Gazing at the Wildflowers

"If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don't you think he'll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I'm trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don't worry about missing out. You'll find all your everyday human concerns will be met." Matthew 6:30-33, The Message

I'm an admirer of things. I like to notice things other people overlook or simply miss. I love to cherish friends, life, school, time. I do this on walks, feeling the breeze on my face, or savoring the smell of freshly mowed grass :) While noticing has its perks, it can also breed discontentment.


I feel like I'm constantly noticing things that my friends have and find myself wishing I could have them too. Sometimes those things are a relationship, sometimes it's status, sometimes it's a care-free nature or sometimes it's courage. Do you ever feel that way? I can get lost in hoping and dreaming for the "what could be's" of life. Hoping for good things to come in life is not a bad thing. But I've found that wishing for them, to the point of envy can put a bitter taste in our mouths if we're not careful.

All too often we try to make things happen, line the circumstances up just so, creating the best odds to get what we want. What foolishness! and not to mention, completely exhausting! I've realized the error of my ways. The Lord longs that we put our hope IN HIM! The Lord longs that we do not wish away the season we're in because when we do, we miss the blessing that's been right in front of us! 

And then there's these verses. Whoa. What a breath of fresh air! We don't have to be life-planners anymore! We can simply bask in the knowledge that the Lord will do His best for you and me. We won't miss out on His plans for our lives. I believe that it's the Lord's heart that we can simply rest in Him to allow Him to bring good things our way. I know this is an elementary teaching, but it was exactly what I needed to be reminded of today. 

I've decided I don't want to spend my time wishing to be someone I'm not or have something I don't. The most beautiful blessings come to us when we least expect them...and when we find those blessings, we can rejoice all the more at the faithfulness of our God and He is perfectly capable to do all the planning, all the arranging, and all the growing He needs to my life, and in yours. It's like walking in a field of nothing but grass, then stumbling upon a lovely wildflower right in your path. In all your wandering you could never find it. But thankfully we serve a God who orders our steps!

Encouraging Words

http://www.setapartgirl.com

Is the most encouraging online web magazine that I've ever read. Leslie and her husband, Eric, are all about cheering young men and women down the narrow way of the cross. The truth they speak is a breath of fresh air in a world that desperately needs the love of Christ. Leslie's ministry, Set Apart Girl, is a ministry where young women are transformed more and more into the lily-whiteness of Christ by their commitment to totally abandon themselves for the sake of Christ. Nothing could be more beautiful.

I hope you enjoy it :)

Song of the Season

Sometimes I'll hear a song that perfectly matches the song of my heart. Love never fails by Brandon Heath has been stuck in my head for the past three weeks. It's a simple song about the great love the Lord has for us.

I think this song registers with me because of the uncertainty that life brings. I feel like I am in an uncertain season where I am confident that the Lord is working, but I don't quite know what He is doing. I only sense that I'm on the edge of something great. It's that feeling you get when you've reached the clearing at the top of a mountain and see the landscape below you for the first time.

It's that amazing place of wonder and awe where you feel like you are looking God fully in His face. Where everything else falls to the wayside because you're seeing the Father and He's seeing you. Of this I am certain, His love never fails. 

A Season of Singing

"Flowers appear on the earth; the season of singing has come, the cooing of doves is heard in our land." Song of Solomon 2:12

As the Spring season is past, many of my friends have found themselves lost in the whole idea of Ring by Spring. I'm sure you've heard of it. Wedding bells seem to float on the breeze wherever I turn. Being a romantic, myself, I love going to weddings. They are most beautiful when there is an atmosphere of holiness that rests over the ceremony.

I know some say that when they hear a friend is engaged they have to fake their happiness and are inwardly groaning, wishing that it could be them who could give such news. I'm convinced such thoughts are wounding to our heart and spirit. We certainly are not taking every thought captive. So that brings me to why I am writing this blog.

I've decided that I don't want to miss the things the Lord is bringing into bloom in my life by being distracted by rings and wedding bells and bridal showers. While I rejoice with my dear friends who find themselves in this place, I do not want to find that my heart is ravished by envy, jealousy, or any sort of wishing.

Instead of turning my eyes to things I wish I had, to the right or to the left, I want to set my eyes on Christ and to His purposes. So my blog is a way for me to give voice to the beauty of the flowers the Creator is bringing into my life.  To relish in His goodness and to move my eyes from a place beyond myself and to the God who sings over me. I look forward to stepping into a season of singing.