320 e. fulton
"HOPE is springing up from this old ground.
out of chaos, LIFE is being found in you."
-gungor
-gungor
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
"The work of God is always slower, deeper, more costly, and more rewarding than anything I would ever choose." -unknown
...and soon after I ran across another quote that I've used before. I didn't realize how strikingly similar they are to each other until now...
"The will of God is never exactly what you expect it to be. It may seem to be much worse, but in the end its going to be a lot better and a lot bigger." -Elisabeth Elliot
...and soon after I ran across another quote that I've used before. I didn't realize how strikingly similar they are to each other until now...
"The will of God is never exactly what you expect it to be. It may seem to be much worse, but in the end its going to be a lot better and a lot bigger." -Elisabeth Elliot
Friday, July 16, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
He ALWAYS writes the better story...
After a spontaneous and ridiculous 2-day trip to the U.P. (complete with cliff jumping into Lake Superior, climbing Sugarloaf Moutain, and watching fireworks at the Marquette harbor), I am back home. And I currently have time (and a little bit of motivation) to write. Its about time. As always, my thoughts are so scattered, so numerous, and so random and I'm not really sure where to start. So, we'll just make this a big jumble of everything. Enjoy...
God ALWAYS writes the better story.
This seems to be a recurring theme in my simple, 22-year-old life, and it is being emphasized boldly to me again this summer. Everytime I think I can write my own story, it seems like it is off to a good start and then it backfires. And its never as good as I think its going to be.
"And once you live a good story, you get a taste for a kind of meaning in life, and you can't go back to being normal; you can't go back to meaningless scenes stitched together by the forgettable thread of wasted time..." - Donald Miller
But, God's story is meaningful. And beautiful. And eternal. And so much bigger. He can see so much more than we can. He understands how little details and circumstances can be woven together to create an intricate tapestry. So, I come to the point where I must give up control of what I can't control anyway. Why would I want to cling to my own pitiful story when God's is so much better?
"Once you know what it takes to live a better story, you don't have a choice. Not living a better story would be like deciding to die, deciding to walk around numb until you die, and its not natural to want to die..." - Donald Miller
I love this... "The will of God is never exactly what you expect it to be. It may seem to be much worse, but in the end it's going to be a lot better and a lot bigger..." - Elisabeth Elliott
Come alive!
A few weeks ago, a group of about 25 girls gathered to pray for life in our city. We spent Tuesday night until Wednesday morning seeking God's heart on the abortion issue in Grand Rapids. We spent time getting to know each other, in worship, in quiet time, learning from Mary - a sidewalk counselor, and praying. We prayed for the unborn, for girls caught in crisis situations, for the doctor's heart to be captivated by Jesus...and then, in the midst of all this, we realized that God was saying to each of us, "COME ALIVE!" We expected to come and spend ourselves on behalf of the unborn. And that was part of it. But, God also wanted to give himself to us.
"This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: 'I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life..." -Ezekiel 37:5
"Then I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood, and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, 'LIVE!'" - Ezekiel 16:6
"The glory of God is a human being fully alive; and to be alive consists in beholding God..." - St. Irenaeus
Rebuild.
A few weeks ago, Abby and I were sitting on the window seat at the Omega House praying for life in our city. Abby said, "I'm not sure why, but I think God is saying something about rebuilding a wall. I just read about it in Ezekiel." About two minutes later, we looked out the window in the opposite direction and saw three men working diligently to repair the wall on the side of the Omega House. They were mixing mortar and adding stones to the somewhat dilapidated wall. Okay, God. What are you saying?
The next week, we decided to read Nehemiah out loud as we sat at the Omega House. We still don't fully understand what God means through all of this, but we know it is important. As we read Nehemiah, we stopped several times with our jaws dropped because God seemed to be speaking directly into this little area in downtown Grand Rapids with his Word that is alive!
When Nehemiah was being opposed by several people as he built the wall, he responded (as we also hope to respond to opposition): "The God of Heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem [Grand Rapids] or any claim or historic right ["Heritage" Clinic] to it." [Nehemiah 2:20]
"Don't be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes..." [Nehemiah 4:14]
I don't really know the extent of what this message of REBUILDING means. But God is speaking it to me over and over again...
Summer 2010 To Do List... [or at least a small sampling...]
1. UPBC
2. babysit a lot
3. New York City
4. Colorado
5. Chicago
6. Life Retreat
7. Run
8. Grand Haven
9. Camping
10. Marie Catrib's and Farmers' Market
11. Read
12. Listen to good sermons
13. have a summer party
14. sailing
15. GR chalk flood
16. garage sales
17. learn to make Ethiopian food
18. have a cooking show with Amanda
19. play cornhole
20. write real letters
21. catch up with lots of old friends (Moody, Cornerstone, camp, etc.)
22. paint
23. Sparrows
24. frisbee golf
25. pray at Omega House
26. cliff jumping
27. be spontaneous
28. Pictured Rocks
29. eat ice cream
30. wakeboarding with Kathy
etc...
"To treat life as less than a miracle is to give up on it..." - Wendell Berry
HAPPY SUMMER!
God ALWAYS writes the better story.
This seems to be a recurring theme in my simple, 22-year-old life, and it is being emphasized boldly to me again this summer. Everytime I think I can write my own story, it seems like it is off to a good start and then it backfires. And its never as good as I think its going to be.
"And once you live a good story, you get a taste for a kind of meaning in life, and you can't go back to being normal; you can't go back to meaningless scenes stitched together by the forgettable thread of wasted time..." - Donald Miller
But, God's story is meaningful. And beautiful. And eternal. And so much bigger. He can see so much more than we can. He understands how little details and circumstances can be woven together to create an intricate tapestry. So, I come to the point where I must give up control of what I can't control anyway. Why would I want to cling to my own pitiful story when God's is so much better?
"Once you know what it takes to live a better story, you don't have a choice. Not living a better story would be like deciding to die, deciding to walk around numb until you die, and its not natural to want to die..." - Donald Miller
I love this... "The will of God is never exactly what you expect it to be. It may seem to be much worse, but in the end it's going to be a lot better and a lot bigger..." - Elisabeth Elliott
Come alive!
A few weeks ago, a group of about 25 girls gathered to pray for life in our city. We spent Tuesday night until Wednesday morning seeking God's heart on the abortion issue in Grand Rapids. We spent time getting to know each other, in worship, in quiet time, learning from Mary - a sidewalk counselor, and praying. We prayed for the unborn, for girls caught in crisis situations, for the doctor's heart to be captivated by Jesus...and then, in the midst of all this, we realized that God was saying to each of us, "COME ALIVE!" We expected to come and spend ourselves on behalf of the unborn. And that was part of it. But, God also wanted to give himself to us.
"This is what the Sovereign Lord says to these bones: 'I will make breath enter you, and you will come to life..." -Ezekiel 37:5
"Then I passed by and saw you kicking about in your blood, and as you lay there in your blood I said to you, 'LIVE!'" - Ezekiel 16:6
"The glory of God is a human being fully alive; and to be alive consists in beholding God..." - St. Irenaeus
Rebuild.
A few weeks ago, Abby and I were sitting on the window seat at the Omega House praying for life in our city. Abby said, "I'm not sure why, but I think God is saying something about rebuilding a wall. I just read about it in Ezekiel." About two minutes later, we looked out the window in the opposite direction and saw three men working diligently to repair the wall on the side of the Omega House. They were mixing mortar and adding stones to the somewhat dilapidated wall. Okay, God. What are you saying?
The next week, we decided to read Nehemiah out loud as we sat at the Omega House. We still don't fully understand what God means through all of this, but we know it is important. As we read Nehemiah, we stopped several times with our jaws dropped because God seemed to be speaking directly into this little area in downtown Grand Rapids with his Word that is alive!
When Nehemiah was being opposed by several people as he built the wall, he responded (as we also hope to respond to opposition): "The God of Heaven will give us success. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem [Grand Rapids] or any claim or historic right ["Heritage" Clinic] to it." [Nehemiah 2:20]
"Don't be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons and your daughters, your wives and your homes..." [Nehemiah 4:14]
I don't really know the extent of what this message of REBUILDING means. But God is speaking it to me over and over again...
Summer 2010 To Do List... [or at least a small sampling...]
1. UPBC
2. babysit a lot
3. New York City
4. Colorado
5. Chicago
6. Life Retreat
7. Run
8. Grand Haven
9. Camping
10. Marie Catrib's and Farmers' Market
11. Read
12. Listen to good sermons
13. have a summer party
14. sailing
15. GR chalk flood
16. garage sales
17. learn to make Ethiopian food
18. have a cooking show with Amanda
19. play cornhole
20. write real letters
21. catch up with lots of old friends (Moody, Cornerstone, camp, etc.)
22. paint
23. Sparrows
24. frisbee golf
25. pray at Omega House
26. cliff jumping
27. be spontaneous
28. Pictured Rocks
29. eat ice cream
30. wakeboarding with Kathy
etc...
"To treat life as less than a miracle is to give up on it..." - Wendell Berry
HAPPY SUMMER!
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