Christians are not perfect. Just forgiven.

I have that saying on a key chain that hangs with my keys. You know, I have friends that are not Christians. The ones who don't go to church. May believe that there's a god, but are not quite sure. Or you know, those one friends who grew up going to church and Sunday school, and confirmation class, but then they grew up and drifted away from that life. Some of those friends may claim to still be Christians but as the old saying goes, "Going to church makes you as much of a Christian as sitting in the garage makes you a car."
I think sometimes people choose not to be Christians because they think they have to give up all their fun and I think they do view Christians as being stuck up....but just like my key chain says we're not perfect and we definitely don't call ourselves that, but we remember that when we do screw up we're forgiven. Now that doesn't mean we should take advantage of that. I strongly dislike the people who think it's okay to live together and have premarital sex. When you know it's wrong, why do you do it?
Another reason people may have a hard time believing is because they're afraid to put their trust in something. I've always had the philosophy though that if some how God doesn't end up being real and when I die I figure that out at least I believed in something and I'd rather believe and have Him not be real than to not believe and come to find that He is real. Probably not a good reason to be a Christian but hey, I'm not perfect. :)

In the words of C.S. Lewis "I didn’t go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don’t recommend Christianity."

I'm sure there are countless other reasons why people don't believe and I really don't know why I was thinking about this but I just felt the need to write about it. So if this was offensive I apologize and if you didn't like it then don't read it.

Eugene...

Dear Eugene,
I just wanted you to know that Dad has prostate cancer. He should be fine. Thank God! I also wanted you to know again that even though you were probably one of the worst fathers I know, I still forgive you and I wish that you would have been lucky enough to see how well your children grew up, to meet your grandchildren, and to meet your great granddaughter. She's pretty awesome! And not only is Dad a better father than you were now he's making sure that Gracie gets the grandfather that we never had.
I also want to let you know that I agree and understand my friend's reasoning behind reincarnation. I believe that those who have died are reincarnated before they're taken up to Heaven on Judgement Day. I don't know of any place in the Bible saying what happens to us while we wait for Christ to return. I do know that the Bible says that Jesus defeated death and the devil, but is that really true when many people still don't come to know Christ? They still die and the devil wins that person. That's why I believe that God gives those who die not knowing a second chance before Judgement Day so that they can come to know Him. I hope this mostly for your sake.
Despite your awfulness I really wish I had known you.
Love Always,
Elizabeth

Truly Blessed

Last week I realized (and I'm just now getting to write about it. :) ) I am truly blessed. My dad was recently diagnosed with a mild form of prostate cancer and I'll admit, I was pretty upset about it. I mean, come on, it's cancer. Cancer is like the ultimate cuss word that nobody wants to hear. I was also, believe it or not, pissed at my dad because he's the guy who won't do anything about cancer. He never thought he would get it because cancer doesn't run in his family. It's heart problems he has to worry about. That's why he still hasn't gone to get his colonoscopy even though he's 3 years overdue and the doctor told him last year he needed one. I had a little bit of the "serves him right" attitude.
 At first I didn't really have anybody to turn to because my parents didn't want me telling anybody and the rest of my family didn't know. The only reason I knew was because I was with my mom and dad when he received the phone call and after we found out Mom and Dad didn't really talk about it anymore. That's how our family deals with things. We only talk about it when there's been development or it's like super duper important.
However, I did email my block group from school and those who received my email have been very supportive about it and understanding and they have no idea how much I appreciate it. When it was okay to start telling people I told my two best friends. One of them has experienced a parent having cancer. Both of them were supportive and told me that they were there for me. And they definitely have been.
Last week I had to tell a few of my friends  from school that I wouldn't be able to go to our friend's wedding because we didn't know what was going to be going on with my dad yet and once again all of them reassured me of their presence and made sure I knew they would be there for me. :)
Then two days ago I ended up having to tell the couple I'm staying with for my internship (which is so awesome you have no idea! And I'm NOT working with deaf kids. My emphasis is actually more towards psychology now than interpreting. I'm actually not even getting an interpreting degree. I'm getting a deaf studies degree which the degree just without the interpreting classes but without the interpreting class I can't be an interpreter) that Dad had cancer after they asked me about my parents' vacation plans. And I was once again given prayers and comfort. :)
The sad thing is that none of these blessings really hit me until yesterday after I got home from my internship. It was 9:00 at night. I was supposed to be home at 7:00. It's a 2 1/2 hour drive that turned into a 4 1/2 hour drive because of all the storms that there were. What also happened on my way hope which I'm really upset, embarrassed, and grateful for is that when I was about an hour and a half away from home I got pulled over for speeding, right when my mom was calling me too to see where I was (go ahead and laugh I know you want to). Thankfully since I'd never been pulled over before and I think also because he saw how nervous I was by how much my hands were shaking he let me go with a warning. So there it was my worst nightmare. Getting pulled over by a cop and getting caught in storm by myself and my perfect driving record ruined. I was so PISSED you have no idea. I was angry and tired and I just wanted to be home. And the reason I wrote this blog is because I'm still upset about it today, but as I was thinking and really understanding how lucky I was and hope much God was looking after me I realized I truly was blessed not just last night but with my family and friends and my job and my internship opportunity.

P.S. I totally blame my getting pulled over on my co-worker/ case worker Adam because he told me to speed home to beat the storm. :) 

You just might be a Lutheran if...

• You hold your hymnal open for the entire service but never look down at it.
• You think you're paying your pastor too much when he buys a new car after 9 years-I think our church is guilty if that. It was a while before my dad got a new car. :)
• You know church is going to be absolutely packed on Easter Sunday but you show up late anyway-ha, totally guilty of that. And I live right next door which is even sadder. :)
• You're watching Star Wars and when they say, "the force be with you" you reply with "and also with you."-you have no idea how much this makes me laugh. Lutherans are so big on "and also with you."
• J.S. Bach is your favorite composer just because he's Lutheran-dads guilty of that.
• You feel guilty about not feeling guilty-I don't know if I would put it that way or not.
• You actually think the pastors jokes are funny-sometimes, but not really. Pastors have the weirdest sense of humor.
• You dress up as your favorite reformer for Halloween-we've never actually done that but I think we talk about it every year. :)
• The only mealtime prayer you know is "Come Lord Jesus" and you can say it in one breath.-This is so true. ha, you have no idea how funny this is to me because it's so true. :p
• You believe that there is an 11th Commandment "If it's never been done that way before, don't do it."-once again so true...One thing Lutherans are afraid of is change.
• Your Baptist friends think you're Catholic
• Your Catholic friends think you're Baptist
• You sing "Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus" while sitting down-bahahaha...this one made me laugh so had.-but I'm not sure if we've actually done this before.
• All your relatives graduated from a school named Concordia-so far only my dad has, but both of the sibs went to a Concordia their freshman year of college.
• You know the different between a "collect" and a "gradual"-I don't even know if we use a gradual.
• You love the new hymnal-yup, I do.
• You hate the new hymnal.
• You make change in the offering plate for a $5 bill-I never have, but that is so us.
• Your idea of a mixed marriage is an ELCA bride and an LCMS groom.-My parents have already told me that if my fiance isn't LCMS he'll have to convert, even if he's ELCA and if he's WELLS I'd probably have to convert.
• Your 47 years old and your parents still won't let you date a Roman Catholic.-haha, so funny! :p
• You know how to say "Melanchthon" in German-nope, I have no idea.
• You hum "A Mighty Fortress is Our God" while mowing the lawn- I do not, but I do hum other hymns like "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing". I wonder if my dad hums hymns...hmm...
• Your LCMS pastor refers to St. Louis as "The Holy City"-haha, no I've never heard it called that...just home.
• When you're agreeing with someone instead of saying "yes, I agree" you say "this is most certainly true"-haha, yes I think I do...we love that phrase. :p
• You and your family of 7 go to a Lenten supper and leave a free will offering of $2.-no never done that
• You go to the Lenten supper at your church and skip the service after the meal-no, that's a no no. 
• Your church uses folding chairs but you call them "pews"-no I call our pews pews.
• Rather than introducing yourself to a visitor at church you just check their name in the guest book.-I don't think we use our guest book very much. I just ask Mom or Dad who the people are that I don't know.
• You think the way Calvinists number the commandments is not only incorrect but heretical.-I have no idea what this one means.
• The Sunday church bulletins are 17 pages long.-more like 7 or 8.
• You hold up the line at the end of the service-I don't. I can see my daddy any time. It's everybody else who holds up the line. :p
• You insist on spelling "catholic" with a small c.-nope.
• You know it's wrong to applaud during the service.-very...but I want to so bad.
• You doodle on the back of the communion cards.-no, the bulletin. :p
• Every time something changes, the old way was better.-yup, change bad!
• You have to rope off the last pews so the front ones aren't empty.-nope. My family will always be sitting in the front.
• Your house is a mess because you're saved by grace, not by works.-haha, too funny. We actually have a very clean house. But there are others things we lack because we're saved by grace not by works. 

Those were just for fun. Now on a more serious note...

I decided to do this blog because before coming to Bethel I kinda...pretty much hated...Lutherans, even though I was one. I hated how stuck up we were thinking we were better than everybody else. I hated how little we did for others, unless, of course, they were Lutherans. I hated that we were like robots during worship services not being able to clap. I was kinda excited to be able to go to contemporary worship and try out new churches.

But...then after spending a year and a May term at Bethel I've realized that there are some things that Lutherans are waaaayyy better at. I LOVE that our worship services don't just contain singing, praying, and a message. BORING!!! Plus, I can't listen to a 30-45 minute sermon. My attention span does not last that long. I love that we recite the Apostle's Creed (We're confessing our faith). I love that we have confession and absolution. When we had this "revival" on campus I'm not gonna lie, it didn't affect me, because for me confession is something that I do routinely. I don't need a revival. And then the absolution where you hear the sweet words..."Upon this your confession and in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Ahh...music to my ears! And we have Holy Absolution where we can confess something to your pastor. See, for me, I don't feel the need to confess my sins to everybody, unless that sin involves everybody and I need their forgiveness too. Otherwise it's between me and God. I like that we recite the Lord's Prayer and pray for those in need. I like that before the sermon we read from the Old Testament, Epistle, and the Gospel. And I like that everything else we do in worship comes from Scripture like the Benediction...LOVE the benediction. And you know, some of our hymns are not that bad. We have very good music.

However, there are things that Lutherans (me) lack. Lutherans are not very happy peppy people. That is one thing I liked about the other churches I went to. Everybody was so happy and friendly. I hate that we're so afraid of change. People in our congregation are so picky! I hate that we think other Christians need to be just like us and when they explain their faith it's not right unless you pretty much recite the Apostle's Creed to them. I hate how little we help others. And when we do it's for Lutheran people and it feels like a chore. That's one thing Lutherans definitely have wrong. "That we're saved by grace not by good works cuz that's what Paul says in the Bible." Okay, Lutherans if you know the Bible so well (I really don't know it that well) then try reading James where he says faith is pretty much crap unless you express it through your good deeds. Or like the song states, "Yes, they'll know we are Christians by our love, by our love. Yes they'll know we are Christians by our love." Or in the words of St. Francis, "Preach the Gospel, sometimes use words."

I'm hoping that after this realization I'll be able to come to a happy medium.

To end this...interesting blog I'm gonna copy the Mormon commercials (Cuz I kinda like them and think Lutherans and everybody else should do them):

I'm Elizabeth Troup and I'm a junior Psychology and Deaf Studies major at Bethel College in Indiana. I love psychology because I like learning more about the mind and how it works. I like seeing the effects that different things have on the mind like society and drugs. I think I like it so much because I'm always becoming more convinced of how normal I actually am. And I want to help others see how normal they are too. I want to comfort them by showing them that they're not the only one who's experienced that emotion before. I don't think there is a such thing as normal. We're all so unique but at the same time experience similar things and react in similar ways. God made us all individuals but I believe He put us all on this earth to help each other. Sometimes we need more than the simple fact that God is always with us. We need that hug or hear those words of comfort come out from a person's mouth. I love Deaf Studies and ASL (American Sign Language) because it is something that has been a part of my life since I was in kindergarten and I met a Deaf person for the first time. I love the history of the Deaf culture, the trials they had to go through and how far they have come. The development of ASL is extraordinary. The language is one like no other. It shows much more emotion then words could ever express. Since God didn't give me the gift of a fine singing voice I use my gift of signing to express my emotions along with the music. I absolutely love it! It's almost like acting in a way except you're not actually acting. When school starts to get to me or my family is stressing me out I know that I can always find refuge in the pages of a book, a pen in my hand, music to my ears, dance, or a classic romcom. I love reading. I'm  a wannabe writer. I love music especially the lyrics. I'm an amateur dancer. I love movies. I believe you can find a Christian message in just about every novel you read or movie you watch and if not a Christian message than some message that makes you stop and think. I love my family. They're so supportive. I love the fun we have together and the memories we make. I love my niece. She can always put a smile on my face. My name is Elizabeth Troup. I'm a daughter, a sister/sister-in-law, an aunt, a student, and an artist. I love my family, dogs, the arts. I don't care if people pick their noses cuz I do it too. I believe Jesus is my Lord and Savior and I'm a Lutheran.

I apologize if this has offended anybody. These are just my own opinions.

Shelter

During fall semester last year Bethel had Jars of Clay come and perform. The last song they sang was Shelter and I absolutely LOVE this song. So I wanted to share it all with you. I think the message of it is pretty extraordinary.

They aren't actually performing Shelter in this shot. I didn't get one of them singing that song. :)

To all who are looking down
Holding onto hearts still wounding
For those who’ve yet to find it
The places near where love is moving

Cast off the robes you’re wearing
Set aside the names that you’ve been given
May this place of rest in the fold of your journey
Bind you to hope, you will never walk alone

In the shelter of each other, we will live, we will live
In the shelter of each other, we will live, we will live
Your arms are all around us

If our hearts have turned to stone
There is hope, we know the rocks will cry out
And the tears aren’t ours alone
Let them fall into the hands that hold us

Come away from where you’re hiding
Set aside the lies that you’ve been living
May this place of rest in the fold of your journey
Bind you to hope that we will never walk alone

If there is any peace, if there is any hope
We must all believe, our lives are not our own
We all belong
God has given us each other
And we will never walk alone

"The LORD God said, "It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."-Genesis 2:18

"Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of us."

On Saturday and Sunday before coming back up to school I took the train to gma's where my brother and sister-in-law picked me up. And where Tim and Kristen are, there Gracie is also! :)
So since Mommy and Daddy were there to take care of Gracie I didn't get to spend as much time with her. But I did get to witness the love her parents have for her and the love that she has for her parents. It's been great to see how Tim and Kristen handle her and try to make her laugh. They're really great parents and it's been amazing to see my brother...and sister-in-law grow. In their love for each other. In their love for others. In their love for Gracie. In their love for God. And a growth in wisdom.
Now, this blog wasn't totally meant to praise my brother and sister-in-law. What I really wanted to say is that Gracie's laughter is so cute and contagious!
Tim was throwing her up in the air on Sunday afternoon and she was so happy and laughing hysterically. Kristen was bouncing her on the couch and she was laughing her deep belly laugh. I couldn't help but laugh myself. When I think about Gracie and her smiling and laughter it makes my day.

"Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of us."

Maundy Thursday

So since I wrote a blog about Valentine's day I thought it would only make sense for me to write about Maundy Thursday too. Not many people know about Maundy Thursday. So here are some quick facts

• Obviously it's the Thursday before Easter
• Has a lot of other names that I'm not gonna list. :)
• Commemorates the Last Supper when Jesus shared the Passover with the disciples.
• The Last Supper happened the night before He was crucified, hence why we celebrate it Thursday, the day before Good Friday-when He was crucified.
• Maundy Thursday's pretty solemn
• We remember His betrayal, the washing of the disciples feet, the breaking of Christ body (the bread) & sharing of His blood (the wine).

And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."-Luke 22:19-20

• So at our church because we are remembering the Last Supper we usually have one last communion service before Easter. It also prepares us for the sad day ahead on Good Friday. Our church service is really cool and after communion we strip the alter and cover everything with black cloth. Then on Good Friday the pastors dress only in black instead of their white robes. Then we read the story of Christ's crucifixion and dim the lights, but then we light a candle in His tomb to remember that there is hope & then the bell tolls & everybody leaves in silence. No greetings. Nothing. It sounds really depressing but I love Holy Week. It's so...beautiful & thought-provoking.
• Maundy comes from the Latin word-mandatum which means-commandment. Maundy Thursday is in reference to Jesus' commands for the disciples at the Last Supper to love and serve one another & to remember Him & what He did for us.

Footage from The Passion of  the Christ.

So I hope you guys learned something and set aside time today to remember Christ & what He did. I know some of you will be busy with family or if you're like me studying for finals next week. Remember what's most important!!!