Tag: history

Paradigm Shift at a Pig Roast

Published on by tinavila202 Comments

*Check out the podcast version on Spotify or Anchor!

I was part of a book club this summer that went through Out of Sorts by Sarah Bessey. It’s about making peace with an evolving faith.

It really helped me nail down things I have struggled with over the last little while – particularly when it comes to the Church, her role in the world, and my own role within all that.

I’m hoping some of my own thoughts on this will be helpful to you as well!

As you may know, I was a history teacher before I started raising kids in Essex County, so this next bit really fascinated me. I’ve made it as concise as is humanly possible, but reach out to me if you want more!

The history of the Church has had four major paradigm shifts including her inception at Pentecost.

A paradigm shift occurs when a new discovery is made, new research is revealed, or new techniques are developed that changes the way of thinking or doing things.

Since these paradigm shifts have taken place roughly every 500 years, that should tell us a lot about where we might be heading!

  • The first was the foundation of the Church itself at Pentecost
    This consisted of the Holy Spirit falling upon Jesus’ disciples in the upper room in Acts 2. Then followed by the Apostle Peter being filled with the Spirit and addressing the crowd where thousands came to faith on that very day.
  • The second was when the Roman Empire fell, and the Dark Ages of Christianity were born, circa 500
    These medieval years were unfortunately tainted with Holy Wars and Crusades that did little good to draw ordinary people to the Saviour.
  • The third is known as the Great Schism in 1054
    At this time, there was conflict in the church. Most of it surround the belief that either Peter or Paul was the first official head of the church, as well as debates surrounding a Pope. My overly simplified response to that is… Jesus? Regardless, this resulted in the first of countless church splits. And the Catholic and Orthodox Churches were born.
  • The final shift took place during the Enlightenment Period and is known as The Reformation
    This is when opposition arose against the corruption and absolute power of the Roman Catholic Church and the Protestant Church was born.

I sure hope y’all enjoyed that little history lesson as much as I enjoy learning about these important markers of our history. Because many church scholars and theologians would argue that we’re about to enter another shake up in the life of the Church.

Buckle up kids, it’s going to be a bumpy ride! I mean, I say this in jest, but actually, it’s all very serious and intense.

Keeping in mind these important changes in Church history, I am dying to get to the good stuff of this post found in Acts 10, and I can’t wait to share some applications I am trying to adopt in my own life too.

Let’s check it out together.

Three main things happen in Acts 10

  • Cornelius, a Roman Centurion, is visited by an angel because he is a devout, God-fearing man who gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly (vs. 2). The angel tells him to send for a guy named Peter and have him come to his home. He does just that.
  • Meanwhile in Joppa…. the Apostle Peter is hungry and up on a rooftop praying. Suddenly, he has a vision of this sheet coming down in front of him and all kinds of animals are on it. Some kosher, some non-kosher.
    In his vision, God tells him to kill and eat. Peter, in his usual adversarial manner, argues with the Lord that he cannot eat meat that is impure and unclean. God tells him, do not call anything impure that God has made clean!
    They go back and forth on this three times. (Because apparently “three” is the magic number for Peter!) While he’s thinking about this vision and what it might mean, the men who were sent to fetch Peter arrive and escort him to Cornelius’ home.
  • Peter meets with Cornelius and tells him that technically he shouldn’t even be there since Cornelius is a Gentile (non-Jew) and it’s unlawful for them to even associate.
    Peter then asks Cornelius why he sent for him. Cornelius isn’t exactly sure! He tells Peter that an angel told him to send for a man by his name, so he did.
    Peter then realizes the meaning of the sheet with the impure and unclean animals.

And this is where it all comes together…!

This story is about including non-Israelites into the family of God. Because guess what? After Peter tells Cornelius all about Jesus, Acts 10 concludes by saying:

…the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. 45 The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. 46 For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God. Then Peter said, 47 “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” 48 So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.

So, even though Peter’s vision was about God permitting the consumption of ritually impure foods, the vision was only a symbol God was using to prepare Peter for a huge paradigm shift in the early Church!

What was the shift?

  1. No longer have to keep kosher
  2. No longer have to be circumcised to be included in God’s family

WHAT DOES THIS SHIFT IMPLY?

NO MORE DIVISION
ONLY DIVERSITY

Y’all I don’t know how to communicate what a HUGE deal this was for the early believers. Or if we can fully appreciate what this meant for the people they rubbed shoulders with in their daily lives.

To think that after thousands of years, the very things that set them apart as God’s chosen people, namely: circumcision and keeping kosher… these were no longer requirements for being included in God’s family. And it is BLOWING MY MIND.

So what’s the point?

Friends, let’s be open to what God desires to change in our way of thinking. Now, don’t hear what I’m not saying. I’m not talking politics. I’m not talking Covid. I’m not talking the right or wrong way to do church.

  • I’m talking about each of our individual views of God. How we perceive Him, and how those perceptions INFORM the way we see our world.
  • I’m talking about how those views of God FRAME our perceptions of the people around us.
  • I’m saying, let’s ASK God for vision-of-a-pig-roast kind of moments
    • to shake up our thinking
    • to prepare us for what’s coming
    • to equip us with His wisdom and His heart to interact with HIS world the way He desires for us!
  • I want the next paradigm shift to resemble a Peter and Cornelius moment; rather than the schisms of division or the crusades of holy war that have for too long tainted the Church of Christ and her mission in the world.

And what’s the mission?

To love God. (Deuteronomy 6:5)

To love people. (Mark 12:31)

To make disciples of ALL NATIONS. (Matthew 28:19-20)

What’s in the Ears

This song is a little different than my usual, but it’s my favourite on Dante Bowe’s new album, as well as being very well suited to this topic, so win-win. Enjoy!

Ok I need to know your thoughts on this! Was any of this new to you? Does it resonate? Do you agree/disagree? Let me know in the comments or send me a message!

*Check out the podcast version on Spotify or Anchor!

But I Failed, Again

Published on by tinavila204 Comments

Before Twitter and Instagram were born, and when Facebook was still in its infancy, I embarked on my first semester at McGill University.

I was a fresh young thing, with a spring in my step and a dream in my heart. And, like most sheltered young adult Type A personalities – I was determined, ambitious, and painfully naive.

Y’all, this was snapped with an actual camera because our phones were used for only phone calls back then. Still paid for text messages by the letter, and no smart phones in sight. Hair was permed. Life. Was. Good.

After getting excellent grades in my high school and CEGEP (in Quebec, similar to a junior college) history courses, I was certain I’d experience the same level of academic success at McGill.

I enrolled in a Bachelor of Secondary Education, majoring in history and minoring in religious education. It felt like a program tailored specifically for me, as it combined all my favourite things:

  • a study of the past
  • a study of faith
  • all wrapped up in program that equips you to teach them!

Wow, was I in for a rude awakening.

I failed.

I did the one thing you’re not supposed to do if you’re studying to be a history teacher in Canada: I failed my Canadian history course. Just straight bombed it. It was ugly. It was embarrassing, humiliating, confusing, you name it – I felt it.

Spoiler: I did graduate.

Have you ever hit roadblocks whilst travelling on the road of life to your destiny, that caused you to question reality and everything that matters? I sure did!

I was very disillusioned with what I thought was my purpose, my calling, my destiny, my gifting… The one thing you long to discover you were born to do. That contribution only you can make to this world in your own unique way… Failure was devastating. Failure felt like the end of my road.

Some good news!

Don’t worry, Tina! They offer a supplemental exam, so credits could be made up by just retaking the exam!

Well, that’s what I did. I studied my ass off, and wrote my brains out on that supplemental. I was back in the game!

Except I really, really wasn’t. To my shock and horror…

I failed, again.

I bombed the supplemental. Which, by the way, was supposed to be even easier than the final for the original class.

As any level-headed person would, I began to question my very existence and purpose in life. My entire future flashed before my eyes as I wondered,

How can I be a history teacher if I can’t even pass a freshman level history course? …multiple times?!

I mean, it was a fair question.

To add insult to injury, I discovered that my initial grade would still appear on my transcript, and both would be calculated into my GPA. Fantastic.

McGill University convocation, May 2009.

Well, third time’s the charm. By the time I graduated from McGill, I had 3 attempts on that blasted Canadian history course and my poor GPA had all the blows to show for it.

Fast forward six years

I had taught at several Montreal schools, gotten hitched, and popped out a couple of kids. I’ll never understand the term popped out when referring to childbirth, as it is anything but!

I digress…

We were making plans to move to Leamington, and that meant transferring my Quebec teaching credentials to Ontario. Easy peasy! I’d be on the road to molding the young minds of Essex County in no time.

Except, nope!

We were married just a few weeks post-graduation!

You guessed it… I failed. Again.

Ok fine, maybe I’m being dramatic. I didn’t actually fail because it’s just a matter of paying to be certified, which I did, and I am. But I just couldn’t land a job!

I wasn’t invited for an interview. Didn’t even get called to fill in for the day.

I was just a resumé sitting in an inbox collecting cyber dust waiting to be noticed. To this day, I haven’t taught even one period of high school history, English, or religion. The trinity of my passions. (Still being dramatic…)

This was snapped shortly after moving to Leamington. Just waiting for callbacks to interview for a teaching gig. Never got one.

When failure is a catalyst

Well you know what? If life had gone according to my plan…

I wouldn’t have acquired the tenacity or determination that can only develop after you’re knocked down and resolve to rise and try again.

  • That I learnt after failing my history course.

I wouldn’t have come to appreciate that the most valuable lessons can’t be learnt by taking shortcuts. That the long way is the only way to learn patience, and strengthen your perseverance.

  • That I learnt after failing my supplemental exam.

I wouldn’t have been home with my kids all these years, with enough time on my hands to eventually step out of my comfort zone and start this blog.

  • That I learnt when the door of traditional teaching closed on me six years ago. But it took me awhile to see that one.

I wouldn’t have recognized that God’s ways are in fact higher and better. The type of “teaching” that I get to do on this blog and through Bible studies, are the very things I couldn’t even let my heart hope for. They seemed unattainable to me. Unrealistic. Beyond my reach.

  • That I learnt by looking past my failures and at God instead.

So turns out that failing over and over at that ONE thing I thought was my destiny, was actually God’s way of doing two things:

  1. Shaping me into the person I am today.
    Obviously this person isn’t perfect. And Lord knows I cringe at many things that make me who I am. BUT… I still like what God’s doing in this sinner. And I’m grateful for the lessons I’ve learnt through failure.
  2. Shaping my path to draw me closer to Himself and the purposes He had for me all along.
    Maybe I’ll find myself in a classroom again someday. I’m not above that. But it’s just no longer the desire of my heart. Sometimes God closes doors to open others we thought we’d never be good enough for in the first place.
In my classroom (kitchen table) writing lessons (blog posts) to share with anyone willing to read. It’s truly a privilege. (And slight hair upgrade from first photo.)

Three lessons from this failure:

  • God. Is. For. Your. GOOD. If you’re following Him, you can’t lose! Even when you do. Because He is always working things for the good of those who love Him. (Romans 8:28)
  • God is not at a loss when you fail. We tend to think that we’re in God’s will when we experience success. But what if our failures are a vital part of what God is working in us? Not just in our accomplishments, but in our hearts. (1 Samuel 16:7)
  • Do the next right thing. Hit a dead end? Feeling confused? Is there a Frozen song being quoted here? Maybe. But it ain’t wrong. We don’t get to see the ending from the middle, but we can do the next right thing. Don’t know what that is? Need wisdom? Ask God! He gives it generously to anyone who asks. (James 1:5)

What’s in the Ears

Regardless of what failure we’ve endured, this song is a beautiful reminder that we can always rest in the palm of God’s hand.

Tell me, have you endured failure that has shaped you? To be honest, it was embarrassing to admit to failure here, but I’m glad I did. If you have your own experience to share, I’d love to hear it! Message me or comment below!