standing on the edge

I think we've all been there before.

You know that place...looking out on the edge of eternity.

On the verge of greatness...

On the brink of a miracle...

And then devastation hits and all hope,
all dreams,
all plans seem lost.

Here's the good news.  They're not lost--not by a long shot.

Over the course of this summer, Oklahoma has been lost to drought.  The economic and environmental challenges this drought brought have seemed devastating.  Farmer's are paying as much as $100 for a bail of hay that would have cost $20.

This is not good.  Not good at all.

And then a few weeks ago we were rocked with wildfires that threatened entire towns.  Actually, there were a few towns that were destroyed.  Many homes were lost.  Many business were lost.

But this tragedy did bring some good.  For one, it proved as a source of unity.  Family and friends fought the fires together.  And when the fires were over, the communities came together to provide aid to people who'd lost everything they owned except each other.

But that's not all.  Next year, it is very likely that the crops will be more productive because of the nitrates restored to the ground from the ash.  In fact, my friends' yard is already greener than it's been in years.  The trees are bare, but the grass...it's green and lush and good.

One thing is for certain, God never says that life will be easy.  In fact, He says life will be difficult.  It's going to be hard.  We will have hurt and pain.  Life won't be easy.  But life's outcome, hardship and famine, does not negate God's goodness and faithfulness.

In Romans 8:28 we find a much quoted scripture that I'm afraid is often used incorrectly.  "And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them."  Looking at the context, Paul flatly tells the church of Rome that they will experience trouble, but ultimately God's perfect love will keep them.

Here's what's remarkable: God's perfect love will keep you too.

If you and your spouse are on the brink of divorce, God's love will keep you.

If you've lost your job and don't see any hope in the market, God's love will keep you.

If you've been rejected by the only person you've really loved, God's perfect love will keep you.

If you feel lonely and sad and cold there's warmth and happiness and joy.  God's perfect love will keep you.

When all hope seems to be lost, never to be recovered, God's perfect love will keep you.

In the meantime, submit to His plan and allow Him to be supreme Lord over your life.  Another difficult step, true, but one that will be most worth it all.

Recently I've come to understand this.  I hate hurt whether that be emotional or physical or even spiritual. But there is beauty in the pain.  There is life in the pain.  Pain helps me to feel real and alive.  And it makes the times that are full of joy and happiness that much sweeter.

Find love today and be inspired to give love today.  There's hope in pain.

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I'll Be Right Back

Hello lovelies.

I am so excited to be leaving for a Women's Retreat in just a few more hours.  We're going to have so much fun shopping and growing in relationships together and learning about different personalities.

I have always enjoyed studying personalities.  Don't you love how God created us all so differently and yet at the same time all in His masterful image.  I love that God values us...as individuals...enough to make us uniquely ourselves, but I love even more that God puts His image on us.

We are bearers of His image through our emotions, our personalities, our critical thinking skills.  But the very things that make us like God are also the areas that our faith and actions are most tested.

Here's the thing.  The Bible says that God is love and if we are to bear His image and to do Him justice we must learn to love like God.  In the book  The Two Sides of Love (great book), Gary Smalley and John Trent write, "[God] is always soft on people yet hard on their problems."  Wow.  Isn't that so profound and very true.

So now here we are, learning to love like God, taking all of our personality problems, and submitting them to the standard of Jesus Christ.  In order to do that we've got to understand our personality.  Why did I do that?  Why does she/he do that?  How should I respond in a healthy way that  validates her/him as a person and still speaks to the problem?  What in my past led me to make that decision?  What actions can I take to not make the same decision again?

That's what this weekend is all about.

I wish you could go with us.  Maybe next time.

When I get back I'm going to have pictures and information and fun spots to hang out near Branson and Springfield, Missouri, just waiting for you to read about.  Let's catch up in a few days.  In the mean time, check up with my sister Dalayna.  She blogs over at Pointing Up.

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