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We have a new page on the website dedicated to breastfeeding!
We are looking for an article on nursing in public for the next issue.
Many women are self-conscious about nursing in public, but it's even harder for Christian women. Churches often teach that breasts are very sexual and that sexual things are to be avoided. At worst, our bodies are made out to be dirty, shameful things to hide, and too often the best message we get is that they are beautiful, but only in the context of marriage as a "gift" for your husband.
God made breasts for nursing babies! Are they sexual too? Yes! So are mouths, hands, feet, and knees. In fact, I can think of a lot more sexual things to do with my mouth or hands than my breasts! ;) Which body part becomes the epitome of sexuality largely depends on culture. In some cultures in Africa, women walk around topless and no one bats an eyelash, but if they show off any leg, heads will turn!
Regardless of how our culture (at large and in the Christian community) views breasts, we can stand strong in the knowledge that not only are our bodies beautifully and wonderfully made, they are also useful for nourishing and comforting our children. Our babies' need for food and comfort is more important that any amount of cultural confusion.
So, nurse those babies (and toddlers and preschoolers!) where ever you are when they get hungry, even and maybe especially in church. And if anyone confronts you, remind them of two things: your state's breastfeeding laws and the fact that Mary most certainly nursed Jesus.
Thursday, April 15, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Journeys of Deliverance
This Passover season has me thinking about journeys of deliverance. A few days ago I read in Philippians 1:18-19 "...I will continue to rejoice, for I know that this will work out for my deliverance." How amazing to still be rejoicing in the midst of turmoil!
This is my second year celebrating the Passover. I am part of a dance group that presented a teaching Seder at a Celebrate Recovery group, and I had the Passover meal at a friend's house this evening. So, I have spent much of the last week re-reading the Exodus story, learning more about how it foreshadowed Jesus death and resurrection, and how he fulfilled the prophesies by becoming the atoning Lamb.
It's easy to see the parallel between God delivering the Israelites from Egypt and Jesus delivering us from our sins. What has been more interesting to me this week has been thinking about the journey that deliverance started. At first, the Isrealites probably only saw the physical aspect of their deliverance. They had been slaves and then suddenly they were free. All they had known their whole lives was bondage and servitude, and now they were only accountable to God.
The first thing God did was to give them instructions for how to remember their deliverance.
Exodus 13:9 This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the law of the Lord is to be on your lips. For the Lord brought you out of Egypt with his mighty hand.
Then he led them with a pillar of clouds and a pillar of fire. When the Egyptians came after them, they were afraid and asked Moses what on earth he was thinking bringing them out in the wilderness to die! They would have been much better off in Egypt as slaves, but at least alive.
Exodus 14:13-14
Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."
Be still.
Now the Isrealite's physical journey became an emotional and spiritual journey as well. Be still. Learn to trust. God will deliver you, not only from your slavery, but also from your fear.
I find it interesting that God didn't rebuke them for their fear. He didn't chastise them for it or shame them. He only told them to be still, so they could see his hand at work. When they saw him working, they trusted him.
Sometimes Christianity focuses a lot on the beginning and the end. We want people to "get saved" so they can "get to heaven." We want to go straight from Egypt to the land of milk and honey. Sometimes we need to wander for 40 years though. God seems to like journeys- Moses, Job, Paul, Jesus. We find many of the climatic moments in the parts about deliverance and the grand finales. The meat of the story, however is in the middle. That's where we find God leading us, protecting us, guiding us, and helping us in big and small ways. Yet even the ways that seem so small and insignificant were very important to the people living out those moments, and important enough to God to not only help them through, but to have them recorded.
I read once that all behavior is rooted in either love or fear. Each of us struggles with different things from which we have asked God to deliver us. Addictions, pain, trauma, and many other things affect how we feel about ourselves, the world and God. They can damage our relationships, our moods, and our ability to live happy lives. Sometimes we just want God to "take it all away!" We want to get to the end already. That's fear talking. That's the fear that we can't handle these struggles, that they are too big and that we will drown beneath them. I have sometimes asked God what on earth he was thinking bringing me on this journey. I was better off in "de Nile!" ;)
Mark 4:38-40
Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
1 John 4:16 and 18
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
Be Still.
Going back to Philippians, Paul was rejoicing *before* his deliverance from that situation had happened. His rejoicing could only come from a place of love, not fear. Because he loved and trusted God, he had no fear that what was happening to him was just another step in the journey. That doesn't mean it's wrong to feel fear! Sometimes part of the journey is *getting* to that place in the relationship with God where the level of love and trust exist that will drive out the fear.
Maybe that's why God told us to remember how he led the Isrealites out of Egypt. When we take the time to remember how he has delivered us in the past, it can give us courage and hope. We see that he is faithful to his word and that we can trust him. Rather than desperately fighting against the fear, we can be still and open our hearts to his love and peace. We can enjoy the journey and look forward to where he will lead us next.
This is my second year celebrating the Passover. I am part of a dance group that presented a teaching Seder at a Celebrate Recovery group, and I had the Passover meal at a friend's house this evening. So, I have spent much of the last week re-reading the Exodus story, learning more about how it foreshadowed Jesus death and resurrection, and how he fulfilled the prophesies by becoming the atoning Lamb.
It's easy to see the parallel between God delivering the Israelites from Egypt and Jesus delivering us from our sins. What has been more interesting to me this week has been thinking about the journey that deliverance started. At first, the Isrealites probably only saw the physical aspect of their deliverance. They had been slaves and then suddenly they were free. All they had known their whole lives was bondage and servitude, and now they were only accountable to God.
The first thing God did was to give them instructions for how to remember their deliverance.
Exodus 13:9 This observance will be for you like a sign on your hand and a reminder on your forehead that the law of the Lord is to be on your lips. For the Lord brought you out of Egypt with his mighty hand.
Then he led them with a pillar of clouds and a pillar of fire. When the Egyptians came after them, they were afraid and asked Moses what on earth he was thinking bringing them out in the wilderness to die! They would have been much better off in Egypt as slaves, but at least alive.
Exodus 14:13-14
Moses answered the people, "Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Egyptians you see today you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still."
Be still.
Now the Isrealite's physical journey became an emotional and spiritual journey as well. Be still. Learn to trust. God will deliver you, not only from your slavery, but also from your fear.
I find it interesting that God didn't rebuke them for their fear. He didn't chastise them for it or shame them. He only told them to be still, so they could see his hand at work. When they saw him working, they trusted him.
Sometimes Christianity focuses a lot on the beginning and the end. We want people to "get saved" so they can "get to heaven." We want to go straight from Egypt to the land of milk and honey. Sometimes we need to wander for 40 years though. God seems to like journeys- Moses, Job, Paul, Jesus. We find many of the climatic moments in the parts about deliverance and the grand finales. The meat of the story, however is in the middle. That's where we find God leading us, protecting us, guiding us, and helping us in big and small ways. Yet even the ways that seem so small and insignificant were very important to the people living out those moments, and important enough to God to not only help them through, but to have them recorded.
I read once that all behavior is rooted in either love or fear. Each of us struggles with different things from which we have asked God to deliver us. Addictions, pain, trauma, and many other things affect how we feel about ourselves, the world and God. They can damage our relationships, our moods, and our ability to live happy lives. Sometimes we just want God to "take it all away!" We want to get to the end already. That's fear talking. That's the fear that we can't handle these struggles, that they are too big and that we will drown beneath them. I have sometimes asked God what on earth he was thinking bringing me on this journey. I was better off in "de Nile!" ;)
Mark 4:38-40
Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
1 John 4:16 and 18
And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
Be Still.
Going back to Philippians, Paul was rejoicing *before* his deliverance from that situation had happened. His rejoicing could only come from a place of love, not fear. Because he loved and trusted God, he had no fear that what was happening to him was just another step in the journey. That doesn't mean it's wrong to feel fear! Sometimes part of the journey is *getting* to that place in the relationship with God where the level of love and trust exist that will drive out the fear.
Maybe that's why God told us to remember how he led the Isrealites out of Egypt. When we take the time to remember how he has delivered us in the past, it can give us courage and hope. We see that he is faithful to his word and that we can trust him. Rather than desperately fighting against the fear, we can be still and open our hearts to his love and peace. We can enjoy the journey and look forward to where he will lead us next.
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