A Gracious Thing

For this is a gracious thing, when, mindful of God, one endures sorrows while suffering unjustly. For what credit is it if, when you sin and are beaten for it, you endure? But if when you do good and suffer for it you endure, this is a gracious thing in the sight of God. 

1 Peter 2:19-20 

A lesson that seems to stay on repeat in my life: 

Learning to embrace those circumstances that force me to confront the promises given in God's Word.

Snore No More!

Back when I was a college student, around the age of 20, I had found myself in a cycle of recurring upper respiratory illnesses. Because I was heavily involved in vocal music back in those days, chronic colds and throat infections made singing quite frustrating. I finally reached the end of my sniffling-coughing-sore throat rope and saw a specialist. Very soon after, out-patient surgery was scheduled and my tonsils and adenoids were removed. Thankfully, this procedure- for the most part- ended almost all of my ongoing illnesses and complaints. I was amazed at the huge difference it made in the way I felt day to day once I had healed.

But what I did NOT expect of that particular surgery was how indescribably painful it would be. OH! MY! GOODNESS! I can still remember the intensity even 14 years later. It was agony, I tell you. And not just for a fews days, either. More like 20. Two and half weeks of hardly any eating, little drinking, sleeping only while sitting straight up in a recliner, and barely any talking. Misery. Of all the surgeries my body has required (including gall bladder removal and 2 c-sections), this was the tip-top of the totem pole of torture. Once I made it through those long weeks, I knew it had been worth it. I'm still certain, years and years later, it was worth what I went through that particular August. 

Seek it Like Silver

If you call out for insight and raise your voice for understanding, 

if you seek it like silver and search for it as for hidden treasures, 

then you will understand the fear of the Lord and find the knowledge of God. 

Proverbs 2:3-5

A simple explanation of the word “theology” goes like this: the word we use to refer to what we know about God. In our culture today, this term is often a topic to be avoided, even among a majority of Christian circles. Unfortunately, it has mainly been seen by many to be only divisive, irrelevant, and confusing. Once we allow for the smoke of contention to clear and then grasp onto a proper, non-complicated definition of what theology actually is, we are then able to discover many reasons why studying theology is vital to our lives, both personally and relationally.

Believing the Much More

Tonight I find myself staring incessantly at our Christmas tree. The session started when our central heating kicked on and air from a vent began to distantly blow towards the tree. The traveling heat made its way over and caused many of the ornaments to sway just slightly. Because I'm a "the more glitter the better" tree decorator, the slight motion from the glittered ornaments caused the tree to begin a brief sparkling show of sorts. I just love a shiny, sparkly, twinkly tree. It made me stop and smile.

But where my eyes were drawn next made my smile grow even larger. I then found myself simply sitting and staring at all of the gifts laying underneath. Where did all those packages come from? Yes, I know what's in each one because I purchased and wrapped most of them. But really... how is it possible that I'm staring at a tree completely encircled by stacked gifts?

A Jesus-girl without Jesus.

About a month ago, I was reading a beautifully written post from a fellow blogger in which she made this statement: I was a Jesus-girl without Jesus. That simple sentence--along with her whole salvation story--pretty much ran over and flattened me in a spiritual-steamroller-kind of way. The reason why her words are so pungent to my soul is because I, too, have been a Jesus-girl without Jesus.