Confessions of a Discouraged Christian

Modern Christianity has completely lost its appeal. I don’t mean to say that Christ has lost his appeal, but rather that Christianity as a movement, or fad, or culture has. I don’t really know when this happened. Christianity used to be about having a personal relationship with Christ, but now it seems to be more about fitting into a particular culture, about conforming to a prescribed Christian culture rather than conforming to Christ himself. Someone please tell me, when did worshipping God become solely a musical preference? And when did the measure of spiritual maturity become determined by how many Christian books you’ve read or whether or not you’re on stage? Worse still, when did Christianity become just another advertisement, a label that I can somehow buy for myself if I just listen to the right music, read the right books, or say the right words?

Most of the time when I go to church, or even take the time to watch church services online or on tv, I feel like I’m going to a concert or watching a performance. Fancy lights, cool bands, and projector screens fill the stage area as hundreds of people passively sit by. I can’t help but wonder how many people would be there if we did not have such things. If we had no building to meet in, no Christian books to read, no Christian CDs to buy, no family festivals or youth group outings…if it were just the body of Christ, the Word of God, and Christ Himself…how many of us would take the time to meet? The fact is that materialism has the church in its grips. Yes, materialism is still materialism even when what you’re acquiring is “Christian.”

I’m not here to say that any of these things in themselves are wrong. On the contrary, they’re not at all. I’m just here to say that we must examine our minds and hearts and observe whether or not such a mentality has taken its hold of us. Are we following the Jesus of the Bible or are we following a Christian culture substitute? Are our church numbers growing because we’re reaching out with the Gospel or because we’re merely bringing in more like-minded people from other churches? Where is our money going? Where is our church money going? Are we buying what is necessary? Does what we are spending money on serve even the tiniest purpose to further the Gospel? Are we ourselves intentionally giving our time and money to the church or are we just another one of the Sunday masses? I ask these questions not to judge, but with a heavy and convicted heart, because I too have fallen prey to the trappings of materialism, selfishness, and the general desire to be a “cool” Christian. I see this in the young and old in the church, and I see this in myself.

It is my hope and prayer that we will no longer settle for mere books about Jesus, sermons about Jesus, or music about Jesus, but only for Jesus himself. I pray that we make room for the working of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and in our churches, letting him lead us rather than trying to lead Him with our prescribed songs, sermons, and routines. The church is dying, and giving the church a new hip Christian image is not what is going to bring it back to life, but rather a dedication to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the workings of the Holy Spirit in our lives. If you believe that anything other than this will ignite passion in the hearts of the people, then you have been deceived, because apart from Christ our efforts are useless.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing." (John 15:5)

Don't you think its time we stopped worshipping the fruit or branches and started worshiping the vine who has given them to us?

Music Monday!

Wow, I can't believe I completely forgot about both Music Monday AND Thankful Thursday last week. Things have been so busy lately what with the holidays fast approaching. I've been doing a lot of Christmas shopping over the past couple weeks and am pleased to announce that I'm OFFICIALLY done! I'm never done this early. Never. Let's just say that I owe a big thank you to Mr. Internet for helping me out this year. I've been busy with tons of holiday parties too, and I have to admit that I'm a bit partied out. Being blessed with the presence of a cold this past week hasn't helped much in that department either, so I ended up having to skip a couple parties to get some much needed rest. Pretty sure I was in bed at 7 p.m. on Thursday...ha. I guess I have to store up on sleep anyways though since once all the family arrives I won't be seeing my bed until about 7 a.m. most nights. :-) I'll try and post pictures soon from all of this month's festivities. I would post them now, but alas, I'm on my lunch break at work and don't have them with me. Until then, I'll leave you with these lovely music videos:

For this video "From Your Mouth" by God Breathes Underwater, all they did was tape a world eating champion eat different foods, then played it in reverse. So simple yet so creative!



And well, I couldn't resist posting this vid. I suppose you could call it "creative," but to be more accurate I would probably place it in the "worst music videos ever" category. It's so bad it's funny. I watch and I myself feel embarassed for David Hasselhoff. Amazingly enough, though, this was a HUGE hit in Germany. I can't help but think less of all Germans for it...

Tiffany's Totally Teriffic Online Holiday Gift Guide

Normally I would be writing a Thankful Thursday post, but today I've decided to do something a little different. Instead I've created this super awesome gift guide to help those who still need to do their Christmas shopping, but don't necessarily want to tackle the crowds in order to do so. I'm one of those people who doesn't particularly enjoy shopping. I can handle a little bit of clothes shopping if I'm having one of those energy-filled-I-feel-super-skinny-and-I'm-loving-all-these-clothes days, but for the most part I would rather just buy from the comfort of my own living room, especially when it comes to Christmas shopping. I love giving gifts and I love putting a lot of thought into them, and I find that the Internet gives me tons more options than your average chain store, plus I can find completely unique ideas. One of my favorite things about Christmas is being able to give gifts that people would never break down and buy for themselves, not necessarily because they're expensive, but rather because they're deemed unnecessary or impractical. So without further adieu, here's some really fun Christmas gift ideas that maybe you'll be able to splurge on someone else for, just to show your thankfulness for them (See, I'm still sticking with the Thankful Thursday theme!) and express how much they mean to you.

1. T-shirts

These are one of my favorite gifts to give, just because they're so customizeable. For example, is your b.f.f. a huge Muppets fan? Then get her this t-shirt from Busted Tees.

Does your boyfriend love cats AND lasers? Then give him the best of both worlds with this t-shirt from Threadless that's guaranteed to make him appear both nerdy and cool at the SAME time! Who knew it was even possible!? (P.S. I couldn't pass this one up even for myself...)

2. Silly Toys

My favorite latest web discoveries are these silly action figures from Accoutrements. They're the perfect gift for fellow spinsters, librarians, musicians, historians, psychologists, and the like! Action figure options include: crazy cat lady, lunch lady, waitress, librarian, Alexander the Great, Anne Bonny, Annie Oakley, Bach, Beethoven, Mozart, Wagner, Benjamin Franklin, Blackbeard, Casanova, Marie Antoinette (now includes a head!), Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, Oscar Wilde, Sherlock Holmes, Jesus, Moses, Houdini, J.P. Patches, Seth Godin Marketing Guru, and Sigmund Freud.

3. Practical Peteys
Sometimes the best kind of gift is the one that people will actually use, but if you're going to give something practical you might as well spice it up a little, right?

For example, these uni-corn holders from Gama-Go or these super cute Matryoshka measuring cups from Fred are a great option for those trying to add a little fun to their dinner.

Or for the guy in your life, one of these tear-resistant, water-resistant, expandable, recyclable, and best of all affordable wallets from Dynomighty. My brother absolutely loves these things, and the designs are so fun. Yes, there are even a couple Star Trek designs. You know you've got a winner when Star Trek is an option. :-)

4. Books

No one is ever too old or too young to love a good book. Books are always a great gift idea for the avid readers in your life. Even for those who aren't avid readers, something like a unique coffee table book, comic book, or craft book can still light up their eyes instead of shroud them in disappointment if you choose the right one. Check out these great book titles for a starting point on what the perfect book could be.

5. The Gift That Keeps On Giving

If you just want to give a gift that's, well, AWESOME, then sign someone up for the Stunner of the Month Club. You can give 3 month, 6 month, or 12 month subscriptions, and each month they'll receive a crazy new pair of sunglasses that is sure to stun. And for people like me who pretty much lose a pair of sunglasses on a monthly basis, it's perfection.

6. Handmade Handicrafts

Nothing is more unique than a handmade gift. If you're a crafter, make someone a special scrapbook, knit or crochet something like a hat and matching scarf, or build someone a book shelf. Whatever your trade is, Christmas is the perfect opportunity to put some extra thought and effort into a gift for that special someone, and of course a great opportunity to show off your sweet skills. ;-) If you're not a crafter, then check out Etsy. You may not have made it yourself, but everything is still handmade and totally unique. Here are some of my Etsy faves: (Bearded hat from BreannaGunderson, necklace from Nest Pretty Things, owl hat from The Fuzzy Noggin, stationery sets from Draw! Pilgrim, bookends and bookshelf from Graphic Spaces, and scarflet from Francine Toukou.)

And there ya have it, my top picks for gift giving this year. I should pretty much be getting paid for this. I'm pretty sure this whole post was just one giant advertisement, but I really do LOVE all of these websites and would recommend browsing them for even more gift ideas. They seriously won't disappoint. :-) And finally, I have to give two very important tips before you go off on your Internet shopping spree. First, ALWAYS check Amazon or E-bay to see if you can get the item for less, especially if you're shopping for books or novelty gifts. Second, don't forget to search for coupon codes! Either google it or search the company you're ordering from at Retail Me Not. Believe me, a little savings can go a long way! And that's all I've got for you, so good luck, my friends. May God go with you. :-)

Music Monday!

Ah, another Music Monday. Something for me to actually look forward to, as I typically tend to dread Mondays. So in order to make my Monday slightly more bearable, and hopefully yours for that matter too, here are two of my selections for this week's Music Monday:

First off, "Since I Left You" by The Avanlanches. Oh. My. Dad. This music video is fantastic. Just watch and you'll see why...:-)



And next up, "Undercover Martyn" by Two Door Cinema Club. This is definitely my new fave band. You should go here and listen to their album Tourist History. I've had it on repeat for the past several weeks. There really aren't many instances where I can listen to the WHOLE album over and over again, but this is one of them. (Others may or many not include N'Sync's Christmas album, Muse's "The Resistance," Casting Crowns' "Lifesong," Switchfoot's "The Beautiful Letdown," and any Disney/Broadway soundtrack) Seriously, this album is catchy. :-) I was stoked to find out they were coming to tour the U.S., and then was quickly let down when I saw they're only hitting the east coast. That's a no-go for me. *Sigh.* But perhaps someday...someday. In the meantime, I hope you like them!

Thankful Thursday!

Well, the time has come. It's Thankful Thursday. I'm not gonna lie, it's been a little bit of a rough week and it's a little more difficult today to think of things to be thankful about, but I'm sure once I start writing things will pop into my mind. God's blessed me so much, I don't think it's even possible for me to exhaust that list. So here it is, the things I'm thankful for this week...

1. Paper Snowflakes. I cut out a ton of awesome patterns from this site yesterday to hang on my office door. It reminded me of my glorious college days when I cut them out and anonymously sent them to guys on campus that I thought were cute. Ha. Nerdy much? Unfortunately, this joyous craft also managed to bruise the knuckle on my middle finger. Paper snowflakes are dangerous business, folks. Just leave it to me to get injured doing something so completely lame and UNdangerous.

2. Family. Thanksgiving was really awesome, and I got to spend lots of time with the Ulrich side of my family. We had dinner together every night, went to movies, played games, and shared lots of laughs together. I can't wait to see them all again at Christmas, and I'm looking forward to our time together lasting more than just a few days this time.

3. Netflix. My latest obsession? Eureka! It's just some cheesy sci-fi channel show about a town full of geniuses working on classified government projects. Every episode is pretty much the same: Mysterious disaster strikes, unintelligent sheriff solves mystery with help of friends, disaster reaches critical zone, geniuses must work together to save everyone's life...you get the picture. I think I just really love all the characters. You should check it out if you can. :-)

4. Harry Potter. Yes, I went to the midnight premiere of HP7. Yes, I dressed up. And yes I've already seen it twice. See, I have photographic evidence. :-)

5. Tiger. My cat. We've begun a tradition of cheesy Christmas cards in which dressing him up is a necessity. I don't want to give away what this year's theme is yet, but let's just say he's an incredibly patient cat...and to be honest a little bit dumb too. I simply can not wait to send out this year's card. It's epic.

6. Houndstooth. I am so obsessed with this pattern. Every time I see it, my eyes light up as if I've just discovered some long, lost hidden treasure. Things of a houndstooth nature that I've acquired thus far: Sweater, jacket, flats, rainboots, 2 decks of cards, hat, scarf, travel mug, storage tin, notecards, earrings, a necklace, and a konad plate that let's me stamp the pattern onto my fingernails. This is really getting out of hand...

7. Troll 2. The best, worst movie ever. There's even a documentary about how awful it is. This movie doesn't even have anything to do with the first Troll movie. In fact, there aren't even trolls in it. They're goblins. They're vegetarian goblins, who feed people green food to turn them into vegetables...and then they eat them. Why that doesn't count as carniverous I'll never know. And why they don't just grow a garden I'll never know either. What I do know, though, is that you should gather some friends and have a Troll 2 party. You will laugh your heads off.

8. Monday night basketball. I play with some friends at the church just around the corner from my house, and we always grab some half-price appetizers at Applebee's afterwards. It actually makes Mondays a good day for me, something that has previously never occurred in my short existence here on earth. No, I don't have mad basketball skills, but they still actually pass the ball to me...which is typically a rare thing when playing with guys. Plus, it gives me a good workout, which is something that's always much needed, especially around this time of year.

9. The International Children's Digital Library. It's just incredible. It's a massive collection of children's books from around the world scanned into digital formats. You can search by country, subject, author, language, character type, story type, age range, and even the color of the book cover! It's legit. You should check it out.

10. And last, but certainly not least. In fact, most of all, I'm thankful for Jesus this week. Because I am a damsel in distress, and he continually fights for me. He has saved me from the dragon, the evil sorceress, the poisonous apple, from every evil power there is. He is the prince I've always longed for, the man of my dreams.