The only Bible some may ever read… your heart.
Expectations
His name is Bill. He has wild hair, wears a T-shirt with holes in it,
jeans and no shoes. This was literally his wardrobe for his entire four
years of college. He is brilliant. Kind of esoteric and very, very
bright.
He became a Christian while attending college. Across the street from
the campus is a well-dressed, very conservative church They want to
develop a ministry to the students, but are not sure how to go about
it.
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The Idol Called Happiness
This one threw me for a loop.
Happiness… an idol?
I didn’t have to look far within myself to see how much energy I put into trying to be happy. It almost makes me wonder how long I’ve been undertaking such a pointless endeavor.
Ok now here we go. Happiness… a pointless endeavor?
Strong, bad tasting wording I know, but please keep reading!
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Hebrews 4:12
Hebrews 4:1212 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
The Word of God ( the Bible, Jesus ) lights us up! It disassembles us into our basic components. Soul, Spirit, Body. It shines God’s Love on those parts and lets us see ourselves for what we are. It draws clear lines between our sin nature, and who God Created us to be. God’s Word can bring all our components together into something that makes sense.
I gave focusing my whole self a try after an awesome sunday school lesson on this subject…
We All Serve Something
Captive. Submit. Serve.
These three words don’t exactly sound fun. Upon first glance perhaps even the word “slave” comes to mind or perhaps “servant.”
Some of us, myself included would say “Me a captive? Submit? I could go along with “serve” but these others you won’t find me doing; I’m a captive to no one!”
Funny thing is upon further reflection it is a hard task to find something that I’m not captive to, submitting to, or serving and it comes in the oddest of ways.
Trust me. I don’t trust God. Now I do.
It would seem that somehow Doc Brown got a hold of my brain and installed a “Mr. Fusion” and the ability to not only go back in time, but forward into time. I have to tell you that being able to fly, or hey just give me the souped up DeLorean would be fantastic. I can do without the time travel abilities. Seriously, and here’s why…
Life with Lyme = LIFE Renewed
So, I found out about 6 weeks ago that I have Lyme disease. And for me, that was great news! After over three months of doctor visits and blood tests and weight checks and pain killers and no answers as to what was wrong with me, I was thrilled to find out that I didn’t have something more debilitating like an autoimmune disorder, which does run in my family. Let’s just say that through the experiences with all the doctors (some much better than others), learning what it’s like to be sick for an extended period of time, and trying to take care of each other above ourselves through it all…I learned a lot. (Randall probably learned his own stuff, too, but I don’t want to speak for him).
I learned not to take my energy for granted. Not to take my health for granted. As a person accustomed to long-distance running, it was a huge blow to not even have the energy to do laundry. I would literally wake up, go to work, come home and sleep. Randall would cook, do laundry, and put me to bed. It sucked. I was tired and cranky and moody all the time. Who wants to feel that crappy especially when you have no idea why you feel crappy to begin with?
I’ve gotten back up to maybe a mile and a half at this point, which compared to how I used to run, is like a power-walk through the mall. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not complaining. Even though I am still recovering, still looking to be able to do everything that I once could, I am so grateful to our Father and Redeemer who has renewed me. My spirit and my body are being renewed. It has been a painful process at points, for sure. And, through this process, I’ve had to come face to face with a big hiccup for me – not being able to do what I want to do.
As a write those words, I’m afraid to even publish this blog post. Do I want to admit that I have a problem sometimes with not getting my way? No, I don’t. But, I think that might be the biggest thing that God forced me to learn through all of this. Life isn’t about doing it your way, or getting your way, or doing what you want to do. God can and will take control when we drop the ball. I’m afraid to say that I did drop the ball in some ways. I hope that I am finally freed from the throes of the Lyme disease, but more than that, I hope that this learning experience sticks with me and forces some permanent changes in my life. I hope that in 4 months, or whenever this Lyme disease fully gets out of my system, I will look back and be grateful that I was sick. If that’s what it takes for me to finally get it, that LIFE, Life in Christ, is truly greater than me and my whims, then I’ll take it. And, if you read this, and you see me being princess-y, unnecessarily, just remind me of Lenny, as my mom likes to call him…Lenny the Lyme….
YouVersion.com – Online Bible Community
Summary taken from their website:
YouVersion.com has given you the ability to engage with Scripture like never before, and with YouVersion mobile you have access to the Bible, corresponding contributions, and online community no matter where you are.
With YouVersion mobile the Bible is with you…during your morning commute in the tube, while waiting in line at the grocery store, or in church on Sunday. YouVersion gives you the power to engage in 40 different translations, in 22 languages, on one device that rests in the palm of your hand. Download the free App and enjoy regular time with the Bible, right when and where you need it.
Online community where apparently you can share Bible bookmarks and commentary etc. Going to sign up and see how it is!
http://www.youversion.com/
-Randall
What we’ve been up to…in pictures and words…
Well, in case you’ve been wondering, what these newlyweds have been up to, we decided to share some recent photos with you…I’ll try to go in chronological order beginning with a trip to the Braves/Brewers game back in June (I think?). It was Randall’s first Braves’ game and a nice weekend escape from Printies! After the Braves’ game and a few more weekends dedicated to Printies, we escaped to Chattanooga for a day of hiking. In August we enjoyed our 6 month anniversary at the Westin Peacthree Plaza and ate a great meal at 30 Tables downtown. And then we finally arrived at a WEEK LONG VACATION TO FLORIDA! 
(Tallahassee –> Havana –> Orlando –> Zephyrhills –> St. Augustine)
Death to Self. Long live Self.
What is a self apart from God but an attempt by man to prove that he can be self-sustaining? A man’s self is a fake self – a poor reflection in a mirror, we must shatter the mirror, and see God Face to Face… every day… shatter the mirror.
Paying God Forward – from Akeelah and the Bee
Over the weekend, Randall & I watched Akeelah and the Bee. Great movie if you haven’t seen it! But, the movie had a quote in it that I wanted to “think out” by blogging. I guess blogging is my way of figuring out my emotional state sometimes. I don’t have the largest emotional vocabulary – something I’m working on it, but somehow writing helps it all make more sense and sometimes I find out I can be a deep thinker after all
Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.” – Marianne Williamson, from Akeelah and the Bee
What inspired me about this quote is the part about the role we play in the manifestation of God’s glory. Which is exciting! The problem is we let ourselves get in the way of that. I know that’s true in my own life. As I struggle with my own flesh, I want to be inspired by this idea that if we can get over our own selves and focus on God’s role and work with us, how much inspiration can we be to those around it. Think about it. If we each tried it, only for a day, it would be like Pay it Forward, but Pay God Forward. And I bet it would be so enlightening and refreshing that we wouldn’t want to stop. So that’s my plan…Pay God Forward.
-Anna
