Feel free to steal, borrow, and otherwise apply this in any social media post or conversation that you might have in the next 24-48 hours. I probably stole it from someone else’s post many moons ago.
You’re most blessed when you can learn to laugh at yourself and not take yourself so seriously. You’re not as big a deal as you think you are, but you are more loved (by God) than you will ever know.
Most of all, if you’re reading these words, it most likely means that you woke up this morning, which is in itself a very underrated privilege not granted to just everyone. Yay you.
I wrote these words a few years back. I still believe them. I believe that neither liberalism nor conservatism captures the entire essence of the gospel. I believe that we’re not called to follow a political leader or platform or agenda but Jesus.
I still believe our utmost allegiance is not to a President– any President– or a flag but to a King and a Kingdom that will last forever. I believe one day Jesus will look at us for scars and if He doesn’t find any, He will ask, “Was there nothing worth fighting for?”
I believe that we can serve and bless Jesus in the way that we serve and bless the least of these and those who can never pay us back. I believe that sometimes the least of these will include you and me when we are the least lovable and deserving of grace.
“At the end of the day, Jesus will not ask us who we were against or how much we defended our free speech or how we let everybody know where we stand politically. He will ask, ‘Did you love the least of these? Did you love your enemies? Did you give to those who can’t ever pay you back?’ At the end of the day, all that matters is this: did we love well like Jesus loved us well?”
I woke up this morning feeling about the same as when I went to bed last night. I didn’t notice any monumental changes while I was showering or brushing my teeth or getting dressed. I didn’t radically transform on my morning commute to work.
It’s all about those 10,000 steps we take every day. They either lead us closer to or further away from who we want to be.
For the believer, it’s all about trusting the process. Better yet, it’s all about trusting the God who’s in charge of the process.
Every day, you change imperceptibly and unnoticeably. At every moment God is in work in you, making you more like Jesus. You probably don’t notice on a daily basis, but some event will bring into sharp relief how much you’ve changed.
Your reaction to a stresser won’t be the same as when you were stressed about the same thing last year. You won’t be quite as quick to rush to judgment on someone as you might have been 5 years ago.
Keep trusting God, even above your senses and feelings and intuition. All those things can mislead or deceive, but God never will. Trust God in the process. He is still working all things together for good.
This is a beautiful story that just about everyone reading can relate to at some point. Untangling someone, whether literally or metaphorically, can be a long and dangerous process, but in the end is always worth it.
“A female humpback whale had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, a line tugging in her mouth.
A fisherman spotted her just east of the Faralon Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed for help. Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so badly off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her…. a very dangerous proposition. One slap of the tail could kill a rescuer.
They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her.
When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, nudged them, and pushed gently, thanking them. Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives.
The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth says her eye was following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.
May you be so fortunate … To be surrounded by people who will help you get untangled from the things that are binding you.
And, may you always know the joy of giving and receiving gratitude”
“Friends, when life gets really difficult, don’t jump to the conclusion that God isn’t on the job. Instead, be glad that you are in the very thick of what Christ experienced. This is a spiritual refining process, with glory just around the corner” (1 Peter 4:12-13, The Message).
It may be true that Monday’s just around the corner. But so is glory.
If you’re going through it and you feel at the end of your proverbial rope, hang on. Glory’s just around the corner.
If you feel as if it’s all you can do to exist from day to day, from hour to hour, from moment to moment, hang on. Glory’s just around the corner.
Whether your day’s been great or terrible, whether you’re riding high or down in the dumps, you know that in Jesus the best is yet to come.
Even in the mist of the worst that life can bring, you know that God is in the very midst of it with you. There’s nothing that can happen to you or anything you can do to lose the love He has for you.
“…can you just feel held for a moment? Wherever you are? The God of invincible reliability, of infinite resources, of insistent love, says, “Give me everything you are carrying — because I want to carry you.” “Cast your cares on the LORD and he will sustain you” Ps. 55:22 Thank You, Lord, for being the pillowed rest — into which we can sink real deep & find a Peace that passes all understanding.
I post this one because 1) I can relate on many levels, 2) it will speak to many people, and 3) I’m too tired to think of anything original.
Seriously, I’ve found many times over how faithful God is to those who keep trusting in Him. He’s faithful even when you run out of faith. He’s faithful. Period.
If you’ve ever brought home an animal after a beloved pet has passed away, you probably know that you can’t expect the second to be a carbon copy of the first. It’s not fair to expect the new dog or cat (or whatever other critter) to act just like the old one.
That said, I do like little Peanut. She’s got her own style. She’s very laid-back and chill, yet friendly and playful at the same time. I’m seeing more and more of her own unique style emerging as she gets older.
I don’t for a second regret picking a shelter animal over paying a premium at a breeder or pet store. There are lots of rescue animals that need love and will be eternally grateful if you bring them home.
Face it. Life’s better with a pet. Looking back, I’d do it all again with Lucy from day one. Even those last few days that were hard and sad. I hope I get to make as many memories with Peanut.
So today’s lesson is this: adopt, don’t shop. Now go and rescue and animal right this minute.
I started my little adventure with WordPress on this day 9 years ago. I admit that I can think of very few things I’ve done consistently for 9 years, aside from breathing and waking up and taking showers.
I’ve committed to writing something every day. It may not always be at the level of Shakespeare or Wordsworth, but for me, it’s the discipline of writing every single day. Some days, that means borrowing someone else’s words.
It’s been nice to know that other people read what I write. It can sometimes get discouraging when I see how few people read a particular post on a certain day, but then I remember that I’m doing this primarily for me. If the only person who sees these is me (and dear old Mom), then it’s worth it. The cathartic process of getting the words out of my head and onto some form of media is completely worth it.
Hopefully, God willing, I’ll keep doing this for at least another 9 years. And then some.
Ragamuffingospelfan's Blog 