Fly-by

Well, I've been running around like one of those chickens (you know, those presumably headless ones), but I have a moment to share some miscellaneous graphics with you. The first is a 1024x768 wallpaper (an extinct size, I know, but...) and the last two are sized specifically to serve as Facebook cover photos. Enjoy!

Ardent Lovers

Ever feel as if you're just a little too average - you don't hate yourself, but then, you're not exactly thrilled with the person you are? 

"If only I looked like _______"

"I wish I could ________"

We all experience moments of identity crisis. Mild or absolutely untamed, these feelings of insufficiency are normal. But we must never let them go unresolved. Why? Because God, our Creator and the Lover of our souls, has already definitively resolved who we are in His book (Psalm 139:16) and longs for us to come to grips with the fear-shattering reality of His love (1 John 4:18). "You are precious to Me," He declares. "You are honored, and I love you" (Isaiah 43:4). Subtle fears like "I'm not loved," "no one wants me," "I'm not anyone important," etc...all of those crack and crumble to dust in the wake of His love.

If you haven't figured it out yet, get ready:

You are His treasure.

 

*contemplates photo* Yes. Enough said. 

The King is enthralled with your beauty.

Just let that sink in. He is enthralled with your beauty, inside and out. Not just happy with, satisfied with...but enthralled. The King - God - looks at you with perfect love and says, "Very good." 

Honor Him, for He is your Lord.

Your response? Don't simply absorb the glow, the warmth of His love, although there are certainly moments when being still in His presence is the best thing you could do. But don't settle into a cozy spot on the couch and never leave your comfort zone, merely content with a me-oriented faith.  Only ungrateful people respond that way. Get up, get out, and share the love that has so richly been gifted to you. The prophet Micah put it rather succinctly: "Do what is right,..love mercy, and...walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8).

Amy Carmichael, a missionary to India in the late 1800s/early 1900s, was one person who undoubtedly grasped the potent reality of God's love. During her life, she saved the lives of over one thousand Indian children who would otherwise have died or experienced a living death in the Hindu temples due to the harsh beliefs of the Indian culture of that day. On God's love, she wrote:

"God wants lovers. Oh, how tepid is the love of so many who call themselves by His name. How tepid is our own - my own - in comparison with the lava fires of His eternal love. I pray that you may be an ardent lover, the kind of lover who sets others on fire." -Amy Carmichael

Because of the love that has been lavished upon you, be a God-lover who goes out and sets others on fire. And don't forget...

The King is enthralled with your beauty. 

Honor Him, for He is your Lord.

Fall Fashion Inspiration

I don't know about you, but I've been ready for fall to make its annual appearance. It's time for golden light so thick that you could swim in it. It's time for jeweled treetops, crystal blue skies, and crisp air that sets your heart to dancing.

Ah. Fall.

I absolutely love the creativity our Creator displayed in His orchestration of our seasons. Each one marvels the senses and is a complete work of art in itself, reflecting God's excellence and love of beauty. And there isn't just one beautiful masterpiece of a season, either; there are several!

(Wow. Three short paragraphs, and my mind is already blown. I think I tried to type out at least five different conclusions to that above paragraph.)

So. It's fall. That means a wardrobe mix-up. Yay! While clothes aren't to ever be the focus of our lives or serve as our identity - that God's position - they do give us a fantastic outlet to express the creativity that God built into our personalities. Thus, I rarely tire of sticking this top with those pants, draping several necklaces over shirts to see which matches best, or posing in front of the mirror and debating the flats-versus-heels-and-which-color question. It's just fun! (And let's not forget some fun updos and tricks for my hair...)

When it comes to picking out my clothes for the day, I can get so caught up in looking great and boosting my self-confidence that I often forget that, really, I'm not the center of attention here. The apostle Paul wrote a crystal-clear reminder in 1 Corinthians 10:31 - "Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (empahsis mine).

Guess what?  "Whatever" includes what I put on in the morning. Now, that doesn't mean I don a dumpy tee with Scripture emblazoned on the back and a burlap sack as a skirt so that people will only think about Jesus when they look at me. On the contrary. They could be debating my mental stability (or lack thereof). BUT - wear cute clothes, please and by all means! Enjoy expressing your unique, God-give personality through how you dress. 

Nevertheless, consider what people will note about you - or Jesus Christ, Who you represent (2 Cor. 5:20) - by observing what you wear and how you act. Are they thinking, "Wow. What an attractive girl with a good taste in clothing. She's not flashy, but she's looking good - I bet she's a really nice person" ? Or are they too distracted by tight pants or a low top, or some bling that, you know what, is just a little over the top? Allow author, pastor's wife, and speaker Carolyn Mahaney to clarify my point:

"Our conduct has a direct influence on how people think about the gospel. The world doesn't judge us by our theology; the world judges us by our behavior. People don't necessarily want to know what we believe about the Bible. They want to see if what we believe makes a difference in our lives. Our actions either bring honor to God or misrepresent His truth." -Carolyn Mahaney

 How we dress and our motives for doing so really do impact our ability to shine our lights in the midst of a very dark world. If I'm overly focused on my appearance on a certain morning, I've noticed in retrospect that I usually miss opportunities to share truth with someone who really needed it, love on someone who was hurting, or serve as an example for a weaker Christian or unbeliever. Maybe, however, I just throw on an outfit without much thought. Look back at the end of the day, and I might have distracted a brother in Christ from thinking pure thoughts, missed a chance to model the holiness of Christ before an unbeliever, and overall just really messed up my testimony.

So the next time you head for the closet, and before you get excited planning your next outfit, take a moment to commit your wardrobe to the glory of God. Purpose in your heart to model Christ - in all His holiness, love, and grace - through the clothes you wear and your action while wearing them. Let that little light shine, and you might be surprised at just how bright it is.

A Thought for the Day

I encountered a pretty powerful thought on Pinterest. (Yes, yes, I was pinning. Guilty as charged.) But I wanted to share it with you.

 

 "A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. What you say flows from what is in your heart."

{Luke 6:45}

The Grand Obsession

It's only been very recently that I've joined the great virtual pinning phenomenon known as Pinterest. (Anybody heard of it?) In all honesty, I really do enjoy scrolling through all the miscellaneous photos, videos, quotes, and links that are to be found in its endless archives. Being the EXTREMELY visual person that I am, I get a big kick out of browsing through the mass of digital files. Dreamy photographs, breathtaking scenery, adorable puppies, clever quotes, interior design ideas, fashion that I'll never afford...

*sigh*

*forces attention back on blog post*

Ahem.

Like all the other new trends popping up in the world of social networking, Pinterest has its pros and cons. You can use it as a tool to share God's truth (which, I might add, pertains to every aspect of life) and have a little fun on the side, or you can sit there for hours having fun and subsequently rationalizing your horrendous waste of time by saying you were doing it for the common good (of whom, I'm not entirely sure...). Or, you can kind of skip through it blithely, pinning here and there, enjoying yourself, giggling at the cute puppy faces, sighing at the wedding dresses...

Ah. The wedding dresses. And the guy in the tux. Now comes the entire point of this discussion. :)

Pinterest (and Facebook before it) seemed to brimming with photos from girls dreaming about their future significant other. They might look like this:

 Or maybe they're focused on things a little more spiritual, like this:

Or this:

But they're all pretty much the same. Same overall message: boy meets girl, boy smiles at girl, dear-future-mister, holding hands while the sun is going down behind them...

Now, come on, girls. You know you like this kind of stuff. I'm right there with you. I think it would be AMAZING to have a hidden photographer waiting to snap a shot of the moment when my future husband proposes to me. And I certainly think there's nothing more important in a man than his relationship with God and a love for His Word.

But isn't a whole album entitled "Here Comes the Bride" or "We Can Dream" featuring photos like this just a little...much? Even a considerable smattering of such futuristic pins in any album might be a bit over the top. Think about it. Does the word "obsession" come to mind? For me, it definitely does. We want to find our soul mate, somebody we can love and be loved by, a good and godly man that we can share the rest of our lives with. It's a natural desire and a beautiful one, placed in our hearts by the God Who the very source and fuel of pure, perfect love. Nevertheless, I would suggest that perhaps there's something wrong when we plaster our lives with dreamy reminders of our romantic aspirations - however spiritual they may be.

My father, one of the wisest people in my life, once noted that humans are created to be obsessed. It's built into us just like love and fear and joy and all of the other emotions that make us what we are. We were created to be obsessed with our Creator. However, because our world is fallen and sin has defaced its beauty, we tend to be obsessed with everything BUT our Creator. Like fashion, electronics, trends...our future Mister...

Are you getting the idea? Instead of being obsessed with dreaming about whoever God might have in our future, why not celebrate the beautiful life He has already given us - and be obsessed with Him?

John Piper put it well: "He is most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in Him."

Make Him your grand obsession. He'll take care of the rest.

A Bit of This and That

So I don't currently have much time to write a decent post on anything, but I figured a few graphics might suffice. Now, they're not the greatest, and none of them correspond to the others - making them a kind of random mash-up - but you might appreciate them all the same. There are four 100x100 icons, two 500x250 banners, and a 1024x768 wallpaper. Enjoy!

As Surely as the Dawn

They go by various names.

"Dry seasons."

"Times when God is silent."

"Days when your prayers seem to bounce off the ceiling."

"Spiritual deserts."

But whatever Christian lingo we end up tacking on to these scenarios doesn't really make much of a difference. We've lost a certain vitality, that power-packed edge that seems to fuel our Christian walk, and we want it back. God seems far away; we can only attempt to re-live the times when we'd open our Bible and get that soul-zap of encouragement.

I've recently been sloshing through this scenario, and while it hurts, I've committed to hold fast to the truth. What more can a child do, than trust in the unchanging character of her Heavenly Father?

Nevertheless, I've needed some encouragement. And God knows that. He led me to this passage:

“Come, let us return to the Lord.
He has torn us to pieces;
    now He will heal us.
He has injured us;
    now He will bandage our wounds.

In just a short time He will restore us,
    so that we may live in His presence. 

 Oh, that we might know the Lord!
    Let us press on to know Him.
He will respond to us as surely as the arrival of dawn
    or the coming of rains in early spring.”

{Hosea 6:1-3}

As I read this, I can only sit and contemplate in awe. Hosea is issuing a challenge - "Oh, that we might know the LORD!" - that echoes in my heart. The mental picture created in my mind is one of a race (cliche, I know, but it fits perfectly). Your breath is being snatched away, your muscles are screaming, your head is pounding - but you press on. The finish line is ahead; why on earth would you stop running and forfeit a chance to win? 

"Let us press on to know Him."

I could sit here, clacking away at the keys, delivering my thoughts on this sentence...but is there really anything more that needs to be said? Hosea doesn't engage in in-depth philosophical language. "Just. Do. It. Press on."

"Let us press on to know Him."

What I do gain from this is the awareness that Christian life is not - has never been - easy. The subconscious assumption that salvation is the gateway to an early spiritual retirement is a lie. Children of God are called to a great adventure, an epic trek, which includes (cliches again; beware) mountains and valleys; streams and deserts; sun and rain - the instruments by which God refines us into the image of His Son. 

"Let us press on to know Him."

He will come. As surely as the sun rises in the morning, as surely as it rains in the early spring - He'll come. He'll restore.

"Let us press on to know Him."

 If you're dealing with a similar situation, I hope these musings have encouraged you. Breath deeply, and take a moment to listen to this song (performed by Brooke Fraser and Darlene Zschech). Your Heavenly Father is faithful; He'll come. Just trust.