Growth in Time

This year has been incredible. I have sat across the table from so many individuals in complete awe of what God has done in their lives, knowing it could only be God who could bring about such perfect peace in breath-taking change.

I watched Furious Love last night and am further left in awe of what God is doing around the world.

There have been moments in my life when I have glimpsed the pain and brokenness of this world and my heart has been broken, my response has been to question why God tarries. Why does He not simply come back and put it all to right? Bring justice and love and mercy and peace flooding into the hearts of those who have never experienced it. He has the power, He could do it.

What He has been opening my eyes to this year is He is bringing justice and love and mercy and peace flooding into the hearts of those who have never experienced it EVERY DAY. He has the power and He is doing it. And the more days there are the more people who experience His perfect love.

I am so incredibly grateful to serve the living God who IS love and who is loving people all over the world through His children right now. And while my heart aches for His return, I can't ask that He return today, there are too many who don't know Him yet... and I love joining Him in that "yet." It's what we're called to do, let's be the hands and feet of Jesus as we love people today.

#elevategirlsthankfulchallenge

One of the most amazing women in my life recently challenged us girls to post on instagram, twitter or facebook each day with something we're thankful for. 

Here's the deal, I don't normally like the trending stuff, if everyone else is doing it I tend to be pretty cynical. "Do they really mean that? // They're just looking for an excuse to post." And typing it out I realize how ridiculous that is! Who am I to judge? And what better thing to be trending than a daily post about what you're thankful for!!! I mean seriously, with everything we have going on in the world right now, a grateful heart in any capacity is a welcome relief.

So let's do it! This is my official challenge to you {no matter the gender}, can you find something you're thankful for everyday? Let's start focusing on our blessings. 

Don't forget to #elevategirlsthankfulchallenge on each post!

{This is also my accountability ;) if you don't see a post from me, feel free to call me out}

Paths

This has been a recurring revelation in my need-to-know, fear prone, control-freak mind:

What was the last thing God said? Do it.

Where are you now? Keep going, straight ahead.

He directs my steps. He knows the plan, I don't have to see it from beginning to end. My responsibility is to trust and obey.

I'm good with pictures, seeing it helps me understand. I'm on a hike at the moment (taking a break for a minute).

There are so many parallels between life and a path. Every person's path looks different, even when they're traveling the same way at the same time, some are running, some are paired together, father and daughter, a married couple, a man with his two faithful, having-so-much-fun dogs...

We've all been here before but you still look for the signs, am I on the right path? Was I supposed to turn back there?should I take the longer path or the shorter one?

Despite how you answer those questions you only answer them with certainty at a crossroads when you're staring at the map. Between checkpoints you follow the path, you keep going in the direction of the last directive. Sometimes you don't know if you took a wrong turn until you get to the next point but ultimately you figure it out (and it was probably better anyway).

Your choice in between check points is to simply enjoy the hike (probably why you came out in the first place) or not.

So many times I waste precious in between time worrying about things that can only be answered at checkpoints instead of enjoying the journey.

If you're a Christian, you're seeking God, and He has your heart, calm down you might be in the in between, you might be on the beautiful path, probably the exact one God has for you.

Don't worry about what can only be answered at the checkpoints (God determines those) and don't waste joy in comparison. It might not be your season to run and do you really want all the responsibility of a dog right now?

God has His perfect way of making it clear, He's laid out a lot of it in scripture. Start there, lay the foundation of trust and enjoy the path of life, it's too beautiful to miss.

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Acceptance & Joy

Reading through Acts is always refreshing to me, I love when I get there in my one year Bible reading! This year the thing I am most struck by is the acceptance of the Gentiles into the family of God.

Now, I am very thankful for this fact, I wouldn't be saved without it but the smoothness of the transition in just a few chapters of the Bible leaves me in awe of how much Christ had touched the hearts of those He had called.

I mean these were Israelites, those chosen by God from almost the beginning of time. They were His special people and while that included being priests to all nations, you don't see them harping on that theme a lot. The Pharisees, Saduccees and other religious leaders were the ones who were fighting so hard to keep their uniqueness provided by the Law that they murdered their Savior.

But here's the deal, the first several thousand Christians were all Jews. Many were religious leaders. This fits with their outlook on life, they're still the chosen ones, they're still the people who's God is The Lord and who sent His son as Messiah.

Then the Gentiles get involved. God starts pouring out salvation revelation accompanied by His Holy Spirit. And do you know what the gut reaction is of the Jewish believers?! They REJOICE.

The church sent the delegates to Jerusalem, and they stopped along the way in Phoenicia and Samaria to visit the believers. They told them—much to everyone’s joy—that the Gentiles, too, were being converted.

He made no distinction between us and them, for he cleansed their hearts through faith. so that the rest of humanity might seek the Lord, including the Gentiles—
all those I have called to be mine.
The Lord has spoken— (Acts 15:3, 9, 17 NLT)

I LOVE THIS and I want to be like this. Empty of pride and full of love rejoicing when what God has spoken occurs.

I'm not always that way, I often selfishly wonder when Gods going to move in my life when everything seems to be going a friend's way. In those moments, I seem to completely forget that Christ paid it all on the cross, I deserve nothing (worse than nothing) and received everything.

He was the difference maker in the Jewish believers' lives. He was the reason their gut reaction was joy and not pride. May it be so in our lives! I want to know Him like that and rejoice with others always.

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Shine

So "shine" has been a recurring theme in my life lately and I kind of love it. :)

I started researching "shine" in the old testament, the verses about Moses' face shining and God's favor shining on David in Psalms. I fell in love with those verses. I knew I wanted to be one who not only acted like Jesus but shone like Him. I want people to know when I've been in the presence of God, there's a difference. And I love the idea of God's face shining on me as He looks on me with favor.

When I say there's a difference, here's what I mean... You can survive in life, you can accomplish things in life, daily even but you can do all of that without anyone seeing Christ in you. Or you can glow... you can choose joy despite your circumstances, you can choose to trust God and His faithfulness above all else, you can hope in the anchor of His love. You can walk in the confidence of His favor and grace on your life.

Here are a few of those verses just for you:

Exodus 34:29

It came about when Moses was coming down from Mount Sinai (and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moses’ hand as he was coming down from the mountain), that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone because of his speaking with Him.

Numbers 6:24-26

The LORD bless you, and keep you; The LORD make His face shine on you, And be gracious to you; The LORD lift up His countenance on you, And give you peace.’

Psalm 31:16

Make Your face to shine upon Your servant; Save me in Your lovingkindness.

Psalm 119:135
Make Your face shine upon Your servant, And teach me Your statutes.

John 15:5

I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing.

What If...

Last weekend I was at a leadership retreat on a beautiful lake. For a bit on Saturday they asked us to go spend time with God, however that looked for us. I immediately started off in my non-hiking shoes to explore and pray. After hiking up and down and back up a hill and nearly spraining my ankle I stopped and sat on an old log. I opened my journal and started writing. I've shared what came out a few times this week and then realized if it was something I needed to hear and something several people in my life needed to hear, sharing it on here might be a good idea.

What If....
Such powerful little words. They can be so full of regret tinged with shame or they can be a start to a wonderful adventure.

{Questions started pouring through my brain; what if I missed it? What if this isn't where I'm supposed to be? What if I messed it up? What if I was wrong? And I gently felt the Holy Spirit say, "Flip it."}

What if I missed it? - becomes- What if I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be? 

{And it took off from there.}

What if everything God says is true?

What if there are no mistakes, only opportunities?

What if I lived guilt-free?

What if there really is so much more?

What if fear is the only thing holding me back?

What if I let all my insecurities fall away?

{My heart was soaring and filling with the possibility of it all...}

I love the concept of abundant life, the kind Jesus promised in John 10:10. Through the process of this week I've started to realize one aspect of abundant life is hope for what God is doing RIGHT NOW, not just hope for what He's going to do in the future.

HOME

In the last few months I've gotten to tell my story several times. The thing that has stuck out to me again and again as I was telling it: HOME.

I went to give blood the other day (it's one way to save a life) and they asked me to confirm my address. I spouted off four addresses before we landed on the one they had on record. In the past five years I've had a least five different addresses and that's not counting Europe. And in the past five years home has come to mean so much more than an address or location...

2008 was a year of transition, to say the least. It contained my last two semesters of college, a study abroad adventure, the death of my Papa, a nannying position in the Grand Caymans, a Jr. High Poverty Simulation in Waco and a bad case of pneumonia and that was all before August! When August did come around and I was beginning my final semester of school, with the economy taking a bit of a nose-dive and no plan on where to go next, I was feeling a little shaken up. It was funny though my worries weren't as much financial, it was something more, something deeper.

I needed a home, a place of belonging and I wasn't sure where that was or was going to be.

I felt like I had outgrown my particular place in Waco, I was very involved in my church and in serving there but studying abroad had opened my eyes and heart to a grace I had never before experienced or witnessed. While my place and time in Waco was precious I knew that season was coming to an end. And my mind was awhirl with the possibilities, promises and fear of it all.

If it wasn't Waco, where was I supposed to be? McKinney? I hadn't really put roots down there in the year and a half before college. Midland? That was now five years/a lifetime ago. But Lord, You call us to spiritual family, You call us to a body, where is mine? Where is my home?

My heart ached with this question. But I was somewhat confused, all of my life I have wanted to be a missionary, to do mission work; isn't part of that not really having a place to call your own?

Fast forward a few months, I had interviewed with a few people and was standing in a worship service in Keller, TX.  I was worshipping my God, thanking Him for what He was doing, choosing to stand in faith and sing even though I had no idea what the next step was.

"Darling, your home is wherever I AM." And just like that, peace.

This is a concept that I'm still learning. While I have a set address in Keller and an amazing spiritual family and a taste of home, this isn't it. This is a reflection of a whole I have yet to fully experience. Same for you, you're not created for this Earth, your heart longs for perfect union with your Creator.

One of my favorite songs by Hillsong has a line that I love, "We run to Your throne, where we belong..." That sense of belonging and sense of home can only be fully fulfilled in Him and I am so grateful for that fact!

He is HOME.

Writing Again

I promised my sister before she left (more on that later) that I would start blogging again... So here it goes:

So many things in my life haven't turned out how I expected they would... Its funny to even say that because I don't remember ever setting specific expectations and timelines but there were probably vague ones (I don't know if any of us can avoid them). 

This summer has been interesting along those lines, there have been moments of absolute contentment mixed with days of extreme dissatisfaction almost to the point where I've felt a little crazy only to step back and realize the key word: "felt". Oh, those feelings... They can get us in so much trouble! 

Sometimes they're great, like when they indicate something is wrong and you dig a little deeper to find the truth that sheds light on the issue or when you're so happy you're smiling so hard your  cheeks start hurting. But most of the time I take a feeling and make it a truth instead of just letting it be the indicator or catalyst that pushes me to Truth. 

It's kind of like this weather we've been having. I'm from Texas and because it's September and because someone, somewhere is experiencing fall and because our favorite pumpkin spice latte is back at Starbucks and because seriously, it's been hot for FOREVER we feel it should be cold outside (or at least below the 100 mark). But it's not, it's hovering around 105 all this week. Now I have a choice, because of that vague expectation that coolness should begin September 1st (I'm going to go ahead and blame my 2nd grade teacher and her pretty calendar for that one) I could feel entitled to fall. Entitled and slightly disappointed when I'm still in the same season as last month while others have moved on. Or I could grab a pumpkin spice frappuccino, don a grateful smile and head to the pool. 

I'm learning to fight the feelings that tell me I'm not where I want to be or thought I would be by now, I'm learning not to look around and compare and I'm learning to look first to the One who created me. He knows what He's doing and my life is much more trustworthy in His hands than it could ever be in mine. I'm choosing that, daily.

So wherever you are right now, I hope you'll join me in surrendering the pen to the Author of life, surrender those vague or specific expectations and trust that He has something far greater. Take Him as a man of His word; He knows the plans He has for you, He promises to do much more than we could ask, think or imagine and He will give us the desires of our hearts as we delight in Him. Life is much better when I live in that place of surrender, I hope it is for you too!

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Get SOAPY

So as a church we're going through the Life Journal this year. The Life Journal is a daily Bible reading and journaling plan and I'm loving it! Here's how it works:

1) read the passages marked out for you (I do this on my phone, the YouVersion App has a Life Journal Bible reading plan option)

2) journal; S-scripture, O-observation on that scripture, A-application of that scripture, P-prayer

As I was reading and journaling this morning, one of the scriptures in Acts stood out and I wanted to share.

S- Acts 11:18 NLT
"When the others heard this, they stopped objecting and began praising God. They said, “We can see that God has also given the Gentiles the privilege of repenting of their sins and receiving eternal life.”"

O- This is one of the most critical moments for the early church. This is the response to the moment when God openly poured out His Spirit and fully forgave a completely Gentile household. Not a household that was trying to be Jewish, not "foreigners living among them" but full-blooded Gentiles.
Instead of letting insecurities rise up, instead of feeling threatened or being exclusive the leaders of the early church began praising God for what He was doing. Why? Peter, explained what happened and they recognized God's hand. They knew His voice and they trusted Him over their traditions and what they were used to. Their security and identity was in Him now, not who they once were.

A- if my security, affections and trust lie completely in Him, I will be able to accept with joy any change He brings.

P- Lord, help me position my heart and focus my eyes so completely on You that my soul is at rest and my heart is content, come what may.

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Glorify God and Enjoy Him Forever

As a church we're at the beginning of our 21 day fast and I am loving experiencing the manifest presence of God at a deeper level together.

There are so many ways I've prepared for this fast, in a lot of ways I've prepared better than I ever have. I read books on fasting, I bought all I would need for the next three weeks beforehand so I won't have to walk into a store, I mentally prepared and began drinking a whole lot of water early on all to get me to this moment of spiritual preparation.

There has been a holy expectation stirring inside of me, an intense desire to know God more and see His kingdom come on the earth but I don't think I've even begun to fathom what God wants to do as we meet and make room for Him.

As that's begun to stir in me and as I've been praying over our six prayer points as a church and over my specific prayer points, I was reminded by one of my devos this morning of what it's all about: Psalm 100, enjoying the presence of God.

Have you ever heard of Westminster's Catechism? Several older, wiser men of God got together several decades ago to biblically search out the answers to some of our most basic but hardest questions. One of them being "what is the chief end of man?" aka why do we exist? Their answer? TO GLORIFY GOD and ENJOY HIM FOREVER.

This truth keeps surfacing in my heart and mind and today that's all I want to focus on; glorifying God and enjoying Him as I'm setting aside so many other things. I truly believe that's what He wants most, everything else will fall into place from there... All of the things that are heavy on my heart, all of the things we want to see happen as a church and individually... It all begins and ends with Him. So why not take today and simply enjoy Him?

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