Thursday, February 19, 2015

Scary Close


I am halfway through Donald Miller's, Scary Close.  It is such a great book!  There are many intriguing quotes...here's one...

"So I wrote, I wrote as though God thought my voice mattered. I wrote because I believed a human story was beautiful, no matter how small the human was. I wrote because I didn't make myself, God did. And I wrote like He'd invited me to share my true "self" with the world."

Wow, these words are powerful, beautiful and true for each one of us!

Shortly after reading these words, I thought about replacing the word wrote with the word live then the word love...

So I live, I live as though God thinks my voice matters, I live because I believe a human story is beautiful, no matter how small the human is.  I live because I didn't make myself, God did.  And I live like He's invited me to share my true "self" with the world.

So I love, I love as though God thinks my voice matters, I love because I believe a human story is beautiful, no matter how small the human is.  I love because I didn't make myself, God did.  And I love like He's invited me to share my true "self" with the world.

How do you write, and live and love? 

Thank you Donald Miller for writing this book!!! Thank you God for so very much!!

Saturday, February 14, 2015

remember....



Lately I have been going back through some of my journals from the last couple of years.  

As I look at my written thoughts, I am reminded of the questions I have asked the Lord, the struggles we've walked through, and what has taken place as we journeyed together~some beautiful and some-not so much.

Bondage and freedom have been words that have shown up often on those pages.... 

Once during quiet time, this came to mind..."Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom."
Another time I wrote, "I want to live securely in freedom"
Later, as I was struggling with letting go in a particular instance, these words came to me..."the ties that bind."
And yet another time, one of my favorite songs came to me, "Amazing Grace-my chains are gone".

I believe as I have been looking back and remembering, there is more that God wants to show me.

This morning I woke with this going through my head, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free."

With that...today I have been reading and pondering Galatians 5. These are the words that stood out to me...the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love...Love your neighbor as yourself...So I say, walk by the Spirit...the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

I am thankful for what He is showing me as I think through these words and the connection they have with freedom.
 
What would it look like to live in freedom? How would it feel? In order to live in freedom what wouldn't it include? Sometimes it's easier to name what something isn't rather than what it is....

As I write this, today is Valentine's day-how's the conversation going with the One who loves you like no other?