Welcome to our World!!

Welcome to our World!!

Becky and Mike's Blog

My Friend Jen

Kudos to Atlas.

Just a quick note to tell everyone how happy I am to be a part of this community.

I finally got my friend Jennifer to come to church with me. I have been asking her since Atlas officialy started in August. For one reason or another she couldn't come. Well now that it is winter break she decided to join me. Mostly because I keep telling her how cool everyone is, and how much fun I am having.

She came to church on Sunday looking for a reason to not like Atlas. This has happened with other churches in the area previously.

So, do you want to know what she thinks of Atlas???

She liked us and thought the people she met were cool. She could not find a single reason to dismiss Atlas. She admitted to me that she tried and almost succeeded but the message went a direction that surprised her.

I wanted to let everyone know, and encourage the community to keep doing what we are doing.

You all are a blessing to my life. I pray for you all.
Peace and Grace
Lee

PS - The music was fabulous on Sunday.

Missing Knife :(

Hello all! I think I left one of our knives (it's a big knife with a black handle) at the picnic a couple weeks ago... has anyone seen it?? I don't know who to ask, and I'll be in WI with Rob next week, so I thought I'd throw this out there... please let me know if you've seen it. Thanks, we'll see you all soon! Christine

Arguing with Love

Sunday, I referred to Mother Teresa and the manner in which she led her life as reflecting how things really are. That in living as she did, no arguments were advanced, but the revolutionary perspective of Jesus was presented: perhaps as powerfully as it could be.

I didn't put enough meat on this observation, but it's something that I--having got a master's degree in arguing about God--have been thinking about a lot recently, and wondering whether or not the money I sent CU was a waste.

In the documentary made by Malcolm Muggeridge that brought her international fame, Teresa is consistently telling Muggeridge how things are without being argumentative. In one scene, she is holding a small abandoned baby, and says to Muggeridge, "Look, she has life in her eyes; the life of God." "Yes," Muggeridge, a self-confessed atheist, repeatedly said--seemingly convinced. Later, Muggeridge--Britain's leading journalist--became a Catholic and said it was his experience with Teresa that really moved him to thinking about Jesus. (His book "Jesus Rediscovered" is worth reading. Though it is out of print.)

In Teresa's life, reality--Heaven--was breaking into our world, and the illusion put up by centuries of man's rebellion could not trump it. Note, in a country that had had a Cast System in place for thousands of years, Teresa didn't come out asking politicians to change their laws, nominate supreme court justices that would do something, get grass root support and all. She simply acted, and started a revolution. The revolution carried through her country where Indian women from across the nation came to help the Sisters of Mercy--many of whom were not Christian when they came. But she became the reason for many to seriously consider Christ's counter-perspective on life.

In a country with a massive Hindu Population, and vocal Muslim minority, a frail Christian woman from Albania often represented India on the global stage. When she spoke all India listened. She gave commencement addresses at Harvard (where she spoke on abstinence of all things). She spoke with any world leader she choose. Her influence was extraordinary, and yet her power came from doing nothing the world actually pursued as valuable. (There aren’t long lines to gain power by starting leprosariums.)

Looking at pictures of the woman, you notice a posture deformed by consistently loving those in beds, gutters, or on the sidewalks. The deformity is beautiful in live films where she moves easily picking up children and cleaning off the desperate. She backed up her outspoken critique of abortion saying, "A child is a gift of God. If you do not want him, give him to me." She was not playing the game from the bleachers, reading her script in a power suit on CNN and going home to her cozy life. In speaking about such hard issues, she volunteered to be the solution.

We might do better to study how one small woman, in a simple white cotton sari, didn't bother much with arguments; instead, she simply went out into the world and changed the lives of millions.

(A discussion on this post already began here if you'd like to see further comments.)

Need for Prayer

Many of you who came to Atlas know, there was a plane crash this weekend involving friends of Robyn and Mark Roggy, and Jeff and Kristy Weeks.

Bill Sheel and his son-in-law, Jay Schneider, crashed their plane Sunday morning. Jay died. Bill is unconscious and may have some brain damage, along with other major injuries to his lungs and body.

Please take some time to pray for both families. Jay just recently married Amy Sheel, and I'm sure she is heartbroken. Robyn said that Jay was a strong Christian guy (35 years old).

The only articles I could find are here and here.
Much love, Jeff

This is a Good Week

Is anyone else just jazzed?


My insides are buzzing.



Longing to be with you Sunday,
Jeff





PS - Here's two links.
This is the online gallery I got the picture from, and this site rocks.

First Atlas

The first real Atlas is this weekend. I am so excited, and very blessed to hear that the joint thcc/atlas boys Bible study prayed for it this morning (thanks Matthew).

I am really feeling the ready-willing-able ability for these churches (1 community, 2 churches) to serve in such unique ways.

If you have a kid or kids, I would love to hear your insight for how youth/children's should go.

much love, and energy
Kel