A Breath of Fresh Air

Today has been a lot stressful. Most of this stress is worry I have placed on myself because I’m an “overanalyzer” by nature. But a few things were actually legitimately stressful. You’d be stressed. I called someone I work with and they were stressed enough to call someone else to figure things out for them – something they never do. The person they called was so stressed they didn’t even call us back. (Are you stressed reading this paragraph because it makes no sense and it’s starting to overwhelm you? Good. I’m not proofreading that part because I want you to feel the depth of despair I felt at said stress.)

Thankfully, a bright sunbeam tore through the gloom of the day and brought a MUCH-NEEDED breath of fresh air. My sweet cousin Lindsay. She is seriously one of the most beautiful and talented girls you will ever meet. She’s never in your face about it, but she will quietly beat you at every sport you play her at (and board games, too). Lindsay’s 18 0r 19 – how sad I can’t remember?! – and we’ve never gotten to spend much time with just the two of us. So, when I was in Durham for work, I knew I had to get on her calendar.

She came to dinner with me tonight and talked about loving college life and all of the blessings God has been pouring on her this year. It was seriously the perfect medicine to a stressful day. Just to see the sheer joy and thankfulness she has was contagious. …I didn’t even think about my stressful situation again for about 30 minutes after we had dinner. That’s a big deal for me.

So please smile and share your joy with someone this week. You can actually change a person’s day for the better just by offering joy to those you interact with. Misery loves company, and when there’s no company to be found, it eventually disappears and gets replaced by a little happiness instead.

Hello Life!

This world we live in moves way too fast for me. I’m starting to realize that, in my natural state, I would move at about a fourth of the pace of everyone I come in contact with in Atlanta. Hopefully that fact doesn’t say something too bad about me, but it’s the truth. Life is at it’s best with me when I can do one thing at a time, not a million tasks at once; when I can take a moment to absorb everything going on around me, not just fly by it only looking straight ahead; when I have the time to take a walk, not be in a car for three hours a day; when I can have a moment at the end of every day to enjoy the company of my loved ones.

Lately, life has just not been like that. I’ve been going a million miles a minute, working an incredible, but extremely fast-paced job, spending 15 hours a week in a car, filling my evenings and weekends with so many plans that it’s hard to find time to sleep. I love my life and having so many wonderful things going on, but it’s time to take a chill pill.

The Lord is good, and in His infinite mercy has provided me a few alternatives lately to the chaotic lifestyle I’ve been used to. Changes are being made every day that give me more time to be the wife I was called to be, the friend I was called to be and the believer I was called to be. Because of these changes, a lot of uncertainty clouds the future. But, I have so much peace that the Lord will provide.

Psalm 119:105 has been on my heart a lot lately: “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” What I love about this verse is that it uses such specific language. Not to get into the too nitty-gritty, but a lamp’s light only shines so far, and a “path” typically seems like a short distance, as opposed to the term “journey.” The Psalmist didn’t say, “Your word is a flood light to my feet and a light beam to my entire life’s journey.” All God has promised is to shed a little light on the path right in front of me. He has given me the information I need to know now, the light to see what direction I need to walk in at this very moment. At a certain point, that light fades and I can’t see what’s ahead of me. But I know that He’ll keep shining that light into my immediate path so that I know the next step to take.

There’s such a freedom in that. I’ve always been a planner, but I feel so liberated giving up control {read: worry} of my every move. I’ve lived long enough that I can now see that every little thing I ever worried about always ended up working out for my best. Why would the Lord abandon me now? He knows the plans He has for me and they are for my good and His ultimate glory.

So, hello life! I am happy to see you again and to experience the joys that you bring.

Week-long Getaway

Joel starts training this week for Northwestern Mutual! We are so pumped about this. God truly provides and takes care of us in ways far beyond what we would imagine for ourselves.

Well, as a bonus to Joel beginning his job, his training takes place in Atlanta and his new company is paying for us to stay near the training site since we live so far away. There’s something so fun about staying in a hotel – especially in the city you work in!

The part I’m most thankful for: This hotel is 23 minutes from my office. That is exactly 60 minutes shorter than my usual commute. I like my normal drive, but I can’t say I’m not excited about that extra hour of sleep I’m going to get in the morning!!

Starbucks + Me + God = Time Well-Spent

Every now and then, I load up a massive bag of Bibles, books, journals, notecards, my computer and headphones and head over to my local Starbucks. I order a cup of my favorite coffee girly drink and pick out the perfect seat, where I proceed to unload all of my goodies. Immediately, I pick out a mellow or instrumental playlist on iTunes (listening to A Fine Frenzy as we speak), take a sip of my steaming (or sometimes freezing cold) cup of coffee and open up my Bible. And in those moments, I get to completely soak up the amazingness of God’s presence. To some of you, this may sound really lame, but these are truly some of the most precious moments I have.

In her Breaking Free videos, Beth Moore says there is something extremely special about mixing time with God with a cup of coffee, and I couldn’t agree more. I guess because coffee has a connotation of something cozy and comfortable, and that’s what I want my time with God to be.

I am so thankful that there are days where I can just completely unplug from the commitments of social life and work responsibilities and sit down and spend time alone with my Father. These are the days where I get to recharge my batteries and get ready for tough days ahead.

These four verses have specifically been ones that have pulled me through some difficult days lately:

Isaiah 61:1-4

¹ The Spirit of the Sovereign LORD is on me,
       because the LORD has anointed me
       to preach good news to the poor.
       He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
       to proclaim freedom for the captives
       and release from darkness for the prisoners, ^[a]

 ² to proclaim the year of the LORD’s favor
       and the day of vengeance of our God,
       to comfort all who mourn,

 ³ and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
       to bestow on them a crown of beauty
       instead of ashes,
       the oil of gladness
       instead of mourning,
       and a garment of praise
       instead of a spirit of despair.
       They will be called oaks of righteousness,
       a planting of the LORD
       for the display of his splendor.

 ⁴ They will rebuild the ancient ruins
       and restore the places long devastated;
       they will renew the ruined cities
       that have been devastated for generations.

These verses are the basis of Beth Moore’s “Breaking Free” study that has truly been a life-changing experience for me. In addition to that, they were the focus Scriptures for a recent sermon at All Souls Fellowship, called The Resurrection and Beauty. I highly recommend purchasing the Breaking Free workbook and listening to the All Souls sermon.

Finally, the last set of verses that have been such an encouragement to me:

Isaiah 43:1-2

¹ But now, this is what the LORD says—
       he who created you, O Jacob,
       he who formed you, O Israel:
       “Fear not, for I have redeemed you;
       I have summoned you by name; you are mine.

 ² When you pass through the waters,
       I will be with you;
       and when you pass through the rivers,
       they will not sweep over you.
       When you walk through the fire,
       you will not be burned;
       the flames will not set you ablaze.

So good!