asking for wudder ice...

Whatt'da ya mean, you've nevah had wudder ice, they asked in disbelief? Wide-eyed and curious, they looked at this California girl as if I was from Mars. Surrounded by roughly 20 pre-teen girls, they laughed and told me I had to go to Rita's for water ice (or, as they say, wudder ice).

The next day on my way to the airport, my gracious hosts learned about my apparent Philadelphia sin--You've never been to Rita's?! At this point I think Rita must be everyone's grandmother because everyone knows her and is offended I haven't visited her.

We pulled into obscure an Philly lot and saw the Rita's banner hanging from the brown, weathered roof. I'm expecting an old woman with a sweet voice who calls me Sugar to come out and hug me. But no, Rita is no where to be found. In fact, I don't think Rita lives there. The windows aren't open and the shades are drawn closed.

With sad, disappointed voices my hosts, Gabrielle and Angelica, inform me Rita's was closed. So I did what any ambitious girl would do. I knocked on the window. Hard. They looked at me in one of the She's-not-from-Philly ways and waited for us to get rejected. A tall, thin but burly guy peeks out of the door with a brisk, We open at noon.

As he was shutting the door I yelled out, I'mFromCaliforniaAndI'veNeverHadRita'sBeforeAndICan'tGoHomeWithoutEverTryingIt! (exhale) There is a slight pause from my tall but burly friend. Hang on, he said.

He returns with not one but THREE Rita's ice waters! Gab and Annie look at me in complete shock. I turned it into a Come-To-Jesus moment and I pepper our experience with, You have not because you ask not! We laughed, but it resonated deep within. Like a pebble tossed into a lake, the words spoken by Jesus reverberated in my mind, You have not because you ask not.*

We sometimes look at 'CLOSED' signs and walk away. But what if we have to fight for it? What if we have to ask to get it? What if the miraculous is answered simply when we ask? So--what are you asking for? What's your small miracle? Maybe we just need to ask...

*James 4:2-3

never say never...

I grew up a poor kid. Not like poor I-don't-have-a-home, but poor like I-wish-I-didn't-have-to-shop-at-thrift-stores. And I-wish-I-didn't-have-to-drink-the-donated-guava-juice-from-church. And I'm-never-going-to-wear-hand-me-downs-anymore. Yeah, that kind of poor.

As a child I vowed I would never be poor again. I would never wear donated clothes. I would never ask for a handout.

Never say never.

I have been invited to go into the slums of Kenya, meet the amazing people from Mavuno church, and physically be the hands and feet of Jesus to live out the commission to love my neighbor as myself. I believe in the organization I'll be traveling with whole-heartedly... but there's this one thing I just can't get over: their STRICT fundraising policy. [see below]

So--I'm starting the Post-it Project. Everywhere I go, people who I touch, you will be able to be part of this journey. I'll be blogging and Tweeting about our adventures and if you want to be part of this adventure, you can! Below are some instructions on how to help send me to Africa.

Go to http://www.marinersoutreach.org/giving

Click on the link that says "Give towards a Faith Adventure"
Step 1: Fill in your information.
Step 2: Designate Faith Adventure Donation
Team Member Name: [Bianca Juarez]
Trip Name: [Kenya, June 2010]
Step 3: Fill in your account information.

I appreciate your help, love, and support. If nothing else, I appreciate your prayers!

things we don't talk about...

After teaching at an event a grown woman came up to me, jittery and embarrassed, and admitted she was addicted to porn. She knew she had a problem, but she didn't know what to do, where to go, or who to tell.

After teaching at an event a woman came up to me, jittery and embarrassed, and admitted she was addicted to porn. She knew she had a problem, but she didn't know what to do, where to go, or who to tell. Except this woman was 15 years old.

Two separate women, two separate days, two separate generations, both struggling with the same issue.

The young girl who approached me looked angrily at me as she admitted her addiction through sobs. It was as if she thought I was going to yell at her or condemn her. I grabbed her hand and told her it was okay. No it's not, she shot back. It's not okay! It's a sin! In a moment of clarity I realized she had bought into the lie claiming her sin as the chief of all sin. The apple had been bit and the lie continues to spread.

Research from Evangelical Christian women reveal 40% of women have participated in sexual sin in the past year and 20% of are addicted to porn (46% of men). Personally, I think the percentages are higher. Instead of keeping our sins as dirty little secrets, we need to talk about them. We need to admit to them. We need to confess our weaknesses and seek intervention.

Let's stand on what we know:

• We are all jacked up and need help (Romans 3:23)
• God's love in inalienable (Romans 8:38-39)
• When we can't handle it, God can (Matthew 19:26)
• You're not alone in this battle (awesome video from Anne Jackson and Mike Foster)
• You need to admit this is a problem (James 5:16) and dialogue with others struggling through this (Dirty Girls Ministry)

If you are struggling through this or would like further information, I really suggest you visit Anne Jackson's blog and Dirty Girls Ministries resource page. More importantly, you're not alone.

Questions? Comments? Stones to throw? Better yet, does anyone have the most current research about men and women in the church who are addicted to porn?

jealousy, envy, & me...

She's jealous of his car. He's jealous of his wife. We're jealous of her hair. We are all jealous of someone, at sometime. Don't lie. Now it's simply a matter of how to deal with it so we don't end up like brood of haters.

Today's post is linked on (in)courage and can be read in it's entirety. As always, I've turned off the comments here so you can join the dialogue as we discuss fashion faux pas, gym workouts, and Grecian supermodels who workout at my gym.

The length of her legs reaches to my eyelids and her hair hangs at the side of her size 2 waist. She has to be a fitness coach, professional dancer, or super model because really, who looks like a Grecian goddess at 5:30AM?

Click here to continue:

friends not fans...

If Jesus had a Twitter account, how would he run it? Seriously. Take a moment and think about social media--then decide if the early church would've used technology to connect with people across the globe.

I think so.

People feel differently about social media and it's uses. Some use it for marketing. Others use it for publicity. Many use it for socializing. Recently I started a Twitter account and a facebook page and I've had discussions with people I trust on how it should be run.

Like, should I be uber holy and only post scripture? What if people think I'm lame? Who should I follow and how do I interact?

The truth is I'm not uber holy, I am quite lame, and I still have awkward social moments (Yes, I was home-schooled). But since there are no strict rules on social media, I'm making them up as I go along.

For memories sake and posterity, I'm posting my rules here so I can remember them and share them with you:

1. I don't have followers, I have friends. I don't hate on people who choose not to follow me on Twitter. It's their choice and I still would like to see what they're up to. But I realized that I'm not trying to be a SuperStar in life and I shouldn't care the about the ratio of people I follow versus who is following me. If you have a shirt on and you're not trying to sell something, I'll follow you.
2. I don't have fans, I have friends. In The Name of Love has a facebook page and I love it! If I could get rid of my personal page and opt for that one, I would. People post prayer requests, funny stories, ask about future speaking events, or reply to a comment or link I post. But let's not get it twisted: I don't have fans.
3. If you ask a personal question on the blog or through formsping that is anonymous, I probably will not answer it. There is no power in anonymity.
4. Blogging is hard. Like really, really hard. I don't get paid a dime and I'm not trying to sell Amway or Pre-Paid Legal services. I blog because sometimes I feel as if it's my only voice to a world I cannot reach. Vienna, Austria--I blog for you. Queenstown, New Zealand--I blog for you. Santiago, Chile--I blog for you. Ozark, Arkansas--I blog for you. I pour out my heart with simple words... because words are all I have.

So, what are your rules? Am I missing any? How do you tweet and what do you say? Why is Jon Gosselin still in the limelight? Why is Suri Cruise the most gorgeous little girl in the whole world?

Power to the people,

:B

keepin' it real... again...

There is a danger in compartmentalizing life. But sometimes compartmentalizing life blocks out fears, questions, doubts, or confusion.

Last week I received beautiful prayer requests from people across the globe. Some were funny and others serious, but each one spoke honestly and from the heart.

In the midst of writing down post-it notes for people, I paused when I read the ending comment from Steph, How can I pray for you????

I couldn't respond at that moment because I'd probably have the longest comment. Ever. But after a few days of processing and opening up the public and private compartments of my heart,* I realized I need to keep it real.

So, this is me. My private world unveiled and raw through supplications for prayer. Please don't judge me--I don't have the luxury of anonymity.

• We need a revolution for our generation. Hearts need to turn back, minds need to be cleansed, and lives need redemption. I want to be part and parcel of changing our world for the better. I just need to figure out how...
• There's a strong possibility I'm going to be a step-mother. I don't want to be Cruella DeVil or Cinderella's step-mother, so pray for love, patience, and understanding of a child's mind.
• I want to get off the weight roller coaster, but it's the never ending ride. I desire contentment above a certain illusive weight. Pray for acceptance of my body.
• I don't know how I'm going to afford living and supporting a family doing ministry. I want to share and teach, wherever, whenever, but I know I have rent to pay and bills to manage. Pray for a simple lifestyle that lends itself to ministering the Gospel.
• I want to be faithful like David, but I'm a sign-seeking Gideon. I want signs for signs. What I really need is faith. More faith.

So my dear blog friends, I shamelessly solicit prayer. I'm a coward in my private prayer life because I'm afraid to open myself and ask for prayer. But Lord knows I need it!

*This is also because a dear friend who anonymously reads my blog told me she was going to boycott my blog if I didn't start having more faith. She told me I needed to ignore my blog until I started believing what I was preaching. Ouch! But her prodding caused me to keep it real.

Friday Video Post: illegal immigration...

Before I'm a daughter, a teacher, a writer, or an Latino-American, I'm a Christian and I'm committed to the call of the Church. In other words, I'm concerned about how the Bible can orient the way the broader Christian community, denomination, and individual Christians understand their identity and role in the world today.

When it comes to the issue of illegal immigration, the topic is huge and extraordinarily complicated. I do not pretend to offer solutions contested issues or to propose some sort of political cure-all for the many problems. I simply want to raise dialogue and discussion about a serious situation. Once we can develop an appreciation of how complicated the situation is, it can help us move us beyond emotional attachments or simplistic positions that often dominate the media and current politics.

Too often discussion defaults to the passionate ideological arguments (It's not their land, It's not fair, It's illegal), economic wrangling (Immigrants are taking jobs and money), or racial sentiment (I just don't like Chinese people, I don't like Mexicans, I hate when people can't speak English).

According to Dr. D. Carroll, the number of immigrants, documented and undocumented, who have entered the country during the past thirty years has made this phenomenon the focus of national debate at many levels and in all sorts of arenas. The debate is heated, and it has generated interesting alliances that cross ideological lines.

He also notes Christians in our society locate themselves at different points along this broad spectrum of opinion. Carroll discovered that the conversation about immigration has more to do with ideological commitments, personal background, and experience rather than Christian convictions.

So--what do we do? How can we gently (and in love) discuss fear, apprehension, justice, power, forgiveness, and LOVE? Let's start the dialogue in love...

Scriptures to support both sides of the arguments:

Abraham welcoming foreigner (Gen. 18), Elijah welcomed by the Shunammites ( 2 Kings 4), sojourners not following or integrating in Israelite life (Duet. 17:15) and rituals (Exod. 12:43, Ezek. 44:7, sojourners must do hard labor (2 Chron. 2:22), aliens could be day laborers (Duet. 24:14), commanded to love the alien/foreigner (Lev. 19:18, 34, Matt. 22:34-40), Jesus as refugee (Matt. 2:13-14), sumbit to authorities and laws of the land (Romans 13:1-7).

confessions...

We've done it before and I think we should do it again.

It's time for confessions! Origen said, Confession is the vomit of the soul. So it's about time we purge.

I'll go first. Please don't leave me hanging, friends.

• One time I hit a parked car and left the scene. [I was seventeen.]
• I cheated in my French class sophomore year of high school during my midterm. [I still have trouble sleeping over that one.]
• I ripped the pay phone off the wall of Stauffer Hall at Whitter College and never told anyone. [I'm telling you.]
• I threatened my sister's life after she hacked a loogie and it landed on my forehead. [It was disgusting. You would've too.]
• I tried being bulimic multiple times. [I just couldn't do it.]
• I Googled my ex-boyfriend a year ago just to see what he was up to. [It was pathetic. I know.]
• I stole Jasmine's Isabella Fiore purse over a month ago. [She doesn't even know it's gone.]

Now it's your turn. Keep it real...

Note: As always, you can comment in anonymity. But don't be chicken! I ain't gonna throw stones. I'll leave that to the Pharisees :)