"What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." -Emerson

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Thanksgiving

"It is written: "I believed; therefore I have spoken."With that same spirit of faith we also believe and therefore speak, 14because we know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead will also raise us with Jesus and present us with you in his presence. All this is for your benefit, so that the grace that is reaching more and more people may cause thanksgiving to overflow to the glory of God. 16Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day."
Dear Blogging Friends,
I wish I was at a place where I could share my whole story. I am not there and I doubt I will ever be. But, I do want to share this. God is extremely faithful. In the darkest of depths, in the highest of heights, God is forever the same.
This Thanksgiving, I am perhaps the most grateful for the wonderful gifts God has blessed me with. My greatest gift has been having Him by my side through the most traumatic event of my life so far. He has shown me that circumstance does not dictate His faithfulness. He has shown me that peace is not governed by what is going on around me. He has shown me that above all else, He loves me so emphatically that I could never understand the depths. I am so thankful for that and so much more.
I give thanks for so much, but particularly the following:
- The Father and The Son: His ability to understand the future and His ability to guide the present.
-The Holy Spirit: an ever present "counselor".
- Family of Choice: the amazing family God has given me and allowed me to create with a kind, generous, loving husband.
- Family of origin: Imperfect, perhaps quite Broken but intensely loving.
- True friendship: the ones who love and support no matter how many miles may seperate you at any given moment.
- New beginnings: a new surrounding to call home and a new group of lives that are going to intersect with ours in the coming years.
- Hope: being able to see it through the haze of hopelessness.
- Change: seeing change and growth in myself and those around me.
- Peace: accepting the place where you are placed as being exactly where you were meant to be.
I am so thankful this holiday season. I have witnessed miracles in the past months and I am just so amazed at how this life has turned out. It is so far from what I imagined it to be, but I can already see that He truly does work all things for the good of those who love Him. ALL things.
Here's to thanksgiving...
Until next time,
-C.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Becoming steadfast...

"Firmly fixed in place. Immovable. Steadily directed. Unwavering. Firm in purpose, resolution, faith." These are the words that define steadfast. How often I fall from that mark! I feel, especially recently, as if I am on the most tremendous roller coaster with more loops and ups and downs than humanly imaginable. Lately, God has been revealing to me how we were not meant to live this way. We were meant to live fearlessly, "though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging." (Psalm 46:2-3) Do you hear that bloggin' friends? The world around you can crumble, but you are to remain calm. To me, that is quite a tall order that I am finding myself failing at over and over again as I try to fill it.

So, how do we become steadfast in our faith? How do we become so fixed in our belief in our God that we can watch a mountain completely disintegrate into the ocean and still feel overwhelming peace? Don't worry, friends...I've done the research for you. Here is your answer to steadfast living...

I've been studying the Psalms and while I haven't gotten to this one quite yet, I went ahead and skipped ahead to answer the question of how to not be whisked away on this roller coaster of life.

Psalm 112 says:
Blessed is the man who fears the LORD,
who finds great delight in his commands.

2 His children will be mighty in the land;
the generation of the upright will be blessed.

3 Wealth and riches are in his house,
and his righteousness endures forever.

4 Even in darkness light dawns for the upright,
for the gracious and compassionate and righteous man.

5 Good will come to him who is generous and lends freely,
who conducts his affairs with justice.

6 Surely he will never be shaken;
a righteous man will be remembered forever.

7 He will have no fear of bad news;
his heart is steadfast, trusting in the LORD.

8 His heart is secure, he will have no fear;
in the end he will look in triumph on his foes.

9 He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor,
his righteousness endures forever;
his horn [d] will be lifted high in honor.

10 The wicked man will see and be vexed,
he will gnash his teeth and waste away;
the longings of the wicked will come to nothing.

The short answer: Righteous living

Yep, I won't even charge you for that. If you truly want to come into a steadfast life (notice the word looks awfully like steady), you have to live righteously. Now, this will ultimately lead you to the next question, how do I live righteously?

Well friends, there is someone who wrote much more eloquently than I ever could on just that topic. In fact, He collected all the "how to's", "in case of emergency" and so much more into a convenient, pocket sized book. Yep. The Book of Life. The Good Book. The Bible. The ultimate guide to living a righteous life, the answer to how to live steadfastly.

I've found that as I am being pulled up and down by life's circumstances, the more I need the answer to living steadfast. The more I need to remain immovable, firmly fixed, and unwavering. Destruction will come. This is an unavoidable fact. There will also be times of great happiness and elation. In both these times of sorrow and joy, we need to remain the same in our faith. It is easy to forget God in both situations: in the good times we often feel as though we don't need God and in the bad, we often feel as though He doesn't need us.

I so desire to be steadfast. Unfortunately, God made me human and I often find myself being pulled to and fro as life circumstances happen. God keeps reminding me that in Him I can find true steadiness and that is what I must cling to: now and tomorrow.

Here's to becoming unmovable...

Until next time,
-C.

Monday, November 17, 2008

A musical mode...

I have this memory of riding in my cousin's truck with all the windows down and blaring "Jane Says", singing at the top of our lungs, the day after I broke up with my high school boyfriend. It was such a healing moment and it just reminds me of the amazing restorative power music can have on our soul.

Anyway, I've been listening to a lot of music as of late. Here are some songs I am listening to:

Broken by Lifehouse



Forgive me by Missy Higgins


Slow Fade by Casting Crowns


Bon appetite...but with music...what would that be?

Here's to a song...

Until next time,
-C.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

An Update...

So, I thought I'd post an update on all the things going on...
- Church Search 2008: So, I think we found a church today. Much closer to what we are used to, not so Six Flags over Jesus...so, thank the Lord! Bad news: it is a bit of a drive (a little over 30 minutes), but we do pass a Krispy Kreme on the way so I think it all makes it worth it. (especially when the HOT sign is on, like this morning...oh yeah)
- We are official adults FRIDAY!! Yes, that is right, we will officially join adulthood with large amounts of debt and way too many responsibilities in that thing called home ownership. So excited!
- Continue to pray for me and our family. I know not all of you know the details of everything going on, but I ask that you pray anyway. We suffered through quite a traumatic event recently and are trying to figure out where we go from here. I have hope knowing that God uses the tragic to grow us in ways unimaginable to us. Already, I have found that things that were once of importance to me, have no bearing on my life anymore. This tragedy has already burned away some of the impurities and "junk" I had in my life and truly sent me into a state of focus as to what is important.

There was an entry in "Streams in the Desert" by L.B. Cowman that talked about suffering and how through the worst times, God uses suffering to make us better. She likened it to a rose. A rose smells beautiful as is, but to truly smell the beauty of the rose, you can crush it and it releases all its essence, all its fragrance and all its beauty. We are like that. To truly get to the beauty and the fragrance that each of us possess, God sometimes uses the crushing times to release what He desires us to. I thought that was a powerful visual. I see myself as a crushed rose right now, and for the first time since everything happened, I am beginning to be open to the possibilities of how God is going to use this crushed rose through my suffering. On another note, "Streams in the Desert" is a great daily devotional for anyone going through any kind of trial or difficulty. And let's face it, if you are human, most days you will encounter some sort of trial or difficulty.

Here's to new adventures, new lessons, and a new lease on life...

Until next time,
-C.

Friday, November 14, 2008

I'm not Alright

This is one of my favorite songs (it is by Sanctus Real) and quite fitting right now for me, don't you think? Anyways, I hope you enjoy.



Here's to good music...

Until next time-
-C.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

His words...

3 Send forth your light and your truth,
let them guide me;
let them bring me to your holy mountain,
to the place where you dwell.
4 Then will I go to the altar of God,
to God, my joy and my delight.
I will praise you with the harp,
O God, my God.
5 Why are you downcast, O my soul?
Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
for I will yet praise him,
my Savior and my God.
-Psalm 43:3-5
There is a timelessness about God's word. I mean, no matter what your emotion, what your circumstance, what your issue is, there are words in the Bible that speak directly to you and your moment. Seriously. Try it sometime. Feeling down? Look at some of the Psalms. Feeling joyful? Well, you could look to some Psalms for that as well. In fact, Psalms is a good place to start no matter what your emotion. Anyway, the point is that human experience and all its frailty and triumph can be found neatly bound in virtually every language in various versions. It can even be found on your iPhone or on that electronic book thing you ordered from Amazon.com after Oprah told you that you HAD to have it.
What an amazing gift we have lying at our fingertips! We all seek to find understanding. We all seek to find others who know what we are actually talking about. We all seek to find someone or something who has experienced what we are experiencing. We all seek. Some are even blessed enough to find. The answers are often right in front of us if we just pick it up and open it.
There is hope in knowing that no matter where you are today or where you will be tomorrow, the God of the universe has already been there and back and is ready and willing to carry you through it. You just have to ask.
Here's to the answers to the questions....
Until next time,
-C.

Monday, November 10, 2008

What to do in times of crisis...

This past week, I've endured the greatest personal crisis of my life. While I am not ready to share the details with the entire www, I did want to share some things with you. I've had many friends go through times of crisis recently as well and always felt as though I didn't know what to do. Here is what I've found to be helpful and while it might not apply to everyone in every situation, it may help you help someone in their time of need:

1.) Don't ask the question, "How are you?" It is often a stupid question that makes it difficult to respond to and often times, leaves those in crisis lying and saying "fine" or "I am ok."
2.) It is ok to check in on people as long as you let them know that if they don't want phone calls or you to come over that you won't be offended if they say so. Continue to do so, even if you don't get a response. The person may just not be ready to respond yet, but it is nice to know that people are there and care for them.
3.) Allow people to feel what they feel without judgement or ridicule. People handle situations differently so allow people to handle crisis in their own way so long as it doesn't harm themselves or others.
4.) Don't tell people what to think or do in times of crisis unless they specifically ask for your opinion.
5.) Don't ask a lot of questions without first asking if they are willing to talk about the crisis. I got cornered at church yesterday with some lady who was not getting the hint that I did not care to talk about it with her. I finally told her the situation so she'd leave me alone, but felt very angry and violated that someone wouldn't stop asking me questions, especially a stranger.
6.) Do not gossip or share other's personal crisis for entertainment purposes. Even the "prayer request" can turn into a way to gossip so be weary of the amount of details you share. If you are ever in question, share less rather than more.
7.) Ask what you can specifically do. Offer what you are specifically willing to do. For instance, "Can I make you all a meal?", "Can I watch the kids for you?", etc. Sometimes saying something general may not be helpful because depending on the person they may not feel as though you are willing to help so "call me if you need anything or want to talk" may not be specific enough in helping them.
8.) Pray. Often times, that truly is the only thing one can do in times of crisis.

Everyone will go through some type of crisis at one point or another. The severity or damage done is quite relative as to each person their crisis may feel like the biggest crisis in the world, so never minimize someone else's pain. You have no clue about their experiences so what may seem like nothing to you, may be something very painful to them.

I've been surprised at people's responses to crisis. I am usually on the other end, consoling a dear friend going through something, but it has made me wonder, have I ever reacted this way? Have I ever not contacted someone who I knew was enduring a painful situation? Have I ever said the wrong things to make them feel more pain? I just pray I have not, but you never know how your actions affect other people. This is no way meant to condemn anyone, but I am just wondering about myself and if my responses to other people's crisis' have been what they needed at the time. I know from now on, I am definitely going to be more aware as to what people may need in times of heartache.

Here's to learning something new....

Until next time,
-C.

Saturday, November 8, 2008

Psalm 103

Of David. 1 Praise the LORD, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits-
3 who forgives all your sins

and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit

and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle's.
6 The LORD works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse,

nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve

or repay us according to our iniquities.
11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,

so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
14 for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
15 As for man, his days are like grass,
he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.
17 But from everlasting to everlasting
the LORD's love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children's children-
18 with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.
19 The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.
20 Praise the LORD, you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
who obey his word.
21 Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
you his servants who do his will.
22 Praise the LORD, all his works
everywhere in his dominion.
Praise the LORD, O my soul.

Thursday, November 6, 2008

Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter,
you will restore my life again;
from the depths of the earth
you will again bring me up.
Psalm 71:20