Archives for October 2012

Where are you ‘chasing’ the DeChurched?

October 9, 2012 by Jules 2 Comments

I told you a little yesterday about who some of the DeChurched are. I also mentioned that they, along with the UnChurched, are the target group of The Valley church we are planting in Vilonia.
Today I want to share this video of Matt Chandler, the lead teaching pastor at the 'mega church', The Village in Dallas, TX. I hope this explains yet another sect of the UnChurched population in America.

Many of you may be wondering where exactly we plan to "chase" this generation of Christ followers who happen to not regularly attend a Sunday service somewhere. You may be disappointed but our goal is not to chase them back into a building to take part in a boring weekend hobby. Our plan is to chase them back to the heart of Jesus.

For some that means introducing them to the real Jesus of the bible as opposed to what some churches have portrayed Him as, a tradition or moral to uphold
For others that may mean we provide them with a freeing space to worship together with the the family they have in Christ.
For yet others, it may mean showing them God's heart for serving and sharing this amazing love story as it unfolds all around them.

We want to be the arms of Jesus reaching out to a group that needs solid biblical teaching, strong fellowship among other Christ-followers, an example of authentic gospel driven lifestyle to mimic. Ultimately, this model will mobilizes this generation to reach the world for the name of Jesus like we're called and long to do.

We will not be a building. We will not be a location. We will not be a service. We will not be an organization.

We will become the body of Christ in order to bring honor to His name and accomplish His will.

Filed Under: The DeChurched, The Ones about Post Series, The ones about the Rothacher Home, The Ones about The Valley Church

Who are the dechurched?

October 8, 2012 by Jules 9 Comments

Most of you know that my husband and I have been "called" to go plant a church. What many of you may not know is why. There were many factors but the one that's growing the most meaningful to me is this:

We are going to chase down the
unchurched and dechurched in our generation!

Vilonia is a "bedroom" town {people commute all week to jobs and only sleep in their homes} made up of mainly 25-35 year old's with an average of young 2 children. That's US. I am 28 and Matt just turned 35. We have 3 kids...but they all came in 2.5 kids so they're kinda like just 2... hehe

This is my generation! Generation Y. The Millennial Generation. Echo Boomers. The children of baby boomers or Gen Xers. Marked by an increased use and familiarity with communications, media, and digital technologies.

I've always wanted to be that generation. The generation that seeks! That seeks His face. Oh, God of Jacob!

Sadly, when I moved into youth ministry with my husband I had all but kissed my hopes of being in that kind of generation goodbye. I'd moved on to the hopes of helping the next generations. I mean really! Ton's of people in generation Y won't even try church because they've been burnt by someone claiming they are apart of "the church" when really they have no idea it's not really just a boring weekend hobby. These are the unchurched. Lost. Completely unaware of Christ. Nope, they don't know the stories.

My people are, if in fact they've ever been apart of a church are leaving church in droves. No, we're not just leaving. We're running from church. We are no longer coming back to church either. Not like our parents and possibly grandparents did after their phase of college-age life. Ya know, coming to their senses when they settled down and had some "kids that needed to be in church." These are the dechurched.

Today I want you to know a little more about my generation from the well-know, much cooler than I, Jessica Bowman of Bohemian Bowman's, Parenting Wild Things, as well as the Finding Church Community Project set to release Fall of 2012.

~~~

Who are the dechurched, the truest cynics?

We are her children - we are the churched.

We've been there, done that, and gotten the VBS t-shirt. We are the burned, the spurned. We are not scholars, but know when things don't add up. We know the words of Jesus, you made us memorize them for stickers and trinkets - so we know when they're being stomped, ignored - twisted.

When you attack our appearance, put your man-made traditions before souls, squander resources on self-preservation, exclude - we see it. We pick it up off the holy ground where you dropped it and load it in our guns like ammunition.

We don't bother listening to you because you don't have anything new to say. We tune out your Charlie Brown teacher droning - mwamwa, republican, mwamwa abortion, mwamwa, pro-war, mwamwa, gay-hater, mwa mwa mwa.

Until you speak grace, we will despise you. Until you speak love, we will only hear a clanging gong. Until you speak truth, we will run from your institutions.

We may be wrong, but we know you're not right. And that's enough to fuel the fires of our disgust and disinterest. Indefinitely.

~~~

Learn more about Jessica's journey of Leaving the Church as well as her resent Returning to Church.

Continue reading here about another sect of the DeChurched, where we plan to chase them. and where you lie in the DeChurched perspective.

Filed Under: The DeChurched, The Ones about Post Series, The ones about the Rothacher Home, The Ones about The Valley Church

Layered Striped Picture Frame {tutorial}

October 4, 2012 by Jules 3 Comments

Oooooo, I had been waiting for THIS package for a few days in eager anticipation! I was beyond giddy when I pulled this in the backdoor after it'd been dropped off! {the things a mom get's her kicks from...}

I was scheming up a new look for my mantle this fall and decided I wanted a little more color than your typical autumn palette. I used this abnormal frame combination to add a little funk and an uncommon color.

Today I wanna tell you how I made it. It was a fun process!

Matrials Needed:

Poppy Seed Projects frames: the Carson 11x14 with the Eleanor Trim Piece 11x14 {or your chose of frame}
NOTE: these kits do not come with glass, only backing for the frame, not trim piece

Black & Turquoise Acrylic Paint {you choice of color} ~2 fl oz
Paint Brush {almost any size will work, I recommend avoiding sponge brushes}
Palm Sander {small light weight sander or just a couple pieces of sand paper}
Painter's Tape
Krylon Clear Coat Spray Paint
Elmo's Wood Glue
A Bunch of Heavy Stuff
Some kind of Hooks for hanging {if you chose to hang} OR a Big Easel {if you chose to display on a stand}

We'll jump past the unwrapping-the-box-and-packing-materials-like-a-small-child-on-Christmas step and get to the the break-out-your-cheap-acrylic-paints-and-go-to-town step.

I chose black because it's neutral and I had a lot of it. If you have a small bottle of acrylic paint, it will take nearly the entire bottle. I used a rolling sponge brush for the 1st coat but I don't recommend it. It soaked up all the paint and made streaks as I tried to squeeze the paint out as I was going. I would do at least 2 even, thin coats. Make sure the back and front are covered. If you're a little impatient like me with projects {due to the limited time for crafting that mothers have}, paint the back 1st. Then put 4 push pins in the 4 corners of the back of the frame. Flip the frame over, resting on the push pins. No you can paint the top. You don't have to have the back coated overly well.

When it's dry, use a light weight sander and buff up the trim. I think this gives it a more layered look and some depth. Then measure and add painters tape the width you want the FLAT paint stripes to be. I used the 1/4 inch tape {I think} and did 2 strips wide. HINT: the black showing will be the glossy stripe.

Take the frame outside and spray an even coat of the CLEAR spray paint over the frame. You might want to do 2 thin coats but I just did one.

After that dried {super fast}, I buffed up the trim again. I think it was super cute with just the stripes before the laying but LOVE the layering even more.

Next, I painted my smaller, trim piece with the turquoise paint. Again, same painting "process". {You can so do this at the beginning when you're painting the other frame OR while the other frame's clear coat is drying. I just didn't have that much available space.}

After the blue is dried, sand the edges, wash off, and do your clear coat, buffing after just like the black frame.

After everything is dry, lay your trim piece on top CENTERED, where you want it. Then, hold it in place and trace lightly with a pencil so you can see where to add the glue and put the trim back. Squeeze a thin layer of glue inside your pencil line and the inside of the frame. Don't get it too close to the pencil marking or too thick or it will ooze out. Gross. I forgot but they recommend doing a layer of glue on both pieces of the wood. Ooops. Mine hasn't fallen apart yet ;o)

After adding glue and placing the trim piece back on top, add something HEAVY on top. I don't own clamps but if you do, that would be perfect. I used tons of Matt's giant books, hehe. Over night would be a great idea, but again...my kids would attack this in the morning. So, after several hours, I gently removed the books {and DVD sets of TV series'} and did the scientific test: tipped it up right and shook gently watching to see if it moved at all. NOPE! We're good to go.

Here's the result:

You can go to the Poppy Seed Projects blog to read my guest post about this addition to this "Photo Fanatic's Home" AND to the Homemaker's Challenge where I shared about creating "A Year-round Frame for a Seasonal Mantel"!!!

Filed Under: The ones about the Rothacher Home

The Raccoon Slayer {My Husband ROCKS!}

October 1, 2012 by Jules Leave a Comment

The kids nightly bath time with daddy means it's time for me to do my "chores". I headed in the laundry room to do the nightly load and hear a nasty chewing sounds coming from the back deck. "Awe, our poor Kiz. Our old def dog is noisily scarf'n some food." I thought to myself as I went to the back door to look out on our giant golden retriever. When I looked down on the dog food bowl I did NOT see old man Kiz...I saw a FAMILY of Raccoons!

This began happening nightly. Those fat daddy 'coons would down an entire dog feeder full in a matter of hours. We tried to start bringing in the dog food at night but would of course forget. They ate at least one big bag of dog food on their own. I'd had enough. This was getting expensive. One of the nights we'd forgotten, I flung open the door baring a broom to shoo them away from the food so I could bring it in...That Mean Booger hissed and swatted at me!!!! I screamed for Matt to come help me. THAT was the night the Raccoon Slayer was born.

My Grand Husband.
The protector.
The defender. The Raccoon Slayer!

It was annoying enough that these 'coons were eating his dogs food and were known to be mean to dogs but get'n feisty with his wife- NO! Matt had a plan. For a week he would rush down from bath to bait the 'coons with the food. Each night he would practice perfecting his killer tactics {yeah, I saw what I did there}. He went in armed with his sword which normally finds it's home under our bed...for burglars... He added gloves for a better grip on the blade {he chose to attempt to smack it with the heavy handle rather than chop it in 1/2 to save himself some clean up}. Then came better food wear as to not fall when whipping open the back door leading onto the well lit back deck were the rumble was planned to go down. Night after night we would watch a family of at least 4-5 raccoons make their trek to our porch to chow down on some SAMs Club dog food. Must be good stuff.

Finally came the night. Dog in the garage {for his own safety}. The porch light was on. Dog food in place, centered in the middle of the small square back deck. Back door unlocked and slightly cracked. Matt perched in a chair geared for battle. Waiting. They approached boldly. No caution about them. As if this were their turf. Matt waited until the first one was in place. He slung open the door and swung the handle end of the sword all in one fluid motion. SWWWwwwaaaaake! It was a near miss. Shattering the giant sword handle into several pieces. STANK!

Matt returned from battle laughing but obviously frustrated. Placing the pieces of his weapon on the counter with an air of defeat, he explained to me that he needed to find a new weapon. He marched down to the basement and dug for a proper tool for such a project. Not knowing where he'd gone, I peeked out the back door looking for the varmints. I saw him with the flashlight below. Thinking my self very cleaver, I began scratching on the door frame and making a terribly nasty chewing noise. He Scrambled! Rather than hustling up the back stairs on to the deck like I assumed he would do, he took off up the other set of stairs to the side deck and in the playroom door. I nearly fell on the floor laughing! I met him in the kitchen joining the playroom and laundry. He blew past my laughing-self to the back door. He wasn't scared of the creature seemingly on the deck, he was ready for a rumble! Finally I explained that it was me, not the evil nocturnal, making the sounds. He was not as amused as I.

In the following nights he did make contact with a couple but none of the 'coons met their demise. Enough was enough. He upped his game! He had weeks invested in this hunt and there was no way they were going to win. It was time to wip out the big guns {again, pun intended}. He'd considered poison but opted to round-up less risky ammo -1 live trap and a pellet gun- from a friend. Upon inspecting the live trap he decided these varmints were too large for the size of this small case and he wasn't quite sure where to "release" them one by one night after night. He went with the open kitchen window and pellet gun. He practiced his aim on cans from various distances before the big night. Pretty good shot for a non-hunter!

Warning: the following is 
not for the faint of heart
or for the animal rights picketers!

Sunday September 23rd, 2012

THE big night he'd been training for was finally here! Again, the porch light was on. Food in place. Door cracked. Window open. Chair and gun in place.

Matt had been pacing back and forth from the living room to his kill zone. Then. Then I heard it! Pop! Scramble. "Julie. Come here! I got one!" I dropped what I was doing and took off! When I got to the back door to look through the glass at his kill I did not find a lifeless creature to be sad over. I found an evil rabid flailing beast tossing about making a wretched racket. Even my {literally} def dog had aroused to check it out. After being clawed at, Kiz wasn't sure how to respond. He batted back and made a slight growl as he lunged forward at the 'coon as if to say, "I could take you!" That ~~poor~~ evil thing flopped right between the railing and plopped down onto the concrete patio below.

{insert eery silence}

Camera in hand I ask if it was dead and creeeeked the door open. Matt gazed below at his 1st ever kill. Lil creepy.

No "awes"!!! That innocent-looking varmint has held us captive in our house for a least a month after he and his posse hissed and threatened me. Look at that lil turd holding his chest trying to insight pitty. {sniff} NO! Stay strong!

After making Matt walk {partially} down the stairs with flashlight in hand to take the picture, for fear of a sneak attack from the 'coon brothers, we heading back inside not really knowing what to do with ourselves. We {mainly He} felt great relief and accomplishment yet now a sad let down. Hmmm, I killed one...

I went back to writing and Matt paced once again from the living room chair to the back of the house. Very shortly another, heartless, must-have-just-sniffed-and-passed-his-friends-cold-dead-yet-furry-body-and-come-right-on-up-the-stairs raccoon appeared on the back deck munching away at the Member's Mart filled bowl. {apparently, I was typing like a fool}. Cat Cat! The gun went off. I waited.....Matt wandered into the living room and calmly continued into the entry way. I thought, but would NEVER utter to my husband. "Awe." Then I gently asked, "Did you miss?" "Nope." he responded. "ReeeEeeealy!?!" "Nope, it's dead."

I was baffled! And finished my interrogation of the throw-down all the way to the kitchen as I followed him and his newly found gloves back into the open window. He started to go out and remove the creature but couldn't. Yet ANOTHER heartless boozer was seemingly unaware that his sister was lifeless right next to the nearly empty bowl he was scrounging for left-overs out of. They're not opossums! She's not faking! Come on.

You see, they really ARE heartless evil rabbies-carrying fur bags who must be slain.

Matt shot at number 3 but only nicked it with such short notice and it scrambled off to lick it's wounds. So far, the count is 2 confirmed deaths, at least 4 injured and more stories to come!

maybe...this got kinda long. Thanks for reading our tail of the Raccoon Slayer!