Thriving in Exile

"Take off anything you're wearing that has any value, monetary or sentimental," my small group leader Natalie announced.

The faces of six freshmen girls expressed confusion as we obediently began to remove necklaces, belts, and ear rings.

"Take off your jackets.  Your sweatshirts," she continued.  I'm sure if she could have stripped us down to our underwear, she would have just to prove her point.  She did once come to small group in a bathrobe to demonstrate Isaiah's walking around naked for three years (see Isaiah 20).

"We're going into Babylonian exile," she explained.
"Should we bring our Bibles?"
"Your what?"

She then led us out in a January icy drizzle while she played the role of the Babylonians and we were the Israelites.  When we began to shiver, she let us back inside.  Ironically, she accidentally tripped on the sidewalk symbolizing the fall of Babylon.

Looking through the Bible, there are a lot of people who experience exile.  Personally, I've never spent a significant amount of time being oppressed and exiled.  Unless you count being a Lutheran in Baptist Country.  They're usually nice to me if I keep my mouth shut about alcohol and original sin, but let's use it as an example.

I heard a speaker the other day talk about exile.

"The question is not 'Why are we in exile?' or 'How do we get out of exile?'" he explained.  "The question is, 'What is God up to in exile?'"

What is God up to in exile?

What is God up to in your life, wherever you may be?  Sometimes there are things God needs to do in your life that He can only do while you're in exile.

Some Biblical examples of exile show the strengthening of faith while being removed from that which is comfortable.  Here in Baptist Country I've been forced to contemplate and question why I believe in infant baptism, why I don't have a problem drinking wine, and that whole in-with-and-under thing (that I'm still working on).  Things I probably would have simply accepted forever had I not been sent here.

When Daniel experienced his exile (see Daniel 1), his name and the names of all of his friends were changed.   Daniel became Belteshazzar (please name your son that).  Hanniniah, Mishael, and Azariah became Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.  Their Hebrew names celebrating God's faithfulness were replaced with pagan names.

My name too was changed.  My often mutilated three syllable last name has been axed to two letters.  A pagan name; a murder weapon.  Rack, Shack, and Benny let that one go.  As have I.  To some, I will forever be only Katie Ax.  I think I'm ok with that.  Like Rack, Shack, and Benny, I have to pick my battles.  I'd much rather people realize I'm still a Christian than know I have a whole last name.

God has done (and is doing) some cool things here in my exile.  He even pulled me through a near-hypodermic small group experience.

What's He doing in your exile?  What's He doing in your life right now?

<>< Katie

PS: If you know my whole last name... do NOT post it in the comments section or I will delete your comment.

Two Thoughts

I was walking back to my apartment under an overcast but dry sky yesterday afternoon when I noticed ripples in the lake. It wasn't raining where I was but it was raining over the lake. It was weird. It's kind of as if God was quoting TobyMac and saying, "If it's got to start somewhere, why not here?"

What's got to start somewhere in your life?  Why not here?

Really think about it.

Have you thought long and hard?

Ok, then how about a Blast from the Past funny story?
From the time I was two until I was about ten we had some great neighbors.  Without a doubt the best neighbors we've ever had.  Late at night after my sister and I fell asleep, they'd set up the baby monitor and go to the neighbors'.  If it was positioned correctly in the window of my back bedroom the signal would reach to the back window and hot tub two doors down.  Probably not the safest thing to do since we were little and asleep, but we were in a good neighborhood, and we knew Mom and Dad and two houses worth of great neighbors were just a shout away.  Well, one night in the dead of winter they were all sitting in the hot tub and they heard some suspicious noise on the baby monitor.  In his swim trunks Dad flew out of the hot tub and ran barefoot through the snow home where he found three sleeping girls and an undistrubed house.  He said the run home wasn't bad but the walk back was frigid.

<>< Katie

Rainy Days

Yesterday morning I passed my FOCUS brother Jordan on his way to breakfast.

"Hey, how are you?" I asked giving him a hug. I knew the answer before he spoke.

"Not good. It's raining. I HATE the rain. Absolutely hate it more than anything else in the world. It's going to be a bad day," he explained. As someone whose mood is often dictated by the weather, I understood. Rainy days are often miserable but "hate" is a strong word.

"Do me a favor, try to find one thing good in today. Yeah, it's rainy and gross, but God still made today and therefore there must be one thing good in it," I coached. He kind of groaned, and we went our separate ways.

I don't see Jordan very often and was surprised when I saw him again at dinner. I asked him about his good thing for the day.

"I got a good grade on a test," he said proudly.

In the next few minutes we made a list of good things:
1. Good grade
2. He's alive and breathing
3. It's Friday
4. We saw each other twice

Not bad for someone who hates the rain more than anything! Sure, they're all pretty basic but they're still reasons to smile on a no good, very bad rainy day.

This morning, I saw him again and asked how he was doing.

"Today is much better. It's not raining today. My feet are dry!" His girlfriend and I teased him about getting some rainboats. Yeah, that idea didn't fly. Maybe dry feet was his good thing for today.

I think we all have days like Jordan where we know before breakfast that it's going to be a bad day. Rain, headaches, heavy backpacks, and nasty caf food make my days bad. Smiles and hugs from friends, cancelled classes, and blog comments make my days better.

I'd challenge you to do the same thing I often encourage myself to do and I suggested Jordan do: find one thing good in today. Even as simple and being grateful that you got out of bed this morning.

"This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" - Psalm 118:24 (emphasis mine)

<>< Katie

Rainy Days

This was not written with the intention of being a blog, yet it's something I've been struggling with this week and I feel the need to share it.

I never realized quite how big of an impact the weather has on attitude and moreso relationships. For example, yesterday I passed my friend Jordan on the quad from a distance. Normally when I see Jordan he’s got a big smile and is enjoying himself. Yesterday when I saw him I gave him a big wave and a smile. I probably would have walked over and given him a hug but it was raining and I really wanted to get into a building instead. Later, I wished I would have walked in the wet grass because he needed a hug. I could tell from the look on his face. No smile and a small wave. We passed and headed on to class. Once I got there, I texted him asking him if everything was ok. He said yes, he was just a little sad because it was rainy. I offered him a free hug and he said even a free hug probably couldn’t cheer him up today. Free hugs solve everything. Nope. His facebook status that night was talking about how he hates rainy days because they’re depressing. I was worried about him yesterday because he just seemed so sad. When I saw him today I gave him a free hug and asked if today was better. He said today was much better. Perhaps it's because the sun is shining today.

I know I’ve done the exact same thing. Why do we let the weather control our moods? Why? God makes the rainy days just like God makes the sunny days. God loves us on the rainy days just like He does on the sunny days. I don’t get it, but I fall victim to the rainy day trap, too.

Learning to love the rain,
<>< Katie

Conversation

Katie
God

It's such a miserable day today.
Excuse me?
I mean, it's so rainy and cold.
This is the day that I have made.
No offense, but could we please have some sunshine? If the sun doesn't have to be up, I don't have to be up, right?
Wrong.
Why the rain?
I like the rain. We need the rain. Do you see how low the lake is?
We don't want a flood either!
I promise I won't flood the earth again.
Ok, fine. I'm up, but today is a perfect day to crawl up with a good book. Quick, cancel classes.
I give the orders here.
I know, I know, You don't need my advice. But, really, God, why the cold? Today of all days! Do You know what today is?
Do I know? Of course I know. Today was the day I welcome you into my family. Twenty years ago.
You make me sound so old!
Do you really want to talk old with the Eternal God?

Near-Death Experiences

I know... long time, no blog. My apologizes to my... er.... two readers.

Yesterday, our whole family went to a baseball game. Well, ok, I didn't go. I learned afterwards that God literally saved my life and the lives of my mom and grandfather.

It started to rain, so my grandparents went to sit in the car (where they could watch the game dry). Well, five minutes didn't pass and a pop-up ball landed exactly where they had been sitting.

A little while later, a ball was whipped into the stands at about 90 mph (ok, that's perhaps an exaggeration... but that's what Mom said). It just so happened that at that very moment, Christina leaned to the side, and the ball whizzed between her and Dad. Less than five minutes earlier, Mom had been sitting in between the two of them, but she stepped out to use the restroom. Had she been sitting there when the ball flew by, it would have hit her square in the chest probably killing her.

But, Katie, how did God save your life yesterday? You weren't even at the game.

Well... balls and I don't get along. They hit me in the face no matter how nice I am to them. Had I been at that game, I have no doubt one of those two balls would have collided with my face. I don't know why I chose to leave instead of going to the game. I just did. God made me. That's all there is to it.

Obey even when there seems to be no logical reason to do so.

<>< Katie

Rain, Rain Go Away

It's pouring down buckets today. It has been since I first woke up this morning and probably won't stop anytime soon. Honestly, I hate rainy days... well... because everything's wet. The ends of your pants, your backpack, your fleece jacket, everything is wet. (Then there's the almost impossible goal of not getting the cell phone wet). Even if you're carrying an umbrella, you often wonder: what's the point?

I left the caf this morning and walked across campus to my first class. I eat breakfast with the same two girls just about every morning and one of them heads to the same building I do afterwards. I let her slide under my umbrella and we walked to class. We went up the steps onto the porch and were just about to enter the building when she goes, "Oh, crap! I just remember I have class in the library today!" We spent 5 minute walking to this one building trying not to get wet, only to realize she needed to go one building over from where we just were and had to get wet to do so. I felt bad.

Was all that effort to say dry futile?

Two classes later, I left a building and a friend ducked under my umbrella. We were halfway across the parking lot before he was like, "Where are you going?" I told him I was headed to the caf and it turned out to be a different building than I was, but he needed to pass the caf anyway. We walked along together for awhile (can I please say it's hard to hold a small umbrella over two people when you both have huge backpacks!) and I needed to enter the building. He jumped in front of me and opened the door for me. (He then decided he would stop in this building on his way to class). It made me ponder general roles in today's society (wow, that sounds like an essay topic...). Thoughts?

Have a fantastic day and do a random act of kindness!

<>< Katie

"But just as He who called you is Holy, so be Holy in all you do; for it is written: 'Be Holy because I am Holy.'" - 1 Peter 1:15-16

God's Sense of Humor

Last night, I went to bed hearing thunder off in the distance. Before I fell asleep, the distance had gone and the storm was here. Torrential rains poured down on my house, lightening flashed, and thunder roared. I listened to the sounds of nature, praying they were a simple thunderstorm and no more. I contemplated checking the weather to see if tornadoes were anticipated. Tornadoes have a tendency to appear when least expected, and I expected them last night therefore there would not be any. After all, God is in control and if a tornado blows my house over, in His loving arms I'll be. This storm made me think back to one several years ago.

I was still in high school one evening when a storm rolled through. We'd eaten dinner but no schoolwork had been done when the power went out. Our power goes out quite frequently. It's created problems and since then we've put in a generator. However, the generator only powers certain rooms and appliances (the sub pumps, the refrigerator, the furnace, etc.). Needless to say, my bedroom and computer aren't on the generator. It was going to be incredibly difficult to get my homework done in a dark bedroom. It would be just as hard to get my homework done in the lighted kitchen where my sisters were panicking and the radio was blaring.

Frustrated due to my overload of work and inability to do it, I opted not to do any homework for the few hours we were without power and just sit and enjoy the storm. Grumbling and moaning about the lack of power, I sat on the couch in the front room and watched the lightening, listened to the thunder, and peered out into our eerie neighborhood sans electricity. The lightening was lame and when I whispered,
"God, this is a boring storm" a huge bold of lightening flashed and thunder cracked shaking the whole house. He would make a liar out of me! The lightening got much more interesting after that.

Finally, I stopped my complaining and began to thank God for the nice break from the world. How I needed it because I was feeling overworked, underpaid, and not appreciated (just a perk of being middle class and educated). If taking the power away was the only way He could get my attention, so be it. Thank You.

At that very moment, the power came back on and a floor light was shining brightly into my eyeballs. Wow, You're funny. Lesson learned.

<>< Katie

"The men were amazed and asked, 'What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him [Jesus]!'" Matthew 8:27