I would like to welcome, Olivia Newport to the blog today! Everyone give her a big welcome! I had the privilege to read her newest novel, Accidentally Amish. Whether you are an avid reader of the Amish genre or not, I think you would enjoy this book. I know I did!
Thank you so much for coming by today, Olivia, and sharing about values colliding! Take it away!
If we
were sitting in a quiet room together telling the truth, we would admit we have
come up against situations that challenged us to consider our values.
For
instance, a child’s temperament throws a parenting curve you never saw coming.
Someone you trusted makes an unkind remark about a decision you wrestled over.
Illness holds you back from attractive, even noble, opportunities. Two values
you hold deeply seem mutually exclusive. A calling on your life seems contrary
to anything you ever imagined.
What do
we do?
Sometimes
we struggle through the immediate circumstance and heave relief when it’s
over—without deciding what we actually believe is right. We do whatever
everyone else is doing, or what they tell us to do. We do whatever seems easiest, even if our guts tell us it’s
not best.
How many
examples in our culture can we point to where people of conviction nevertheless
look just like everyone else? Are they different? Are we, as people of faith, different?
The book
of Romans has long been one of my favorite parts of the Bible. Around chapter
12, Paul gets down and dirty practical. Theology is all fine and good, but what
does it have to do with how we live? Perhaps you know the opening verses about
not being conformed to the world, but transformed by God’s work in you. Here’s
how Eugene Peterson puts it in The
Message (emphasis mine).
to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping,
eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an
offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.
Don’t become so well-adjusted to your
culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your
attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what
he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you,
always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of
you, develops well-formed maturity in you.”
without even thinking. This is a constant challenge for Christians
engaging the culture around us, isn’t it? And it’s exactly the challenge that
Annie Friesen, a main character in my book Accidentally
Amish, faces. The title is playful and catches people’s attention. As they
read, though, they feel the collision of worlds in Annie’s life when she
realizes she has become so well-adjusted to her culture that she fits into it without thinking.
they do present us with some questions worth pondering.
when we ought to?
well-formed maturity in you.”
culture and seen God
of Charlotte Farrow (January 2013). She
lives in Colorado with her husband and two twenty-something children. Learn
more at www.olivianewport.com.
 |
| Purchase: Amazon Christianbook.com Anywhere books are sold! |
helter-skelter of the modern culture and join software creator Annie Friesen,
hiding at the home of an Amishman. With her high-tech career in jeopardy, Annie
runs from fast-paced Colorado Springs—and straight into the hospitality of San
Luis Valley’s Amish community. There she meets cabinetmaker Rufus Beiler, and
the more time she spends with him, the more attracted she becomes. When Annie
finds she shares a common ancestor with Rufus, she feels both cultures
colliding within her. But is her love for Rufus strong enough for her to give
up the only life she’s ever known?
* photo credit: freedigtialphotos
Olivia's book sounds good!
It is hard to not to get swept up into the world and our culture. But I always tell my niece and my kiddo that our culture is always changing (what's acceptable and what's in) but God's Word is always constant.
Love that wisdom, Jennifer. I'll have to borrow it!
Hi Olivia and Jess! The book sounds wonderful!
I don't really think that I've collided with my culture, but in my work, God places many different cultures before me. I always try to bloom where I am planted.
Great positive attitude, Loree! Bloom where you're planted. I like it.
That's such a great question. I collided more with culture as a teen than I do now. The values I find important (kindness, gentleness, self-control) seem to be important to people around me too…but if someone didn't show those values, there might be some collision. LOL
Thank you for the lovely post!
I think I collided more as a teen, too. LOL You always make me grin, Jess.
I feel like I've always collided with my culture. As a child and young teenager, I was homeschooled – a major collision! Then, when I went back to public school in high school, I was one of the only people in my graduating class of 300 who DIDN'T want to move away from our hometown – I still love it. Another collision. I was married to my high school sweetheart at the age of 21. Collision. And I raise a family with Christian principles and values that are constantly colliding with what's "in" – especially in my husband's extended family where we find ourselves outnumbered as believers. I love what Jennifer said above – we live in a culture that is always changing, but God's Word never changes.
I hear homeschooled teens/adults tell me that often, Gabe. When we moved our daughter from private Christian school to public in 5th grade, she had a major collision!
I really like the premise of the book. It's so interesting to ask ourselves if we fit into our culture or stand apart. I want to stand out, not because I'm "weird" or boisterous, but because I belong to the King. And that means I do things His way.
I love the premise too, Linds! Grab it! I love you stand out because of who you belong to. That's awesome!
The book sounds great!
🙂
Ooo! ooo! I'm starting this book THIS WEEK! Can't wait! 🙂
Oh yay!!!
My collisions with culture have gotten bigger as I got older. God keeps honing in on areas in my life where He wants me to be different, and as I've grown I've gotten better at being obedient in those differences. I think as a teen I cared too much what others thought. Now I aim to please only One.
"In, but not of" is a constant challenge, and our kids face it probably more strongly than we did at their age. I never want to be guilty of fitting in without thinking!
Loved this interview…very thought provoking. I think I clashed with culture during this last election. It was difficult for me to want to vote for either and I was just told to just vote for the lesser of the evils. What???? My conscience really struggled and I decided to vote for Jesus. He is the ruler of my heart and ultimately He is the ruler of all. So that is my experience with the clash of culture recently.
I really enjoyed these thoughts today. I've been studying the book of Romans for almost 2 years on and off. I think that is one reason I enjoy reading Amish fiction so much is how they try to stay separate from the world and for the most part are successful. I understand the Amish are folks like us and not perfect. We've made a conscience effort to simplify our lives and live apart from the world. When someone sees a fellow Christian, they should be able to tell by looking at their life that they are a Christian. Blessings, Susan Fryman
Thanks, everyone, for stopping by to share your story along with some great reminders and insights for all of us.