Mermaid Tales

I know this may come as a shock to some of you, but I tend to look at the world through rose-colored glasses. Just kidding, I don’t think anyone was shocked by that “revelation”. But recently I have been reflecting on this part of myself. I would not call it a flaw. I believe that looking for the redeeming qualities in people and situations flows from the heart of God. I believe a voice of hope is desperately needed in a world of cynicism and schisms, despair and detestation. Someone has to search for the silver lining, right? Someone has to keep pushing us forward, believing that our lives have meaning, we are not broken beyond repair, and God’s good purposes will ultimately prevail. That said, rose-colored glasses get me in trouble. Especially when those rose-colored glasses are looking at tall, dark, and handsome men (or other adjectives but you get the point) that I might have half a chance at dating. They get me in trouble in two ways: 1) I find hope where there is none, 2) I...

“Whatever you believe about [women in ministry], remember that it is not just doctrine. It affects real people, two of whom are sitting in this room. It affects people who hear the whisper of God saying, ‘do this’ and ‘go there’.” As I told my dad what my seminary professor said on the last day of our Romans class, I couldn’t finish without tears choking my throat. “Wow, that really meant a lot to you,” he noted. Yeah, it did. More than I realized. For those of you outside Christian circles, I should probably fill you in. There is a debate within the Christian church on the whole “women in ministry” issue. Some churches will not allow a woman to speak into a microphone (even to give announcements!), others will let a woman be their main pastor, and then the rest of churches fall between those two extremes. This isn’t the time or place to give a full exegesis of Biblical passages concerned, but suffice it to say that there are some difficult-to-understand passages regarding wom...