The Plunge

Well, I finally did it. I said goodbye to simplicity and comfort and frustration and finally jumped into the world of smartphones. Hello team iPhone! I’ve always tried to keep my life as clutter free as possible and stood my ground when all my students tries to convince me to come out of the dark ages. But I’ve given in. And you know, it feels pretty nice. I’m actually typing this post on the phone right now. The wonders of the Internet! This little box can do all sorts of amazing things!

Here’s the challenge I face: keeping the simplicity.
I know that The Lord calls us to remove distractions, live more simply, but in today’s world we don’t always do that. We get busy and add apps and tv shows, more after school activities and turn the music up loud. And sometimes in doing all that, we lose the wonder. So as good as The Lord is, He gave me the right words this morning. I was doing my devotional (I’m going through Ann Voskamp’s 1000 Gifts devotional) and this morning’s was titled “Urgent Grace.” She talks about how God gives us time, but so often we don’t have time for God. She goes on to talk about how being in a hurry can often lead to regret because we miss the moment we’re in due to worry over the next moments. Hello! being fully present in each moment, each conversation is so important!
She then says,

“Life is so urgent it necessitates living slow.”

Because life is fleeting, we must take in the moments and be slow, reverent. In Christ, time is not running out. We lose time when we don’t sit before Him to fill. Because in the filling, we gain time.

“We stand on the brink of eternity. So there is enough time. Time to breathe deep and time to see real. Time to laugh long, time to give God glory and to rest deep and to sing joy.”

What words I needed to hear again and again. I’m so fast to neglect spending time at Jesus’ feet, in His Word when life gets busy. But the reality is that when I begin each day with filling myself with Him, I gain time and perspective and all the rest falls into place.

So as I enter the world of smartphones, may I – may we – not lose sight of being present. Of giving attention to conversation instead of virtual social media.
May The Lord fill us as we take this urgent life slow.

Top Ten Things Overheard | Revolve Tour 2013

*They’re climbing in yo window…snatching your snacks up. Hide yo sour patch kids, hide yo m&ms. ’cause the rats are all up in here!
*Drool and jaws drop as Anthem Lights takes the stage. High pitched screaming follows.
*I’m not sure who is screeching louder, Kelly Scott or the rats??
*”We didn’t sleep all night! And we’re not tired. And we wrote new songs on the guitar we learned to play just now.”
*Upon meeting Anthem Lights: “Hi whats your name?” Danniee: “Ummm…Uhhh, Christina!”
Later: “Who’s Christina?? I completely forgot my name, he’s so attractive!”
*What should we do with 40 girls at midnight? Pack out McDonalds and feed them ice cream!
*Bullying is cool #saidnooneever
*Can we be best friends with Britt Nicole?? -Molly Sexton
*I’m never washing this hand again!
*”Nothing abnormal about riding a wheelchair at church and 1:00 a.m”
*The service is over and it’s time to go…where are all our girls? Oh, that’s right. We’ll be waiting on them for the next few hours as they talk with bands and speakers. Waiting…always waiting.
*After waiting, we get kicked out…again.
*Why is it that we got kicked out? Oh yes, because Molly and Courtney are freaking out and running laps in the worship center.
*This is Love. And true love is not a what but a Someone.

For The Girl…Who Needs Encouragement

Social Media is becoming so ingrained in today’s culture.  It’s almost impossible to have a discussion with someone without either mentioning something found out on facebook or twitter, or without first knowing some fact from the web.  This is why we at Blue try to be up-to-date on the social networks.  This may seem to have nothing to do with the title, but hang with me.

I had a phone call today from one of the moms of our youth.  She was calling to tell me that another girl’s mom was in the hospital because of surgery and experiencing some difficulty with the surgery.  It seems pretty serious. I knew that this mom was having surgery, but had thought it was going well (because I saw posts on social media, of course).  With this sad news, I was concerned for both our girls and the mom.

I checked Instagram earlier this evening, and was so encouraged to see what kinds of conversation (if it can be called that on instagram) were occurring between our eighth grade girls.  This girl had posted that her mom was not doing well, and as I read the comments my heart was happy.  All the posts were from girls in our youth group, her small group, and were discussions of how they had been praying for this girl’s mom.

Just when I think that sometimes we’re not getting through to some girls, I know that the Holy Spirit is at work.  I know that we are surrounded by peers from church that are willing to pray for our hurts and encourage one another.

Life is hard.  There are so many good things that happen in life, but often sad things happen.  Our mom’s get sick; dad’s work late and sometimes leave; friends are flaky and change plans for better options; people are mean at school; life seems overwhelming when we try to balance school and sports; expectations sometimes put too much pressure on us; we don’t fit in with the people we’re around; we are forced to move and change our world;  life happens.

But be encouraged.  God is good; He is overly gracious; He puts people in our life in His timing that will walk with us; the flowers still bloom each spring; the sun still rises in the East every morning; God is faithful and saves; laughter heals heart-wounds; and sometimes people really are nice.

So as I sit here in Starbucks and enjoy a warm latte, waiting for fall to fully arrive, I want to encourage you. You can get up each morning; you can enjoy a full life; you can find little things to be thankful for.  God will carry you through the tough times.  Know that there are people praying for you, and are here for you through physical hurts, and emotional hurts.

You turned my deepest pains into joyful dancing;
You stripped off my dark clothing

and covered me with joyful light.

You have restored my honor. My heart is ready to explode, erupt in new songs!

It’s impossible to keep quiet!

Eternal One, my God, my Life-Giver, I will thank You forever.

       Psalm 30.11-12