I am thankful for Thanksgiving. It is a unique American holiday that causes nearly everyone to sit back, observe his or her life and intentionally count their blessings. It is a practice I needed during a time when I have been struggling with cynicism and self-doubt.
I am so thankful for this charmed life I have been given. I am thankful for hard transitions that cause me to grow and re-evaluate who I am and what I am living for. I am thankful for friends who understand me and share joy with me. I am thankful for literature and the ability to exercise our minds. I am thankful that a good portion of my friends are happily married, and I am so thankful that I am not. I am eternally thankful to be loved by a God who has given everything up for me, and who will continue to provide me with all I need.
I am thankful to be filled with the authority of Christ which allows me to shine brightly, love fully, and live peaceably.
Friday, November 28, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
Arise and Shine
Take a moment. Breathe deeply. Relax. "Fear not," Christ said, "For I have overcome the world." Those are very authoritative words. What do we have to fear? In the midst of election time I feel anxious about the changes that will inevitably befall us, whether good or bad. Ultimately, none of that matters in the whole scope of eternity. Regardless of who our next president is, and regardless of whether or not he can keep his promises, Christ has overcome the world. Christ still plans to come and rescue his people. But that is a different topic altogether.
Yesterday I heard beautiful words stolen from the Light and brought into a dark place. Well, I would say a rather dimly lit place at the moment. From the heart of God to my own. But it wasn't just the sermon in church, it was spending all day with my family making donuts and yelling over the football game; my conversation with Lisby; a cheery fire-side small group of friends meeting. Every moment of light and dark is a miracle.
How is the dark a miracle? It is in the darkness that we see the light most clearly. We just have to be open to seeing the light. "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil-" John 3:19. I feel myself coming out of a certain darkness. It was a comfortable darkness in which to hide, because I didn't feel that I deserved the light. Soon, and without my consent, the light started to pervade and overcome the darkness. Merriam-Webster defines pervade as "to become diffused throughout every part of." That is awesome.
When we see the light of Christ in our lives the radiation as actually visible, through spiritual illumination, a noteworthy person, kindness shown, the list is inexhaustable. Sometimes, I can hardly sit still for fear that I will burst with awe of the holiness and greatness of God. In church, I couldn't settle down until a noteworthy missionary to Russia stood and spoke profound words. "Arise and shine, your light has come." "My Jesus is waiting to look past your faults." He spoke about these amazing Russian monks who lived underground, and about Quaker missionaries to Russia in the '20s who took care of the people during their civil war. He told us how Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus is the LIGHT of the world.
This brings me to my conversation with Lisby. We were talking about my job at Starbucks and through my verbal process I came to an exciting conclusion. Some of my friends, Lisby included, are going to India, and many of my friends have gone in the past. For a while I was thinking, maybe I should go too. You see the first issue with that. Like to follow trends much EM? The more I thought about it, the more frightened I became over the very prospect of going. I even had a few nightmares. It took this conversation with my friend to realize that where my friends are passionate, I can be aware and compassionate. Many of my friends are very passionate about being the light of the world in other parts of the world and feeding visible needs. That is just not where my passions lie, but that doesn't mean I should be ignorant to what is going on in the world.
I am passionate about hanging out with youth and loving them. If I had my way, which I believe would be God's way too, every young person would feel loved and see their full potential and how much they are worth. That is my passion. I am also getting excited about being a light at Starbucks and showing all my costumers and co-workers extra kindness. Jesus is the LIGHT of the world, through me.
My brother shines. Enough said. He just shines. I was also reminded of how much my sister shines through her work as a social worker for the state. Every time she talks about it I am blown away by how much she cares and how much she just wants to help those kids. Jesus is the LIGHT of the world, through them.
Sometimes I think Heaven must be like a musical. Everyone is super friendly with sparkling teeth and really big smiles, and everything is really cheesy because everyone just loves everyone! Sounds overwhelming. I suspect there will still be thrills, like roller coasters and mystery novels too. Not to mention unbelievably breath-taking scenary. I'm stoked to get there. But for now we are here trying to live out the Kingdom of God in a seemingly dark world. Good. All the better to see the light of Jesus shine through us. Go. Arise and shine.
Yesterday I heard beautiful words stolen from the Light and brought into a dark place. Well, I would say a rather dimly lit place at the moment. From the heart of God to my own. But it wasn't just the sermon in church, it was spending all day with my family making donuts and yelling over the football game; my conversation with Lisby; a cheery fire-side small group of friends meeting. Every moment of light and dark is a miracle.
How is the dark a miracle? It is in the darkness that we see the light most clearly. We just have to be open to seeing the light. "This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil-" John 3:19. I feel myself coming out of a certain darkness. It was a comfortable darkness in which to hide, because I didn't feel that I deserved the light. Soon, and without my consent, the light started to pervade and overcome the darkness. Merriam-Webster defines pervade as "to become diffused throughout every part of." That is awesome.
When we see the light of Christ in our lives the radiation as actually visible, through spiritual illumination, a noteworthy person, kindness shown, the list is inexhaustable. Sometimes, I can hardly sit still for fear that I will burst with awe of the holiness and greatness of God. In church, I couldn't settle down until a noteworthy missionary to Russia stood and spoke profound words. "Arise and shine, your light has come." "My Jesus is waiting to look past your faults." He spoke about these amazing Russian monks who lived underground, and about Quaker missionaries to Russia in the '20s who took care of the people during their civil war. He told us how Jesus is the light of the world. Jesus is the LIGHT of the world.
This brings me to my conversation with Lisby. We were talking about my job at Starbucks and through my verbal process I came to an exciting conclusion. Some of my friends, Lisby included, are going to India, and many of my friends have gone in the past. For a while I was thinking, maybe I should go too. You see the first issue with that. Like to follow trends much EM? The more I thought about it, the more frightened I became over the very prospect of going. I even had a few nightmares. It took this conversation with my friend to realize that where my friends are passionate, I can be aware and compassionate. Many of my friends are very passionate about being the light of the world in other parts of the world and feeding visible needs. That is just not where my passions lie, but that doesn't mean I should be ignorant to what is going on in the world.
I am passionate about hanging out with youth and loving them. If I had my way, which I believe would be God's way too, every young person would feel loved and see their full potential and how much they are worth. That is my passion. I am also getting excited about being a light at Starbucks and showing all my costumers and co-workers extra kindness. Jesus is the LIGHT of the world, through me.
My brother shines. Enough said. He just shines. I was also reminded of how much my sister shines through her work as a social worker for the state. Every time she talks about it I am blown away by how much she cares and how much she just wants to help those kids. Jesus is the LIGHT of the world, through them.
Sometimes I think Heaven must be like a musical. Everyone is super friendly with sparkling teeth and really big smiles, and everything is really cheesy because everyone just loves everyone! Sounds overwhelming. I suspect there will still be thrills, like roller coasters and mystery novels too. Not to mention unbelievably breath-taking scenary. I'm stoked to get there. But for now we are here trying to live out the Kingdom of God in a seemingly dark world. Good. All the better to see the light of Jesus shine through us. Go. Arise and shine.
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