Beauty Redefined

Source: sundayinbed.tumblr.com via Babs on Pinterest

"I am weathered but still elegant ..." Song of Solomon 1:5 {TheMessage}

[I AM] encouragement

Last Sunday, Anthony and I attended a meeting at Gateway for Small Group Section/Zone Leaders. The last part of the meeting consisted of the leaders getting in groups just to pray, encourage and prophesy over one another. love.Love.LOVE. times like this!

As we were huddled in circles drawn by chairs and prayers began being lifted up, I felt HolySpirit spark my heart and heard His voice begin speaking. I grabbed my notebook and pen and wrote as fast as the words came. When there came a pause in prayer, I shared this with our group.

These words were God's heart for us and a reminder of [who] He is, and I wanted to share them with you, too. Sometimes, just having our Dad tap us on the shoulder and say, "I AM here", is all we need.

I AM the LORD your God
I go before and behind you
I encircle round about you
There is no place, no crack, that I do not cover
I AM your strength and shield; your strong tower
I AM your peace
I AM your wisdom
I AM your safety
I AM your joy
I AM the answer to your every question
I AM laughter in the midst of your frustration
I AM the eye in the center of your raging storm
I AM your comfort in the lowest place
I AM your all in all
because I AM

Awkward Acceptance

“Do I want my husband to stop seeing me and calling me beautiful? Is that really a question I need to be asked? Apparently.”

i sometimes think you write from the perspective of a fly on the wall of my heart. sometimes i read your words and they [too eerily] tell my story. it is almost unsettling at times. unsettling because you make me face me by surprise. maybe we share heart similarities without even knowing it. hearts that have been used, i’m discovering, are hearts that don’t want to believe in being seen, and adored, and loved … just for who we are. GOD is whispering…

the paragraph that starts with “my husband tells me” was like a page from the story of my life. i understand your discomfort in accepting. and your transparency has caused me to flinch a little. now i know i have to ask the question “why?”. why do i? why don’t i? and then i have to let GOD work out of me to work in me. to let freedom replace awkward acceptance. GOD is whispering…

thank you for your [heart]words.

Gut-Check and Healing

I posted the following to my Facebook page on January 31st so that I could share a story, a moment, of God's power through healing. After reading through the comments I received, I decided I didn't want to lose this moment somewhere on Facebook, so I'm keeping it here ... where it belongs.

Yesterday, Teighlor talked to me about pain she's had in her neck, with almost constant headaches, for the past 2 months. We'd though it was muscular and that she was out of adjustment. We tried massages, different pillows, etc., but nothing worked. Yesterday something didn't sit right with my gut. I was legitimately concerned. So was Teighlor. I knew in my knower, without knowing what, that it was more than a sore muscle. Immediately I heard HolySpirit tell me to take her to the Healing Rooms at Gateway Church last night. They laid hands on her and prayed. The woman felt the "small lump" at the base of her skull when she began praying. Teighlor and this woman both felt intense heat at the spot where she laid her hand during prayer. After prayer, Teighlor's pain (which was constant) was gone and so was the lump! This morning, she woke up with no pain for the first time in 2 months! PRAISE GOD! I don't know [what] He healed, I just know He did! I know what He spoke to me and I believe the gut-check I had was from Him as much as the word He spoke to bring her to the Healing Rooms. He is healer!

[Healing occurred on Monday, January 30, 2012]

Grace Breeds Grace

"Grace breeds grace and gives you eyes to see the person, not the offense."

Good Lawd, Ris, you could have just written that sentence and it would have been enough to slay me, but then you followed up with these words:

"It was hard because my heart wanted to hold on to judgment, but God was prodding it towards grace. He almost always wants to do that if we let him."

"Our marriages are living, ever-changing exchanges between two imperfect people that need to daily draw from grace."

I asked HolySpirit this morning to speak into me perspective, because last night I went to bed frustrated and miffed, and in all honesty, woke up that way too.

And then I opened my email and saw the title of this article sitting there, waiting for me. "The.Gracious.Wife." I had to grab a fresh cup of coffee because I just knew I was going to be wooed out of my pity-party and into the wise lap of my Father who understands my emotions, but more importantly, desires to align my heart with His.

Sometimes alignment hurts. Even more so, it's humbling because it requires choice. I can choose grace this morning, or I can choose offense. Oh, how my flesh desires the second choice. But, the Spirit of God ... well, He knows the beauty of grace and sings over me loud enough to cover the grumblings of my selfish soul.