Friday Night Lights

So I've been in Florida for almost a week now, and last night we made our trek from Orlando to Boca, to visit my aunt. As we drove along on 95, the moon began to peek over the horizon. It was the brightest red/orange moon I have ever seen, and a thought popped into my head. Isn't it interesting that at all times, regardless of the time, there is always some sort of heavenly body in the sky that draws our gaze upwards. I chuckled a little bit when I thought about this, as if I heard Poppa say to me, "See, I'm still here!" Even during a new moon, when the faithful lunar object is no where to be seen, the stars burn brighter in the sky. Why is it such a natural thing for us to be drawn to the sky? Just a little food for thought and a reminder that you're loved deeply and tremendously!

Beauty

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word "beauty" as, "a combination of qualities such as shape, color or form that pleases the aesthetic senses". I think that's such a terrible definition of beauty. If that's what true beauty really is, than I'm a piece of crap, and I can't buy into the idea that I would be displeasing to my Father's "aesthetic senses". So what is true beauty? I think true beauty has to come from the Father, the rest is what we do with it. Ezekiel 16:14 says, "And your fame spread among the nations on account of your beauty, because the splendor I had given you made your beauty perfect, declares the Sovereign LORD." And 1 Peter 3:3-4 says, "Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight." Beauty is so much more than physical attractiveness, because the world's beauty is fleeting, but our beauty is eternal. So having said all of that, I just want to simply remind you that YOU ARE BEAUTIFUL.

The Story (So Far)

I just finished reading Don Miller's new book, "A Million Miles in A Thousand Years", and I have to say it's quite an amazing book. I've been wrestling with the whole idea of life and just how long it is. I mean I know it's more like a split second compared to eternity, but it's where I am now, and for me the thought of still being around sixty years from now terrifies me. Now, I'm not saying that in a suicidal context, but more of a, "what the hell am I going to do for the rest of my life" type of thing. I was always looking for that climax, that one event where my story would come to a head, and the rest of my life would be smooth and peaceful. I now realize that this will never happen, and as surprised as I am to say this, I'm so grateful that my story will never climax; it makes life so much more worth living. Don, talks about this a little bit in his book, how we're constantly looking for that next best thing and putting expectations on life and friends and God. I am constantly doing this, I'm always walking around with a million expectations jumping around in my head and it's almost never a productive thought. Whether it's wondering if today will be the day I finally win the lottery, to wondering if I'll stop a bank heist (yes, sometimes I really do think about things like that). These thoughts and expectations, I now know, have silenced the ones that really matter, like Daddy telling me, "today's the day I'm going to show you my love a little bit more", and I've ignored it and drowned it out with the droning of my own mind. I think the key to a happy life and knowing who God is and who we are, is letting go of expectations. It's about forgetting about looking for a climax, and joining in the adventure. There are stories going on all around us every nanosecond of every day, but we don't jump into these stories because we think, "nope, that's not part of my story arc; that's not my climax." I think we like to believe that we're the writers of our lives, when really we're just glorified editors of a story that's so much bigger and grander than anything we could ever comprehend. One of the things Miller says in his books is that, "we're all trees in a story about a forest", I love that. It just makes so much sense to me and for the first time I'm content with just being a tree in a story about a forest. I'm letting go of searching for a climax, and instead accepting my invitation into the adventures all around me. And I have to say, it's so good! So please, will you join me?