Tag: religion

bible, religion

How Did Jesus Feed 5000 People? Does It Matter?

Christians do not believe that the spiritual is more real and more important than the physical. It’s true. Well, I’m sure that there are some who do, but not many. Allow me to demonstrate.

Some years ago, a theologian (whose name I can not recall or find at this moment) posited that the feeding of the 5000 happened differently than we had assumed. He said that rather than a physical miracle, Jesus had performed a spiritual miracle. It begins with the apostles asking around for food to feed everyone with. If you recall the story, they found only 10 fishes and 5 loaves of bread. In a crowd of 5000 men plus an unknown number of women and children. Jesus was teaching on a hill outside of town – it’s not like the crowd was made of people who just happened to be passing by – although there would be some of those. But mostly people had deliberately come out to hear Jesus teach. The problem wasn’t that every single mother in town just spaced out and forgot to pack lunches for everyone. There was food in that crowd. People just didn’t want to share it. And it wasn’t just selfishness – it was self-protection as well. What it the fellow next to you didn’t have any food? He might try to take yours by force if he figures out you have it.

So consider that. Jesus had just spent the day teaching people his message of love. Of care for enemy and neighbor alike. And out of a crowd of many thousand no one would offer what they had to Jesus to feed the crowd. Continue reading “How Did Jesus Feed 5000 People? Does It Matter?”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter11 Comments
life, religion

Faith or Works? Both? Neither!

Remember when Christians used to argue over how many angels could dance on the head of a needle? Perhaps someone should have stopped to ask why angels would even want to dance on the head of a needle. I mean, if they weren’t dancing there because they had some desire to, getting them there to begin with would require some coercion. And really, should we be coercing angels into doing dumb things for our own entertainment? It seems like they were having all the wrong conversations back then.

I’m going to go ahead and posit that the old faith vs works debate is going to go down in the books as an equally misguided debate about what we are judged on. The reality about faith and works is that they exist in a symbiotic relationship with each other. True faith yields good works which increases faith so on and so forth. But if we’re actually going to be judged on the basis of either faith or works, we’re pretty screwed anyways.

Take works. How many “Feed the Children” commercials showing a small child climbing a garbage heap have you sat through without doing something? How many times has a friend or family member had financial problems that you did nothing to help with? How many homeless people have you passed by without giving them so much as a sandwich? If you are a faithful Christian, you have likely helped those in need on occasion – as often as you are able maybe. (If you’ve never done any of these things – or things like them – you may want to question your concept of yourself as a faithful Christian. I’m just saying.) But I know that I’ve sat through pleas for money to help get clean water to kids drinking sewage while licking cheezy-poof dust off my fingers. I’m gonna fail if we’re judged on works, I’m afraid. Continue reading “Faith or Works? Both? Neither!”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter2 Comments
life, religion

Mountain Climbing

Once there was a climber who set out to climb a mountain.  The word from those who had gone before was that the guru at the top of the mountain was God himself and that the closer you got to the summit, the more spectacular the views and the more satisfied your soul became.  At the bottom of the mountain, there were many paths to start from.  Different paths had different challenges and enjoyments.  The mountainside was dotted with cafes, inns and gathering places and many people enjoyed exploring the trail they had started from.  But as the elevation got higher and the air a little bit thinner, the trails all converged together into one narrow, difficult path.  This was the way to the summit.  This was the path our climber was determined to take.

The road to the summit was not as well traveled as the other trails lower down.  Everyone on the mountain claimed to be trying to reach the top, but few actually ventured onto the daunting path towards the summit.  The accommodations along the higher path were functional, but sparse and the travelers even sparser.  It was not uncommon to meet someone nursing a strong drink at a gathering spot along one of the lower trails who had been defeated by this arduous journey to the summit.  The few who made it to the top tended to be harder to locate, but when asked they all said the same things:  “Stay on the path even when it looks foolish and dangerous.  If you think you are lost, stop and wait until the path becomes clear again. Gather any food and supplies you find even if they are a burden to carry – you will depend on them later.  And don’t quit.  It’s worth it.”

Our intrepid climber knew it was a foolhardy journey to undertake.  But she had never found a comfortable spot on one of the trails lower down that satisfied her heart.  The amusements found there seemed unworthy of her full devotion and the people were often kind but they were not God.  They could not satisfy her heart.  So, she determined to climb the summit to meet God and satisfy the longing in her soul which would not allow her to make peace with lesser things.  Continue reading “Mountain Climbing”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter1 Comment
Bloggy Linky Goodness

Bloggy Linky Goodness

I saw a sign yesterday which said “‘Let’s agree to disagree’ is just another way of saying ‘you’re wrong but too stupid to change your mind so let’s stop talking about it’.”Oddly enough, my husband has repeatedly proposed getting through this election cycle by “agreeing to disagree”. And here I was thinking he wanted to agree to disagree because he was feeling threatened by my razor sharp logic and superior grasp of facts!

I wonder why we have such a hard time dealing with people who disagree with us? Perhaps deep down we all feel like my mom did when she told me once, “I’d rather be wrong than change my mind.” I don’t have a particularly good answer to the quandary of conflicting opinions, but this week’s Bloggy Linky Goodness does have some excellent advice for those trying to find their way through this election season without being an ass. And some other excellent stuff as well. So here goes!

Politics: A Biblical Approach I’m not entirely sure that this ought to be labeled “a biblical approach”, but it’s definitely a good approach anyways. I especially appreciate that she starts of with a warning to “be intentional in how you present history”. Today may not be ideal, but the past wasn’t nirvana either, folks! Continue reading “Bloggy Linky Goodness”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter1 Comment
culture, life, religion

Virtuous Vanilla Lip Balm, Jesus and a Prostitute

Once upon a time, a Christian entrepreneur got carried away and created a line of Jesus themed personal care products. The idea was to present “to-cool-for-school” unchurched types with an image of Jesus as irreverent, hip and ironic, and thus more acceptable. The result was this:

 

Of course, it’s possible that you’re not much of a flavored lip balm sort of guy or gal. Perhaps a “Looking good for Jesus” shopping bag is more your thing. Or bubble bath, hand cream, coin purse compact mirror and mini kit.

If you’re more of a dirty feeling person, you can check out the related line of products called “Wash your sins away” which includes towelettes, breath spray, lip balm and, of course, bars of soap.

Unfortunately for our stalwart business person, cautious Christian bookstores were uncomfortable with the pseudo-sexual overtones of the whole thing. They refused to stock the product line, despite an endorsement from a well known Christian Patriarchy leader. Desperate to empty reclaim the use of his third garage stall which was filled with product which had no place to go, the business person was forced to look for other markets. Eventually he found customers among the sort of small boutiques who cater to the “too-cool-for-school” crowd.

OK, I totally made that whole story up. Although you have to admit that my “failed evangelization tool” story is shockingly plausible.   Continue reading “Virtuous Vanilla Lip Balm, Jesus and a Prostitute”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter5 Comments
enjoy life, life, religion

The Secret of Life*

This is rough, and obviously abbreviated, but I think it’s just about right.

The secret of life – the great secret of life – is that what brings us real joy tells us who we are. God wants us to live lives of joy and has therefore put the blueprint for finding joy into our very being which is made in his own image. Since every good and perfect gift – ie what brings us real, lasting joy – comes from God, the more we know God, the more we will recognized joy. And the more we recognize what brings us joy, the more we will know who God uniquely created us to be.

But there is a forgetting that is part of being human, and we forget who we really are or how to find the blueprint for joy. So, we piece together a sense of who we are from our experiences, other people’s input, ideas we come across. Most of us struggle just to get to know this poorly reflected version of who we are. We rely on emotions whose meanings we only vaguely understand to guide our choices because the discomfort they create is so awful that any reasonable person seeks escape. We escape by seeking pleasures we know are harmful because they offer that respite from the discomfort our lives cause us.

One of the most important roles that religion has played has been to help us avoid and recognize when what we are being offered is a false version of what we really need in order to be joyful. Continue reading “The Secret of Life*”

Unknown's avatarRebecca TrotterLeave a comment
current events, enjoy life, life, religion

It’s Becoming a Wonderful World

I wrote this for the 10th Anniversary of 9/11. I think it bears repeating.

Christians know and will sometimes actually say that Jesus won. But I don’t think many people fully appreciate how true that is. 2000 years ago, Jesus preached a radical message to turn the world upside down. In God’s Kingdom, the first would be last and the last would be first. Oppression would loose its grip, the suffering would be comforted, and we would be servants to the least. Jesus was speaking this into a world where power was absolute, life was cheap, illnesses could not be treated or cured and women had no rights or respect. In order to appreciate the victory that Jesus won, let’s just take a look at the world we live in today.

We now live in a world where the most powerful feel an obligation towards those most in need. The most powerful people in the world actually sit down together and make plans to relieve the suffering of impoverished people all over the world. The Romans barely gave a thought to the poor in their own empire much less starving people beyond their borders. The idea itself would have been absurd. Right now, Bill Gates – one of the most powerful, wealthy men in all of human existence has dedicated his life and wealth towards helping to alleviate suffering around the world. Do you realize how astounding that it? That is a victory for the kingdom way!

In the most powerful parts of the world today, human rights are seen as a non-negotiable good. In Jesus’ day, there was no freedom of speech. All of the apostles were martyred for practicing freedom of religion. Property rights existed only for the wealthy and powerful – no one else had much property to take! There were no laws in place to protect people from exploitation and fraud – these were normal ways of doing business. Slavery was accepted and the economy depended on forced labor. Continue reading “It’s Becoming a Wonderful World”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter14 Comments
being mom, family, humor, kids, prayer, religion

God : Me :: Me : The drama troupe I gave birth to

I can’t begin to imagine where they got it from – probably their father’s side – but I have some rather dramatic children. We still laugh about the time we told 5 year old Noah to put a book away and he contorted his face into a picture of agony, lifted the book above his head and bellowed, “noooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!” like a super-hero villain whose plans … Continue reading God : Me :: Me : The drama troupe I gave birth to

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter2 Comments
Bloggy Linky Goodness

Bloggy Linky Goodness

OK, my week had eight days in it this week. But it’s a holiday, so you won’t notice anyways and we’ll just keep it to ourselves, k? BTW, can anyone tell me if hyper-dramatic 6 year old girls ever work the histrionics out of their system. Or is this just our ramp up for her teen years? Cuz if she keeps this up, her bedroom door might end up as damaged as mine is from all the slamming. Although maybe that would help – I haven’t slammed my bedroom door in ages because it’s completely borked now. The doors in this house just weren’t built to stand up to a woman with a difficult marriage and 5 or 6 kids. IJS

So moving on . . . it’s Bloggy Linky Goodness! I know you’re all so excited. And really impressed with my semi-consistancy with getting this up 6 whole times now. This is amazing stuff from the woman who forms tendencies the way other people form habits. Well, I do have one habit – I read everyfreakingthing. Which is good for you because now I can tell you which things out of everyfreakingthing are most worth reading. Here goes: Continue reading “Bloggy Linky Goodness”

Unknown's avatarRebecca Trotter1 Comment