It's the Final Countdown!

But for real, guys. Finals are next week, and I'm definitely feeling the crunch. So far I've been juggling fundraising, schoolwork (so much schoolwork!), and being a half-decent boyfriend for Sam. It's gotten pretty difficult, especially since a lot of these have been ramping up all at the same time. However! I haven't messed any of them up too badly yet, and that's always a nice feeling.

Go me!

One of the things that I was really hoping to get to talk about in this post was social justice and the Church, since both of these have become such significant priorities in my life as of late. The main thing that bothers me is that I just don't see these two things mix much at all, at least in my (admittedly limited) experience, and I am utterly convinced that the Church MUST be actively trying to right the wrongs we see in our countries and communities. 

However, my good friend Robby Lewis got there first, and he has written everything that I wanted to and more. His blog post is absolutely stellar, and he gets right to the crux of the matter. Please, do yourself a favor, take a moment, and go through it. 

For real. Don't worry, I'll still be here when you're done.

tl;dr, Robby's point is that all too often, we live and teach an incomplete Christianity. We evangelize to save people's souls, we preach so people can learn the Bible, and we create various church events to build community. These are not bad things; on the contrary, evangelism, strong Biblical teaching, and having a loving community are absolutely essential aspects of the Christian life. But it's not enough, and we live like it is. If we are supposed to model ourselves after Jesus (or as I've heard it, become little Jesuses), we have to do more than we are. Jesus' ministry was characterized by both soul care and addressing people's physical needs, not just one or the other.

This is exactly why I'm so excited to go participate in LAUP this summer-- that's the whole point of this Urban Project. Their number one goal is to care for the poor and show God's love for them by helping provide for them, whether it's food, job training, or just companionship. This is also exactly why I'm a little scared about going on this trip. I don't feel nearly prepared enough to face the shortcomings in my incomplete Christianity, and I know it's coming for me. 

All that being said, I want to come back changed. I've seen and lived nominal Christianity, and it's so boring, you guys. It's living your one life married to a moral checklist, full of "shoulds" and "oughts", and utterly without knowledge of God's purpose and peace. I've been there, and thank God I've been able to see the other end of the spectrum. Living the way God desires for us is absolutely incredible. Yes, it can feel terrifying and full of questions, but there's this overarching feeling of total satisfaction and peace throughout. It's worth it, and it makes me sad I don't go after it more than I do. But that's for another time. 

Anyway, that's all I have this time. Again, if you would like to pray or support me financially at LAUP, the link is https://donate.intervarsity.org/donate. Not only will both you and I know you're a good person, the United States government will as well (since InterVarsity donations are tax-deductible).

Go you!

Thanks for reading this, everyone, and I'll be posting more soon. Hi-ho Silver, awayyyyyy!



P.S. Let me know in the comments if you want to hear about something in particular, whether it's my life, stuff I'm learning in seminary, or miscellaneous whatevers. I'll be doing this anyway, but I also like writing for prompts.