thoughts of winner (mixed with mine)

My Friday night journal entry:

"This Vienna Presbyterian Church is beautiful. It sits off a brick covered downtown area, with small shops and latern-lit roads. It is a simple building, tall and large, white-washed, looking almost like an antique barn, but in the same ... new and contemporary. It is one of the best-looking large churches I have ever seen, appealing and simply incredible.

The sky is perfectly clear ... the time at dusk when the sky is a compilation of turqioise tones and the light reds at the horizon. There is one visible star in the sky ... waiting for the rest to appear ... secretly thinking to himself that he is the brightest one of the evening.

Lauren Winner arrives on stage speaking confidently of things she believes and wished someone had told her during her young adult years. She recently wrote a book entitled Real Sex.

Some things that catch my attention, contradicting things that I have believed and have been teaching the youth that have been placed in my path. [The following are her thoughts, not ALL mine, just some things I am considering.]

Chastity is not about waiting. Now, that may seem obvious to some. But, in my adolescent and young adult years I was told (and kept telling myself) that we just need to bottle up those desires for now UNTIL we are married. (She strums her fingers on the podium sarcastically, waiting.)

Chastity is about obedience to Christ today, it is about purusing the conforming our lives and actions to be in line with God's image.

The church has made an idle out of marriage, often communicating that without a spouse, you are not as worthy in the church body. Most elders, church leaders, and ministry leaders have spouses (or have had spouses), and the church often forgets the blessedness of those who remain single.

The community needs single people and married people to make up an effective community. Those who are single have something to teach those who are married, because they are representative of what our relationships will be like in heaven. At the resurrection we will be our particular self, and although many married people have become one iwth their spouse and have wrapped much of their life in Christ and their identity in that person, this will no longer be. Single people have the ability to represent this ability to see all as your brother or sister in Christ, here on earth.

If you're single, you're called to it now. If you're married, you're called to it now. We do not know the future. Live in today. (Also reemphasizing chastity is not about waiting.)

Look at chastity as a spiritual discipline. Daily soaking yourselves in all others and seeing chastity as an essential sacrifice to God in singleness.

Be a part of a supportive community. This is NOT an accountability group. "Accountability groups" should be tabled for the next few decades. We need to exchange accountability groups for blessing groups. Because this so called, accountability are not the first things people need to hear.

This is so true. The damage that is done with direct accountability ... it often becomes self-righteousness, people speaking into your life from their thoughts of what your life should look like and not necessarily even words directly from God. There are more words of correction and questioning than encouragement, love and simply re-direction. This is scarring and paralyzing to ones walk with Christ and their daily life.

What is community?
What is really befriending someone?
Why have we so often mistaken this as freedom to hold someone accountable?

Is this necessary? accountability from everyone in your community?

(No, this is dangerous.)

The goal: to have community that entails authentic, transforming, bonding community.

Will chastity be a blessing? Her answer is no. She has never met one person that it has become easier over time. There have been more fruits over time. But she believes it is a call that accounts to suffering, not necessarily blessing in this life.

She shares about Blind Bartholomew, who is healed and wants to follow Jesus. He follows him with excitement, and then the next story is about Him taking the road to the cross. This is our call to suffering in all areas of our life, to be willing to follow Christ to the cross."

... all very interesting ...