the return to life love and sunshine--and lessons on being cool.

Two weeks of being back in school and San Diego have gone by and I decided I'm going to continue to write on this thing. My blog is entitled "The Distance Is What You Make It" and there is always going to be a difference between me and someone I love so I figure it always applies.

Coming back to Loma has been a great experience. I love my friends and I love my hall. I am rooming with my friend Laurel who replaced an RA on a hall full of freshman. But really, we couldn't have gotten a hall of better girls. They are the best. I've also been going to Crossfit Socal, which is about 15 minutes away from Point Loma and it has been great as well. Everyone is so kind and encouraging. Yes, I am sore all the time, but it's crossfit so that is to be expected. They have written on one of their boards at the top "Learn to love pain. This is gonna suck." So funny and so true.

But there are some things I'm starting to realize that bother me. Since when did it become cool to be more "searching" than believing? I'm not saying that it is bad to doubt. Everyone doubts, God is alright with you doubting. But I feel like all the "cool" "hipster" kids are all for social justice and being passionate, but seemed to have lost where God fits into that. When did it become awkwardly cliché to tell someone you'll pray for them? I think it was Jared at youth group last Tuesday that sad we need to be careful to not let our passion become more about that cause than about God. I feel like the hipster flag is "So much injustice in the world that we are going to scream and rail against it, but forget why and instead drink and smoke on our down time."

There is also a theme with everyone that studied abroad last semester- excluding those that went to London. It's I was rebellious and cool because I drank and saw more culture than everyone else in (insert country) and so I shall be rebellious and cool here by doing the same things. Maybe it's because the London group had rules and were together that we didn't end up that way, and if that's the case I think I am actually grateful to Ronda and Carl then.

Needless to say, we're Christians. So let's stop trying to be cool and love Jesus. Not the "Jesus" that we've created in our heads. Not the one like Franny Glass makes - one that is Jesus, Francis of Asisi all mixed together leaving out the Jesus that knocked all the temple tables over. But the one that, yes is controversial and challenging and passionate, but at the end of the day PRAYS to the Father. The Jesus that is in constant prayer for others and for himself.

Today, Pastor Dee Kelly of San Diego First Church of the Nazarene said that as Christians our call is to live in the realm of Christ's teaching, preaching and healing. That we are to teach and be taught through our experiences with God. This is why we go to church: to come together to teach and be taught.

Forgive me for this update turned rant. But I do hope if you are struggling with the task of being cool that you will take this as a challenge and not be cool.