Life in Words

Chapter 3 tonight in Genesis... The fall of man. There are lots of intriguing parts to this sad story but something that stuck out to me tonight was the fact that Eve desired wisdom: "... and also desirable for gaining wisdom..." (verse 6). You know, there is a lot of advice out there today. Google "self help" and I bet you can find thousands of results. Everyone has an opinion and some claim to have expertise. You want knowledge? You can find resources in an instant! However, there is much to be said about gaining wisdom from credible sources. Who do you listen to? What are their credentials? Where do they get their information from? Not everyone has the best interest at heart for those that they "help." Not all advice is given in a well intentioned manner. Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing... Godly wisdom has distinct components to it... "But the wisdom from above is first of all pure. It is also peace loving, gentle at all times, and willin...

Tonight I read Genesis 2 and was really meditating on the truth that God did not ever mean for us to be alone... But first here's a tangent I also thought was interesting in verses 5-6... At the beginning of it all, God did not create the rain. Water rose up from the ground to water everything. It was like the built in sprinkler systems we have now. As I sat here thinking about it, a thought dawned on me....I wonder if that means there were no weather patterns yet. It was a perfect world, one in which the vegetation was watered by the streams that came up from the ground. How much I wish I could have seen this garden of Eden. I'm sure it was quite the place to behold! Now back to what I said earlier about not being alone... While reading verse 18, the realization of the awfulness of feeling lonely really sunk in. I've had my fair share of feeling lonely. We moved around a lot as I was growing up and there is nothing quite like "being the new kid." Everyone else ha...

"And it was so." That sentence at the end of Genesis 1:9 resonated with me as I was reading Genesis 1 tonight. God spoke the earth, the universe and everything in it into existence and it was so. He said it and it happened. Done. Have you ever stood in front of something so majestic that you really understood just how finite you are? There is so much more out there... Around the world... Across the universe. We are truly just a minute piece of something so much bigger. And it was so. Think of the stars that stretch across the galaxy--so numerous that we can't even count them all. Think of the all the sea creatures we have yet to discover because they live so deep. Think of all the snowflakes that fall and how delicate their individual patterns appear under a microscope. And it was so. The details, the intricacies, the mysteries and the beauty--all simply breathed into existence. "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and fema...

John 21:22 "Jesus answered, 'If I want him to remain alive until I return, what is that to you? You must follow me.'" What is it to you? Comparison... I compare. I assume you do too. What does someone else's story have to do with you? Why are you worried about what He is doing in your neighbor, friend, sister/brother's life? It's not your story. It's not your journey. It's their's. So what is it to you? We are all called to a unique purpose. We each have our own destiny. Mine isn't going to be the same as yours. Yours isn't going to be the same as his. His isn't going to be the same as her's. We were each called to our own story. We were each designed with a specific purpose in mind. My God given gifts and abilities were designed to help me achieve my story and yours were given to you for your story. Let's not focus on how we wish our lives looked like their's. They have their own set of trials and lessons. Who knows if ...

You know what really hurts? When you get hurt and no one notices, or cares or says out loud that they care. When something shakes your world and leaves you feeling breathless and the rest of the world continues without noticing--it makes you mad. How could they not stop and suffer for a moment with me? How could they not offer a word or thought or gesture of care? How can their life simply march forward like it did yesterday while my world has been left shattered? When you're left grieving and you physically ache with each breath you take, you want someone, anyone, to at least ask if you're okay. Compassion: a feeling of deep sympathy and sorrow for another who is stricken by misfortune,accompanied by a strong desire to alleviate the suffering. ( Dictionary.com ) Here's the thought that struck me today... Compassion, empathy and sympathy are not for the dead but for the living left behind. You may not emotionally grieve for a person lost whom you never knew or had a connec...

Do you ever feel like it's all been done before? I often feel like it's all been said before. Everyone has a blog these days and many of the themes written about have been written many times over and again. What else is there left to say? Yet somehow God often connects just the right message from the right perspective to the person who needed to read it at just that time. I know that's happened to me many times. I like writing. I like blogging. But I pray that what I write, I write only what I hear from Him to you, reader, whoever you are and whatever season you are in life now. That's the purpose of my writing. I'm not so interested in airing out my opinions. It seems like there's more than enough opinions to go around these days. I write what I hear Him speak to my heart. You are not alone. Your life has meaning. Your voice will not go unheard. The impact you make may not look like much to you but it might be much bigger than you could have ever imagined. Foll...