What in the world is a Tishomingo?! That’s what you’re probably asking, right? Tishomingo is not a thing, it’s a place, in Oklahoma. Where is that, you ask? Well, it is north of Dallas about two hours. It is about an hour south of Ada and about two hours southeast of Oklahoma City.  Why would you go visit there, you ask? We spent three nights at a bed and breakfast in this tiny town. Some of this town’s claims to fame are The Pink Pistol, a Chickasaw bank museum, and that’s about it until about a month or so ago. My husband and I received word in January that country music singer Miranda Lambert, who opened and owns The Pink Pistol, bought a store front across the street and was remodeling it for a bed and breakfast. A few months ago, it officially opened for business and my husband and I reserved our rooms to coincide with my fall break from the doctoral program (a week free of homework, except some reading).

The Ladysmith Bed and Breakfast is a delightful boutique, classy, fancy-but-not-too-fancy, unique bed and breakfast experience. There are 8 rooms total, 5 downstairs and 3 upstairs. A three-course breakfast is made every morning by the innkeeper Staci often helped by her assistant Ashley. We were taken care of well by them and the other staff Chris, Amanda, and Josh. I guess the “odds were ever in our favor” since by happy coincidence, Miranda’s aunt and uncle were staying there while we were, and she dropped in one morning for breakfast to say hello to them. After another guest asked for a picture, I cautiously asked for a picture and she graciously obliged! She is very sweet, smart, and full of charisma. She even told us a few places to go while we were there! If you are looking for a unique, pampered experience for the two of you or for a girls’ getaway, this is definitely the place for you.

Well, enough of our wonderful fall break. However, I think it fits in relatively well with our topic in Advanced Worldview this week which was Postmodernism, specifically Postmodern Tribalism. According to Wilkens and Sanford (2009), postmodern tribalism is the belief that someone’s “tribe” is more important than any other “tribe” or culture (p. 142). While in Tishomingo, we visited the Chickasaw bank museum. This bank was the official bank of the Chickasaw nation in the early 1900s. It was restored to it’s original 1902 condition by the Johnston County Historical Society. There were so many interesting artifacts preserved from the Chickasaw tribe and other tribes on display. The attendant working there knew much of the history since she herself is Chickasaw.

We all can identify with a “tribe” of some sort, but it should not define all of us or be our motivation for serving God. Paul essentially denounces all of his “tribes” (circumcised, tribe of Benjamin, and Pharisees) in his letter to the Philippians when he says, “But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ” (3:7, New International Version). As it says in Galatians 3:28 (NIV), “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Similarly Colossians 2:11 (NIV) says, “Here there is no Gentile or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.” Christians should honor their unique cultures of origin, but when it comes to evangelism, there are no “tribes,” only love in Christ.

Blessings to you and yours.