An Open Letter to Liberty University and David Nasser

So out of the 20+ speakers who are scheduled for the upcoming Fall 2015 Liberty University convocation this year, only 5 of these are women, and one of them has a man scheduled to speak the same day.

First of all, I would like to take a moment to write specifically to David Nasser. Pastor Nasser, I applaud you and your work here at Liberty University. I do. I am in full support of you and everything you have done for this school even in the single year you have been here. I could not be happier with a campus pastor. I know you faced a lot of opposition from a lot of different people here since you joined the LU family. And on behalf of the student body and those who agree with me, I sincerely apologize. You do not deserve, nor have you done anything to deserve, the criticism and the terrible words you received. You are a blessing to this school and I am excited and expectant to see what positivity you bring to us in the years to come.

But, to whom it may concern, and to you as well, Pastor, I want to extend a suggestion: You need to bring on more women convocation speakers. Approximately 56.5% of both the residential and online population or Liberty University is female. That is your demographic. These young women are the majority. Young women don’t need middle age, married men with 2.5 children telling them how to live out their faith. They need older women who have successfully navigated the world both as a Christian and as a woman, as well as everything else that comes along with those titles. If any of the young women (or any of the women for that matter), who sit on campus or who watch live streams of convocation come from a similar background I do, they didn’t have a lot of women leaders. They didn’t have good, godly, Christian examples to look up to. They had mothers and grandmothers, yes, but they almost certainly did not have other women they were taught about or they heard about who were successful in their fields and lives and who were also Christians. I know I did not. Now, we are in college or we are continuing our education, and in this time we have to expand our horizons and see farther beyond our homes and our childhoods, we still do not have strong, Christian women to look up to and to sit under. We are still listening to men. And yes, men are the ones who God ordained to be pastors. I understand that and agree with that. It is biblically-based and sound.

 But, Liberty University, you do not invite just pastors onto your stage. You invite all kinds of people into Vines Center. You invite politicians and journalists and authors and comedians and missionaries and performers into our Liberty Bubble. So why can’t any of these people be women? There are women politicians and journalists and authors and comedians and missionaries and performers who are all successful and who are very good examples to bring in. Women have just as much experience in their lifetimes as their male counterparts do, and sometimes, they even have more experience. Yet we do not see them, and we do not know how to find these women. Liberty, you have an incredible opportunity to pour into the lives of these women. Because women are the doer’s of the world. Women do not sit and talk as men do. Women stand up, and women wake up before dawn, and women get things done. And this generation of women are so eager to get up and to move and to get things done. But when we do not see any other generations in front of us encouraging us on, we become disheartened and discontent.

This generation of Christian women do not need an older generation of men telling them the same thing 20 different ways. We NEED to see more successful women. We NEED to see Christian women who have overcome the stigma of being a woman. We do not need men telling us how they think we should succeed. We need women showing use how they themselves succeeded.

You have one TBA spot open in the Fall semester. I ask and I pray that you all deeply consider bringing in a woman to speak.

Frustrated and discouraged, 

Emily E. 

My Brain is not a Joke

   

               

"Q: How many people with ADHD does it take to screw in a light bulb?

A: Wanna go ride a bike?"

Why is my disorder a joke? Why are the drugs that can genuinely help the people like me so widely abused and are also the punchlines of so many jokes?  I have felt like this for a very long time. ADHD is very hard to live with. And ADHD is not a joke. But yet, that's how the world sees it. I've talked about my struggle to cope with being neuroatypical before, and I feel like it still needs to be addressed. Because everyone sees it as a joke. And I'm emotionally tired of having to show a half-hearted smile when people try to make those jokes about it. MY BRAIN IS NOT A JOKE!

And it hurts me. It hurts my self-esteem, it hurts my countenance, it hurts my heart when people, even those close to me, joke about it. Because even after being diagnosed for over a decade, every single day is a struggle. Every single day is hard to get through. And for so many of us, ADHD is just the beginning. There are seven different kinds of ADHD, and all of them can lead to other mental disorders. I have anxiety, and from that combination comes a Body-Focused Repetitive Behavior (BFRB) called Dermatillomania, which involves a hyper-focus on picking at the skin. I am most likely going to develop depression at some point in my life. ADHD affects every part of my life, and it will until the day I die. And yet people still think jokes are appropriate. 

Would you make a joke about Autism or Asperger's? Would you make a joke about cancer or an autoimmune disease? No, you wouldn't. So why do people make jokes about ADHD? ADHD is a mental disorder. Mental disorders affect the brain. The brain is an organ. THERE IS AN ORGAN IN A PERSON'S BODY THAT IS NOT FUNCTIONING AS A TYPICAL ORGAN SHOULD. So how is that a joke? How are peoples' daily struggles a joke to the world? Is it because it is a relatively new disorder? Is it that there has been an over-diagnosis among young children? 

Every single day is a struggle for me. It takes every ounce of energy I have to get out of bed at a decent hour, and even more concentration to get myself ready. As soon as I wake up, I am aware of everything that is in my room and the bathroom next door. I can hear every person in my house, and I can feel every living thing's presence in my house. I can hear the machines and computers that are on. Every single sound that is background noise to most people bombards my thoughts. 

I have become so strict and so meticulous about how everything in my personal spaces should be organized that it is almost a nightmare and is overwhelming if something is not in place. Everything has a specific place, and if it doesn't, every single second is spent trying to figure out where it's home is. I have to set five alarms every single day or I won't get up on time in order to do all the things I need to do.

I have an incredibly creative brain, but there is so much tossing around in it that I don't know how to bring it all out. My creativity output is nowhere near the amount of creative thought that happens at every single second of every single day. There would be no way I could ever get it all out. And quite often, if I don't make a note of an idea, I won't be able to remember it later. I am also incredibly smart, but it doesn't come across sometimes because I am notoriously reckless. Actions are not always thought out all the way through and consequences are not foreseen. That makes me seem really, really stupid sometimes. And I'm not stupid. Not at all. I talk because sometimes my brain is going to fast for my tongue or my fingers so when I say something I'll stutter on a single word for a while until I catch up with the rest of the thought, or sometimes when I'm typing or texting in an informal situation, I will type too quickly to realize that I skipped entire sentences or I misspelled words.

My brain is not a joke. I don't if it's a family member or a stranger, or even someone who has ADHD as well who says it. Mental illness is not a joke. It never has been and it never will be.

Emily E.

Things I Wish the Church Would Get Over and Talk About

There are a lot of things I see wrong with the church. And the more I talk to people here at Liberty, the more people I discover agree with me. I've also met some people who don't agree with me and think I'm a little too liberal in my ideas. But hear me out. I think Christians have set up this "fight or flight" mindset in that if the world around them doesn't agree with them or outright rejects them and their beliefs that they must either set up a wall of defense and stay safe within the church building, or they push their faith on nonbelievers even more and it turns into them setting out on what is essentially a Holy War against them. This seems ridiculous and completely unnecessary. So, here are some things I think the modern Christian needs to stop ignoring or making taboo and start talking about.

Your body is Not Dirty or Evil.
The human body was made exactly how it was meant to be made. God made your body, and no part of that is bad. It's your God given body, and God's Creation was made inherently good. Now, what people decide to do with that body may be wrong, and may be deviant from God's law, but your body is not wrong. Your body is a work of art, and I can only imagine how sad it makes the Artist when you think that it is not good or beautiful or wonderful.

This pertains to a lot of different aspects. Mostly it's this sex-negative mindset that so many Christians teach their children, not telling them the proper names of the parts of their bodies, and telling them lies about their bodies and other people's bodies. I don't know why this is even a problem or an issue. How can your child be comfortable with themselves if they don't even know the real name of the body in their pants? Sex-positive thinking does not say, "Yes, you can have sex whenever you want with whoever you want as long as you keep it safe." It says, "This is your body, these are the parts of your body, and this is how you take care of it. Your body is beautiful and there is nothing wrong with you. You need to make wise, educated choices and make sure you keep yourself healthy and out of danger." Sex-positive thinking is not about liberation, it's about education. You're going to spend your entire life living in your body, and that body is going to do the best it can to keep you alive and protected and give you the chance to live an awesome, wonderful life. But how can you live within something that you know so little about? If your kid has questions, answer them honestly, if you don't know, research. Then tell them in an age-appropriate manner.

Another aspect is in body image. Not only has secular society determined what we think is beautiful and acceptable for both men and women, but the church has followed this adamantly. Not so much in telling people what they should look like, but what they shouldn't look like. Because in some ways, formulating a list of "Do Not" rules, is a lot easier than sitting down and understanding what the Bible says is good for your body and for the Christian idea of body image. So we have so many people, especially women of all ages, who struggle with accepting their bodies natural structure, and who don't understand that everyone has a genetic tendency to a certain weight, and that there is no one healthy weight or shape or size or height. And it isn't just women, I see so many men at church and overhear so many conversations about how they are struggling to keep up with some new diet or work out regime that they have set up for themselves, and it is so disheartening to think that people are trying to push their bodies to be something they aren't. I am not saying it is wrong to want to be healthy or to make active choices in staying healthy. But when we get to a point where we end up worshiping a certain body type instead of worshiping the God who made those bodies, we end up with a power struggle for what has more of our attention.

The Rest of the World Does Not Have to be Held to Our Biblical Standards and Rules.
What???? This is preposterous! Of course, the world has to be held to our standards because our's are right and everyone else is wrong!!

Just...hush. Be quiet, you sound like a child when you say these things. Yes, they may be wrong, and they may not believe the same basic things you do, but guess what? Many Christians say that about other Christians!! In some cases, you have Christians who just inherently believe they are better than every other person in the world, and they think every one else who doesn't believe exactly like they believe is wrong and evil and going to be damned to hell for eternity. And that's an awful, toxic mindset. But it is there, and many of us seem to have a diluted version of this mindset in some way or another. We think that at the end of the day, everyone is still to be held responsible to the Biblical mandates and laws that we are held to. Quite simply, this is not the case. God gives us those laws and such that we may look different than the rest of the world and to shine a light in the darkness. No one but Christians are to be held by other Christians to these standards. No one. Not American society, not Muslims, not Atheists, not any one whom you do not specifically know is a Christian. If you know for a fact that they are a Christian, yes you can hold them accountable to biblical law. But if you aren't certain, then don't shame or condemn another person because they live a different life than you.

It is not our job to change the world's outlook on life as a whole. It is our job to focus on the one, the close, those who are already around us. It is not the job of the Christian or the church to target a specific part of our culture. We should not be trying to change Hollywood, or the LGBTQIA+ community, or the government, or any other group as a whole. One at a time, get close to people, make relationships, invest in individual lives. It's not about the most change you can make in the entire world, it's about the singular lives who are shown the beauty and grace of God's love.

Please Stop Oppressing People.
I know there are people out there that will say that the Christian church across the world is the one being oppressed, and worldwide, yes. But here in the West, we have literally no oppression. We are not being systematically murdered, we are not being discriminated against on a daily and widespread basis. We are not being denied basic human rights for our beliefs. As hard as it is to believe, over the course of history, the Western Church has been the cause of most of the oppression in the world, including the Crusades, slavery, and other minority struggles have been caused by the church and their desire to eradicate all other religions and cultures in the world. (White Man's Burden anybody?) We are not supposed to destroy other people's right to a pleasant and fulfilling life. We are supposed to show them the only true way to fulfillment and Salvation. The only way to do that in our world today seems to be to show love. More specifically, the love of Christ. Why is Christianity not characterized by the Love of Christ anymore? Why are we not known for our outreached arms and outgoing feet? Love is what everyone is desiring for, whether they realize it not, and the ultimate source of love is the Cross. We need to stop pushing shame, and start pushing Love and grace. That is what gets people's attention. Love and caring, not oppression.

Politics are Completely Different than Church Ordinances.
I am not going to bring up an argument about church and state, because I honestly don't know exactly what it is and I have had it explained to me to be several different things, and none of them make a lot of sense. But I do want to remind you, that the pastor can preach about the Bible's moral absolutes, of course, but when they try to get up and say that those moral absolutes should be forced upon the rest of the country or area in which you live through laws with a religious background, that's when we have a problem. A pastor's job is not to tell you how to think politically. It is the job of the pastor to shepherd the church and to guide them to the path of spiritual righteousness. How a person applies that to their political views is completely up to the individual, not the pastor. Please don't abuse the power of the pulpit.

The Country was not Founded Upon the Idea of Freedom of Religion Alone, and it was not Written Into our Constitution Sspecifically and Only for Christianity.
This country was not founded solely for the reason of Freedom of Religion. If anything, we must remember that our country did not fight for nor gain independence until 167 years after Jamestown was founded. This means that there was no correlation between the Pilgrims' reason for leaving England and the Founding Fathers reason for fighting for independence. Everyone who came over on the boats were long dead, and the biggest reason for the War of Independence was taxation. There are not connecting factors there. So please, stop misquoting history, it makes us all seem ignorant when we aren't.  Some of us actually paid attention in high school history class, and a lot more of us know how to look up the real facts on the internet. Our country was not even founded by what most of us would consider Christians. Many of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were Deists, who do not believe in divine providence, nor in divine sovereignty. So, that being said, many most likely did not think to ask God to bless our country, or asked God for anything, because Deism says that God made everything in Creation, then stepped away and has left it alone since then and has no direct involvement with the world.

The World Sucks, Stop Making it Seem Happy.
Look, the world, because it has been enveloped by sin (which is an embodiment of evil, which is the perversion of good), and because of that, the world is an awful horrid place. There is death, there is violence, there is sickness, poverty, greed, abuse. The world, not even our own specific version of our own personal world, is going to be better, or get happier, by becoming a Christian or donating to a church or a Christian organization. Pastors, do not lead the people, who have trusted you to tell them Biblical truth, to believe that which is not true. Show them the heartache and the pain they will feel having to leave family behind because they do not believe. Show them what happens when they decide to accept a gift of holiness and salvation. Show them what other Christians suffer through all over the world, and teach them the selflessness of Jesus to try to help them. Teach them prayer and supplication, teach them mercy. The world sucks, please don't sugarcoat that.

The World is Beautiful, Stop Making it Seem Awful.
The world, while full of evil, is still a part of the Creation of God, who made it in perfection and beauty. IF we look, the world is still full of that beauty. The mountains, the oceans, the fields. The cities, the countries, the villages, all of them are still full of happiness, whether we see it or not. In every place, weddings, births, birthdays are full of joy. Holidays are taken as days of rest and celebration. Throughout every day, there are people blessing other people, spreading happiness, spreading joy, spreading love. Even places where the joy and love of Jesus have never been told of, people have these things, because they set out to have these things. The flowers still bloom, the sun still rises, the forests still stand. The oceans still house an entirely different world, the entirety of the universe is still expanding, still growing, and still burning bright. There is so much we overlook sometimes, because we get so caught up in the bad news, the suffering. We need to remember that all around us, there are children learning to walk, babies learning to laugh, and couples celebrating 50 years of marriage.

I feel like American churches and pastors forget this all so often, and I pray that we don't continue this trend.
Emily E.

The Clare Issue

I am livid. I am furious, I am beyond appalled. For those of you that haven't seen the story, or for those of you who live outside the United States, a girl in Virginia was kicked out of her homeschool senior prom over the weekend for an absolutely ridiculous reason.

She was kicked out because the organizers of the event thought her dress, though suitable within dress code and not the shortest one there, was inappropriate and that her dancing, which she was not doing, was also inappropriate and that she was causing "the young men at the prom to think impure thoughts." Not only that, but the way she and the rest of her group was treated by the organizer of the prom was absolutely unprofessional and horrendous.

Here is the story, and here is the follow up post. Please excuse any explicit language you may come across.

Now, there is a lot going on here, and I want to address it all. First of all, go Clare for being excited and comfortable with your body and being able to absolutely rock that dress, and for breaking the racial boundaries that the South is known to have. Your boyfriend seems very sweet and I applaud him in his ability to keep calm during this whole ordeal. To have your significant other called out is a terrible thing and I'm sure this is hard on him and the rest of your family as well.

Secondly, I applaud both Clare and the rest of her group for trying to be as respectful and as mature about the situation as possible. I know at the end things got a little rough, but the fact that they even tried to go about this in a respectable, calm manner means volumes. I know personally, I would have had a fit right there, so I think they deserve a lot of respect for that.

Honestly, I think the teenagers handled this situation the best they could and used their resources and abilities to make the situation known. However, they did lose their temper at the end when they were escorted out, but they all agree that it was the wrong way to go about things.

What I am appalled with, is the way the adults handled this situation. The fact that the fathers, the fathers, were staring and ogling at the teenagers is disturbing as it is and should be addressed as such. There is a terrible, terrible stigma within church culture that it is the father/husbands job to moderate and keep tabs on what their daughters and wives wear. Honestly, I love my father and i respect him. He is the most important man in my life besides Jesus, and if he was uncomfortable with something i was wearing, I wouldn't wear it, and that goes for a majority of girls I know. I highly doubt from everything else I have read that her father would have let her out of the house in that dress had he not felt comfortable with her wearing it.

Secondly, I am disappointed that none of the other adults involved with leading the event got involved. It seems that this was the solely the responsibility of Mrs. D, who called her out both times and caused a commotion in the first place. When the other woman who pulled Clare aside was asked whether she believed it to be too short, she said it wasn't her place to say. So, one we see a woman abusing her power as organizer, and another who is not willing to get on her bad side. When asked, a security guard also said it wasn't his place to comment (which in all fairness, it wasn't. He's a security guard, not the fashion police).

This kind of thing happens all the time. You have one person who has some small leadership role, who blows up the significance of their responsibilities to the extreme, and because of this reason, others are afraid to contradict them. It was that woman's place to say whether or not she agreed with Mrs. D, and she should have given her opinion.

I'm utterly disgusted with the way these young adults were treated, honestly. they were shut down and not given a chance to defend their friend. Clare was falsely accused of dancing provocatively and her friends were not allowed to dispute this. This whole situation was skewed and the argument was one sided. There was no chance at defense, and had this been within a court of law, it would have never, ever been acceptable practice. Also, her entire group of six were given verbal promise of a refund for all having to be kicked out on unjust reasoning, and only Clare and her boyfriend have been given one.

This kind of behavior is disgusting in or out of the church. It is called slut shaming and it is being prejudiced or biased against a person for the clothing they choose to wear, whether it be revealing or not. It is wrong and it needs to stop. I am really really sad to know that church culture is so bad about this. We say we love everybody, yet we give them disapproving glances when they show up in clothing we think is unsuitable.

How dare we.
How dare we think that because we follow a guideline set for or specific religion or our specific denomination that must mean every other person in our presence should follow it too. Jesus Christ compels us, not to judge those around us, but to love them. And I am disgusted, i am appalled, I am livid.

But most of all, I am guilty. I grew up in church culture that didn't advocate this kind of behavior, but it didn't speak against it either. If a woman showed up to church or to anywhere really, and they were wearing something we didn't consider modest, we talked about it. My mother and I talked, my sister and I talked, my friends and I talked. It was harmless gossip, right? Well, looking back, I see how wrong I was. And I am sorry, that I have been a part of the problem. I am sorry that I grew up in a culture that encouraged slut shaming, and encouraged this kind of discrimination. And I fell into that without a second though.

With this whole situation arising, I've begun to evaluate how I feel about the whole modesty movement within churches today. And I realize that there are some things wrong with it. I feel that this post is already long enough, so I will be writing about it in a different post. But let me say right now: Modesty is a matter of the heart, not what you put on your body. It applies to men and women, and it is in no way gender exclusive.

Emily E.

Christianity and the Love of Jesus

So last night at church, we were talking about how Jesus told his first disciples to come and see, and follow Him. It got me thinking on Jesus's doctrines and lifestyle in general, and I realized something. Our Christian culture today, when trying to evangelize, tend to use either a fire and brimstone, you're going to hell if you don't believe in Jesus approach, or the happy happy happy everything is fine and dandy approach.

Neither of those are correct, but I want to focus on the fire and brimstone. I think today's North American church is all about getting as many people converted, and they aren't particularly focused on their spiritual health. We are constantly looking for the next soul to save, the next poor tortured person to pull from the grip of Hell, but for what? Where do we go with that conversation after saying, "Congratulations, you are now exempt from the fiery pits of Hell." Well, in a lot of instances, we don't do anything. We say good job, give them a pat on the back, then move on. And frankly, I don't think that's what Jesus would have wanted.

Jesus operated on the idea of love and mercy, not shame and judgement. And I don't think that's taught enough within the church, so it most certainly isn't taught outside of the church. And for that, I am truly sorry.

I grew up in a Baptist Church that became non-denominational while we were there, and I accepted Jesus into my heart at six years old, because I was afraid to go to hell. As a six year old, I was truly afraid, I wasn't looking for a relationship with a Savior, I was looking for a rescue. And after I found that rescue, I wanted to keep my Savior happy by doing what I was supposed to do. I wanted to follow the rules for fear of being punished. I realize now that probably wasn't the best way to go about things.

I am not saying my salvation at six years old was not real, because it was. But when I was in Vancouver over the summer, I didn't just realize that Christ's actions were out of love. I fell in love with a dead Man. Because that's what Christ was about. His actions were always backed by love, mercy, grace, forgiveness. And I saw that in Vancouver. I saw love in action, I wanted to become that love in action. So if you know me personally, and you hear me talk about how amazing Vancouver was, that's why. Because I fell in love with my Savior there.

Imagine it this way: A Prince and his Father looked around and saw that all of their people were doomed. And the only way they could fix it was to send the Prince to die in everyone's place. So He does. He steps down from his throne, willingly, and He lives life like his people. He actually ends up living worse than some of his people. He doesn't have a permanent home, he travels all the time. He goes around trying to woo his people, trying to tell them how much He loves them, and that soon He is going to die for them. And some of them believed Him, and some didn't. But eventually, they all realized that He was right. And some of them got upset, but the Prince said, "It's okay, I'm going to come back." And then He was killed. Brutally, disgustingly, in a way a Prince should not have to suffer. But He did; He was tortured, and he was beaten, and it was deplorable. And He died. And He stayed dead. And his followers, who loved Him, were discouraged, because one day passed, and then another, and still the Prince hadn't come back. But He said He would, they all thought, Surely the Prince would be able to cheat death. But He still did not come back. But the next day, they went to visit the tomb, and they discovered that the tomb was empty. Their Prince was gone! And He was with them again! For more than a month, He spent time with them, until he had to return to the throne. His job was done, and He had to go back to help His Father. But that didn't make Him love His people any less, He just loves them from a position of power.

At 18 years old, after having struggled to justify why I believed what I did, I realized, because I was loved. My entire life had been a process of Jesus wooing me to him through his love and sacrifice. And how, after seeing everything that He had done for me, could I say no?

I couldn't say no. It didn't make sense. I had nothing to live for except for Him, and He had already died for me. So what could I give Him in return to show my love? My life. I gave Him my life. And it hasn't been easy, in fact, I have found that I am just as moody some days now than I was before I discovered this love, but I always manage to catch a glimpse of a little miracle, of a flower opening, or a rabbit in the backyard eating, or of a baby crying, or of the sunset. And I remember, I am loved. And I am in love with a dead Man.

I want to love others that same way. I want to love with no boundaries, with nothing held back. I want to live with love constantly pouring out from every particle of my being. I want to be a walking billboard of love.

Emily E.

International Women's Day

Today is international Women's day and as a woman, I believe I have some words to say on this day. Before anyone asks, I am a feminist. Why? Doesn't feminism go against Christian doctrines? No, it does not. There are many places where the Bible holds women in high regard. The most quoted and probably most obvious place is Proverb 31, which talks about the Virtuous Wife, or the Capable Woman. It states:

"What, my son?
And what, son of my womb?
And what, son of my vows?
Do not give your strength to women,
Nor your ways to that which destroys kings.
It is not for kings, O Lemuel,
It is not for kings to drink wine,
Nor for princes intoxicating drink;
Lest they drink and forget the law,
And pervert the justice of all the afflicted.
Give strong drink to him who is perishing,
And wine to those who are bitter of heart.
Let him drink and forget his poverty,
And remember his misery no more.
Open your mouth for the speechless,
In the cause of all who are appointed to die.
Open your mouth, judge righteously,
And plead the cause of the poor and needy.
Who can find a virtuous wife?
For her worth is far above rubies.
The heart of her husband safely trusts her;
So he will have no lack of gain.
She does him good and not evil
All the days of her life.
She seeks wool and flax,
And willingly works with her hands.
She is like the merchant ships,
She brings her food from afar.
She also rises while it is yet night,
And provides food for her household,
And a portion for her maidservants.
She considers a field and buys it;
From her profits she plants a vineyard.
She girds herself with strength,
And strengthens her arms.
She perceives that her merchandise is good,
And her lamp does not go out by night.
She stretches out her hands to the distaff,
And her hand holds the spindle.
She extends her hand to the poor,
Yes, she reaches out her hands to the needy.
She is not afraid of snow for her household,
For all her household is clothed with scarlet.
She makes tapestry for herself;
Her clothing is fine linen and purple.
Her husband is known in the gates,
When he sits among the elders of the land.
She makes linen garments and sells them,
And supplies sashes for the merchants.
Strength and honor are her clothing;
She shall rejoice in time to come.
She opens her mouth with wisdom,
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
She watches over the ways of her household,
And does not eat the bread of idleness.
Her children rise up and call her blessed;
Her husband also, and he praises her:
“Many daughters have done well,
But you excel them all.”
Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing,
But a woman who fears the Lord, she shall be praised.
Give her of the fruit of her hands,
And let her own works praise her in the gates."

Let's first off realize, that these words are not coming from the man writing, they are a direct quotation from his mother. This is what his mother has taught him, and this is how the author views women. He sees them as wise, strong, virtuous, thrifty, and a leader within the household. He respects women. He does not see them as silent creatures meant only for childbearing and housework, she is the financial analyst, the teacher of the children, the director of the massive play that is the servants and housekeepers. And then, we see in verse 24, "She makes linen garments and sells them, and supplies sashes for the merchants." She works to gain an income. Let me repeat that.

In biblical times, the women were allowed and encouraged to make and sell goods as another means of income. I don't know how much I can stress this. Women, if you want to work, even if it is selling things on Etsy or whatnot part-time, then by all means, you can work! I know there are some women who have no desire to work outside of the home, and that is fine. But don't let any religious leader tell you that the Bible does not allow women to work. This is not true, and this theology should not be allowed to oppress anybody.

Let's see what else she does. She does good for her husband and not evil. What does this mean? Well, mainly, don't be disrespectful to your husband. But I think, as some of you are single like me, that it means don't disrespect anyone. She willingly works with her hands; She does things for her family because she wants to. If someone willingly does anything, it is probably something that brings them joy. She finds joy in providing for her family. She rises while it is yet night. I'm not going to lie, this seems to be strangely far-fetched for today's society. No one likes getting up before the crack of dawn, so this seems a little out there for most of us. But it helps her get things done, and have the most productive day possible. She provides food not only for her family, but for her servants as well. She treats everyone with equality and decency. No one under her roof goes without. She is business savvy; She considers a field and buys it. You need fields for one of two reasons. One, for crops. Two, for livestock. Now, in Israel, or at least in the Jerusalem area from what I have learned over the past few years, many people kept their livestock in collective groups, and they had big open hills where they take their livestock, especially their sheep, and as a community keep them and take care of them from there. So, the virtuous woman is most likely buying a field for crops, which means she has to know what kind of plant works with the soil in that field, what time that crop blooms and needs to be harvested, and what kind of profit her household is going to make from the crop. That's a lot to remember. She girds herself with strength and strengthens her arms. She doesn't sit around doing needlework all day, this woman is busy. She is involved in some kind of physical labor. She is not only mentally and emotionally strong, she is physically strong as well. 

She extends her hand to the poor. Again, she treats everyone with decency and respect. She gives what she can to those who need help. She makes sure her household is properly clothed and prepared for all seasons, and she does not fret when the winter comes. She opens her mouth and speaks with wisdom and kindness. There is no anger in her voice. She does not eat the bread of idleness; Again, she doesn't sit around and do nothing, she is an active participant and leader within her own home. Her children and husband call her blessed and give her praise.

So, we see the Bible praises women as an integral part of society and of a household. Women are permitted to work, and women can work and be good mothers. So what does this have to do with International Women's Day? Well, not much actually. But I wanted to show what I base my feminism on.

International Women's Day is all about women's rights. It is about equality for us, and respect for us as a gender. Around the world, women are subjected to violent patriarchal standards, and are not permitted to have the same freedoms that men are. It has gotten better, but is nowhere near where it should be. Women, we are the voice, and we need to stand up for those of us around the world who do not have the liberties that we have in Western society. So many women are forced into prostitution, slavery, and bondage because that is the last resort when you are needing to provide for your family. Women who work, are paid on average, less than half of what men across the globe is.

And you know what? This makes me angry. This hurts my heart. My heart breaks, my soul dies every time I hear a story about how these women across the world are not able to fend for themselves. That girls aren't getting an education they deserve. That they are continuing the cycle of poverty because they have no other choice. And it physically hurts my heart. How do I go about my life, with my set education, and my endless opportunities and say that I have no way to help them? Can I help them? I don't know. I feel so utterly hopeless when I look at the world and see how big the problem is and how small my actions are. 

But you would be dead wrong if you think that ever stops me from trying. That is why I write here. Because even though I do not have the ability nor the means to go and fight for my fellow women's freedoms, I have a voice. And you can bet your bottom dollar I'm going to keep writing until I no longer can. 

Women reading this, you are strong, and you are an integral part of our world. I am sorry for the oppression you may be facing wherever you are in this world, and I am sorry I cannot help you. My heart goes out to all of you on a daily basis, and I pray that you will one day have the equality and freedom that God wants you to have.

Emily E.

My thoughts on Family

Thanksgiving and Christmas have come and gone, and I have realized two things about my family. One, I can't stand them. Two, I love them with all my heart.

If you are relatively close to your family, you will understand exactly what I am talking about. Some days, it is incredibly hard to want to be around your relatives and anyone else whom you share a blood relation with. And I don't write this with intent to be rude or mean, there are just things in everybody that I don't particularly like. And then I am obligated to interact with them for a whole day. It is very tiring.

But I love them all dearly. My family has taught me a lot of things. My family has taught me that no matter how much time we spend apart and not talking, we will always come back together as one. And this usually involves really good food. I've learned that every one has different ways of resolving conflicts, and some work and some don't. I've learned to be flexible. Plans change, people run late, things come up. I've also learned to to be open to people outside our families. If someone brings someone with them for you to meet, it's for good reason and they want to feel accepted and loved, just like your relative does. So be kind, and be open to change. And babies. Be open to dealing with rowdy and destructive babies. I find it funny, on my dad's side, we now have a new generation of cousins coming up. One is my brother, 4, one is our cousin, 3, and another is our second cousin once removed, 15 months. So that was an interesting Christmas.

Family is sometimes hard to be around, and that's okay, you can't choose your family, so sometimes you wind up being related to people who have no emotional connection with you. You just have to roll with it and take it as it comes. It'll be difficult, but you should always try to be kind, be courteous, and learn from them if you can. Because if there's another thing I've learned recently, is that your family isn't going to be around forever. I think maybe that's why all of my grandparents are being kind of weird lately. I think they all realize that life is getting shorter for them, and they want to make the best of it. My great-grandmother just passed away about two weeks ago, and it made me realize how wonderful she was. I could write a whole blog post on her, and I probably will, too. Anyway, it made me realize that our family are the most influential people within our lives, whether we like to admit that or not.

And there may be some of you who don't really have a family. And I want to say I'm sorry. I'm sorry you will never get to have the experience of a happy Christmas. I'm sorry you don't get to enjoy conversation across the table with people who love you. Or maybe you have a family, but they aren't supportive of you. And again, I'm so sorry. But you are beautiful, and you are meaningful, and you are not a waste of space. You are more than their judgments, you are more than their rude remarks. You are you, and that is good.

Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year,
Emily E.

What a Christian Is

I'm going to go into a rant, so if you don't want to read my angry words, please feel free to disregard this post completely.

Why does the world hate Christians as a whole? Because Christians hate themselves. Our modern church is not what it should be. It is divided and torn apart by theological differences and pure prejudice and bitterness. Because we are so extremely judgmental that we will kill those who are not like us or who differ in beliefs. We have killed in the name of Christ during the Crusades, the Civil War, and the Civil Rights movements of the 1960's. We shove down those who we think below us and we turn our noses up at them. We cause a stir in OUR OWN CHURCH FAMILES because we think that this person should leave and not come back. We can look someone in the eyes with a smile plastered on our faces and tell them that they are lower than dirt.

The world hates Christianity because we ourselves hate it. The word Christian means "little Christ", are we not supposed to be an example of Christ through our lives and through our words, actions, and reactions? But instead, what are we?

“Brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? Therefore bear fruits worthy of repentance, and do not think to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I say to you that God is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. And even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire." (Matthew 3:7c-10)

We are the hypocrites, the Pharisees, those who say one thing and do the other, those who taint the name of Christ with out foolishness and wickedness. If you claim to be a Christian, but live in a way that spreads hatred not only to nonbelievers, but to other Christians as well, Jesus says that you might as well be like a "Gentile and a tax collector" to the Body. This means the Christians around you may as well and throw you out of the church and turn their backs on you because you refuse to work towards peace.

A person who lives in hatred and bitterness towards other Christians and denominations are not okay; they have a sin problem and they need to get their hearts right with God.

I have heard recently from one of my friends who is going to seminary to be a pastor that a lot of the students there will stop going to chapel services because they become bitter and angry towards other students and chapel services because they had a certain preconceived notion of their own about what a "Christian" should act or look or talk like. Those that don't meet the standards one holds aren't worthy of one's time, nor are they apparently worthy of one's compassion and brotherhood.

Let me let you all in on an apparently little known secret. A Christian is a person, and subsequently a sinful human, just like anyone else. The only exception I or anyone else has is that we have been saved by accepting the grace that was offered to us at the Cross. Every person is different, thus not fitting into one mold, and we all have our problems, thus making us imperfect. There will be very few Christians who meet your standards of what a Christian should be, and I can almost guarantee that you won't find them sitting in a Southern Baptist church.

I think what has happened is that our world has somehow screwed up the image that comes to mind when we think of Christians. So let's break down this mold and let's refocus on what the Bible says a Christian is to be like. First of all, let's talk about what a Christian is not.

A Christian is not perfect. This seems like a shock to a lot of people, but I don't know a single perfect person, let alone a perfect Christian. The word "perfect" is found 85 different times in the New King James Version of the Bible. There is not a single occurrence in which this word refers to the present spiritual state of the body of Christ. There are mentions of us growing to perfection, of God perfecting that which He started in us, but there is nowhere that says that anyone of us is perfect. The only perfect man was Jesus.

A Christian is not sinless. Again, this comes as a shock. Christians aren't supposed to sin anymore, so why are they not sinless? Just because we accept Jesus as our Savior, does not mean we turn into Jesus. That would be like me getting a bike as a birthday present, then turning into the bike. It doesn't make sense, nor is it practical. If we could become sinless through belief, then what was the purpose of the cross? It also helps to understand that the word "sin" comes from the Greek word that would be used in archery competitions to say if the archer had missed the mark and to shoot again. So, the idea behind this is that, sin is not necessarily doing something evil, but rather it is us straying from the path of righteousness and missing the mark that God has set out for us to reach.

A Christian is not a source of infinite wisdom. Look, we are all human. There is an entire universe of knowledge that we will never know, and most of us don't have any sort of special academic abilities. We, Christians, are going through life just like you are, and for the most part, we don't have any idea what we're doing, just like you as well. I most definitely have absolutely no idea what I'm doing. There is no way anyone should ever come to me for wisdom, because I make some really stupid decisions. We all do stupid things, we don't gain any sort of mystery knowledge when we are saved.

A Christian is not a judge. Okay, so this one is really hard to debunk, because sadly, it's all too prevalent in our churches today. I for one would like to say, that if you have ever been judged or have felt belittled by a Christian or by a member of a church, or anyone else who affiliates with the term Christianity, I am truly sorry. And if I have ever judged anyone, I apologize for that. We are just as human as the next, but we have no reason to put you down.

So now let's talk about what a Christian is, or more specifically, what the Bible says a Christian should be. First, A Christian is characterized by love. In Matthew 5:42-47, Jesus makes it clear that the old Jewish law not only stated to love God, but to love others as an outpouring of your love for God. And Christians are not meant to love only other Christians, but to love those who are our enemies; those who are not of the faith. Because "if you love those who love you, what reward have you?" A Christian who loves God will follow His commandments and His path for their life (John 14:15, Luke 16:13). One of the greatest commandments given is "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:39). As Christians, it is our job to love God, and love others. These are the defining factors and characteristics of a Christian.

As much as I would like to say that there are more things that Christians are, that pretty much puts a cover over everything I could break it down into. If you love someone, you have a passion geared towards them. That passion will create desire, and that in turn creates in us the inexplicable need to move on that desire. If we love someone, we want the best for them. We want them to have the best life possible, so why not tell them about the chance to have the best life possible not only here and now on earth, but after we get to heaven as well? When it comes down to it, a true Christian is a person who has accepted the gift of salvation through the Lord's death on the cross, and who loves God, loves people, and acts on the love they have.

Love In Christ,
Emily E.

For the Young Ones

Can I talk to the young people for a minute? Adults, please pass this on to your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and students. I want to tell you guys something that is of the utmost importance.

God does not have any grandchildren.

Now those of you who have grown up in the church are looking at this right now and thinking, "Well, duh, Emily. Of course not, we are all God's children. The Bible doesn't say anything about grandchildren." And you are absolutely correct.

What I mean is that you cannot inherit your family's faith. Just because your parents are Christians (or Muslim, Buddhist, or any other religion for that matter) and took you church every Sunday as you grew up does not make you a Christian. Just because you were raised to believe there is a God does not make you a Christian.

You are not born into a relationship, you are born into an institutionalized religion. You are fed Bible stories and Christian songs and Christmas plays from your toddler years, but that does not make you a Christian. Just because you were in every musical, went to every vacation Bible School, attended church every Sunday morning, and every Wednesday and Sunday night, does not make you a Christian. It makes you a religious statistic.

You are not a Christian just because your parents or grandparents are. You become a Christian through your faith and allegiance to the King of Heaven. You become a Christian by admitting your sins and committing your life to serving a man who gave His life up for you.

You know what else? This time in your life is the most flexible and free time you will ever have. This is the perfect time to be fully committed to serving God and answering His calling. This is the perfect time to move. It breaks my heart to see so many of my peers and my closest friends wasting the most influential time of their life because they don't care.

You need to care. You need to find that passion for something more than clothes, sports, grades, and dating. We are talking about finding a passion for the Kingdom of God. All that other stuff, it's okay, but it is not what your life revolves around.

For those of you who are Christians, I want to refer to you a verse that I'm sure you've heard many times in the church. 1 Timothy 4:12 says ,"Let no one despise your youth; instead, you should be an example to the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity." Let me explain what this verse is not saying. This verse is not saying, "Be stuck up and arrogant because you're young." It's not saying, "Live it up and party while you can because YOLO."

This verse is saying, "Don't let the adults opinions bring you down. Don't be discouraged by other's opinions. Keep found what you're doing for Christ's Kingdom." This verse says very specifically, "Be an example to believers," not the world, the church.

Be an example in speech. If you're a Christian, "no foul language is to come from your mouth, but only what is good for building up someone in need, son that it gives grace to those who hear." (Ephesians 4:29) Those f bombs you like to drop? Yeah, stop it. Now. Those curse words you like to sprinkle into your language on Facebook and Twitter? Delete them. Not only is it rude and uncalled for, but the Bible specifically calls against it. Does that statement build up someone? No? Then don't say it. Does that, "That's what she said joke" make someone's statement crude and irrelevant to the conversation now? Yes? Then hold your tongue and keep your mouth shut. Do the words hoe, slut, or skank uplift that girl? Do the words stupid, whack, or nigga, or gangsta build up that boys self-identity? Then don't address them as such. Your words are meant to be encouraging and uplifting, not slanderous and degrading.

Be an example in conduct. "All bitterness, anger and wrath, shouting and slander must be removed from you, along with malice. And be kind and compassionate to one another, just as God also forgave you in Christ" (Ephesians 4:31). In other words, behave yourself. The way you act in public directly reflects not only your family and how they raised you, but also your God for whom "We are now ambassadors" (2 Corinthians 5:20). So all that rowdiness and not very smart stunts you and your friends pull? Yeah, don't. You shouldn't be extremely loud either, as you can see. Be kind to others, because who wants to associate with a God whose followers are rude?

Be an example in love. I'm not going to quote the entirety of 1 Corinthians, but let me point out a few things. This is not talking about the kind of love you have towards your family, your friends, or even to your husband or wife. This is talking about spiritual love. Deep, meaningful love. Love is patient. If someone is in your way, be patient, maybe they're having a problem. Love is not boastful or conceited. If you did this big awesome thing and it's so cool and you're so proud of it, good for you. We're all happy for you, great job! But please, don't rub it in our faces every chance you get. Love keeps no records of wrongdoings. If someone hurts you, find it in your soul and by the help of God, forgive them, and forget about it. Put it in the past, it is irrelevant.

Be an example in faith. In the movie Amazing Grace, which chronicles the story of William Wilberforce and his drive to abolish slavery in England, one of the characters, William Pitt, states," We're too young to realize certain things are impossible. Which is why we will do them anyway." That is the faith we should have. We do not know if anything is possible, but we believe that God can do anything, so we jump at the chance to do things for God. Faith is about action. About moving. We are too young to worry about what the world thinks of our radical Christianity, we are young, and therefore have the audacity to move when God tells us to.

Be an example in purity. You guys, society, and sadly everyone in churches now, expect you to have sex before marriage. If you are in a relationship for longer than six months, it is expected that you have done it. You can't have a healthy relationship without having sex. This is a lie. We are supposed to be an example! Why aren't we stepping up to the challenge of standing for purity and a clean heart in this world that advocates sexual experimentation? This is not just a physical purity, this is about your heart. There is so much I could say about this, but I need another post to fully go into it.

Your time, OUR time, is now. It's not after college, it's right now. What are you being held back by that you cannot fully commit yourself to the work of God? If it's a person, sever those ties. If it's a job, quit it. God will provide for you being faithful. If it's your family, move out. God has called you to something bigger than what you're doing right now.

Please. Please, don't waste these years. You were made for so much more than this.

Burdened in Christ,
Emily E.

Oppositions

This world we live in is full of different ideas, religions, and opinions. In our society, we have such contrasting ideas, each thinking it is right, that sometimes we cause an intellectual, theological, and political stalemate. We have doubts, not only about the opposing side's opinions but about our own as well. When we confront our own doubts and learn the truth about them, we stand stronger in our beliefs, and can represent with more boldness and clarity than before. When we dig into the doubt of the other side, we can represent their opinions, and still keep ours intact. Though we may not be in agreement, we can still stand in a mutual understanding. Instead of throwing blind, one-sided accusations, we can come to a mutual disagreement. It is not about proving the other wrong; it is about respect. When we show respect, we show not only maturity but humility and civility. To respect those you agree with is incredibly easy. To respect those who think against you is incredibly hard. It is hard, but not impossible. It takes a mind willing enough to view the problem from all sides, but stubborn enough to hold firm in the face of unsupportive evidence. We are a generation open to new ideas, yet strong-willed enough to fight for our own. We are a generation open to intellectual challenges but are not easily confused. We will fight that the sky is orange, even if it clearly blue. We will take a stance that seems unorthodox, but when inspected falls in line with the oldest of tradition.

I stand on the side of stubborn pride. I refuse to be proven wrong. I will fight until you understand my views. I will easily forget to listen and explore your views, though. I am trying to be better about it, but it takes a lot of work to stop being selfish. I am willing, just not in the heat of the debate. I can listen, just not when I think what I have to say is more important. I am a reason we have a problem in society. I am the stubborn, the intolerant.

But what if I, and those like me, weren't? What if instead of intolerance — which is not necessarily being rudely against a viewpoint, but rather a certain fear and even ignorance of that view — we were receptive to hear their side of the story? What if we were not only willing to hear but were willing to really listen? What if instead of thinking about our next comeback, we take in what they have to say and truly think about their opinions? What if instead of being rude, we were civil and kind in our words? What kind of world would we live in?

Now consider this. God nor Jesus ever promised peace for Christians. We were not promised that everyone would love us because we are those chosen to inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. In fact, Jesus says the exact opposite. We will be persecuted in His name. Almost all of the 12 were killed as a result of their unwavering faith. We are not meant to be given peace. We are meant to be given the exact opposite. We are promised ridicule, persecution and abandonment. We do not live in the perfected earth yet, and we won't for some time. We live in the world that is ruled by Satan and by evil. As a result as pilgrims in this hostile land, we are not going to have rest, not now, at least.

When people say the world hates Jesus, I sometimes find myself disagreeing. When Jesus walked the earth, it was not the sinners that hated Him, it was the church. The Pharisees, the priests were the ones who put Him on a cross, they were the lines who arrested Him and put Him on trial. The sinners loved Jesus because He brought them hope. Jesus reached out to them, the ones the church ridiculed.

The world today doesn't hate Jesus. If given a true example of the love of Jesus, I'm sure many more would be willing to put their trust in Him. No, the world hates the church. The bigoted, harsh people who persecute and destroy in the name of our God. Those who led the Crusades, and the ones who claimed lands for their countries and their God. No, the world hates us because we hate them. We turn our noses up at the homeless, we give the cold shoulder to the pregnant girls, afraid and alone. We shout labels and venomous sneers at the sinners, the homosexuals, the alcoholics, the drug addicts when we forget that we are just as unworthy of Christ's sacrifice as they are.

We are no better than this world, but we believe that we are. We are just as sick and twisted in our cold dead hearts as they are. So shame on you, you who gives the disapproving glance to the scantily dressed girl. Shame on us, who close our doors to those of different cultures. Shame on me, who walks by the homeless without a second thought. Shame on the church, for their legalistic lies. And shame on our hearts, for becoming hardened to the troubles of the world.

The world hates Jesus because the Jesus they see in us is a judgemental, biased jerk. They hate Jesus because we hate Him. If we loved Him, we wouldn't slander His name. If we loved Him, we wouldn't hate them. If we loved Him, we would become like Him.

For more on this, please listen to God Is Not A White Man by Gungor.
Emily E.

From the Field - Beginnings of Worship

As I sat on the bus on the way back to my apartment last night after church, I realized, that even though I have no clear idea of how to start a worship band, I do know that you have to start with a heart of worship. It doesn't take a spiritual gift of administration and development to create something from seemingly nothing. Ultimately, that's God's job, but He wants to see us come before Him saying we need His help with this task.

And so, I am coming to Him for help. What do I say, how do I approach this subject? How do I ask for members, how do I spot out the spiritual leaders? Where do I go from here with this idea? To have an idea is one thing, but to put into action as a single person is another. Many times, it takes a team of people to make one person's idea a reality. I don't have that team to work with at Richmond. It's pretty much just me for a while.

Friday night, while we were sitting around at the welcome party, it was very hard for me to discern who in the room was a spiritual leader and who was not. I did feel as though one boy had the potential to be a leader, and was to some extent, but his heart attitude is not in the right place at all. I felt as though though others did follow him naturally, but he could be so much more.

As for music to introduce and integrate into this group, I am at a loss. I know what we sing in the youth group back home, but I don't know what songs they are used to here. I want to give them something fresh and new. I've been looking into worship leaders and their music, and while I have a good amount of well known songs, I want to let them experience the renewed passion you can have from learning a new song. A song who's words you listen to before you sing. What about you all? What are some worship songs or artists that speak to you? Feel free to comment as much as you like, I would love any and all ideas.

Working hard,
Emily E.