Moments

There are some moments in life that are absolutely ideal. The other night was one of them. It involved simple things : conversation both deep and random with close friends; laughter; quietness; contentment; a walk outside in the heat but with just enough of the gentle breeze so as not be sticky; shared experiences; a drive home late in the evening with the windows down and the smell of honeysuckle wafting by. Moments like these make me smile and thank God for the little things in life that I appreciate and am grateful for.

Advent

 

 

The celebration of Advent is a fairly new thing for me; I have no recollection of hearing about it in the church that I grew up which makes me ever grateful for the church I now attend! The following are things that were discussed today that spoke to me. (Here's a link to my church's website; today's sermon isn't up yet http://www.thewellpa.com/sermons/ )

Advent - a season of longing and expectation. A time to put ourselves in Israel's place, waiting for the coming Messiah to enter into our world. We wait and live in between promise and fulfillment as we now long for the second coming of our Messiah. The themes for the four weeks leading to Christmas are: hope, love, joy, and peace.

This morning was such a beautiful beginning to the season of Advent with the reminder that it's ok to live in the tension between promise and fulfillment. We are heirs of heaven and yet we live on earth, we yearn to be led by the spirit but must daily duel with the desires of the flesh, we are walking paradoxes and yet God's grace is expansive and imputes his righteousness to us.

Advent is here...but Christmas is coming!

"When you is precious to God, you become important to Satan. ... The thief comes in the night." - Denver

It took me about 2 days to read this cover-to-cover; I couldn't put it down. What a moving true story that grabs hold of the reader and forces him or her to evaluate their lives and then challenges them to reach out in love to those who, in their eyes, are different then themselves. God's ways are not our ways nor are his thoughts our thoughts (Isaiah 55:8), and yet he graciously weaves us into his story and allows us to touch others with his love. 

"But I found out everybody's different - the same kind of different as me. We're all just regular folks walkin down the road God done set in front of us." - Denver

Quality Time

I live for quality time. Quality time for me involves a number of things, a few of which include: being sincere, having meaningful conversations, hearty laughter, and contented silences. I didn't realize how true it is that I am refreshed by having quality time with people until a recent conversation I had with someone. I appreciate and need alone/quiet time but I am extremely refreshed by quality time. Whether it's breakfast with someone or taking a walk, when removed from the world of technology and entering into meaningful interaction with another person, it is then that I am rejuvenated.

Last night I was with some people whom I cherish, respect, appreciate, and enjoy and oh how beautiful it was to sit in the corner and watch them all interact, laugh, and just be. I am thankful for the moments of quality time I am blessed with and though some days I wish there was more of it, I will be grateful for the times I have.

"STOP! Just s.t.o.p talking. It'll be better for both of us."

The inner dialogue I have with myself begins in anger and frustraion then slowly ebbs into a plea of defeat.

It's not that I expect everyone to be perfect or excel in this area - all I want is for people to think before they speak and before they make false/rash promises. Maybe they do it because it makes them feel better. Maybe they've been conditioned to respond in certain ways to certain scenarios, like Chandler when he says, "it's been fun, we should do this again sometime", to a date he has absolutely no intention of ever seeing again.

I don't know what the reason is but I ask you to STOP talking and think about the weight of what your words imply. You  may be able to continue doing this with other individuals in your life but it won't hold up well with me.

You see, unfortunaly for you, I am very sensitive and I have this uncanny ability to hope - even when everything seems lost, desparing, pointless, etc. - I still somehow see a glimmer of hope and hold onto it with all that I have. So when you give me a reason to, I will, and it hurts so much when there's no follow-up.

My true hope in this life resides with my savior, Jesus Christ, and yet I live with fellow brothers and sisters who impact my life in innumerable ways.

"Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth." - 1 John 3:18

Scars

I'm simply going to quote from my pastor from this past Sunday. The truths spoken are very pertinent to my life and are things that God has been working in me for awhile. He keeps reminding me that I am his child and that I must find my identity in him.

Here's a link to the sermon if you're interested in listening to the whole thing. Otherwise, here are the things that spoke to me.


"I think there is something amazingly redemptive about seeing people's healed scars."

"I think when we bring our sin, our brokenness, our scars, and the effects of them, to the cross, to Christ, and to community...the healing that is found there can do amazing things."

"I think partially what it means to die with Christ and be raised to new life, is to mean I'm going to let the part of me that is broken, that rules the way that I function: die. I'm going to bury that self; I'm going to bury this self that believes that I am a certain way or a certain person...and I'm going to let that part die. I'm going to find my identity in Christ, the risen Messiah."

"In the posture that God has sent Christ, scars and all, so he sends us. We have been given new life, we have risen from the dead, and we still bear the scars."

"When you've found healing, don't be afraid to bear your scars. Show them for what they are: evidence of God's grace, evidence of God's healing. It it quite often the thing that we think is most wrong with us, is the thing God uses to transform the world. It's in our weakness, he is strong."

"Because Christ is resurrected our brokenness and our wounds can find healing."

Reminiscing & Looking Ahead

Every once in awhile I find myself homesick for where I grew up which was in good ole Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Where I live currently seems to have an abundance of highways, concrete, and gray. This is not to say there isn't still beauty and nature to be found, it just isn't always as easily recognizable as where I came from.

I yearn for open space; to see farmland, red barns, silos, and cows.

When I go back to visit I don't even mind the smell of manure as it reminds me of home and numerous memories I've created there. It makes me think of dear friends and fun times had together while our dads played softball. It makes me think of driving on back roads with the windows down. It makes me think of mornings getting ready for school.

I treasure my time spent in Lancaster and look forward to looking back on my current location and the memories I've created here as I prepare to move to a different state for the first time in my life!