Our Trip to the Cane Ridge Meeting House

As Caleb and I walked up the drive towards the Cane Ridge Meeting House, the words of Psalm 46:10 resonated strongly within me. "Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations,  I will be exalted in the earth!" (ESV). Perhaps it was the stillness of nature around us or the excitement of being at such an important historical location, but in the silence, I felt God's peace. 

April the 13th (yesterday) was our four year anniversary and we decided to celebrate it here. Since we owe so much of our happiness to God, it only felt appropriate to honor Him by going to a place that would serve us as a reminder of His love and presence in our daily lives.

The Cane Ridge Meeting House was the location of a huge revival in 1801. Over 20,000 people traveled to what then was a church to participate in a huge event where they would listen to ministers speak the Word of God. At this event, many claimed to have had supernatural experiences, some stating that uncontrollable laughter and trance-like states were a product of the Holy Spirit's intervention in their life. Supernatural experiences aside, the Cane Ridge Meeting House is seen as a very important historical location in regards to the Restoration Movement.

I've been apart of Restoration Movement-affiliated churches ever since I was born. I even took a class that taught the history of the American Restoration Movement (if you wonder what this movement is, I may be posting a blog on it soon, so tune in for that!!). I'd heard the teachings many times over and practically memorized them. However, before stepping onto the grounds of Cane Ridge, I never truly realized how blessed I was to be exposed to a church that emphasized the truth of the Word of God.

The first location that we explored on the grounds was the Barton Warren Stone Museum (some areas in the museum are pictured below). The museum is filled with many historical books, pictures, and memorabilia from the Restoration Movement. There was an extensive area dedicated to materials relating to Barton W. Stone (since he was the first minister of the Cane Ridge Church), and other areas that held letters, medallions, and books connected to Alexander and Thomas Campbell.

I was so awed by the sheer amount of material that the small building contained. The object that made the largest impression on me was the letter Barton W. Stone wrote concerning slavery in the Americas. In this letter, he expressed his extreme disapproval of slavery. This letter was written around the 1780s or 1790s - at least seventy years before slavery was abolished in America! To me, seeing and reading the letter shows that Christians were fighting injustice in the world years before it was mainstream to do so. 

We then walked a few yards to the actual meeting house. The meeting house was definitely the most beautiful structure on the grounds. Back in the 1950s, they built a stone structure (see the first picture on this post) around the original log cabin church in order to protect it. It cost almost $1,000,000 in today's money to build. Boy, does it show! Each stained-glass window has artwork of Barton W. Stone and other church leaders on it.

Outside of the log-cabin structure, there was a pole that stated: "Pray for peace" in several different languages. Attached to the pole was a notebook that contained the prayers of others who had prayed for peace before. Before entering the meeting house, I paused to write my prayer down in the notebook. I prayed for peace for Christian colleges, the Christian Church as a whole, as well as America. After this prayer, Caleb and I entered the Cane Ridge Meeting House (the outside of it is pictured to the left). 

The Cane Ridge Meeting House was built in 1791, a year before Kentucky was made a state in the USA! When we walked in, we could tell that the wood was extremely old, as it creaked every few seconds. The inside of the meeting house was cozy, rustic, and all around beautiful. Caleb even stood at the pulpit that the ministers of the church once preached at. As we stood within the walls of the former church, we felt peace. 

Since the grave of Barton W. Stone was located on the grounds, we decided to stop by his grave to pay our respects. All around, Caleb and I absolutely enjoyed our trip to the Cane Ridge Meeting House. It served as an excellent place to focus and meditate on God's plan for our lives and His love for us. Reading the stories of the church leaders who came before us was both an exciting and humbling experience. It shows that God's work is never truly done. He has a plan for each one of us. Whether we are called to be a Reformer (like men like Barton W. Stone were) or to perform little acts of kindness to others, we all have a calling to make a difference in the world for Christ.

I urge you to find a place this week to enjoy the presence of God in. It could be your bedroom, in your car at a stoplight, or as you close your eyes before going to sleep at night. Remember the words that Christ has spoken to us through His Word. Remember God's desire for unity in the Church and in our daily lives. As the verse below calls us, pray that God would enable you to answer that call to the best of your ability.

"Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him." - Colossians 3:12-17 (ESV)

Love,

Jennifer xo

Seeking Security in God's Word in the Midst of Busyness

This week (more accurately, this month) has been so exhausting. Between getting sick with food poisoning from Chipotle (yuck, I know!!), writing papers for classes, working at the campus library, completing classroom observation hours, spending time with my fiancé, and various other activities, it's been hard to take a moment to just breathe. The topic of seeking security and finding solace in God (and His Word) is probably as clichéd of a blog topic as possible. We speak about it so often but never truly practice finding time to read the Scripture. I can't offer a simple solution to this and I don't believe anyone can, except Christ Himself.

As I take this time to pause and write this blog, I find myself turning to Scripture. When we experience so much turbulence in daily life, we often lose sight of stability. We find counterfeits for it in relationships, activities, and media. It's busy times like this when I realize that it's only God and His Word that never changes. Even though many of our relationships (whether they be friendships or romantic relationships) may reflect some of God's traits, we will never find complete satisfaction in them. Only God can provide that. Below I've listed (and written out, for your convenience) several verses that help me pause and reflect on the greatness, stability, and holiness of God.

• Deuteronomy 32:4 (ESV) - "The Rock, his work is perfect, for all his ways are justice. A God of faithfulness and without iniquity, just and upright is He."
• Isaiah 41:10 (ESV) - "Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."
• Joshua 1:9 (ESV) - "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
• Psalm 118:6-7 (ESV) - "The Lord is on my side; I will not fear. What can man do to me? The Lord is on my side as my helper; I shall look in triumph on those who hate me."

Think. Breathe. 

Love,

Jennifer xo

Being a "Traditional" Girl in a World Flooded by Progressive Christianity

Often times, when Christians speak about pressing issues that upset them, they're speaking about evolution, politics, or even the latest crazy social media trend. Many haven't noticed, but there's an issue that permeating our churches, schools, and minds. What is this issue, you may ask?

It's called Progressive Christianity, or "Theological Liberalism".

Who are Progressive Christians/Theological Liberals and what do they believe? According to David Platt, a favorite pastor of mine (you can follow him on Twitter here), 

"They are people who call themselves Christian, yet they deny Scripture and orthodox teachings on the primary doctrines of Christianity, often in an attempt to either adapt to a changing culture or appeal to an increasingly non-Christian culture. Both those are important when it comes to the motives. Many theological liberals claim to be making Christianity more respectable or believable for the culture at large. They’ll say things like “Christianity must change or it will die.” Or, “We want people to actually consider and believe the gospel, but if we don’t modify our message, then the culture will see us as completely irrelevant.” The attempt is often to adapt to a changing culture or appeal to an increasingly non-Christian culture, often using language that appears to be biblical, yet their teachings undercut Scripture. You might hear the line, “Well, that’s just your interpretation,” or, “That’s an old interpretation. We have new wine for new wineskins.” But just because somebody quotes a verse doesn’t mean their claim is biblical."

To summarize, theological liberalism seeks to discreetly change the doctrines associated with the Christian faith, while making it "more attractive" to non-Christians. They seek to make the Scripture more "relevant" by modernizing portions of the text. 

In my experiences with being surrounded by liberal theology, I've noticed multiple signs of theological liberalism:

1. The love of God/Jesus Christ is extensively spoken about, but His truth and justice are conveniently left out.
2. The rules that God set aside for us in Scripture are seen as being "for a certain time and a certain place". By and large, they are also seen as non-applicable to modern Christianity.
3. Scripture is viewed as being outdated. Some even view sections of Scripture as fabricated or full of error.
4. Evangelism is placed on the backburner. The focus is placed on ONLY understanding other cultures and religions and not on sharing the Gospel.
5. Unity is viewed as being more important than truth.
6. Most importantly, it is implied that there is no absolute truth.

So what does this have to do with being a woman?

On the surface, Progressive Christianity is extremely attractive. Truth is spoken about the love and grace of Jesus Christ but is then distorted by taking it to an extreme. For example, Progressive Christianity pushes the idea that Scripture is inherently flawed or simply, fiction. They view the verses in Paul's writings as outdated and bearing no relevance to us in present times.

I've noticed that Progressive Christianity/Theological Liberalism majorly appeals to young women. Women who have had negative experiences in the church are especially vulnerable to buying into progressive teachings. Since women experience some of the worst injustices in the world, we reach out for anything that makes us feel known or important.

Before we know it, the teachings we listened to religiously (since they said were about acceptance and love) turn into complete distortions of Scripture. As women, we love to hear things that make us feel empowered and independent. However, it is imperative that we must use discernment when listening to teachings about Scripture.

I'll be completely transparent here, it is incredibly hard to be a girl with more traditional beliefs, especially in a college environment. A lot of times, I feel isolated from the rest of my girl friends and shocked at the outlandish claims I hear people make during discussions about faith.

Here are some tips for coping with Progressive Christianity as a woman:

1. Know what you believe and why you believe it.
2. Don't shy away from conversations with people who may disagree with your viewpoints. 
3. Find a group of like-minded ladies who believe things about Scripture similar to you.
4. When you hear teachings that don't sound Biblical, go into the Scripture and read/examine it for yourself.
5. Find counsel in your ministers and Christians who have spent many years in the faith.
6. Most importantly, if you are a young woman remember the words of 1 Timothy 4:12 (ESV), "Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity." 

No matter what we encounter in our daily lives, we can make a difference. Don't be afraid to make your voice heard.

Love,

Jennifer xo