All The Days Of My Life

I've been reflecting on this past year of my life over the last few weeks, mulling over where i've been and what i've done. It's so strange to be coming upon another birthday again, as if it is a surprise... It comes on the same day every year! Yet here I am, a little stunned to be adding another year to life. Sometimes I just want to make life stop so I have some time to enjoy my treasured moments a little more. But life isn't meant to stop, it's meant to be lived, to seek God and love well while you're living it. And truthfully, I don't want to be stagnant in this season in my life. There is so much to learn, so much to become, working towards a career, and whispers of dreams of marriage and babies someday. I look forward to the way life unexpectedly unfolds and moves you forward whether you're ready or not. I rest in the fact that while I don't see it coming, God does. He always does! Knowing this is an unbelievable comfort to me!

When I think back to everything that transpired through the past year I can be nothing less than thankful. And thankful doesn't feel like a strong enough word for it. This past year felt so very short, but my heart has grown by 10 times I think. From moments of complete and utter happiness to sinking into deep mire. Taking the risk of investing in others left chips and cracks in my heart, but God restores in such a beautiful way. Through it all, through moments when I felt so broken and helpless and those in which I felt confident and sure, there has only been one constant, God is faithful. God has been faithful in his discipline when I've been caught up in sin. He has been faithful to comfort and sustain when I had nothing left. He has been faithful to soften my heart and incline it towards him. In everything he has been faithful and he has made his grace and mercy evident in everything and in every way.

So today, as I celebrate being granted another year of life I am weighted with an indelible gratitude for who I've been surrounded with in my life. My crazy, beautiful and loving family whom I love so deeply. A guy who, for reasons I still don't understand, chooses to stand by me throughout this crazy time in life and is striving for Godliness in his life. For the most amazing circle of friends who encourage me, push me, and love me and bring so much laughter into my life. For a beautiful and intentional body of Christ that I am so blessed to be in community with and that shares and teaches me so much. When I look at it this way, how can I dare to complain! "One thing have I asked of the Lord, that I will seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple." All the days of my life, this is my prayer, my desire and what I hope my life reflects.

The day of LOOOVE!

Oh valentine's day! i keep forgetting that it's this week already! As much as I could do without the marketing and overwhelming decor in every store you walk into... i just love valentine's day! I love walking through the store and watching people walking around with flowers to buy and I wonder who they're for and how their eyes will light up when they get them. I walk past the picked over card aisle and think of all the fun and meaningful gifts people are thinking up right now. And then there's the little boys and girls making the very important decision of what kind of valentines cards they want to give their classmates. I have such fun memories of this fun party day when I was a kid. My mom would make it fun for us too with the occasional gift bag full of the typical valentine's day candy and the wonderful reminder of how much we are loved. I have enjoyed reading the blogs and stories of the things people go out of their way to do to surprise the ones they love right now. They just make me smile from ear to ear! To stop and take a day to blatantly remind the people around us how much they mean to us does wonders for the heart. Everything can go back to normal on monday, even though I hope we continue to show our friends and family how much we love them in the everyday, little moments kind of way. This all just reminds me to be thankful for those i'm surrounded with! God has been gracious to me and I am blessed beyond what I deserve.

we do not run aimlessly

What can we say to be encouraging? When others around us are going through the lowest of lows and heart wrenching pain, what do we say? What do we say even to ourselves when we are struggling and fighting all those things that threaten to crumble our faithfulness to God and turn a blind eye to his commandments? I know I struggle with wanting to say the right thing and utter profound words that will be helpful and enlightening. Here's what I have been reminded of today. It is isn't how profound we are and how poetic our words can be. It is our responsibility to use scripture and God's truths that are interlaced in those words to remind each other that God is worthy of glorification by remaining faithful in those painful times in life. The word of God is more powerful to encourage, uplift, and spur on the heart in steady faithfulness than any words that I can muster up from my feeble mind. My encouragement today as I deal with my everyday struggles of the heart and pray for those on my heart comes from
1 Cor 9:25-26. God has plucked me out of death, has called me out and softened my heart towards him in order to be shown his mighty power and praise him for it. And that is worth fighting for! Fighting to remaining faithful to the one that graciously saved me! It is a daunting task, much too large for me and thankfully God knows that. Like vs. 26 says, "I do not run aimlessly, I do not box as one beating the air." So I will fight against the sin that threatens me, I will serve the God that saved me, and I will love those that fight along side me! I know that none of this is in vain, for Christ has already revealed his mighty power in his birth, death and resurrection. That is crazy love! Oh, how worthy he is! For the sake of the gospel, for the sake of his glory, I do not run aimlessly.

love this!

Absolutely loved this. great song, great band. Pomplamoose music... very fun!