The ground Sara and I have traversed this year is extraordinarily beautiful, and I mean that in multiple ways. Not only are we learning more about Sara’s trauma and what freedom looks like for her, but we are also seeing things about God’s heart and freedom for lost hearts that are rocking our world. Some of it moves us even further outside the lines of the institutionalized Christianity we grew up in, but the depth of it seems far truer to scripture than the distorted interpretations performance-based Christianity gave us.
We’ve been sharing all that on the God Journey. We’ve talked about holding the agony and ecstasy of God for the pain and redemption of the world, how God’s view of sin may be very different from ours, and how redemption can make a way through the greatest cruelties in life. Following Jesus today is not easy, especially when the religious powers that be question your motives, dismiss what you’re learning about Jesus, or falsely accuse you to marginalize you. Jesus said we are blessed when people “insult you, lie about you, and exclude you because of him,” though we rarely feel blessed in such moments.
I got this email the other day from someone who has been listening—
“I couldn’t believe it when you started this conversation. For the past 15+ years that I have been listening to The God Journey, you have confirmed so many thoughts that I have had that would get me a reprimand from normal ‘church people.’ This week’s conversation with Sarah was more of that.”
A year ago, Sara and I took our Return to Innocence Tour from California to Virginia and back. Since then, we’ve been finding and fixing up a home. We are just getting it to the point where we can enjoy it but sense that breath of the Spirit inviting us on yet another trip, this time into the heartland of the U.S. So, next week, we’ll be leaving on another RV trip to enjoy time together as well as to see who Father might want to put in our path.
Last year, we talked a lot about our trauma story as we helped others with theirs. We will still do that anywhere on our journey where it would be helpful, but I think we’re going to call this our Swimming Upstream Tour. As beautiful as this journey is in learning to live loved, there is also a toll it takes on us, often from well-meaning family and friends who hold a more legalistic view of God. Knowing you’re not alone in that can be incredibly helpful.
We are looking to encourage some weary hearts on this journey and see what God is revealing to his children, especially those who are learning to live loved in a hostile world. The above map with approximate dates will give you an idea of where we are going to go on this trip. We already have some events planned in Wichita, Little Rock, and Austin, but we’re open to other opportunities that might bring people together or connect in other ways that may be helpful to you—grabbing a meal with us by the side of the road, going for an early morning walk, or sitting with us by a campfire to share this magnificent journey of following Jesus against the grain of religious sensibilities. As opportunities are updated, we’ll include that information on our Travel Schedule at Lifestream.org and on my Facebook Author Page.
So, if you are along our route somewhere and would like to hang out somewhere, please email me to see what we might be able to arrange. We can’t promise to do everything we are asked, and our schedule is going to be flexible, given how we are traveling, but we’ll pray alongside you and see what might be on Jesus’s heart. Don’t be bashful; often, the best connections come when people are a bit reticent to ask.
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Although the good news you have shared has often given voice to my developing faith in Christ, it has also challenged much of what I learned in my 67 year religious journey. The more I live out what I learn by listening for Christ’s teaching by his Spirit, the more freedom I experience to live out my faith in the way that I discern that Christ is leading me. The judgement of significant people in my life who disapprove of my decisions to relinquish my membership in my denominational Church congregation and to give up the ordination of that particular denomination has not so much taken a toll on me as much as it has saddened me to see what a tight hold religion has on so much of the Church. The joy of being able to live out my faith in Christ in the freedom that he has given me far outweighs the weight of the criticisms of those who have not found that freedom yet.
I so hear you, Doug, as do a lot of my readers, I’m sure. This can be a bit of a lonely road, but then so was that other road of religious performance. My heart goes out you and the sadness and judgment you feel from others, but I’m glad the joy is even greater. Jesus did warn us following him was a narrow road. We thought that was about salvation. No, lots of people will jump through hoops to “get saved.” Jesus was talking about those who will actually follow the Truth. And yes, there are few in a local sense, but there are many in a worldwide sense. The best of the Internet will allow us to connect with those people, either through emails, or Zooms. You can sustain some beautiful relationships there. I pray Jesus gives you more and more avenues for that to happen.