A New Location
I believe we, the church, are in a season of grace to reimagine our existence.
The Pilgrim Life What's up with Church?
Author: Elizabeth
To avoid stranger danger on our journey. Here’s a little about where I’ve been and where I hope to go.
My name is Elizabeth Forshee, but friends call me Beth.
A born and raised Texan, I grew up in the Piney Woods of East Texas where heat and humidity suffocate everything but the mosquitos and love bugs. As a little girl I went from wanting to be a veterinarian to journalist. One summer I made my siblings (Yes, I am the bossy elder.) design, write and contribute jokes, games and articles to our first family magazine just for fun. My desire to write and the fact that the Holy Scriptures entered my life and wrecked my heart for anything other than God, I got my BA from Baylor in you guessed it; journalism. A lot of good that did when I married my husband and we launched our newlywed selves into full-time ministry. All was not lost. Ministry for me meant leaving for China as soon as possible, or rather six years on God’s time card. Working for a missions agency in communications and alongside my youth director husband in Colorado, we paid our debts to society, a.k.a. Baylor, and packed our six 50 lbs.-bags, one-year old son and set off for the land of Terra Cotta Warriors and the Silk Road. Dreams do come true. And so do hard times. The great thing about being young and in ones’ twenties is stamina. There is a lot more of it to get one through language school, culture stress, an international adoption overseas, visa paperwork, working several ministry roles all while making a new country a new home; until you have to return to the old one. That’s when you realize home is a facade. After serving seven years in China God took our Asia path and redirected us to a strange country called Michigan—for this southern girl I was positive were moving to the Arctic tundra and two winters later I am convinced that’s where I’ve landed. Now in the midwest I am relearning culture, language and the general system of American life. I’m wandering through society with a different lens, trying to make sense of the roads in which God leads us and the pit stops along the way. I’m seeing we are in a world that’s opened globally in countless ways, yet guarded. All the while, wondering how God fits into the greater scheme of it all, how he will redeem what’s been lost, heal the broken, and bring us wanders home.
Reflections & Ponderings The Pilgrim Life
A Call to ‘Do Something’
Who we see ourselves to be, and how we view our purpose as Christians makes a difference in how we will respond to the needs of our world. We can not sit back and wait for Jesus to return, he’s already given us the task of reconciling what is broken to himself in order to make it right on earth. We do have hope, there is a way to do something and see change.
As we wander in transition Living as a wanderer
Returning Home-side: The Path Unintended
I recently had this story published on the ChinaSource blog and I thought I would share a bit of my story with you. It’s a reflection on the process of leaving a calling, transition, and grief. (Link below) “We never choose to leave the field. We may be asked to leave by officials. We may have to leave for the sake of family needs or safety. Sinfulness may force us from the field, or we…
Discernment
The Bible: A Cryptic Document, An Ancient Tale, Guidebook for Life, A God-inspired Friend
Can the Bible be used as a guidebook, self-help book, magic eight-ball? How do we discern from the Bible? When I first starting reading the Bible, I didn’t know where to begin. I know I am not alone, even now it isn’t always simple, but the good news is that we don’t have to understand it all at once and it does offer discernment if we are willing to plunge in. Will you join me?
Discernment Living as a wanderer Spiritual Formation
World on Fire
What is Easter living when we feel like mourning rather than rejoicing? The world may feel as though it’s falling apart and doesn’t makes much sense, but we are not abandoned. We may still cry out, “God be praised!”
