Relationship is all about…

 

counseling_photo (Photo credit: TownePost Network)

Relationship is all about becoming vulnerable, and then becoming a safe person to others so that they can be vulnerable with you. ~ Joshua Straub, Ph.D.

 

 

I Remember…

I remember happiness when I was a child. I was happiest when playing outside in the summer sun on my swing set, swinging in the swings or sliding down the little slide into a pool at the end. I remember having contests with the neighborhood kids to see who could get closer to the sky as we lifted off in flight while in mid-swing. I remember the beauty of the day all golden with sunshine with a few cotton clouds in the sky.

A girl on a garden swing. Original caption: : Bincadeira de criança : eu também me acabei nesse balanço… (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I remember…

I remember tears falling. I remember sorrow entering my heart. A wound tearing into my flesh as my family was torn apart. I remember fear of the future. Then more wounds, more tearing as I grew into adolescence, and happiness replaced by fear.

Remember.

Bring to mind. To think of again.

I remember…

I remember a cross. I remember God’s Son given. The Son whose flesh was torn and nails pierced through skin. All for me. All for me.

Since he did not spare even his own Son but gave him up for us all, won’t he also give us everything else? Romans 8:32

Proof that we can trust the Father for all things, to provide all we need because He didn’t spare even His Son. For us all. For us all.

The bad memories poke and sting threatening to open old wounds that have begun to heal in the presence of the Son. I take hold of the memories and bring them to Him. He is Lord over these too. He receives them and points me to the cross. His cross.

“The counting of all blessings is ultimately summed up in One. All gratitude is ultimately gratitude for Christ, all remembering a remembrance of Him. For in Him all things were created, are sustained, have their being. Thus Christ is all there is to give thanks for; Christ is all there is to remember. To know how we can count on God, we count graces, but ultimately there is only One…it’s all in Christ. Every moment, every event, every happening. It’s all in Christ and in Christ we are always safe…” ~ Ann Voskamp, One Thousand Gifts

And so I can remember and give thanks. Not that bad things happened to me, but that Christ is all that matters. And when I lift Him up above the bad and look upon Him, He heals the wounds just as Moses did with the serpent in the desert (Numbers 21:9). Remembering and giving thanks opens my eyes to see Him.

Cross & Clouds (Photo credit: John H Wright Photo)

I remember and the bad memories pale in comparison to Him.

I remember and lift my eyes up to Him who alone can heal.

This is an invitation to remember. A call to bring back to mind Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith. Think of Him again. And again. And again. Fix your eyes on Him not on the bad of what has been done to you or the bad which you did. He who did not spare His own Son is safe to trust and faithful to heal.

And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. John 3:14-15

Faith is…

A. W. Tozer (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Faith is the gaze of a soul upon a saving God. ~ A.W. Tozer, The Pursuit of God

Hello, My Name is Church

“Hello my name is church, I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about me. I have no shortage of critics. Perhaps you have heard that I am…” A challenge and an invitation to be a part of a community of believers who are not perfect, but are a part of an imperfect progress towards becoming more like Christ. Great post and beautifully written!

The Unappreciated Pastor

 

Hello my name is church,

I’m sure you’ve heard a lot about me. I have no shortage of critics. Perhaps you have heard that I am…

Boring

Shallow

Cheap

A waste of time

 

You’ve heard that I am full of

 

Hypocrites

Clowns

Greedy people

The self- righteous

 

Maybe you have visited me before and discovered

 

Horrible music

Passionless singing

Dry preaching

Rude congregants

 

Maybe you needed me and I was

 

Too busy

Too “righteous”

Too broke

Too blind

 

Maybe you joined me and found I was

 

Distant

Demanding

Dull

Preoccupied

 

Maybe you tried to serve in me but were caught off guard by

 

Business meetings

Committees

Teams

Bureaucracy

 

Maybe you left and were surprised that nobody

 

Called

Cared

Noticed

Invited you back

 

 

Perhaps your experience has driven you to

 

Speak negatively of me

Swear…

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