Give Me Something Brighter

“I yearn to be captivated by His beauty from so near a place that I become beautiful too.
To know the unknowable till faith turns to sight. To be ruined for every other contesting love.”

I was in my car for 10 hours today.
Cool.
Ha. No, it really wasn’t that bad. It’s just funny. I really like traveling. A lot can happen in 10 hours. Like seeing nearly the entire state of Florida. :)
But a lot happened in my heart in those 10 hours. I started out feeling discouraged, to be honest. Asking God to show me some “whys”.
To show me why I’ve had to experience some of the things I have. To show me some tangible answers to my questions. To show me why some of my prayers are still “unanswered”.
But here I sit, at the end of those 10 hours, and I don’t have all the answers and all my heart’s desires haven’t been fulfilled.
Yet, I believe in the promise. I’m in this thing for the long haul. And I really do believe God’s timing is way better than mine. And that sometimes prayers seem unanswered, but no, they’re just answered differently than expected.
During my drive, I literally went back and tried to remember all the times God has been faithful in my life. EVERY time! Naw duh.
But seriously, I just kept being reminded of situations and life circumstances that I didn’t understand or didn’t plan, and God more than took care of it! And me!

I also really believe there is something powerful in saying “Thank You” when you’re really discouraged or upset…when it seems like there’s nothing to be thankful for. Just start saying it. And you can think of a million things to be thankful for! Even if you’re reading this and you have no belief in God or anything – just try it. It helps, promise. You can always find one thing to be thankful for.
Check out this song while you’re at it. “Thank You” – Hillsong Live (A Beautiful Exchange)

Today I was just floored by the people in my life. I am so so thankful for some really special people. I have friends who are eating Ramen noodles for dinner so they can save money to help me go to Kenya. Whaa?!!
And not to mention the more than generous gifts I’ve been given by some of my friends, who are young, just starting out, and don’t have some huge cushion in their savings account.
Your lives serve as a challenge to me! A challenge to truly live as a disciple, trusting God for the next day’s needs. So encouraging!

“Who am I, O Sovereign Lord, and what is my house that you have brought me thus far”
2 Samuel 7:18

This isn’t where I thought this entry was going, but nonetheless, there ya have it.
I miss the mountains. Especially the Incline. I’m happy to say, I don’t think I took Pikes Peak for granted. ha

“Live simply so that others may simply live.”
Boom.

Tanice

Want to be challenged?

Read some of Francis Chan's updates on his website.
The dude quit his job at the church, sold his home, with no clear answers on his next steps.
Wow.

francis chan

Comfortable?

Stagnancy will kill your spirit. The Christian who is not being used by God to change lives, to make a difference for Christ, will dry up, stagnate. Transformation will not happen. The Bible tells us that God puts this dissatisfaction with a stagnant life in your heart.

...Once they've tasted the haphazard, horn-honking, chickens-everywhere, annoying vendors, pungent odor, soggy air, crazed taxi drivers, dunk policemen, disorienting, take-life-as-it-comes world away from home...they want more. They can't wait to board the next plane to somewhere far and away. And maybe life is better like that. This world is not for making home, so live on the go - go and live; really live.

I would argue then that moral transformation often comes when we are willing to step outside our places of comfort and safety and not just think morally but do morally. When you give your life away to this world, when you live out your religion as God intended, you open your life to being stunned by God and your moral character to being transformed.
"True Religion" by Palmer Chinchen

"Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go. And Jesus said to him, 'Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head. Follow me and leave the dead to bury their own dead."
Matthew 8:19, 20, 22

I've been thinking about that passage a lot the past couple of weeks. And how Jesus must have felt as a 22 yr old...28 yr old..33 yr old with no home. Crazy to think about really. (I particularly like to think of him as the young 22 yr old. haha)
And how he really didn't store up treasures on this earth. I look around and see many examples of how to store up treasures on this earth - heck I'm a walking example of it. I have way too many things that moths and rust can destroy.
But to see the example of truly storing up treasures in heaven...what a rare thing!
I'm hoping to be refined in this area.
Not that things are bad...I'm not saying that. But I just can't escape the fact that Jesus really didn't have that many earthly possessions. There's got to be some importance in that, right?

Anyways, I've coined Mondays as "Rollerblade Mondays". The past few weeks I've gone rollerblading every Monday night. It's good for my soul. I'm hoping it will catch on. Do it. Go blading tomorrow. Or at least just a walk if you don't have any blades.

Ha. "Say My Name" by Destiny's Child just came on my itunes. That's definitely worth mentioning.

There's too much going on in this little mind of mine, so I'll just end it with a quick story.
Today I went for a run, as I do many days. And today I was really feelin it. :) Well I came up to an intersection and there was a car waiting to turn left. I'm not sure if I got nervous or just wasn't paying attention, but before I knew it I'm on the ground. I ate it! I just fell right in front of this car, tripped over my own feet! Talk about feeling stupid. I was so embarrassed!! I immediately jumped up, obviously, and ran with much more intensity and speed than I had been before.
I was fine, but I couldn't shake the embarrassment. I know I was blushing, and the fall was all I thought about for the next few minutes. Then it hit me. What's the big deal? So I looked really dumb in front of a few people, but brushed myself off, and just kept going. And I ended up having one of the best runs I've had in awhile.
And I thought about my life - what's the big deal with feeling silly or dumb sometimes?
So today I decided this: taking a step out there, risking embarrassment, doing something that someone else may think is foolish...it's all worth it in the end. A little bump in the road is worth a really really good run.
Wow. I'm such a great storyteller. ha. oh well. I hope you get the parallel I'm trying to make.

"Sometimes reckless faith requires no further action. You just have to hold on to the limb you've been led out on and trust it doesn't break."

Love you all.
Cheers.

(shout out to clint and eve sibbitt. the top portion of this post reminds me so much of you two. thanks for being such great examples in what this looks like in real life.)

this week.

i really love college football.
good think I'll be in Africa after the season is over. ;)

hiii west palm beach.
beach, running, rollerblading, sunsets, smoothies, good people, new episodes of HOUSE = happy


thankful.

yes sir, yes sir, three bags full!

who redeems your life from the pit,
who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy,
who satisfies you with good
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
psalm 103:4-5

you open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.
psalm 145:16


nowhere does God say "ill barely satisfy your desires with ehh, decent things"
a good friend of mine, j-tony, reminded me this today.
so there ya have it.
waaaaait for it.
-----------------------------
temporary - lasting for only a limited period of time; not permanent
- a measurable but limited duration
- passes almost instantaneously and cannot be caught or held

The past several months many things have felt very temporary. And as I look closer at it, it's a good and bad thing. Not bad, but sometimes makes me feel homesick for past times where things felt a little more "permanent". Like entering into college, pretty much knowing what I would be doing for the next 4 years. Or even simpler yet...putting my laundry away in "my" closet or making "my" bed. Okay, that never actually happened. :)
But I don't actually want all those things.
And I think living in the "temporary" mindset keeps me persistent. and pursuing. and never settled. constantly evaluating where I'm at, what I'm doing, what I'm not doing, etc.

So then, I look and expand that "temporary" view to an even bigger picture....our lives. How temporary my life is! (Psalm 39:4-5) And how all those things (never settling, being persistent, etc, etc,) can be applied to the big picture...to the way I live my life.
So, if I never have my own bed again, or never have more than the next day planned out, I think it will all be worth it.
Keeping the "temporary" mindset changes everything. I like change.

When times are good, be happy;
but when times are bad, consider:
God has made the one
as well as the other.
Therefore, a man cannot discover
anything about his future.
Ecclesiastes 7:14
whaaa??



Current book: CrazyLove (Francis Chan)
Current song I listen to endlessly on repeat: Mumford and Sons: Thistle and Weeds

fall = family, holidays, football, food.
can't help but miss this boy.

a picture of me and caleb building a fort.
stumbled upon this on my computer this morning. just thought id share. :)

believing the hard things help shape us into the man/woman God wants us to be...
tana