ForeverLOVEd

Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, And before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations. Jeremiah 1:5 Friday morning, tunes blaring, clouds looming overhead; I rushed to the dentist in an effort to avoid being late to my appointment. Frazzled and still half asleep, I survived the x-rays and teeth cleaning before I got my turn with the dentist. Caught off guard, I was surprised to hear the dentist's joy at my being at his office that morning. My family, all of which go to the same dentist, consists of mostly boys! It's something I've known my whole life, that in so many ways I was a lone ranger in a world of men. But this thought really never caught much of my attention. Sure, I can tell you any random fact about Major League Baseball, know my fair share of football players, and despite my failed attempts to play most sports, I try. But the actual thought of why I am so different from my rough and rowdy cousins and brothers ...

16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us. God is love, and the one who abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. 17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, so also are we in this world. 18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 19 We love, because He first loved us 1 John 4:16-19 A little boy in my class has a stuffed animal frog. "Froggy", as he calls it, has seen his share of love. That same frog has been coming with him, to and from school, almost everyday for the four years I've known him. His stuffed animal, which seems to be less and less fluffy with each passing day, has been smudged with dirt, rolled on the ground, and tossed to the ceiling. More than one little string has come loose and it's definitely taken on the wear and tear of day to day ...

10 For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers. 1 Timothy 4:10 A quiet moment at the kitchen table, a half eaten yogurt in hand, had me surveying cupboards that didn't quite line up just straight and looking at paint that wasn't really a color that could be named, but a mix between brown and gray. I remember, for a long time, after we moved into this house still thinking to myself, this might never feel like home. We have been here for seven years now, approaching the longest amount of time throughout my life that I've ever lived in one place. And on an average morning, I looked around and realized, "Yep, this might actually have become my home". That thought was followed up by one that had me wondering what God might have in store next. Everytime I ever remember being settled in one state or one house or remember that moment of thinking yep, this is home, God ...

33 But whoever denies Me before men, I will also deny him before My Father who is in heaven. Matthew 10:33 As a fast food restaurant, Chick Fil A has seen its share of news coverage in the past week. A spotlight, that they may or may not have expected, has ensued as the result of one person standing up for their beliefs. The result has been demonstrations, lines that fill parking lots, vandalism, and multiple conversations about what it is to stand up for your faith and what the results can often end up being. I was certain, as I watched the news coverage, that I wish to be the type of person that not only knows what they believe, but also someone that is able to stand up for those beliefs when push comes to shove. And, maybe more recently, I'm learning that I'd like I stand up for those beliefs even before push comes to shove. But I never thought an average trip to the doctor would leave me in my own Chick Fil A type situation. However, in my life I've come to know t...

6 I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. 1 Corinthians 3:6 Exhaustion, a weekend together, and a common love of laughter probably had my friends and I giggling out loud at the clever statement of one of our friends! Five of us were squished into a car, that holds five, making the journey home from San Diego. The discussion in the car had covered an array of topics before it landed on the question, who would drive us to our activity later that afternoon. A fair exchange of driving is something we always try to maintain and we had two volunteers to drive right away. But when I told my friend she had to decide, her answer had each of us rolling. She replied by saying, "It doesn't matter to me, I mean it's not like I'm being called to drive, but Im fine either way." We all thought it was so funny, because each of us has had in some form or another, received some sort of call from God. My friends answer was funny and clever, but we all knew th...

"We can do no great things; only small things with great love." -Blessed Teresa of Calcutta The events of this past week, for me, could be described as a whirlwind. In a matter of four days, I celebrated the birth of a new baby, remembered the loss of another, and watched in horror the news coverage of the senseless deaths of average people who had planned to spend their night watching a movie but ended up instead in the middle of a rage filled massacre. Each of these events, private or public, brought with them emotions, thoughts, and a sense of the value of a life. Have you ever thought about what it takes for a human being to be born? I mean all these little details have to line up just right for it to happen. And once a baby is born, the organs have function just so for the baby to sustain life. So easily, one organ can fail and life no longer exists. God orchestrated perfectly this process and all these little things that make life possible. And beyond that He orche...

57 As they were going along the road, someone said to Him, “I will follow You wherever You go.” 58 And Jesus said to him, “The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.” 59 And He said to another, “ Follow Me.” But he said, “Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.” 60 But He said to him, “Allow the dead to bury their own dead; but as for you, go andproclaim everywhere the kingdom of God.” 61 Another also said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first permit me to say good-bye to those at home.”62 But Jesus said to him, “ No one, after putting his hand to the plow and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.” Luke 9:57-62 What does it take to lead a life truly surrendered to Christ?! I think it's easy for us in many ways to picture only the pretty things about living a life of faith when we first start out our journeys with Christ. Maybe rock bottom is what had us surrendering our everything to God in the first p...