Yeah...I NEED
The Four Gs: God is Good
What do you need to be satisfied? What do you need to be content?
Seriously.
What is it?
Do you need a new car? Those clothes? That house? This gadget? That person?
What do you need to be satisfied?
I'm Not Scurred
The Four Gs: God is Glorious
When I was in middle school I was not what you would call, “popular.” I was a home body, I played a non-school sport, and didn't have many friends. Shockingly, middle school was really hard for me. It's not a period of time that I look on with any kind of fondness.
I Got This!
The Four Gs: God is Great
It was cold. The mist hung thick in the air. It was late in a game that was out of hand underneath those Friday night lights. My son, the quarterback, dropped back to pass and after he released the ball a defender crushed him. It was by all means a late hit, one of many that game.
I lost my mind.
Silence
To take seasons of quiet and silence are important.
Simply, observe the world around you. Try to set aside your ego and be present.
This is hard.
Really hard.
Over the last week or so, I have been trying to do this. What’s been beautiful about it is that I am seeing more of my tribe and what it is that is broke. I am seeing other tribes and their beauty. I am noticing my neighbor and the love I have for them.
In this too, I’m seeing my own selfishness, greed, and unloving actions.
I am also becoming aware of an inner rage that needs to be dealt with.
The ugly isn’t everything though, I’m seeing in myself some growth toward empathy, compassion, and the ability to let things go.
In the silence, I’m coming to grips with the absolute fact that Growth = Grace + Truth + Time.
The “Time” piece is the hardest. I want growth completed yesterday. I don’t want to wait or be patient. I am reminded that time needs to be given to all, including myself.
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Fear Not
Fear is powerful. It generates strong emotions for fight or flight. Fear brings about not just emotional responses but physical as well. For the most part we work very hard at mitigating the fear that we feel and experience on a regular basis.
The time within which we live is filled with people telling us everything that we are afraid of or should be afraid of. Fear and promotion of fear is everywhere. It seems to be the currency by which those in power trade.
Dignity of the Person
The story of the Scriptures opens by grounding people in their fundamental identity: human, the divine image bearer.
Thomas Browne in Religio Medici writes, “Let there be no doubt at the end of your life that you have been human. You are entitled to a Divine particle and to union with the invisible.”
Beauty In One Another
“Beauty is the soul’s birthright.” – Bernard of Clairvaux
There is something that Jesus said, “My yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:30)”
Have you ever thought about it?
To Love Well Is To DO Something
When was the last time that you changed something about yourself? Perhaps it was a diet or workout regimen. Maybe you limited the amount of screen time you were consuming to read more.
What was it?
Welcome! I Wish You’d Leave
Have you ever been to a place where you expected hospitality and received none? How did it make you feel?
- Frustrated?
- Angry?
- Annoyed?
- Disappointed?
- Unwelcome?
Rise and Choose
Each day we rise and choose. Nobody else chooses for us. It is our choice and our choice alone.
We choose joyfulness. We choose hopefulness. We choose gratefulness. We choose happiness. We choose love.
We choose anger. We choose rage. We choose frustration. We choose irritation. We choose hate.
It is our choice. Nobody can make us do anything.