Twenty Posts and Counting
Just as I thought I was too far gone, I finally found His hand. Though it had been extended for quite some time now, I had neither realized it's existence nor searched for it's presence. I am sure that He has had His hand on me from the very start, but it is only every once in a while that I acknowledge that grace in gratitude of exhortation and in initiation of action. Reflection is a grand gift, though often it seems otherwise. There are times I pretend to have forgotten, which are filled with memories too sour to swallow; but without recollection, I would have no experiences to pull on when I think I've reached the end of my rope. I would have neither sentiment nor nostalgia for what would no longer be a familiar song offering me an anthem of what I could no longer associate with hope. What's more, how horrid would it be to experience a life where uncertainty stretches in both directions, both past and future? That is why I take this time to cherish the memories—both good and bad—and to honor God for His creating and molding of me through each experience they represent.
I use this paragraph to thank God for His use of music to encourage and inspire me. I thank Him for His perfect timing on songs that have come at precise intervals, reminding me that I'm loved, capable, and worthwhile. When all else fails to get me motivated, uplifting music empowers me, giving me the desire to try, regardless of prospected failure. It is with love and praise that I honor God for His taste in music.
This paragraph is for God's use of chaos to nurture commitment in my life. Though it may seem contrary to natural flow, God has often used the unpredictable to teach me about the predictable. He brings the unstable to keep me focused on what is stable. Most of all, God uses uncertainty and anxiety as a way for me to practice my security and patience in who He is.
This paragraph is an attempt to capture my gratitude for the way God has used relationships in my life. I have been blessed beyond all coincidence to have encountered the faces of faithful, loving, devoted, intelligent, sensitive, strong, persistent, and wise people. I am even more thankful to God that He has allowed me to make life-long connections with these individuals and blessed me with their advice, support, and witness. God has molded my timidity into thankfulness as I recall the many firsts I experienced with close friends, from first encounters to first tears. I am amazed that God has shown me glimpses of His character through the friendships He's formed in my life.
I dedicate this paragraph to acknowledge God's grace. Though I can no more encompass grace in a paragraph than the atmosphere in a bottle, I cannot go a day without depending on it. God has given me strength, drive, blessings, and challenges—which I accrue as grace as I look back on them. I am ever dependent on the fact that He knows best, and I am thankful for His love; without which He would not be near as gracious in His dealings with me. I am thankful that He is graceful in His view of me: that I am equally guilty as needy; and that I'm not condemned, but instead provided for. This paragraph is also where I insert the lesson I learned when reading Titus this morning. Titus 2:14 is part of Paul's summary of the purpose of Christ's redemption—to "purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds" (NASB). Before His conclusion, He presents a significant phrase, which is the necessary prelude to the process of purification: He redeemed as from all lawlessness. This phrase is striking because it stresses not our guilt as rebels, but our deliverence from bondage. Christ in His great and saving grace, volunteered Himself so that he could redeem a wicked and depraved people. However, His focus is not on how much He had to give for so little, or so worthless, a race as sinners. Instead, He chooses to acknowledge our nature while yet placing His emphasis on the fact that we were bound: guilty, yes; but trapped with no alternative. Seeing our plight as habitual evil doers, God’s gift is at the very least heroic, and at at heart as a demonstration of love (Romans 5:8). His gift has become our redemption, and demands our gratitude.
Just as the sun breaks the dawn and brings light to the darkness, so God’s grace has broken into our “moral darkness” and brought us salvation.
I use this paragraph to thank God for His use of music to encourage and inspire me. I thank Him for His perfect timing on songs that have come at precise intervals, reminding me that I'm loved, capable, and worthwhile. When all else fails to get me motivated, uplifting music empowers me, giving me the desire to try, regardless of prospected failure. It is with love and praise that I honor God for His taste in music.
This paragraph is for God's use of chaos to nurture commitment in my life. Though it may seem contrary to natural flow, God has often used the unpredictable to teach me about the predictable. He brings the unstable to keep me focused on what is stable. Most of all, God uses uncertainty and anxiety as a way for me to practice my security and patience in who He is.
This paragraph is an attempt to capture my gratitude for the way God has used relationships in my life. I have been blessed beyond all coincidence to have encountered the faces of faithful, loving, devoted, intelligent, sensitive, strong, persistent, and wise people. I am even more thankful to God that He has allowed me to make life-long connections with these individuals and blessed me with their advice, support, and witness. God has molded my timidity into thankfulness as I recall the many firsts I experienced with close friends, from first encounters to first tears. I am amazed that God has shown me glimpses of His character through the friendships He's formed in my life.
I dedicate this paragraph to acknowledge God's grace. Though I can no more encompass grace in a paragraph than the atmosphere in a bottle, I cannot go a day without depending on it. God has given me strength, drive, blessings, and challenges—which I accrue as grace as I look back on them. I am ever dependent on the fact that He knows best, and I am thankful for His love; without which He would not be near as gracious in His dealings with me. I am thankful that He is graceful in His view of me: that I am equally guilty as needy; and that I'm not condemned, but instead provided for. This paragraph is also where I insert the lesson I learned when reading Titus this morning. Titus 2:14 is part of Paul's summary of the purpose of Christ's redemption—to "purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds" (NASB). Before His conclusion, He presents a significant phrase, which is the necessary prelude to the process of purification: He redeemed as from all lawlessness. This phrase is striking because it stresses not our guilt as rebels, but our deliverence from bondage. Christ in His great and saving grace, volunteered Himself so that he could redeem a wicked and depraved people. However, His focus is not on how much He had to give for so little, or so worthless, a race as sinners. Instead, He chooses to acknowledge our nature while yet placing His emphasis on the fact that we were bound: guilty, yes; but trapped with no alternative. Seeing our plight as habitual evil doers, God’s gift is at the very least heroic, and at at heart as a demonstration of love (Romans 5:8). His gift has become our redemption, and demands our gratitude.
Just as the sun breaks the dawn and brings light to the darkness, so God’s grace has broken into our “moral darkness” and brought us salvation.
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