1. Leave me a comment saying "Interview me."
2. I will respond by emailing you five questions. I get to pick the questions.
3. You will update your blog with a post containing your answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions.
And now on to the interview:
Hannah: You mentioned to me that you had a cat. What is your cat’s name and how long have you had him/her?
Shalene: Our cat's name is Molly. She is a Tiffany, which means she is a very small, very skittish cat. (The term "scaredy cat" fits her perfectly!) My husband had her for about a year and a half before he met me, so she's been a part of this family for about 9 years now.
Hannah: You have shared with us your testimony of how you came to Christ. You also mentioned prior to receiving Christ, you considered Christianity hypocritical. What specific examples led you to that conclusion then?
Shalene: Well, it wasn't so much Christianity that I viewed as hypocritical, as Christians. When I was a child and went to church, there were many families that had more money than we did. It was very clique-ish and I felt left out, often. Later, when I looked back on the fact that other than one bible study teacher, no one even bothered to care that we were gone, I just didn't feel the love that Christians are supposed to show. There is also another big church in our area that has been around since I was a small child. That church was always known for being the church that all the wealthy people went to, and just didn't seem to reach out. Now, I don't know if any of that is true, but at the time it seemed believable. Add to that the fact that I just didn't want to believe that Christianity and God were true, and it was easier to say they were hypocrites. That way, I didn't have to look at my own behavior.
Hannah: How do you view Christianity now?
Shalene: Well, unfortunately, there are still a number of people out there that call themselves Christians that just don't seem to epitomize what Christianity is all about. Especially now that I know that being a Christian means being a Christ follower. Not just following a bunch of commandments. It's not my place to judge any of them, and I am by far, not perfect in this regard either. However, now I can say that I believe the foundations of Christianity with all my heart. I believe in God, and I believe in His Divine Son as my Lord and Savior. I believe 100% in loving my neighbor as myself, regardless of their financial, social or any other status. And I believe in the Holy Word of God, as being true and infallible.
Hannah: After your trip to Spirit West Coast, your posts have had a purposeful, direct message. What was the catalyst for this change? How has your writing changed prior to the trip to now?
Shalene: I really don't think that Spirit West Coast had anything to do with it. I think my prayers prior to and since have had everything to do with my writing. I also don't agree completely that my writing has really changed as far as being direct and purposeful. I still have days when I don't seem to have a purpose. I think that perhaps it only seems that way, because I had a few hard hitters right after returning. I pray each day and with each post that a message that glorifies God is shared with my readers. One change I think that HAS taken place is that I now try to place accurate, relevant scripture within each post and I've lost my fear of offending. I couldn't say exactly when I lost that fear, but if it was after Spirit West Coast, maybe it was just the break from writing for almost a week and the Spirit moving in me while I was gone.
Hannah: If you had a chance to meet and counsel with one of the biblical characters: Sarah, Ruth or Esther, who would you meet with and why?
Shalene: Well, I think it would have to be Ruth. She places herself in a strange new place, where she was an outsider. She dug in and did what she had to do and she won the man she was going after in a very uncommon way. (Well maybe not so uncommon, but certainly not the acceptable way.) I can relate to that. If I said any more, I would be revealing confidences that are just not necessary to reveal about other people, so I'm not going to explain any deeper. I hope you can understand. :)
That concludes this interview. I hope you have been enlightened by my sharing of myself. And as I said before, this will be the last of the requested interviews for quite some time. :) Blessings to you and yours. Thank you Hannah for those great questions!
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