know it, through my humble understanding of a dead language.

School again

Last week started the beginning of the 08/09 school year. I am enrolled in Intro to New Testament, Christian Heritage 1, Spiritual Direction and Solitude, and I am auditing Greek 1. So far I am off to a very good start thanks to a productive long weekend spent studying and relaxing with Christin. I feel extremely optimistic about this year and how well I am going to do. I know that I am going to have to work my butt off, but it will definitely be worth it in the end. This semester I am trying out an evening class, Heritage. In undergrad, my favorite classes were the evening ones and I always did well in them. There is something about meeting only once a week and being able to work on the reading the rest of the time. And I know that it doesn't hurt to be more of a night owl, as I am. I am definitely more awake and alert for the entire period, where I am still trying to see straight half way into the first hour of eight o'clock in the morning classes. There is not one class that I am more or less nervous about, all of them equally intimidate me and intrigue me. I will keep you posted as to how I am doing and possibly what I am learning in these courses.