so be it

I heard someone once say, "Intimacy breeds conflict." This is so true. As you become closer to a person, there's going to be conflict, something that needs worked out. The only way to resolve this is good ole communication. Sorting out mixed-messages, expectations, figuring out where things got out of alignment.

I admit to struggling in the area of giving back. It's difficult for me to find ways to return provision, care, love, etc. Giving is just a weak area. Sure most of my generation and I are ungrateful, unappreciative, and take a lot for granted. We haven't really known what it's like to be "without" so consequently we can't fully appreciate our situation of being "with." Therefore, when those around us deserve having something given back to, after giving so freely, I must say it becomes so ridiculously challenging to SEE that there needs to be more given back. It is totally blinding.

Yes, blindness. There can't really be excuses, but giving is a learned thing. Giving must be practiced. Giving must become a way of life. So I'm sorry for all the ways and all the times I've failed to give back when not being told I should give back.

Dear Lord,
Please teach us all lessons on giving back. On our own we are selfish. On our own we only think about ourselves. That's where You come in. In our weakness, You are strong. In our selfishness, You break those walls down and let love flow out of us. By Your grace--power of Your Holy Spirit within us--may we come to have hearts that freely give and constantly seek ways to give.

In Jesus' name.

Amen.

A free will

God has a free will. So do we. Jesus lived with a will entirely submitted to God's. In Christ there is no bondage whatsoever, nothing constricting in the least. The Holy Spirit dwells in Christ. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom. Jesus came that we would have and enjoy life. So it is in submission to God and His will that we will have and enjoy our lives, in abundance, to the full. In Christ there is life. In obedience to His will and His way there is freedom, life, and liberty everlasting.

A revealing of the Heart

God is so good at revealing His Truth at just the right time. The issue of the heart is a tumultuous thing. Have there been times when you think and feel things that you know aren't right? I suppose that's the division line between the carnal/selfish nature of the flesh and the Truth within us.

Sometimes it's plain difficult to let things go, to forgive, to place aside. Relationships are good like that. We so want to let it go, but something in our heart holds onto the pain, the offense, etc.

"But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little.
Luke 7:47

That is a key. In the past someone may have acted very unforgivingly towards us. That created an unseen/unconsious stronghold which unfortunately affects the way we see others when things go haywire.

So with this in place it makes it difficult to truly love others, which definitely includes forgiveness.

Prayer:
Dear Lord, thank you for your precious and unconditional love. Thank you for your forgiveness that can never be exhausted. Reveal the power of your forgiveness to our hearts in perfect ways so that we can know grasp it. Then may we be empowered to go out and love with Your love, forgiving others readily and freely just as You have forgiven us in Christ.
Amen.

House of Love

Recently I visited a house of Love. It was big, open, spacious, and free. The joy, love, and laughter that must be there so much lingered in the air. Everything was so inviting and comfy! The toys and games and everything left out for all to see all spoke of the fun had. Every object and every person in the house speak of genuine care. Of full attention. Of freedom to speak. Of joy. Of laughter. Of wonder and amazement from sparkling eyes.

I wonder what it would be like. The power of knowing we are so delighted in, cherished, and valued speaks volumes to the heart. Such a foundation can never be moved. To know that your voice is heard... To not be criticized, judged, or condemned... To be able to give so freely and not be shot down... All because someone is there to love it, and more importantly to love YOU!

Check this out!

I recently came across this article on the Elijah List. It blew me away. The simplicity to what God has called us to is astounding. Just to love Him above all else. That's it...

This I Love

And this I love, in being able to share life together. The ups and downs, the good times and bad. Hopes. Dreams. Laughter and sadness. Games and books. Music. Friends.

Words cannot describe what it means to be part of another's life. To share and partake. To be a part of. To feel included in every way. Nothing held back. In no way excluded.

Fully a part of.

To encourage and lift up. To make a difference in another's life. To give them a spark to carry through in their own journey. May we all do that for each other.

Making us all on the inside.

A small part of one another.

are we blind?!

After walking through the checkout line in Giant Eagle today, I got pretty angry. Tabloids are tabloids, but they reveal bitter truth about society. And yes, we are all keeping a watchful eye the government, politics, international relations, etc., but somehow I feel like we are overlooking way too much.


Is there any respect left for sex?... For marriage?... For families?...



There is a vicious cycle occurring that is ripping apart society as we know it. Although it's been going on for quite some time, nearly everything is geared towards sex, and I am so sick of it! The perversion of something so beautiful as a physical expression of love between wife and husband--an act of selfless giving to each other--has been turned into self-filled pleasure coupled with exploitation.

And the sad part is...

How young kids are being filled with such notions.

These stats are from 2007, compiled into a booklet from an event I attended in Pittsbugh, called BattleCry. And I'm sure they have gone up (or down) since then.

-Every 6.7 scenes on television include a sexual topic.
-The most watched teen network is MTV, where more than 30,000 soft porn images are broadcast every week.
-Average age of first sex: 15.8 years old.
-Average age of first internet exposure to pornography is 11.
-The largest consumer of internet pornography is currently, young people ages 12-17.

And on and on the list goes! It's sick!!! The internet, tv, all forms of media purge our brains with everything sex. It's no wonder it's a problem!

And because sex is so free... then who needs marriage! Right? Wrong. I was told that being physically intimate leads to a false sense of closeness. It's not the relationship... It's an expression of it. The emotional wreckage is incredible! Broken, aching hearts everywhere... A wonderful expression of love at the wrong time.

What we need is a monumental perspective change. A book I recently read, The Red Tent, set during the time of Rachel, Jacob, and Leah, tells a story through Dinah's eyes. Even as a child Dinah saw the dogs and knew what was going on during a brother's honeymoon. All the same it was out in the open. Not something hidden. Not something to be ashamed of. Sex was (and still is) a beautiful fact of life. Maybe if more parental guidance was present to shape the views and intentions of it all there wouldn't be as much of a problem. To keep something hidden in the dark, almost as a secret, is sometimes the cause for total rebellion. Now, I am by no means saying that we just need to blatantly expose children to this. We just need to convey the worth, value, and understanding of it all.

Then we have marriage. It scares me how little respect this gets. All over the place. People marrying, divorcing, not marrying and just having kids, etc. like it's nothing (and of course there are times when it is best to be out of a relationship). This is like a bloodbath on the family system. This was not intended.

And in the end we have the cycle of false intimacy leading to emotional wreckage. How can we have healthy relationships in such conditions?

Love. Pure love. Holy love. Unconditional love. Love no matter what. Love that says I forgive you. Love that wipes out the hurt, fear, and pain. We fail to see it! We too often fail to grasp hold of it! This eternal Love that never, never ends and is always reaching for us! We can't love everyone with the real Love we need. That can only come from the one true God.

Perfect love drives out fear.

Only the One Who made us can love us perfectly with the love we really need.. To know that we are always accepted, loved, cherished, thought of, cared for, forgiven, heard.

God so longs to make us whole and complete through Jesus Christ. If we all came to realize how crazy the Lord is over us, how jealously and madly in love with us God is. Then...

~We'd be able to forgive each other a little easier, knowing that we are forgiven.
~We would accept each other, knowing that we are accepted.
~We would be enabled to love each other, knowing that we are loved.
You get the idea.

And then...
We could have better, healthier relationships, all because we have a relationship with the One--Father, Son, Holy Spirit. More respect. Better marriages. Healthy families. Better society.