The things we've lost.

The things we've lost wasn't up to me. It may sound like a grammatical error, but those things are a sum of one whole that was lost.

Somehow in this world, we can have a multitude of things and still feel at a loss. And that's why I've often posed the question, what are you working towards? Do you work for the weekend? or the next vacation or holiday? Well, what happens to all of the in-between? The first steps and glances and secret words whispered. The letters and sweet moments, the feeling of something new, something learned. A fear faced. Hand holding. How do we miss the beauty in the small things? We can so easily miss out on the now, the things we've always wanted while we're focused on what's to come or what we miss and feel we're missing out on. It can be so hard when you have to make a decision. When there's so much your heart desires but you have to choose for now and hope for the rest later.  When it's what we miss, though, sometimes the heartache can outweigh the joy. It seems there's often a give and take. There are things, or others, we give up, or sometimes have to lose, in order to get something else; somewhere else. And it can be good.

But what about when you are what someone gave up? Then, you are reminded of who's hands you are in, the Mighty One's, and perhaps you are right where you should be. Perhaps what you feel you might be missing isn't what He wanted for you anyway. And if you were there, maybe then you'd really be missing out. On what is in store, on why He's allowed you be broken, and the brokenness itself. There is beauty even in that. And what you once had, maybe someone threw it in the garbage. But that does not destroy the good of what once was. The sweetness of the memory. You can hang on to it and put it away behind a door in your heart to keep for the rest of your days.
And that's ok.

Never Alone

I am literally never alone.

The thought of this has been with me this week and it's kind of overwhelming. And by that, I mean that it stops me in my tracks, it amazes me, and it comforts me. I no longer live, but the Holy Spirit lives within me. So, my body here is a temple, a housing for the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit. That's God's spirit! So Almighty God, who is everlasting, now that He lives within me, I can be one hundred percent assured that He will never leave me! It puts a whole new perspective on the fact that He will never forsake me. I mean, think about it, those of you who know the Lord,  we know what great sacrifice Christ paid for our sins. But time and time again we continue to mess up, to fall short, to live imperfectly and find our need for him, and sometimes it can lead us to a place where we feel our sin is too great, that we've screwed up an unforgivable amount. But if the God of the universe, that same God who was crucified on a tree to conquer death for us, once for all, if He has chosen our bodies as a dwelling place for his very own spirit, how much greater should our assurance be that what he says is true, "I will never leave you nor forsake you," (Hebrews 13:5).
So when I am down, it is He who rises up in me. When I am dragging along, it is He who helps me stand. When I feel the weight of this world, it is He who lifts me up. When I am weak, it is He who is strong. When I am lonely, it is He who is always there. Such great comfort and encouragement has been brought to me by my meditating on this thought.
It has also caused me to better care for myself. I am not perfect nor consistent in this, but it has helped me improve. I think about it like this: If Jesus was coming to stay with me, how would I prepare my home? Would I not want it as clean as possible, warm and welcoming to best serve my holy guest? Well, the Lord has come to stay, not for a visit, but for eternity. So as I keep this helpful truth in mind and practice, I hope you will just as well - in what we consume, our cleanliness, our dress and adornments, and our purity.
Take care of his housing.
And take assurance in his constant presence.

Good News

After some realization that there are some who actually read my blog without me knowing, and some conviction on the matter, I decided it was time that I make a statement of faith. Yes, it’s time that I post something, anything for that matter, but I realized that there may be someone who comes upon this blog, perhaps you, that needs to hear the message of the gospel. The what? you say. The good news, my friend. Let’s try not to let this get preachy, but simply state some words of truth for a moment. Let’s break this down into a way that we can start to understand it. First, I’m just going to lay down what scripture has been presented to me for this very purpose.

Here we go:

“There is no one righteous, not even one.” Romans 3:10

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” 3:23

“The wages of sin is death.” 6:23a

“God proves His love for us in that while we still were sinners, Christ died for us.” 5:8

“but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” 6:23b

“For, everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.” 10:13

“because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with the heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved.” 10:9-10

Now, this is just skimming the surface, and while I’d love to share loads more, I think this should be a light read to start so that it is not so overwhelming. So there it is. If it’s not for you, do me the favor of at least thinking about it. I will continue more later, but if you care to discuss any piece of it more deeply or have questions, go ahead and comment.

Thanks for reading!

Engagement.

     Over the last few years I've been learning more about what marriage actually represents, how it is intended to be a divine reflection. I'm sure much more understanding and growth will come once I step into the role of wife, but for the time being I am in the very new role of fiancee. I think this may be overlooked quite a bit, though what do I know? I just got here! But now that I have actually arrived, I'm beginning to see that this current place of engagement is a divine reflection all its own.

A man, with a lot of love for me, knelt down before me to share that love, offer himself to me and ask me to be his. How beautiful is that? It was most definitely magical and romantic with the help of rain, fireworks and applause, but there is something so much bigger. He made an offer, to give his life to serve me, put me above himself and take care of me for life. Can you start to see how a proposal and period of engagement is it's own reflection of Godly love? Christ humbled himself by offering his whole life for us, wanting to serve us and raise us up by freely giving up his life. So, before we could be reunited with the Father, before we could have a true, love-filled relationship with Jesus, he needed to make a proposal.Yet, it is not forceful and in both cases I have freedom to accept or refuse. But I so greatly desire a close relationship with Christ Jesus, to be one again with him, and so too to be united and one with the man I love. Soon we will become one and I will start to see more clearly marriage's representative purpose and will try to uphold it as best I (we) can. It's pretty amazing, isn't it? - if you will remind yourself or perhaps for the first time check out the intention of marriage. Being one God in three persons, the Son and the Father with the Holy Spirit are one. God. However, the Son submits to the Father's authority as leader. This alone is a lot to wrap your head around, I understand, but this relationship and knowing that marriage should act the same is a beautiful picture. But, it doesn't stop there. A husband and wife are meant to resemble Christ and the Church. He humbled himself for the good of the body and in turn the Church serves Him. One taking care of the other, the husband and wife (with the Lord at the center) will always be held.

     It will be a challenge striving to portray this image and I know there is much to learn and put to practice, but having a small piece of understanding before I even step into that role is so encouraging. I'm excited to learn more about the picture of marriage over these next few months and hopefully better prepare myself for one of the most beautiful relationships and honoring roles a woman can have.