Unorganizing Religion

Last night, Jenna and I attended my brother’s church. Aaron is the pastor of a church called Sondays. They meet together on Sunday evenings in Tomball, a town northwest of Houston. The music was really good. Aaron’s message was right on as he encouraged us about believing God. His emphasis was not only on believing in God, but actually believing God. One of his keypoints that really made me ponder was concerning the issue of our sin. He said that when we sin, it means that either we don’t believe that God’s way is the best way or that we don’t care that God’s way is the best way. That statement has really made me think.

The congregation at Aaron’s church is quite diverse. That is almost an understatement. There were people present who have nothing. Literally, they are homeless. There are others present who have more money than I can possibly comprehend. The amazing thing is that it is hard to tell who is who. The way that everyone interacts with one another is absolutely incredible.

Aaron had played a video that talks about Jenna and I moving to New York, and how we are going to start a church on Long Island. This guy came right up to me following Aaron’s sermon. He looked me square in the eye. He told me that he was going to pray for me every day. He told me that he truly believed that we would be successful in our efforts to plant a church in New York. He shook my hand, squeezing it tighter as he continued talking, and told me to make sure that I told Aaron how he could be praying for us in the days ahead.

I was totally encouraged by this guy. He was so genuine and sincere. I told Aaron about him later. It turns out that he lives at a shelter for men on the other side of Houston. So did some other guys who were there. There were about 10 of them who sang “Amazing Grace” all together. It was off-key. It was not polished. A couple of the guys could not carry a tune. It was one of the most beautiful sounds I have heard. Turns out, those guys were not singing to me. Nope. They had discovered grace, and weren’t over it.

On the screen, behind my brother as he spoke, were two words: “Unorganizing Religion”. It’s Aaron belief that many churches have become too organized. Many churches have pecking order or a hierarchy. At Sondays, they want to make sure that every person counts. Their worth is not based on their wealth or status. It’s not based on what they have done in the past, nor is it based on what there ambition is for the future. It is all about Jesus.

The church is raw. It is real. It does not pretend to be something that it is not.

I’m not sure that I have ever seen a church like I saw last night. But, I sure did like it.

sterling

Our New Home In New York

 

New York

June 2, 2006
We’re on a Continental Airlines jet, flying back to Houston. Jenna and I have spent the last several days in New York finalizing plans for our move. It has been eventful. From our arrival in New York, to our departure, things have been interesting.
After we landed at La Guardia Airport in NYC on Tuesday, we went to Budget Car Rental. As I was standing in line waiting for service, Jenna noticed David Caruso. You may know him better as Horatio, from TV’s CSI:Miami. Jenna got her picture taken with him and he gave her an autographed card of himself. (By the way, who does that? I can just imagine someone saying, ‘I’ve got my wallet, my keys, my phone, oh yeah don’t let me forget my autographed pictures of myself in case I run in to anyone who wants one.’ Maybe I should try that. If anyone is interested in an autographed picture of Sterling, please email me at sterling.edwards@yahoo.com)
This morning we took a cab to the airport. Understand that we are sort of new to this “hailing a cab” business. We’re not experts. We’re clearly novices in this area. Even still, we experienced what we believe to be an unusual NYC cab ride. We stood on Queens BLVD. I hailed a cab. This means that I kind of waved at a yellow looking car, and he motioned for us to jump in. That’s exactly what we did. As we got in, he took off. That is when we noticed the cat sitting in the driver’s lap. For those of you who don’t know, Jenna has something against cats. All cats. She’s allergic. But, even beyond that, there is a hatred that Jenna feels for all feline creatures. Pray for her.
I’m not really into cats either. But, I am definitely not into cats riding in cars, much less in a NYC taxi cab on the way to the airport. Cats don’t travel very well in confined spaces. The first thing we did was shut the window that separates the back seat from the front seat. The cat just stared at us for a while. Then, the cat jumped onto the floor of the cab. The driver swerved into another lane as he reached down for the cat. No joke, I thought we were going to hit another car. The cat was attempting to crawl underneath the front seat to the backseat. Don’t worry, Jenna and I had already created a barricade along the floorboard of the backseat. We spread our bags on the floor to ensure that the cat would not be paying us a personal visit.
So, here I sit. We’ve watched a couple of episodes of LOST. (Thanks Will Tanner!) We’ve eaten a bowl of cereal. We can’t wait to see our girls. We’re ready for home. That’s where things get tricky. The next time we come to New York, we’re coming HOME. While we are certainly excited, there is a growing reality of what lies ahead. We’re looking forward to it, trusting God for all of it!

Sterling

13 Years

"Loving A Person Just The Way They Are Is No Small Thing"
Sara Groves

Yesterday, Jenna and I celebrated our wedding anniversary. 13 Years! If you are doing the math, that means that we were both 20 years old when we were married.
Yeah, that's pretty young. We are pretty certain that we won't let Madison or Emma get married that young. We have had some hard years. We have had to learn some things the hard way. We had to grow up in some different areas. We had to mature. It has not always been a fairy tale or happily ever after. Honestly, there were days when we wondered if we would see our next anniversary.
All of that being said, there is absolutely no doubt that God brought Jenna and I together. He has taught us about love. He has taught us about forgiveness. He has taught us about perseverance. Mostly, God has demonstrated to us over and over again that our lives are to yield in complete surrender to Him.
We have not figured out everything. We are still learning what it means to yield our lives to Him and to one another. But, it is truly remarkable to know that I am in love with the person that I will spend the rest of my life with. I am in love with the person that God has given to me.
As Jenna and I were talking last night, Jenna mentioned how 13 years ago, we would have never imagined that we would be taking our two children to New York to start a new church. No. We really could not have known that. But, despite our ignorance and immaturity, on May 22, 1993, we both made one of the wisest decisions of our lives.
I could not imagine living my life with anyone else. The best is yet to come!
sterling

Home Sweet Home...

Back in March, Jenna and I spent a few days up in New York. We were having several meetings, learning some things about New York, and wondering what God was doing in our lives. Following our time in New York, we arrived back in Houston, late on a Tuesday night. The following morning, the man who owns the home that we were leasing, informed us that he had been transferred. He was telling us that we would need to get out of the house, so that he could prepare the home to sell.
So, that's we did. We moved out of our home a couple of weeks ago. All of our stuff, minus some clothes and toys, rests in a storage unit somewhere in Houston. We think. We're pretty sure. Yeah, they seemed like nice enough guys.
So, for the last two weeks, we have lived at the home of some of our dear friends, Pat and Diana Forrester. While Pat and Diana have been traveling in Europe, they have given us full reign of their home.
It has been a lot of fun. It kind of feels like we are on a vacation. There's a pool in the backyard. The Astros are on every night. It's nice. Very nice.
At the same time, it is very different. Not bad different. Good different. But, different just the same. Each day, there is this reminder that while we are not yet in New York, the adventure has already started. We are aware that though this is only the beginning of our New York journey, it really has begun.
We are learning that while "home is where the heart is", it's also possible for people to share the home that they have made with others. That goes way beyond pools and television.
Thanks Pat and Diana.

Sterling

New Adventures In New York

Today it has become official. We are now officially missionaries with the North American Mission Board. This means that in the next couple of months we will be moving to Levittown, New York to start a new church.
Levittown is located on Long Island, and is around 25 miles away from Manhattan.
The process to become missionaries with the North American Mission Board has been lengthy. We have been involved in this process since the end of January. Today, there is some relief in the fact that we have some resolution about the whole thing. At the same time there is anxiety about what the future holds. Never in our lives have we thought about moving to Long Island, New York. Never did Jenna or myself anticipate that we would raise our two daughters, Madison (7) and Emma (2), in New York.
The past several months have been an adventure. But, the reality is that the adventure is only beginning. I hope that you will check back often to learn and read about what is going on in our lives.
We don't know what to expect in the days ahead, but I will record all of our adventures right here. Thanks for stopping by.

Sterling