Safety in Numbers and Unity in Christ

How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!

Psalm 133:1

I experienced such an amazing feeling of unity and comfort this morning. I felt welcomed and loved by a group of believers that I have never met in my entire life. I attented daily mass this morning at 8:00am for the first time. As I was walking to the church I was praying the same thing repeatedly, for God to clear my mind completly. No thoughts, no planning, no counting, no images and no comparing but just a clean slate so I could focus on God and God alone. When I walked into the church I was greeted by the calmness and safeness of the church. I sat down in a pew by myself and took a quick glance around at the other morning church goers. As I was looking I realized two things, 1.) I was the youngest person there and 2.) the fact that I was surrounded by elderly Jesus loving individuals who have experience far more life than I have brought such a genuine smile to my face. As the service started I could feel Satan nagging at my thoughts but I quickly said my prayer to God to keep my mind on track with why I was there, for Him. Now I told myself I was going to remember the first reading so I could explain it BUT what I am more excited about sharing is the homily. The priest (I forget his name...my bad) started off by bringing our attention to how different everyone sitting in the church was. Different sizes, shapes, ages, colors and backgrounds. Once again I was engulfed with the feeling of safety and comfort. He then proceeded to announce (in a rather forceful voice) how everyone in the Catholic church, all of our brothers and sisters in Christ are different. Then he followed that by yelling, "BUT WE AREN'T!!" As that bold statement echoed throughout the church he began to explain himself. Yes, we all have different backgrounds, we come from different homes, different families and environments, we struggle with different sins, and fight temptations throughout the day in order to survive and start the day all over again in the morning but at the same time we are all followers and lovers of Jesus Christ! We all as one are praying to the same God, reading from the same Bible, hoping for the same everlasting life and hanging onto the faith that no individual will go their entire life without hearing the story of our Savior who wipes away all sins and all pasts and gives you a fresh start every day. That right there people is unity! We may all be different but we are all the exact same. By uniting together as brothers and sisters of Christ we have the power to change lives, change communities, heal the broken hearted and bring hope to a world that is so hopeless. How amazing is that? Goose bump amazing I would say!

So with that being said friends think about your roommates, siblings, classmates, enemies, professors, family, the men and women on the street and don't just see the differences. Because there is so much beauty underneath the dirt, the sin, the fake smile, the tears and the 'feed me' signs. There is unity among us every which way we turn. There are Christ loving people in every classroom and on every street, whether they look like it or not. Find the comfort and safety in uniting with other Christ followers and don't let go. Together lets link arms, grasp hands and set our hearts out to live a life of love. Because I promise you those who are lost find safety in numbers and find safety in places they may not have expected to find it. Like me this morning surrounded by a group of elderly grandparents. They didn't hold a welcome banner when I walked in, just a glance in my direction with a faint smile on their faces and that was enough for me to feel the comfort and safety I have been needing for so long.

Think about it...

Vulnerability

Vulnerability - open to moral attack, criticism, temptation etc.

- difficult to defend

- capable of being wounded or hurt, as by a weapon

Well shoot. Who the heck would want to be vulnerable when that is the definition? I know I sure as heck don't like being vulnerable. I have no desire to put myself out there and make myself look any smaller than I already feel or less put together than I show or talk about issues that might make me look like a selfish lying worthless person.

Lets just say that about 10 minutes ago I did something that made me very vulnerable. And I am reading those definitions over and over again and thinking I am going to need to board up my windows, plug my ears, tape my mouth shut and hold on for dear life because if vulnerability leads to those things then I am about as screwed as they come.

Okay well now lets sorta turn this definition around just a bit. "Capable of being wounded or hurt" aka the devil, "open to moral attack, temptation" aka the devil, "difficult to defend" NOT WITH GOD ON OUR SIDE! Sorry satan but that one isn't all you. Basically being vulnerable means the devil is just about ready to pounce, he is waiting until you have stepped out into the open field were there are no trees to duck behind and no camouflage to wear to hide yourself. So in the devil's eyes you are all his and he is so ready to attack that you can no longer stand up on your own and you no longer can tell lies from the truth. No need to fret because there is this other amazing guy out there who is ready to fight back if you let him aka God! Put on the armor that God has for you and walk out on that field with your shoulders back, head held high and proudly stomp over the devil and don't stop and don't look back. Instead of bording your windows board your heart, instead of plugging your ears unplug them to hear God's instructions, don't tape your mouth but cry out to Him so He can hear you. And yes you can still hold on for dear life because life is never smooth sailing.

What I want you to take away:

- be vulnerable...share your story

- you will help someone in need whether you realize it or not

- don't let the definition scare you

- remember that there are two sides to every story...in this case the devil and God

- put on your armor but don't shield out the one person who is willing to help you cross the battle field (God)

- and don't stop fighting until you feel so engulfed by the HolySpirit you can hardly contain your happiness

Joy comes from being vulnerable. Give it time and patience. Don't be afraid, don't be scared and don't freak out. Take deep breaths, close your eyes and let God grab you from the back of the shirt and pull you across that open field in the brightest colors you could possibly wear...who needs camouflage with God on our side?

Read: Ephesians 6: 10-18 "The Armor of God" - - - > Doesn't get much better than this folks!

Accountability Part 1

Accountability. Love the word, hate the word. Love being kept accountable but then hate being kept accountable. Accountability in my life is a love hate relationship. As I was driving in my radio-less car this afternoon a very good question popped into my mind:

"Whose job is harder? The one keeping someone accountable or the one being kept accountable?"

I honestly don't know the answer to this question but I haven't stopped thinking about since earlier this afternoon. So until I spill my thoughts I will share one thing. Accountability is a GOOD thing. Whether you are keeping someone accountable or the one being kept accountable something beneficial WILL come out of it. So both ends (I say both ends meaning mostly my end) need to be whole heartedly commited. Until later be good, be sweet and enjoy your Friday night.

Here's to Another Day

Here we go onto Thursday of such an incredibly long week. And it is now rounding the corner to the weekend praise the Lord!

Laura, sweet sweet Laura called me last night (of course do I answer...nope) but she called none the less and shared a wonderful verse with me that I feel the need to share:

2 Corinthians 12: 9-10. I am not going to write it out here but look it up and read it as many times as you need to in order to get the message through to yourself. It is such a beautiful verse with such comfort in it. So today live by that verse and tomorrow live by that verse and the next day. Memorize it!!

And I will pray that I can take my own advice and live by it. WAY easier said than done but like I said it's another day and that means anything can happen.

walking on broken glass

Hey God,

It's me, Your daughter. Or at least I hope you will still call me that.
I need to feel Your love. The love that I once felt in the depths of
my soul and the pit of my stomach. The love that once overwhelmed me
with joy to a point where I couldn't even contain it to myself for a
minute longer. Where did that feeling go? Why do I feel hollow now?
I feel holes inside my heart wanting so badly to be filled with something of
substance that will truly satisfy me. I know You are the only one capable of that
satisfaction but my body can only ache for so long while I sit and wait. Until then
I try everything possible to temporarily plug the emptiness up but You know
as well as I know what comes from those temporay plugs...nothing. More
emptiness and more sorrow and more loneliness than I can bear to stand.
I am walking on broken glass God and it pains me more and more everyday.
I will continue to wait to hear from You but I pray it is soon because my heart is aching
to be loved. Please Lord save me from this nightmare I am living. I need Your light in my life
because without it all I am seeing is darkness. I love You God.

Your child

Here we go...

The first question most will ask in response to this new adventure of mine is going to be, "What is the point behind blogging? Why share everything to the world wide web?" Well that is a very good question and to be completley honest...I have no idea why I want to do this so bad. But I have a few thoughts behind it:
1.) I think ALL day long, my brain never stops...ever. I attempt at writing it down on paper but alot of times those are my thoughts between me and God. Here I have the opportunity to share my ideas, goals, triumphs and insightful (I wish) thoughts to whomever may be interested.
2.) I want to be able to share what God is doing in my life! There are many things I will not be sharing about myself but God is not one of those. So many times I want to stand on the roof of my 22 story tall building and shout out how amazing our God is. Considering that isn't probable I have settled for the second best.

So tay tuned if you want, if not no worries. I am doing this for myself as well. It seems easier to process life when we can sort through our thoughts out loud instead of keeping them in side.

As we continue into this Easter weekend let's not allow the chocolate, eggs, sun dresses and peepes fog our minds of what is truly important. Jesus died on the cross for us, today actually (Good Friday). He died for our sins, He died such an awful death it is hard to even write out the way I feel about it. I don't deserve His love He has for me but I greatly receive it or at least as much of it as I can comprehend. I am truly thankful for my relationship with Him and the life I live that wouldn't be possible if God didn't sacrifice His one and only son.

Have a very happy Easter! Eat chocolate, don't count calories and talk to God! He wants to hear from you!