I want to be an Encourager!

Well, I just got back from a wonderful trip to Florida and a trip to Belton, TX to marry off my brother. I had an amazing two weeks in Florida with Kasey. She is the best girl in the whole world and I feel extremely lucky to get to spend the rest of my life with her. I got to do many firsts such as kayaking, boogie boarding, going to snake infested dissappearing island, picking out wedding cake, and other many exciting other things. But now I am back in the blogging world.

Here is an old post that I started a long time ago and I guess I will just post it today since I dont have too much else on my mind.

"But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today.." - Hebrews 3:13
"but let us encourage one another - and all the more as you see the Day approaching." Hebrews 10:25
"May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you a spirit of unity among yourselves as you follow Christ Jesus," Romans 15:5

Kasey and me getting married has taught me a lot about the kind of person I want to be to others throughout my life. As of now, we will get married and move to Ft. Worth in August. The next semester Kasey will have to travel to Abilene twice a week for classes. When I tell people this I usually get two different reactions. A particular instance today helped me see how much I want to be an encourager.

I was talking to a friend telling them about our situation, to which they replied, "That is a tough way to start a marriage." Another friend walked up at that time and said, "I think its a great way to start a marriage!"

These are the two reactions I get. Some people focus on the fact that it will be tough. They end up saying "But yall can get through it." Great! Now I know that I can get through it. I dont want to just get through it. It does not leave me feeling good when the hard things are focused on but then telling me that it can be overcome.

Other people rejoice with me in the fact that I am getting married and that encourages me. They focus more on the fact that I found the love of my life and that it is a wonderful thing. They focus more on the fact that with God directing my life and a wonderful Christian woman beside me, I can do anything that is in front of me. I leave them feeling great about myself and the decisions I have made. This is the kind of person that I want to be. I want to rejoice with those who rejoice!

In the future when someone tells me they are going to be going on a mission trip to Africa, I want to rejoice and encourage them and tell them how great that is instead of saying, "Are you sure? Did you think that through?" When someone tells me they are going to have a baby, I will rejoice with them even though it may be hard on their life or marriage. Because they probably know it will be hard. But they need people to tell them that God is great and rejoice with them. So I write this to say that I like encouragers and that is who I want to be. I want to be the type of person who lifts others up, who lets others know that God is in control. Who encourages others and rejoices with them, even if inside myself I am thinking that it will be hard for them.

Women, Gifts & the Body of Christ

It is amazing to me how many different perspectives about scripture that I have heard lately that I have never heard before. First of all, in Mike Cope's blog, his series on the Bible was excellent. Click here to read them.

But what I want to talk about in this blog is women's role in the church. But instead of me saying much, I want to give you a link to someone who presents it better. Recently someone sent me a link to a sermon that Mike Cope gave to the Highland Church of Christ in Abilene. Highland is one of the more progressive Churches of Christ in Abilene. Since I have only visited Highland a couple of times in my career here at ACU, I called Highland Church to make sure I gave accurate information as to what women are allowed to do in their service. At Highland, women are given opportunities to serve in the body of Christ that they are not given at other churches. They are able to read scripture, lead prayers, do announcements, give testimonies (primarily on Wednesdays), give the communion thoughts, and also serve the communion (this is done on a volunteer basis so it is mainly men still). One thing they do not do is the preaching which is mainly done by Mike Cope.

The decision to involve women more in the church service was not a quick decision. It was thoughtfully and prayerfully considered for a number of years. From what I have heard, the elders carefully studied scripture as they tried to determine how they should lead their church. This sermon is one that Mike gave to the congregation during the process of women becoming more involved. Click here to go to the web page where the sermon can be found. It is about an hour long if you want to listen to it in one sitting. But I do encourage you to make the time at some point to listen to it. It is very good.

I would love to hear other people's thoughts on this subject because different people have different perspectives and viewpoints that I otherwise might not hear.