49 by 29: July 17 - Deep thoughts in Deleware

I did not take this photo. It was one of two days I totally forgot to take my daily coffee shot.

Coffee:

Keurig single brew house blend. I always love a good cup of Keurig. It just feels so personal, you know. I can have hazelnut, or vanilla bean, or French roast...or Earl Grey tea, if I really want. It's like having my own personal barista. 

From the journal:

We went to church with Joel, Jolene, Jared and Jessica, and I really enjoyed attending our first church service of the trip. For as much as I can rag on the state of the modern American church, I do miss it when I don't go. I see the value in gathering with other believers.

It was a big church, but folks seemed friendly. The sermon was on Judges chapter 5, also known as Deborah's victory song. It's a pretty brutal chapter celebrating men and women who destroy God's enemies (one woman drives a tent stake through a guy's head). Anyway, as I read before and after the chapter, I was reminded of how violent some parts of the Old Testament can be. This brought up for me the ongoing struggle I have trying to reconcile the God of the Old Testament--a seemingly harsh, judgemental God--with the loving and compassionate God portrayed by Christ in the New Testament.

I struggle to understand how such wrath and such mercy can co-exist in one God. And I fear that my worship of God is not complete because I don't honestly want to worship and revere God's judgement. I don't wish to draw near to an angry God.

But we are told to worship in spirit and in truth, to worship with all our being, head and heart, without reserve. We are to hold nothing back when we worship. And so, I will struggle to do so, remembering Jeremy's belief that everything in the Bible points to Christ. The harsh punishment we find in the Old Testament is what we all deserve for our sins, and it is the suffering that Jesus bore when he died and rose again to spare us our death.

After church, Joel and Jolene's friends came over for lunch. We enjoyed food and ping-pong and good-natured hanging out.

In the evening, Jer and I went to Philly to play ultimate Frisbee with folks from his old church. I played for about two minutes but had trouble figuring out who in the world was actually on my team and quickly realized I was way out of my league. I've played ultimate maybe twice in my life, and these guys were good. So, I bowed out and enjoyed watching a lively game in the cool night air. I never mind a good excuse to have fun snapping photos...