The Title

This blog is a dedicated blog, meaning it's not going to be like the other blog I tried and failed at. I decided that a blog needs a purpose, a theme, something to come back to when I start rambling on and on. Otherwise, it's just about my life and how I feel, which is great to share with close friends, but not very interesting in a blog. Anyway, not the way I would write it.

So I thought and thought about a title. The first option was "Crunchy Christianity," but that was taken. Maybe I shouldn't have been surprised. But I realized that it wasn't exactly what I meant to convey in a title. Then I/we (my husband was in on this venture by this time) thought of "Granola Gospel," which was already taken by a Mennonite church blog. I felt I was in good company, but wanted to be a little more specific.

Because this isn't a blog about being "crunchy" (which is actually sort of a slam by people who aren't really sure what you're on about). And it isn't a blog about granola (although I would like to talk about that at some point starting with the issue of commercial cereal). This is a blog about how Jesus led us to live in the city of St. Louis and grow a garden here. We also have chickens. But it's not only about gardens and chickens.

I have been called "crunchy," "hipster," and a few other things, but I see a problem with all of these labels. Most of these groups of people have a great credo or manifesto, but it is based in a worldview that not only excludes God, but denies Him. This is a big problem for me. When I go to the library or the Internet to find information about "urban farming," "whole foods," or "sustainable living," I'm looking for role models, people I can emulate. Instead, I find very sad, empty folks who are seriously living out very good values, but without an underlying worldview that I can sink my teeth into. I have been known to slam a good farming memoir book down in disgust when the moral of the story is something about "finding myself in the land."

Therefore, this blog is dedicated to living in the city, growing some food, raising chickens, making baby food, granola, and other grown-up food, recycling, consuming less, composting, simply living counter-culturally, but ultimately this blog is dedicated to seeing the kingdom of God take root and grow in this little patch of land in St. Louis, MO. This blog is about partnering with God as He shows us the way we are supposed to "work it out" in this space and time. This is about our little part to play in urban restoration.