Disillusioned

So, tonight Jason and I took Kaelyn to the park, as we often do on nights when we are all at home. Kaelyn loves the ducks at the park, so tonight we took some bread with us to give the ducks a little dinner. While Kaelyn was throwing bread in the water, most of the ducks were interested and came over to get their share of bread. However, there were about five ducks that wanted nothing to do with the bread. That is because those five ducks are fake. I noticed this a few weeks ago when we were down by the water looking at the ducks. I found it odd that there were certain ducks that never seemed to leave the spot where they were. Then I noticed the water line on one of the ducks. Real ducks don't get water lines! The more I looked at this duck, the more ridiculous is looked to me. Especially the one that is constantly beak-heavy.

The sad thing to me is that this isn't the only piece of "fake nature" that I have noticed surrounding me. There are the countless fake palm trees that are cell towers, which look atrocious by the way! There are also fake rocks that are covering electical boxes along a canyon road that we often take. The funny thing is, I think, we do this to cover up what is really there, but once you see it, it looks unnatural and odd. And you can't help looking at it every time you pass it. So, instead of covering it up, we actually are drawing more attention to it.

These fake ducks fall into another category, I think. Unless this is a way of covering up an underwater cell tower! These fake ducks, in my opinion, are to add to the ambiance of the park, even if there are no ducks around. This also strikes me as odd. Are people really happier in a park with fake ducks than with no ducks at all? Do people really gaze upon these fiber glass creatures and get a sense of calm over them? I sure don't!

The Wondeful World of Potty Training!

So, yesterday Jason and I had the joy of taking Kaelyn to Babies R' Us (Sorry I can't figure out how to type the "R" backwards!) to purchase a potty. I honestly wasn't thinking, "Alright, I'm going to potty train Kaelyn." My serious thought was, ok, we'll give this a try, and see if it works! If it does, great, if not, we'll put the potty on the shelf for another few months and try again.

So, last night we got home with the potty, and Kaelyn was so excited she was actually helping us put it together. As soon as we got it together, she opened the lid right up and took a seat! (Step number 1 of potty training... Not bad!)

So, since she was such a willing participant last night, I figured today at regular intervals I would take her in there diaper free, and see what would happen. I plopped her on there a few times, and she was so happy to be there. In fact at one point today I found her in the bathroom on her potty, of her own free will (fully clothed of course!)

Our last attempt of the night, I had put her on there, and we were happily reading the potty story book we bought with the potty last night, and all of the sudden she stood up, and a few drips came out! YAY!!! I had gotten her back on the potty, and we managed to get A WHOLE DRIP into the potty! So, I would say, day 1 of potty training was a success! Let's hope the rest of the days can be this good! Maybe tomorrow we'll get two drips in the potty!

How Far We Have Fallen

So, as some of you know, Jason and I have been on a journey the last two years to try to figure out what we feel the church should look like. Recently, Jason and I took a huge leap of faith and stopped attending a "church" altogether, or at least what some consider church. We believe that you don't go to church; rather, we are the church. And, for those of you who are about to go crazy, we really feel that we are following God's leading, and we aren't losing our faith. You just have to trust me here...

So, this is where it gets awkward, because everyone wants to know, "Well, what are you doing then?" And I am really still struggling to verbalize what we are doing exactly. I just know that we are absolutely fed up with church the way it is now, and there needs to be something completely different done, and not just cooler song sets and great theatrical lighting. If we truly want to be the church, we need to live life as Jesus did, not just hear great sermons that make us feel good, and leave doing nothing about it. I just want to get out of these Christian sub-cultures, and become relevant to those who aren't in a Christian sub-culture. And I want to make friends with people, not for the purpose of converting them, because then are they really friend? No, they are just projects!

I think the present day church has gotten so focused on "creating a mood" for worship, that we have missed the point entirely. We have spent so much time and energy trying to conjure up God that we completely miss Him. I think He does a fine enough job of making His presence known, and I don't think He needs our help.
Ok, I have probably completely lost some of you, and that's ok. I am just speaking from my heart, and typing what I am feeling. And if you don't agree with me, then that is great, and I honor your opinion as well. After all, the great mega-churches are reaching some. But not everyone. Not people like me. So, there needs to be a place for people like me, and that is what we are struggling to figure out what that looks like!

I would welcome your comments and dialogue about this matter! Always good to wrestle with others!