Together at Last

She flung herself onto Him, wrapping her arms around His neck.  Though He never spoke the words, with their faces close, and eyes closed, the words "I am all you need," radiated off of Him.

Together at last.

As they opened their eyes, smiles broke out across two overwhelmingly joyful faces.  "I thought this day would never come," she spoke in quiet excitment.  Releasing their embrace, He twirled her around saying, "I've been waiting for this moment since the day you were born."

She could feel as her eyes dance, "Really?"

With His charming smirk, He pretended to think about it for a second and answered, "Well, no.  Actually, I have been waiting to be with you since I made the moon.  Since the first time I rose flaming colors of gold, blue, and purple with the sun in the morning.  Since I let the words, 'It is finished' get caught up in the wind on the day of My death."

He wiped the two tears streaming down her face with the side of His gentle, strong thumb.  She couldn't fathom the reality of being here with Him.  The One she had loved to irrevocably before this moment, the One she had lived her small life for, the One that covered her in a love that wasn't found anywhere else.

The pure happiness overwhelmed Him as well as He took her back into His arms -- just as He did throughout her whole life on earth without her knowing.

The longing they had for each other during the wait made this moment difficult to take in, but it was very real.  Their love for each other was very real.

And now, they were together at last.

Waiting

Some Joplin jazz played while the AC's air made the room even colder than the chill that came from our conversation.  I crossed my legs, and took another sip of my carmel frappuccino; never letting my eyes revert from hers across the small circle table, as she let her soul spill from the deepest chambers within, out of her mouth, to me.

"I imagine a heart of glass being dropped onto a large mirror.  And after it shatters, and the pieces scatter, I see my reflection staring back tup at me.  It was my heart, and me who broke it.  The moment I believed him, I did the heart breaking myself."

Soaking it in, I sat straighter at the edge of my chair.  

She continued, "I settled, gave my heart to someone else because I was impatient.  I didn't wait.  Not for him."

The air shifted.  The AC turned off.  I was intrigued, "Who's that?"

"Him," she stated matter-a-factly, "The man who worships like David, is wise like Solomon, and brave like Jonathan.  The man who is obedient to God like Abraham and has faith like Joshua.  He who has Jesus as his closets friend, like Peter.  He who is willing to endure suffering to chase God and spread the gospel like Paul."

"I'm still waiting for him too..." I replied.  "I have found a man, however," I said as hope cast over her eyes, "who has given me flowers everyday -- along with fields, oceans, and sunrises.  I've found a man who deeply believes that I couldn't be more beautiful, and doesn't want to defile my purity.  I've found a man who died in following God wholeheartedly with bravery.  I've found a man stronger than anyone I have ever seen before, with a strength that cannot be beaten even by the grave.  I've found a man who has always loved me, and me alone, genuinely.  I've found a man who is relentlessly pursuing me, even while knowing the dark shadows of my heart.  I've found a man who has been waiting for me, ever so patiently and selflessly, since the day I was born; hoping with his whole being that I would one day fully love Him in return."

He's waiting for you too. 

The Crime of the Good Girl

They're a rare breed these days, with rosy cheeks and a killer smile. You'll find them reading their Bibles, teaching the Sunday school classes, &/or playing on the worship team. You can recognize one by their very put together outfits, mascara coated lashes, and the purity ring on their left ring finger. Their facebook profiles are lavished with verses, they are usually intelligent, and Christian music fills their cars when they turn the key in the ignition.

My name is Elisabeth, and I'm a good girl.

I am a part of a small, quiet society of young women who are overall labeled as good ("adj., morally excellent; virtuous; pious"). Some people respond differently than others upon meeting a good girl. There are those who exclaim, "if only my child would grow up to be a girl like you!"; and then there are times we hear someone sneer under a breath, "Oh... she has the clean version of this song." All the while, we know the truths about ourselves: we're hardly good at all. Some of us fight with our families, or harbor an attitude, or listen to secular music. Then you have me, who does all of the above -- sometimes all at once.

Our real crime, however, occurs after we slip up. Maybe it's rare, but when we get caught up in this world and sin, really trip up behind our "good girl" label -- our worlds fall apart. Guilt consumes us, tears shower our faces, and our hearts break. We cry out apologizing again and again to Jesus. We think of those whom we let down. We worry about the hypocrisy of our label.

The crime is found in our anxiety about our slip up. The Bible says to repent and to ask for forgiveness. But it also says that we were set free by Jesus Christ for the sake of freedom, not because we wore our "good" label long enough. The crime is found in the laws that we create and plug into our lives. We do not get into Heaven by our works, but by our hearts. The crime is found in the forgetting that Jesus knew our sins when they were poured out onto Him while He hung on the cross, and that He still pursues our hearts daily.

Women of God are called to freedom, to be beautiful, spiritual, adventurous, strong, loving beings -- despite any perversion, shameful act, or addiction. We are free of any chains, assumptions, expectations, and labels. We are invited to enter an overwhelmingly grand love story with Jesus, filled with passion, joy, and victory.

My name is Elisabeth, and I am set free.

So are you.

An Inspiration

The AC hummed while pens all around the room skidded across paper. The assignment: the typical, yet ever asked "What do you want to be when you grow up?". She felt her green plaid skirt pushing against her stomach as the question floated through her mind. Suddenly and promptly, she straightened her spine, took hold of her pen, and scribed "Photographer" on the white, blue-lined paper. She stared at the word written in black ink for a couple heartbeats. Then, her eyes fell under it, to the 27 empty blue lines. Without another thought, she crumpled the paper into her palm and put it in the corner of her desk. New paper, new word. "A Mother." True, but we need something more. And then there were two paper spheres in the corner. Again. She scribed "Writer." No. No, no, no. More, deeper, truer. The desk's corner then had a party of three.

The chair constantly reminded her that it was made of plastic as it dug into her back. What do you want to be? Then the word came to mind, flew in, and took hold of her. She couldn't position the pen in her hand, couldn't bring it down to paper fast enough. After loops and swirls, dotted "I"s and crossed "T"s, the answer laid -- almost stood on her paper. "An Inspiration." She knew, then, why she loved to sing, read, capture, create; to talk, share, and learn. "I want to be a voice," she wrote, "a voice that comes out of silence. A voice of reason that doesn't sound reasonable because it doesn't sound normal at all." She wrote and she wrote and she wrote. The wet ink clung to the side of her hand as she filled one line and then the next. "I want to be a woman who knows defeat, and who overcomes it. I want to be a woman who shines with the victory that comes from her Jesus. I want to be a conqueror, an endurer, a difference. I want to be a beauty -- not from my hair or eyes or mouth, but from a determination, a Spirit, and a knowledge that I am capable of change because of the One who changed my heart so completely and irrevocably. I want to be an inspiration."

And she was.

Pounding Nails

She lied. She sinned. Ultimately, she broke hearts. The pain could have been reaped for years if we had let it. I didn't think our friend ship would ever be the same. I found it essentially impossible to put trust in her words after viciously deceptive ones left that same mouth. Part of me would have rather not cared to try at all.

No matter how much I wanted to, forgiveness hardly appeared to be an option.

I was holding fast to a heart with clenched hands, suffocating it. I was what stood in its way of freedom. That breathless heart was mine. It was a captive to my fear of her lies that could resurface if I forgave her. Then I felt a whisper against my soul, what made me so much better than her? What made me the victim?

I thought of my Jesus, whom I claim to love. Putting work, chores, luxuries before Him -- at that I am an expert. I read my Bible and cross it off my to-do list like it's a burden. I find time for Him when He is always waiting expectantly for me to turn to Him, and always wanting one more sweet moment to spend with me. I wonder how many times a day I hurt His heart. I wonder how many times in my 16 years I have put pain in His eyes. I thought of all the times I had little affairs, choosing that song, task, word, or person before Him; just pounding that nail deeper into His hand.

Upon that I realized, finding forgiveness for her may not be so difficult after all.

Where the True Joy Flows From

Have you ever had that feeling of being wrapped in the arms of someone you love; and love and happiness fills up to your heart's rim, and you just want to melt?

Well, I'm 16, so I'm gonna go ahead and say that I haven't. But that is how I feel in Haiti. I was sitting in Heartline's guest house near Port au Prince in a rocking chair last Wednesday, and upon resting my head back I sighed a sigh of contentment. Ironic, isn't it? Comparing love and comfort to brutal Haiti. But that's how you feel when you are where you belong.

I realized how odd my romantic parallel was when I wrote it in my journal that day, so I began to wonder why exactly so I love this place so much, why do I feel the most complete and free in Haiti?

That's when the understanding poured in. Everyone in Haiti (to some extent) was like me, and I like them. We were all here -- coated in dirt, sweat, and stubbly hair -- for the same purpose. We, willing to trade in our comfort at home, had a similar heart and a united purpose: to follow God, at all costs. I find that the people who have given up everything to radically follow Jesus are my favorite kind of people.

Today was my first day back at school since the trip. I dreaded it. The thought of seeing those college students, most of them not Christians --not to mention not pursuing Jesus' call -- brought deep sadness. I wanted my on-fire-willing-to-serve missionary friends back! In America there are so many distractions: TV, Internet, media, consumer purchasing, materialistic spending, worrying about physical appearance, school and work stress -- it is being put before serving God. How do I know? Because I do it! ...And I hate it, but I still do it. It still happens because it's hard to prevent. In Haiti, I'm around many people who are only living their days to serve God through serving others. They don't watch TV, spend money (because they probably don't have much), or frantically try to cover up every physical flaw -- because it just doesn't matter in the light of serving Jesus.

When you really are living on the grace of the Lord, you will feel overwhelming love and you will feel exciting contentment. After all, I am in love with the Man who said, " a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his posessions . . . But seek His kingdom and these things [food, clothes, safety, happiness] will be given to you as well" (Luke 12: 15 & 31).

A Waiting Groom

The groom stands waiting for his bride. His heart pounds against his chest, and he is sure that everyone else in the room can hear it. He is anxious, and his face a little blushed as his eyes fix on the door she is supposed to walk through. Then she appears. Any breath he had in him before was stolen away by one look upon her face. She was stunning to him, and he wanted nothing more in the world. He has offered up his love to her, for everyone to see, giving her everything he had. All the was left was to see if she would take that isle down to him, to a live of love with no end.

Jesus gave me his life and wants me and my love above all else. He is waiting for you and me with an anxious heart. I will choose Him day after day. Will you?

$27 < Cross

During the last six months, I have finally gotten to a place in my life where I make money. I have several freelance jobs and I was getting excited about the cash flow. Too excited, apparently. About a month ago I finished reading "Radical" by David Platt (you can count on me writing about that book in future). At the end of the book, it challenges you to do 5 life changing things, one of those things being to donate your money to a consistent cause for at least a year (in addition to tithing for the church).

Three Angels Christian Academy opened in 2005 by Three Angels Children's Relief, a non-profit organization in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. Students at TACA receive an education, a meal (for most of them the only meal they get each day), and most importantly an opportunity to make a way for themselves in the heartrending world that is Haiti. It takes only $27 dollars a month to sponsor one child, giving them an education, knowledge for a lifetime -- which in their case is life-saving.

$27

I met my sponsor child today. Meet Sarah. She is four years old in the TACA pre-school program. She loves to draw, plays the race car game at recess, and she is thankful for her school because, "I love my classmates." She aspires to be a dancer when she grows up. She lives in a tent with her mom, for her home was destroyed in the 2010 earthquake.

It may seem like a sacrifice, but it's for a brother or sister who has nothing. It may seem like a sacrifice, but what is it compared to the sacrifice that was made for you 2,000 years ago? $27 begins to look a lot smaller in light of the cross.

You can improve a child's life by clicking ---> here.

"The measure of who we are is defined by what we do with what we have." (Vince Lombardi)

With Everything

Open our hearts,

To see the things

That make Your heart cry,

To be the church

The You would desire.

Light to be seen.

Break down our pride,

And all the walls

We've built up inside,

Our earthly crowns

And all our desires,

We lay at Your feet.

So let hope rise,

And darkness tremble

In Your holy light,

And every eye will see

Jesus, our God,

Great and mighty to be praised.

God of all days,

Glorious in all of Your ways.

Your majesty, the wonder and grace,

In the light of Your name.

With everything,

With everything,

We will shout for your glory.

With everything,

With everything,

We will shout forth your praise.

Our hearts will cry

Be glorified,

Be lifted high,

Above all names.

For You our King,

With everything,

We will shout forth your praise.

Where a Little Love is, Great Forgiveness Will Be

God re-taught to me a lesson of His forgiveness. His lesson unfolded in a way that I have never experienced before... I was recently given the opportunity either forgive or not forgive a friend. It was a rather new cross road to stand at for me. It was new, because in this case my friend didn't do anything to me or take nor give anything that was mine. This time, forgiveness didn't exactly mean I was okay with an offense done against me.

For me in the last few months, forgiveness meant that . . .

Our friendship was more to me than past choices.

Our friendship was worth more to me than "better" past preconceptions that I had created.

Our friendship needed to be put above my pride, because I'm not above my own sin.

This was difficult, and I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to do it. I couldn't just decide to forgive flippantly like I did to the woman who ran into me at the grocery store this morning.

God didn't like this. So during a church service in which handful of us shared our testimony of previous sin, He broke down the walls. He whispered to me how He forgave me of what I did to break His heart. He touched me with memories of what I have done that fractured our relationship. And in tears, I felt His embrace full of love and all of what love really means.

At that moment, I knew.

I knew that I had been molded, stretched like clay. I knew that I wanted to choose forgiveness. Because there's not a feeling quite like it to be able to say: "Even though now I know what you did, I've never cared for you more."

Wondering Where This Road Is Leading

My heart has been here lately:

With little hands and dirty cheeks. With loving babies and kids with amazing hearts. I've had a lot of dreams this week about being back in Haiti. Being home under that beautiful, beating sun.

I've also been thinking a lot about how Haiti is going to be factored in into my adult life. Honestly, I've been a bit torn...

I dream of a clean quaint house, smelling of candles and food (my doing), with a handful of kids who look and act perfect doing school work (this is a dream, of course).

However, when I don't dream, when I think, I think of a house surrounded by a cement wall, a couple big "trained" dogs walking around, beans and rice in bowls on the counter, and a hand-made broom propped next to a pile of swept up dirt. I think of roosters sounding, my neck sweating, and babies crying my name in an adorable accent. I think of Haiti. A live like this:

I'm a multi-sided person. Can I have one and not the other? Can I live my fifties-house-wife imaginary world and ignore the love I have for Haiti and its people? Can I live in Haiti and be ok with sacrificing the typical home-maker life?

Well... Last night, after feeling totally spent, I read this in my Bible: "For I testify that they gave as much as they were able, and even beyond their ability." (2 Corinthians 8:3) I read it over and over and was totally in awe more and more each time. If you don't share my excitement, read it again until you do.

I continued reading and found this:

"For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that thought he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich." (2 Corinthians 6:9) . . . "Our desire is not that other might be relieved while you are hard pressed, that there might be equality. At the the present time your plenty will supply what they need, so that in turn their plenty will supply what your need. Then there will be equality." (2 Corinthians 8: 13 & 14)

I love Haiti. Living there always sounded grand to me (mostly because I already know a lot of details to how living in Haiti is anything but "grand"). Only in two places have I ever been told that I was "in my element": after leading worship, and while I was in Haiti.

A lot can argue that it's too early to be thinking about this. But as long as I am being asked what I want to do with my life, I say it's perfectly justified. I'm not really sure why I'm writing this, just that this is how I organize my heart. There is a lot to factor in, there's a lot of life to live first, and ultimately, I just want what God believes I'll be best placed. All I can really do right now is pray for that.

Learning As They Did

I spent the morning with six beautiful, godly women. We came together to pray, learn, and tend to the fire within each of our personal calls to be leaders. It was a lovely time sharing our callings, venting the hard parts we are experiencing that comes with leadership.

We talked a lot about the word suffering. It's a scary, overused verb. Today, in our little group of women, I saw a positive connotation of this word being created. I realize that suffering, happens to all of us in various forms and degrees. What one feels when suffering, may not effect another.

There is always someone in our life who seems to have it all together. They appear to be perfectly joyful and content with life. I feel bad for people like this. These are the kinds of people who are right where Satan wants them: comfortable and independent. I find that the most Jesus-like people in my life have hurtles to leap over, higher than what they can leap alone.

How can we be really used in an atmosphere that is comfortable to us when we are serving a God that is so much bigger than we can grasp? Seeing sufferings as blessings because we are seen as a threat to the ultimate Liar, is an honorable thing to accomplish.

As I was with these women today, I couldn't stop imagining woman during Old Testament eras, sitting in a circle with troubles as we were -- a little different, although not a lot -- praying and praising God for letting us be used for His Kingdom.

There's nothing like it.

(photo from www.imdb.com)

Life Is Dreamy

I was driving on the back roads of Michigan yesterday when I came to the most joyful conclusion. I tried to think of all the ambitions I have had, wondering which ones haven't come alive in my life yet. I couldn't think of one. I realized that I am living every dream I've had, right now. Incredible? Yes. Impossible? Not at all.

I'm a worship leader, a dream that I never admitted (or fully understood) to having until it started coming true. In doing so, I'm serving God, a very big dream of mine, in a way that I feel is His will and part of the destiny that He has fabricated for me. I go to Haiti, a dream that will never be fully satisfied unless I reside there one day (who knows); however, the short term dream-come-true of going as often as I can is a blessing. I've always been safe, with a great family, and we all have been healthy. I found a nice, handsome boy awhile ago, a dream almost every girl has, making me a very lucky girl myself. I'm driving, which is surreal when thinking that 9 years ago this time in my life felt centuries away. I didn't have to go to high school, and I'm in college! My life is pretty much perfect. I can't believe the praise that is due to God, for Fathering me to where I am today, for opening doors and for shutting them; to Jesus for giving me a life to live and for providing me with ways to give back to Him.

I'm in Michigan right now, where my mama grew up, visiting my grandparents and my too-many-to-count large family. The Farm, my grandparent's house, is probably one of my most personal and favorite places. The house, the big red barn, the green hill, and endless fields of crops all enchant me. Early childhood memories live there, along with precious new ones that have been recently created.

I have learned that God usually brings me here to learn and to grow, He has since I've been 13 years old. On the way up here, I prayed that this wouldn't just be a vacation for me. I wanted to serve and work for Him while I was here, I wanted to come here for a purpose. That purpose, I have recently decided, is to sit and listen and learn and grow. Hopefully when I get back home I'll be ready to just go, and ignite, and serve.

Right now I hear about 30+ of my family members laughing around a camp fire, sharing their most embarrassing moments with each other.
Yes, I am most certainly living the dream.

2 Years Old Today (:

Two years ago today, I followed Jesus into the water. I was baptized in His name and was made new. I still remember everything as if it was yesterday. Heart racing, being in the water which felt bottomless -- wanting to cry and laugh and dance and yell. I remember coming out of the water, feeling a piece of Heaven in the presence of all of us who were surrounding the pool.

When, I opened my eyes, things were different, I was different! The world was brighter... not brighter in a holier sense -- not at all. But I could see. The battle field was emphasized. The good was easier to discern from the evil. And I was ready. I wanted to fight. I wanted the enemy to come at me, just so I could put him back in his place.

So, it's been two years. And it makes me wonder what I've done. What have I done to serve God in the last two years? I contemplated making a list. (I love lists.) But I'm afraid the list would be heartrendingly short. Therefore, I'm looking forward at what I can do, what I will do.

And I'm excited.

An Awaiting Lover

I'm a girl who loves romance. I have been for as long as I can remember. The princesses in movies were who I aspired to be when I was a little girl -- their happy endings made me smile and left me daydreaming. I love sweet southern nicknames, and getting a new bridal magazine at the grocery store check-out line leaves me giddy for days. I know it's something my parents aren't fond of about me, but it is me. After years of trying to shake it, I've decided there's no reason to.

A few weeks ago, Mom, Brother, and I were driving through a neighboring town...

Mom: "Oh, they have a Home-Goods!!'

Brother: "We need to check out their PETCO!"

Me: "Look, a David's Bridal! Let's go play!"

Romance is a part of every human being -- some to a higher degree than others, but it's always there. A need to love and to be loved. It was put there on complete purpose by a Being who loves like no other and wants love like never before.

Why do we flirt, "play hard to get," and want to spend time with those we love? Because we are made in God's image, and He does the same with us. Finding this romance in my life with God was a heartrending road that almost severed my relationship with Him as well as other relationships. Sure, I've loved Him and have been in love with Him for years, but finding this romance was something so much more. Why was this dangerous? He lead me into the desert...

"14 Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the desert and speak tenderly to her. ¹⁵ There I will give her back her vineyards, and will make the Valley of Achor a door of hope. There she will sing as in the days of her youth, as in the day she came up out of Egypt. ¹⁶ "In that day," declares the LORD, "you will call me 'my husband'; you will no longer call me 'my master.' Hosea 2:14~16

It's splendid seeing how he 'flirts' with me -- in personal ways through creation and through the words of others. Knowing that He wants me to chase after Him, and that when I do He'll always be there with loving arms, wanting to spend time with me.

The sad part is that many don't realize they have a Lover waiting for them in the shadows of their sadness, depression, and loneliness. He is always there, for men as well as women. He died a brutal murder for you, to win your heart. You are in the middle of a war-zone, an invisible battle that He is fighting for you and your love. Don't stand there as the damsel in distress. Fall into the arms of the ultimate Giver of Love.

(photos from weheartit.com)

This Season

I haven't posted in a while. Well, in a week --which for me lately 'a while' is an appropriate way to put it. I wish I could post, and I have been contemplating how to scribe this truthfully, not too vaguely, and still allowing it to be something worth singing about.

In all honesty, what I have to say, I can't say here -- which is unfortunate. I will say this though: it is time for me to shut up. I'll pray, and be still, and find a peace within me with is God planted. God has always taught me through seasons, everything in my Walk has been seasons -- pure, clear, heart changing seasons. This is my season now. It is my least favorite season and one of my heart's favorite. This is me, my path, my life, a piece of everything I'll be doing.

There is an appointed time for everything.

And there is a time for every event under heaven

A time to give birth, and a time to die;

A time to plant, and a time to uproot what is planted.

A time to kill, and a time to heal;

A time to tear down, and a time to build up.

A time to weep, and a time to laugh;

A time to mourn, and a time to dance.

A time to throw stones, and a time to gather stones;

A time to embrace, and a time to shun embracing.

A time to search, and a time to give up as lost;

A time to keep, and a time to throw away.

A time to tear apart, and a time to sew together;

A time to be silent, and a time to speak.

A time to love, and a time to hate;
A time for war, and a time for peace.
Ecclesiastes 3

This, however is what I have been up to..

flowers, photography, bible-ing, babysitting my lovely little friends, and taking it day by day.

PS ~ YES! my camera is fixed! Praise God!

(photos mine)

"Captivating"

For a while now a bunch of girls from church and I have been going through "Captivating" by Stasi and John Eldregde ~ I'm sure a lot of you have heard of it. I loved it from its first words. It was love at first sight.

This art of a book unveils perfectly a woman's heart by bringing us back to when we were little girls with precious dreams and special desires. There is something within us that has been there all a long, something that is the reason why we do everything we do, something that makes us who we are. "She longs to be swept up into a romance, to play an irreplaceable role in a great adventure, and to be the beauty to be unveiled. These are the secrets to the feminine heart." ~ Stasi

In this book, not only is the feminine heart unveiled as women see and feel, but as God has seen it from the beginning: as the "crown of creation," as the Stasi puts it. I know that personally, I hardly feel like I could be the crown of anything! But as this book unfolds, we see that feeling this way, as many women do, is from attacks of Satan. In scripture, in truth, we are told that woman was the last to be created. This is not because females are the least of these, but because this world was not fit, not complete without us. We are all made in God's image, women exhibiting to the world the parts of God which only women can, completing those features of God which are displayed by only men.

Anyway, I could go on and on about the lovely, comforting, and nurturing truths on these pages, but I want YOU to read it. I recommend it wholeheartedly for any female that can read. In fact, I'd even suggest men read it, for the sake of their sanity with women (which I'm sure they lose every now and then). I know I want to read the book John Eldredge wrote for males, Wild at Heart. It's grand seeing how wonderfully designed we all are to complete each other fully.

Dear Feminine Hearts, this is a book that your soul needs to one degree or another. You should read it, I have no doubt that you'll love it. It has changed my life, and continues to. Yes, I'm aware that sounds corny, but there's no other way to put it. I'm sure many of my future posts will come from lessons I receive from this book.

Your sister.

Washing the Feets (:

On Friday, I met up with my youth group for a staytreat (a retreat for a group on a budget). It was splendid, and I'm glad we didn't retreat to any where. I liked staying in "our home." We played games, ate food, bonded, and there were water balloons involved. Also, we talked about the legacy we could/will leave after we leave ourselves. We can leave this legacy simply by living fully for Jesus. Fully, desiring to please only, only Him. By doing this, we're also living for each other, "just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Matthew 20:28).

After talking about leaving this legacy and read in the Word of when Jesus washed His disciple's feet, we were asked who wanted to be a servant in the same way Jesus was, if we wanted to wash someone's feet out of love. Everyone in the room stood. We found a partner, after praying that the Lord would lead us to whom He wanted us to cleanse. Honestly, at first I didn't think much of it. I thought it was wonderful that we were following Jesus' actions. But as I sat down in a chair with a basin of water next to my feet... as my friend Katie prayed over me, I began to cry. I still don't fully understand why.

I can only certainly say two things: 1) Having your feet washed by someone in the name of Jesus, out of love is the most humbling experience. 2) I praised God for the opportunity to clean someone's feet. I wanted to clean feet. I wanted to be on my knees, serving. I felt selfish, but I wanted to give someone clean feet. I wanted to clean someone with love as Jesus did. I suddenly loved every single one of those kids in the room, and I wanted to show them how much they meant to me.

Maybe it was because we had spent a whole weekend together. Maybe it was because God was in that place. I believe it was both that brought us together -- as a group, as a family, brothers and sisters in Christ.

"Having loved his own who were in the world, he now showed them the full extent of his love." (John 13:1) "He poured water into a basin and began to wash his disciples' feet, drying them with the towel that was wrapped around him." (John 13:5)

(photos from weheartit.com)

Spring Has Sprung!

Spring is indeed my favorite month. It's bright, warm, embracive, and rain continues to cleanse the Earth. Life springs during this season! In elementary school, I loved when my teachers would talk about mama animals giving birth to their new sweet babies. Spring is new. It's alive. It's a beginning.

Jesus sprung during this season, too. He cleansed us clean, brought new life, and now we can forever bask the light of salvation.

Today was the first day of beloved spring, making me a very happy girl. I will be praising God for this lovely season of newness, life, and redemption.

Forever Home

All Three Angel's kids are home with their families, never needing to say goodbye again. It was an amazing weekend of homecomings. Lord, we praise you...

(unfortunately, blogger isn't letting me put more pictures up right now, but here's a glimpse.)