Sins of Omission

Have you ever felt a tugging at your heart, and ignored it?

Perhaps you heard God whispering in your ear, "speak to that person" or "join that group" or "stand up for the right." If you've always heeded that call, then congratulations. If you're a sinner like most of us, then you've probably failed at this more than once.

Last week my family was involved in a car accident. It was an amazing experience—a Dodge pickup slammed into a semi truck ahead of us, spraying an explosion of glass and metal through the air, then it bounced off our back fender leaving little more than a crease. There were six of us in the Suburban, and we were gasping with relief, praising God that no one got so much as a scratch. The truck was a mangled wreck, but the driver walked out unhurt.

Why Killing Cattle Doesn’t Work

Do you ever find yourself reaching an intense spiritual high one moment, only to crash and burn the next? Perhaps you get some wonderful inspiration from a time of prayer and meditation, you make all kinds of fresh resolutions, and then you’re faced with another human being. Then your true colors show when you hit the roof about a tiny problem, or you gripe or gossip, or you do exactly the opposite of what you’d just been intending to do.

Cow, a photo by Atli Harðarson on Flickr.

That’s the story of my life, unfortunately, and it’s coming clear during this time of fasting and prayer. Just as I think I’m doing something wonderfully holy (giving up snacks and dessert—yikes!), I mess everything up by some act of disobedience.

I suspect that I’m not the only one who experiences  this. In fact I know  I’m not the only one, just from looking at the ancient Israelites. You have probably heard the phrase “obedience is better than sacrifice,” but do you know where it comes from? Those are the words of Samuel, the prophet of the Lord, spoken to King Saul after a particularly nasty incident involving the Amalekites. God had commanded Saul to utterly destroy these people, along with their possessions and animals. Saul was more than willing to fight the Amalekites and went out in obedience to God’s command, but when it came to slaughtering all of those perfectly good cattle and sheep—he just couldn’t do it.

For Samuel it must have been like watching a train wreck in slow motion. He was incredibly upset at Saul’s act of outright disobedience, and finally cornered him. What was the king’s excuse? He said that the animals were meant as a sacrifice to the Lord. That sounds wonderful, right? Read Samuel’s response and listen for the frustration in his voice:

Surrendering Dreams

I don't usually respond to posts on other blogs, but this is an exception. One of the Altogether Separate community members recently sent me to a post by Miss Raquel over at the God's Daughter blog. She told the story of a fellow Christian blogger who died in May, leaving a striking legacy behind him.


In the last blog post that he published, Joshua Steven Eddy wrote about the need to surrender everything— even those beautiful dreams that we hold close to our hearts—to the Lord. His words were inspiring:

To surrender a precious dream is a fearful thing, but to pursue anything but the full measure of the glory of God’s love is a wasted life.

About two weeks after he wrote this, Joshua was killed in a hiking accident. 

Book Review: Radical

“We are settling for a Christianity that revolves around catering to ourselves when the central message of Christianity is actually about abandoning ourselves.” 

― David Platt, Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream

Poverty. Persecution. Suffering. Addiction. Darkness. These are things that consume our world, hold happiness in a stranglehold, and suck the life out of billions of people. This planet we call home is riddled with pain, and those of us who are blessed enough to be removed from such horrors as starvation, disease, and filth so easily ignore it all. It is so easy to sit inside our air conditioned houses on cushy couches and make grandiose plans about our futures.

I do not usually read books that I have never heard anything about, but when I saw a book titled Radical: Taking Back Your Faith From the American Dream, I had to check it out. What I found was a gripping, convicting, inspiring call to action that continues to fill my mind and heart with questions and controversies.

Is God Guilty of Murder?

I don’t like this subject.

Christian apologetics is great, especially if it’s on a subject like Creation vs. Evolution, or the Resurrection of Christ, or Transubstantiation,  but when it gets on a subject like the righteousness of God and his judgment things get a bit messy.

A dear cousin of mine recently called me out on a statement I made about the pro-life vs. pro-choice debate. I was arguing that abortion was unjustified according to God’s law, which eventually degenerated into a debate about the consistency of God’s character concerning murder. This went on for dozens of comments back and forth (we were on a Facebook status update when all of this started), until we both had to sit down and seriously formulate some arguments. I think that Facebook is an awful place to carry on a debate, so I decided to reproduce some of my arguments here, on my blog, for clarity. Perhaps some of my readers have input for me, either encouragement or criticism. Whatever anyone has to offer, I would be appreciative of anything that will help sharpen my wits and keep me grounded in the truth.

Why Am I Not Better?

Click the photo to view larger:

Photo edited from play, a photo by gagilas on Flickr.

Text edited from Heart to Heart with Holley, Why We Don't Have to Try So Hard

100 Reasons I Give Thanks

1. I have a merciful Savior who loves me, warts and all.
2. The leaves change color in the fall; they don’t have to, but they do.
3. My mother is a creative person who “gets” me on so many levels and who loves me to death.
4. My father is a humorous and loving man who provides well for our family and would do anything for us.
5. My little brother may be a twerp sometimes, but he’s my twerp and I know that he loves me…deep down.
6. I have a part-time job with my family that allows me to make a regular paycheck and have plenty of time to listen to books on my iPod.
7. I am incredibly blessed to have so much extended family living nearby; my grandparents are amazing.
8. Foggy mornings.
9. While I may not have many friendships, the ones I have are deep and full of meaning, purpose, beauty, and laughter.
10. I am in on the Goodwill Secret—and am not afraid to utilize my knowledge.
11.  I have the freedom to experiment, to explore, to create a future that’s perfectly suited to me.
12.  I have access to an awesome public library filled with thousands and thousands of books, DVDs, and audio CDs.
13.  My country grants me freedom of religion, and I need have no fear to worship.
14.  I am physically fit, capable of doing everything I want to do.
15.  There are Panini sandwiches and gallons of pesto in the world.
16.  I have been able to pursue a non-traditional education through homeschooling, CLEP and DSST tests, and online college.
17.  Despite the fact that my body does not like my fingers and frequently attempts to sever them, I have never been seriously injured.

My Bucket List In Progress

A couple months ago I wrote a post about bucket lists, where I wrote about lifelong goals, living to the fullest, the magic of thinking big, etc. Well, I have since created a list of my own. 

In case you're not familiar with Heritage Makers, it's an awesome online program that gives you the ability to create gorgeous custom storybooks, calendars, canvas prints, greeting cards, invitations, and even personalized playing cards (watch the video introduction here). I used HM to create a 14x11 poster of my bucket list (see the image above) to frame and hang on the wall above my bed as a reminder of my goals.

I call this my "Bucket List in Progress" because it is by no means a concrete thing. I've listed such goals as "write a textbook" and "own a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel" that I may not want to do someday for a myriad of reasons. But this is an outline, a rough sketch, something to aim for. I intend to alter it every few years to accommodate new goals and cross out the ones I've already accomplished, honing it to a razor-sharp edge of intention. 

So without further ado I present to you my current bucket list, with goals listed in no particular order: 

The old streets of Saltaire Village, a photo by Paul Stevenson on Flickr.

1.       Keep it simple

2.       Stay under 130 lbs.

3.       Deep relationships

4.       Create a self-study program for lifelong learning

5.       Find or create work that I love

6.       Live in England

7.       Make a friend in every European country

8.       Fall in love

9.       Discover my reasons for living

10.   Work for myself

11.   Get good at tennis

12.   Ride a horse “in the rough”

Les Miserables West End, a photo by mart wegman on Flickr.

13.   Learn another language

14.   See a show on Broadway/the West End

15.   Learn to dance

Grayson.., a photo by Bruce Tuten on Flickr.

16.   Scuba dive in a coral reef

17.   Sleep in a British castle

18.   Own a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel

19.   Spread the Gospel

20.   Always tithe at least 10%

21.   Become influential in a godly ministry

It is Finished, a photo by abcdz2000 on Flickr.

22.   See the Northern Lights

23.   Visit

•        The British Museum

•        The Uffizi Gallery

•        The Smithsonian

•        The Louvre

24.   Live at least six months in a foreign country

25.   Tour New England

26.   Live in my “dream cottage” (a white cottage on a New England beach)

27.   Create a lovely garden

cutting loose, a photo by SqueakyMarmot on Flickr.

28.   Become a semi-professional photographer

29.   Become a connoisseur

30.   Read the complete works of Shakespeare

31.   Discover my strengths, weaknesses, passions, and gifts

32.   Never take on a lifestyle of debt

33.   Be a major influence in a child’s life

34.   Prison ministry

35.   Become an expert

36.   Win a prestigious blog award

37.   Write a textbook or study guide

Flags!, a photo by Paul Kehrer on Flickr.

38.   Be a New York Times bestselling author

39.   Go to a Green Bay Packer Game

40.   Make mistakes

41.   Learn to not take offense

And what is your personal opinion of these goals? Do you have a bucket list of your own? Are you willing to post it for the world to see?

Fear of Naïveté

Naïveté: the state or quality of being naive; ingenuousness; simplicity

This word comes from the French language, and originally denoted a state of naturalness or innocence. At one time people used it positively, with no stigma attached. How about now? When you describe someone as naive you are usually condemning them for their inexperience, lack of knowledge, or downright ineptitude. It's certainly not a compliment. This change in meanings signals a change in mindset that has sunk so deeply into our brains that it is hardly recognized as an opinion.

I'm not certain whether or not this mindset is isolated in modern-day America or if it is common to most men in all places in all times, but it has certainly permeated many areas in our culture. This is the mindset of sophistication, characterized by a downright fear of  naïveté. We try to sophisticate everything: investing, relationships, education, art, generosity, fashion, careers, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Sure, there are a few lazy slobs who couldn't care less, but the prevailing theme in our culture seems to be that if it isn't complicated, isn't dramatic, isn't mature, then it's not worth having or doing. 

No simple, fun-loving, childish abandonment for us, no sir! No belief in a God we cannot see, no sir! No real joy in living in this wondrous world, no sir! We need to be sophisticated, we need to sexualize preteens, we need to invest in opportunities we can't even understand, we need to have the best and most expensive of everything. 

Innocence is way out of vogue.

What would happen if we weren't afraid to be natural and innocent? What if we weren't afraid to put up blinders and neglect the seedy headlines for once and indulge in a little childish wonder? “Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven." Our Lord calls us to humble ourselves, a novel and largely unwelcome concept. We are to be as innocent as doves. While not forgetting to also be as shrewd as serpents, we must realize that we are not called to be sophisticated, we are called to be childlike. The sophisticate is proud because he lives in a world he claims not to understand, the naif is humble because he lives in a world he knows he understands completely. Which one are you?

(17) impromptu adventures....the child is still in all of us, a photo by fishgirl7 on Flickr.

A Light in God's Places

In response to another post, Total Abandonment, I’ve received some wonderful answers and insights! I put the same post on another blog, The Britophile Diaries, and got answers over there as well, so I thought I’d share them for anyone who’s in the same pickle as I’ve been in!

Ana Mari reminded me that no one person can have all the answers, only God. She is a woman who became a missionary to Costa Rica a little over a year ago, sacrificing much but with no regrets! She could have had a life of leisure, but decided that that wasn’t what she wanted. God answered her prayers and gave her the desires of her heart. She said that if my desire is to go to Britain to study, then I can serve the Lord there the same as if I give it all up and go serve the unreached right away.  Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart.”

Don and Shelly responded to my comment,  "Is this what following Christ is like, or is this what fighting against Him is like?" They say it's a little of both. Sometimes we try so hard to follow the will of God that we miss it entirely.  I should just keep praying to seek His will. They gave a great example: perhaps Noah wanted at first to build a monument to God that would testify to many, but God told him to build an ark instead. Perhaps Britain is my ark, and while donating my money toward a cause could be a good thing, following God’s plan could be a great thing! They reiterated what I’ve heard before on this subject: I mustn’t be “guilted” into or out of anything. I especially liked this point, “Perhaps the test for you here is not as much about making the ultimate "correct" choice, but being able to wait upon Him to give you direction.” I should have patience; hard, but necessary!

The Different Homeschool Girl

This extremely insightful and encouraging article was written by Chris Davis (www.chrisdavis.wordpress.com). If you're a homeschool girl like me, or you're a homeschooling parent, you probably want to read this, if only to know that you're not alone!

She lives in a small town in Tennessee, or in a subdivision in North Carolina, or on a ranch in Montana.

She may be 15 or she may be a college graduate. Either way, odds are not many boys have ever paid much attention to her. She may wonder if she will ever get married. She is lonely.

What’s her problem? The answer is (not so) simple: She is different.

She doesn’t particularly like being different. She may tell you she doesn’t care; but she does.

Behind her back, her peers say she is a snob. Her mom says the other girls are jealous. That doesn’t help much. So she tries to be friendly and kind but that doesn’t help much, either. She may be shunned by other girls and ignored by boys.

She is different and who wants to be different? Nobody likes others who are different and nobody likes being different, either.

I have met many homeschooled girls like her as I have traveled and spoken at conferences around the world. Each girl thinks she is the only one with these feelings. But, there are many, many just like her. If they ever found one another, there would be a huge group hug. And, yes, probably lots of tears.

Total Abandonment

Poverty. Persecution. Suffering. Lostness. Addiction. Darkness. These are things that consume our world, hold happiness in a stranglehold, and suck the life out of billions of people. This planet we call home is riddled with pain, and those of us who are blessed enough to be removed from such horrors as starvation, disease, and filth so easily ignore it all. It’s so easy to sit inside our air conditioned houses on cushy couches and make grandiose plans about our futures.

But don’t we have a responsibility to the lost and suffering? As a Christian I believe that Jesus has called me to follow Him in making disciples, bringing the gospel to all nations, and helping the suffering. It is my purpose in life to know, love, and serve Him. Where does a trip to Britain fit into all that?

For a long time I’ve struggled with the difficult question, “Is this really how God wants me to spend my time and money?” Couldn’t my Britain fund be put to a better use in saving someone’s life in Sudan or feeding a hungry child in Guatemala? Should I be flying to Tanzania instead of England? Should I work with the unreached masses in India rather than attend a Bible school in Lancashire?

The answer seems obvious—of course bringing the gospel to the world is more important than a pleasure-trip for me. But then how do I go about it? Do I relinquish all my dreams of European travel and immediately dedicate myself to the lost and starving?  Which lost and which starving? African, Asian, American?

Is it going overboard to give up my lifelong dream for Christian service, or is it exactly the kind of radical devotion and total abandonment that Jesus requires?

Have you ever been faced with this dilemma—to pursue something for yourself or to give it up for others, or if you’re a Christian, for Christ? I don’t want to live a self-consumed life where I am the end and the means and Jesus is just a friendly spectator. I don’t want to go to Britain if it isn’t His will.

And so I’m back to square one. Confused, worried, depressed, unsure. Is this what following Christ is like, or is this what fighting against Him is like? 

London Eye & Big Ben at sunset, a photo by Harshil.Shah on Flickr.

Pink Patang, a photo by Meanest Indian on Flickr.

One Dress. 100 Days. For Orphans.

This girl is doing something radical. Let's help her.

If you've ever meant to support a good cause--head up a fundraiser, start a movement, whatever--and haven't taken action on it, this is your chance to help a girl who has taken the plunge and is doing something wonderful. 

Miss Elaini has suffered terribly, a passionate love for Jesus, and a big dream. Her goal is to raise $50,000 for orphans in India by wearing the same dress for 100 consecutive days, dressing it up with different accessories to make each day unique. She's put so much time, love, and effort into this project, and has been rewarded with over $20,800 in donations so far! But she's on day 96 now, and time is running out. 

So I'm reaching out to whatever audience I might have and asking that you do something--however small--to help further Elaini's dream. You only have four days left to throw a party, or just donate $10, $15, or $500. This is a worthwhile cause, something fun, creative, and beautiful that we can get behind!  

Her website is www.misselainious.com.

Like Costly Perfume

Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But one of his disciples...objected, “Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages."

Amy Carmichael was the daughter of an Irish pastor who left her home and family to spend 55 years--without furlough--ministering to orphans in India. She described missionary life as, "Simply a chance to die." Reach back farther into history and you'll come across women like Jeanne d'Arc who followed what she saw as God's calling, and ended her short life on a fiery stake. Both of these women--along with countless others--wasted their lives.

Lord, What Have I Done?

I don't believe all of this "end of the world on May 21" business. Jesus said that no man would know the day or hour of His second coming, and I take that quite literally.

That said, what if Jesus really did decide to come back to earth tomorrow? What if He comes back today? Or Sunday? Or in three years? It frightens me to think what He would say if I came before His throne right now. "Well done, good and faithful servant"? Somehow, I think not.

I've never really shared the Good News with anyone, which is a huge part of my reason for being alive. I've prayed for plenty of people, but it's usually muddled by distraction and half-hearted preoccupation. I often have a terrible attitude, even to those I those the most. I have a fear of witnessing, a fear of doing the wrong thing, a fear of doing the right thing. And I'm so confused.

Jesus, if you're reading this, please, please, help me get my act together. I am to be "alert and of sober mind" to be prepared for Your return, and I feel like a miserable failure. Show me Your Will and Your Way for my life, and give me the strength, courage, and wisdom to follow it.

Leap of Faith

Leap of Faith, originally uploaded by eatbitter.

Ideas are cheap and easy. Everyone has them, they're practically lying around for the taking. Just today I was thinking that someone should invent a fluorescent light tube with edges--like a rectangular prism--so that they wouldn't roll off of things so easily. Stupid, I know, but it could possibly inspire the right kind of person to go out there and make a lot of money with a similar concept.


But this doesn't just apply to work, inventions, and new year's resolutions--it's actually critical to our faith.  

Book #11: Uncle Tom's Cabin

"This is God's curse on slavery!--a bitter, bitter, most accursed thing!--a curse to the master and a curse to the slave! I was a fool to think I could make anything good out of such a deadly evil."

- Harriet Beecher Stowe, Uncle Tom's Cabin

My Alternate Title:

Slaves of the South: The Honest Truth

It was the best-selling novel of the 19^th century. It was written nine years before the start of the Civil War. It played a major role in cementing Northerners into abolitionism and Southerners into entrenched slaveholders. It may very well have been partially responsible for the bloodiest war in America’s history and the consequent freedom of an entire race of enslaved people.

Uncle Tom’s Cabin has been described as a “sentimental novel”. It was heavily criticized in its own day as being grossly inaccurate, and is largely ignored today as a melodramatic novel chock full of nasty stereotypes. But there has to be something in this very long book that struck a chord in the hearts and minds of thousands of Americans, and indeed, the world.

The Style

The writing is sophisticated and a tinge flowery, with a strong motherly air of sympathy throughout. The narrator often speaks of slaves with emphatic sarcasm (repeatedly referring to them as property, i.e., “the property did this and that”). It is also heavily laced with aside notes appealing to readers’ humanity, and asking wives and mothers to put themselves in the slaves’ positions. Critical points are driven home by long dialogues in which characters discuss the causes, repercussions, and moral dilemmas of slavery.

Harriet Beecher Stowe
By Francis Holl (1815–1884)
[Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

On one hand, nearly every character is a “type”, e.g., the wicked master, the lazy master, the

 ambitious slave, the hardened slave, the crushed slave. Many characters (Evangeline, for example) are pathetically melodramatic, and I sometimes wished Harriet would just cut the sappy imagery and get on with the story.

On the other hand, the characters are all separate people whom the reader loves or loathes in turn. By the end of the book you are aching for Tom, wishing good for him even when you know it’s hopeless, and imagining the worst kind of death possible for people like George Harris’ master, and Simon Legree.  

Two Stories

There are two major plot-threads that weave in and out of this chronicle, that of the title character—a kind, devoted, Christian, slave—and the Harris family—slaves George, Eliza, and little Harry. All of them are beset by the ills of a twisted system and the cruelty, or apathy, of their masters. It is the way that each character deals with their own situation that brings them to such very different ends.

Who Would Have Thought?

Disasters happen. But are they always a bad thing?


If you watch the news or the weather channel then you probably heard about the massive snow that much of America experienced a few weeks ago. I say "experienced". It was actually more like a pre-apocalyptic blizzard that was so sudden and unexpected that we got a little idea of what it might feel like to be buried under a rain of volcanic ash.


We hardly ever get a sizable snow in Northwest Arkansas. Really--we think that four inches is huge! We put on our ski gear and head for a hill with our little sleds, then zoom down the slope for a couple of hours until there's grass poking through our tracks, then then call it a day and go inside for hot chocolate and brownies.


This, however, was a very different story. I woke up one morning and simply couldn't believe my eyes. This is what my cottage garden arbor looks like in spring:

And this is what I woke up to:

I was shocked, to say that least. But the whole family was pretty happy with this snowpocalypse. After all, it was a novelty, and we were safe and warm inside our house with plenty of ingredients for hot soup.

Then Aaron went for a walk to the back of our property, behind the line of juniper trees. He called out...

Praying for an Answer

Not all questions can be answered by Google, originally uploaded by jaygooby.

I almost didn't write this post. It's a leap of faith in itself. I'm putting out there on the internet that I trust God enough to believe His promises. And it's harder than it sounds.

I've got a decision to make, and I'm tired of weighing pros and cons. I've asked advice, I've mulled it over until my head aches, I've gnawed my lips and done the research and hemmed and hawed. Now it's time to come to a conclusion of the matter. I want to make the best decision, and even though God may not "care" what I do, He is also the only one who knows which path would bring me the most happiness, opportunity, fulfillment, etc. I really want to make the best decision, so why not try asking the omniscient God of the universe? I think I have the right:

 “Again, truly I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything they ask for, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three gather in my name, there am I with them.” 

Matthew 18:19-20

Anything they ask for? That's powerful. If Mom and Dad and I get together on this, apparently we should be able to get an answer. Here's another one:

Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 

Psalm 37:4

I had a great conversation with an elderly neighbor who has been a man of God for decades. He shared some examples of times when he asked the Lord to answer a specific question (should we buy this house, etc.) and He answered loud and clear! Sometimes opportunities he couldn't have imagined popped up later and proved that he had indeed taken the right path.


He told me to get into a quiet place, ask my Father in Heaven a specific question (not, "What should I do?", more like "Yes or No to A and B?"), sit still and listen.

Listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, listen, LISTEN!

How Far? Too Far?

As most of you know, I am a rabid Britophile. Give me practically anything British and I'll jump sky high. I especially love British books and films. I especially love great British actors. And I especially love Alan Rickman and Emma Thompson.

So imagine my surprise, my thrill, my veritable ecstasy when I learned about a movie starring both of them--and only them. Yes indeed, it's The Song of Lunch: an hour-long drama drawn almost completely from a long poem, dialog and all, and starring only two characters.

The plot is very simple: two ex-lovers reunite after 15 years for lunch at a little Italian restaurant. Their conversation starts out well, but does not go quite as planned. After all is said and done they both realize that they can never erase the past or recapture what is gone. It was a brilliant movie with truly insightful, human writing and two of the greatest actors on the screen today.

But I cannot give this film my wholehearted approbation. It is uncomfortably sensual and I had to fast-forward through some rather revealing parts. But I was enjoying it so much that even after one or two "indiscreet" parts I just had to watch it to the end.

Which brings me to the subject of this post.