comfort on a rainy morning

my weary heart needs to marinate in these words this morning...


"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. in this world you will have trouble. but take heart! I have overcome the world." 

(john 16:33)

a little creative fun

i found out about this website a few weeks ago and finally had a chance to sit down and see what it was all about for myself! polyvore.com lets you create design boards of outfits, accessories, home goods, and other fancy things! though all of the options were quite overwhelming at first, this is a stellar creative outlet! here is my first attempt at a set:

summer saturday style by sarahbchamp featuring Miss Me tops

if you like fashion, design, decorating, creating, and mixing and matching, i think you'll find polyvore one big playground!

forgetful

i was at a friend's over the weekend and noticed how a ceiling fan was creating a nice cool breeze in the living room, especially after the heat wave this past week. it was then that i remembered that i had a ceiling fan in my living room. i'd gone the entire hot week without turning it on, simply because i'd forgotten it was there.

now this can be blamed on the fact that i just celebrated another birthday. *ahem* i prefer to think it has more to do with the fact that i moved when the temperature outside barely hit 32 degrees and the least of my concerns at the time was ways my apartment was equipped to cool down!

in either case, i laughed at myself and my ignorance. the fan was literally the "white elephant" in my living room up until this point during this summer.

it's amazing how something can be right in front of our faces and we don't realize it. we don't consciously think about it. we don't remember. we aren't attentive to it. 

how much of each day do i walk through forgetful?

forgetful of the truths God has to say about me? (i am fearfully and wonderfully made...)

forgetful of the purpose He gives to my every day? (He will carry on to completion the work He has begun in me...)

forgetful of the blessings He promises to give me? (peace, rest, refuge, strength, renewal, hope, everlasting love...)

forgetful of how much He loves me? (He gave His one and only son...)

i must remember to be aware. i need to be attentive to Him. He's always there, right in front of me. He has beautiful things He wants to show me, caring words He wants to speak to me, love He wants to share with me.

i miss out on the relief from the heat of the day, on the cool, refreshing breezes, on the peace the repetitive rhythm of the whirring blades creates... simply because i'd forgotten it was there.

why be thankful?

last night, in an expression of tough love, i was challenged with being a thankful person. there have been seasons in my life where i have been more thankful than others. however, when you get right down to it, thankfulness is not part of my nature.


thinking about this made it clear that i struggle with being thankful because i am constantly focusing on my circumstances. i am always looking around - to the left, to the right, to the past. there will always be something i'm not happy about, something i want to change or improve. there will always be trials and struggles. there will always be reason for despair. so how can i be thankful?

give thanks with a grateful heart
give thanks to the Holy One
give thanks because He's given Jesus Christ, His Son


i grew up going to church on sundays and sometimes even on wednesdays and fridays. the church my family attended was big on worship and i know at least a half a gajillion songs because of it. i sang this song countless times back then. sometimes when i sang, i was thankful. other times, it was just another song to get through on a sunday morning.

as i thought more about last night's conversation this morning, this song came back into my mind. it was in remembering the words that i found hope. my thankfulness won't and shouldn't stem from my circumstances; in fact it shouldn't stem from me and my life at all. i can give thanks in all circumstances because of God and what He did for me in His love for me, allowing His Son to pay a debt i never could and freely give me His salvation.

if i expect to be a thankful person because of what is going on around me, i have set myself up for failure. it's not in the temporary things. when my focus is the cross, i will never be without hope and a reason to give thanks.