Values are a funny thing. And by funny I mean that although by its very definition, a "value" implies something fixed, unchanging, and uncompromising, in actuality our values are some of the most fluid components of our personalities. They are our inner lava lamps, morphing continuously to fit our circumstances and getting prodded and plied by our every emotion, whether we realize it or not. It's why it's so easy to value good stewardship of the planet when you first buy that reusable coffee mug, but suddenly so hard when you have to then remember to bring it with you everywhere and wash it out after every use. It's why it's so easy to value purity when you're single and so hard to value generosity when you're down to your last dime. Christ offers us the chance to solidify the values that He teaches us by being in relationship with Him. Just like Ice-nine, our contact with God allows us to freeze our values into place, which is the essence of integrity.

At the House of the Rising Son, we have seen our values melt into some ugly puddles over the past few months. Since early November, two house members out of three have been out of work or very nearly out of work (only getting 8 or so hours a week), leaving us attempting to pay all of our personal bills, living expenses, and house insurance and taxes on one person's $10/hour income. Both of our two cars died in one week in December, and we were only able to resurrect Brent's after several days. Marc's remains unusable. Various and costly things went wrong with the house, including clogged sinks and toilets, a broken washing machine, and the contented need for all the door locks to be replaced, reinstalled, and rekeyed. Theft continued, as recycling containers and a bicycle mysteriously disappeared. As many of you know, Louisiana had a freak, unseasonable hard freeze for last week, with temperatures dropping into the 20's. During this time we had no heat whatsoever on the boys' side of the house (except for 1 small space heater) and a painfully inefficient central heat on the girls' side due to all the cracks in the house and overall poor insulation. During all this, we have hosted more than 25 friends and acquaintances (and their countless dogs) who are street kids and travelers, many of whom would have had nowhere warm or dry to stay during the unexpected cold snap.

Eating dinner with some of our traveler friends in December

These have been drastic, difficult changes in our lives to try to process in such a short time. I can't speak collectively for the House, but I know that for me personally, it has been nothing short of a crisis, where I seemed to watch helplessly as my supposed convictions flew out the window and all the ugliest, most selfish parts of myself came in to replace them. My faith in commonwealth and the responsibility of the believer to take care of her brothers and sisters? Gone. My love of hospitality to guests and those in need? Nowhere to be found. My personal prayer life? Nonexistent. The woman who just 6 months before had talked joyously of the vision of a community house overflowing with people and the conviction to live a simpler, less materialistic life, now wanted nothing more than to kick every single person out of the house, lock myself away in my room, and enjoy the creature comforts that I was used to when I lived like a single, semi-prosperous suburbanite. In my mind, I thought that we had either failed miserably, or were in such a vast desert that I couldn't even see a mirage of relief ahead. Screw this. Screw community. Screw my values.

Such is the place we tend to find ourselves when we disconnect ourselves from the Father during trials (arguably the worst time to do so). In doing so, our worldview--which is already all too small--shrinks down to accommodate nothing more than our present circumstances and the suckiness thereof. We can't be selfless. We can't have faith. We can't persevere.

Paul considers perseverance of faith during crisis to be so crucial that it will literally "save both yourself and your hearers." I don't think that Paul is using hyperbole here for emphasis, but is stating a simple truth: that a Gospel that doesn't hold up in the struggle isn't worth fighting for in the first place. It has no power to save, and nothing of value to offer.

During the past few months, we as a House have learned to persevere in the strength of our Lord. We have learned to cling to, rather than abandon, our relationship with Christ and the doctrines and values that we know to be true. We have learned about the dangers of compromise and the pursuit of integrity. We have learned to step back and allow God the room to mold the circumstances we are so busy crying over into something good, something that will bless His heart and the lives of others. And now that we are headed towards another peak, we hope and pray that we will have the wisdom to better handle the next valley when it comes.

Second linin' it on N. Robertson Street

________________________

Some praise reports and updates:

- As of yesterday, all three of House members are employed with at least part time hours. Marc and Nikki are working at Whole Foods, and Brent got hired on with a PC repair company. Thank you Jesus, for real! =)
- Until we are able to establish regular financial support for our ministry projects and more helping hands to see them become a reality, our ministry in Treme is going to be confined to an informal, relational basis. In essence, the larger scale things like neighborhood BBQ's and skillshare classes will have to wait, but we will continue to do free bicycle repair, Sunday night bible study, a community garden, and simply being a light to our community through building relationships with our neighbors.
- Through getting to know one of Brent's freelance tech support clients, we may have as much as 10,000 sq. ft. of land for our community garden in the spring. Please pray that this works out!
- Drug use, especially crack and heroine, and domestic violence continue to plague our neighborhood. Please pray for deliverance from these things and for God to use us in an effective way to promote change.