I am painted Red.

I have been so astounded by God's grace lately. Just think about it. Grace...that shouldn't even be something we can grasp or be able to even step near, yet if you are a child of God, you are covered in it. Covered. And to be covered in it absolutely blows my mind.

I am a sinner. A wretch, completely human. I sin every day, I have hurt people that I love so much, I have made so many mistakes, and continue to make them. Some days I think I am nothing. Yet Jesus changed all that when he shed for me. He took all of my crap, my junk, upon Himself and told me I am worthy. What the heck??? Seriously? I can't even fathom it. Why would someone so perfect want to do that for me? He tells me that He has forgotten my sin, it is no more. So I shouldn't hold onto my past and what I have done. I have to move on and know that I am forgiven. And that I am forgiven for what I will continue to do from here on out. As long as I have a repentant heart.

I hate what I have done in my past. I hate my mistakes. But how can I move on with life if I just keep it with me, remembering it? He paid the price so I didn't have to. I will continue to fail at things because I am human...I might fail at relationships, or goals I set for myself. But He will always have grace for me. He will always be merciful. He will teach me through what I have done wrong. And since I have that grace in me, I will want to do better. When I see obvious sin, I want to rebuke it! I hate Satan and all that he is about. I hate how he tears peoples' lives apart. I absolutely hate it. But he is sneaky, and can enter something into your life without you even realizing it. And that is when we have to rely on God's strength tremendously with every ounce of our being. He will see us through, He will provide. Just think of the times in your life that He already has.

I am closer to God right now than I have been in a very long time. And I couldn't have gotten here without trusting Him. Without seeking and pursuing Him. I saw the other option and I ran the opposite way with all of my strength towards Him. Because I want Him, nothing else. He has renewed my strength and made me do things I never thought possible. I never thought I could do some of the things I have, and I haven't. Not on my own anyway...only through Him. I look back and think, how did I just do that? If you aren't close to God, and you know it, make yourself seek Him. Even if you don't feel like it, or you are so wrapped up in sin. You know what to do. Just do it. I'm not saying it's going to be easy...it will take a lot of work and probably a lot of tears. You might read His Word every day for a while and not feel anything. But trust in His timing, He'll speak to you when He's ready. Go after Him. He will see you through.

For you Christians reading, you know all of this. This isn't anything new to you. But I guess that wasn't my purpose for this blog...to write something new. This is just a Christian's heart at the moment. I hope reading this reminded you of God's grace in your life. Just wanted to share how He's shown grace to me :)



"If I could not hold a pen
I would write of You on my heart instead.
You have bought me with Your blood
And I am painted red by Your love.

If I could not say a word
My life would speak of Love I don't deserve.
Hope means holding on to You
Grace means You're holding me too..."

"Painted Red"-JJ Heller

Open your eyes.

Do we really see the people around us? Do we really know what's going on in people's lives? Especially the ones closest to us? I am reminded by something a pastor once said...that if someone has done us wrong, or dropped us, or whatever you want to call it...maybe it's nothing personal against us, they're just going through a lot at the moment. Which is hard for me to really grasp, because I am a selfish being and I tend to think of the situation as them just hurting me and how bad of a person they are. Guess it's that whole learning to be selfless thing.

Sometimes I don't realize just what people are going through. Even my closest friends! And then when they happen to share, I am completely blown away and heartbroken for them.

So here's the thought that spurred all of this on:

We are called to go unto the nations and proclaim the name of Jesus. Fact. But, aren't we also called, as a body of believers, to reach out within our own family, and pick up the broken? Those within our family who are hurting and struggling, and desperately need our help. Community. Isn't that our job, too? Let me tell you, I do not do that enough. It is such a slap in the face when you find something out about someone that you had no clue of. You think, "How could I not have seen that?" Hint: It's probably because we have our head up in the clouds. And not in the clouds that we share with every other human being, but our own clouds, made within our own selfish world.

I share this because I think we should all look around with new eyes. Even if a brother or sister isn't struggling that much, still reach out a hand and help them. Encourage them. Call them up...ask them out for coffee. We have got to start learning what true community means. It's definitely something I'm going to work on. I don't think anything else in this world matters, except to glorify God, magnify His name, and love each other. Everything else fades away. Everything else is irrelevant and disposable. But if you want something real, something tangible, something important! It's God and people. That's it.

Acts 2:42-47:

They committed themselves to the teaching of the apostles, the life together, the common meal, and the prayers. Everyone around was in awe—all those wonders and signs done through the apostles! And all the believers lived in a wonderful harmony, holding everything in common. They sold whatever they owned and pooled their resources so that each person’s need was met.as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added those who were saved. They followed a daily discipline of worship in the Temple followed by meals at home, every meal a celebration, exuberant and joyful, as they praised God. People in general liked what they saw. Every day their number grew as God added to those who were saved.

Acts 4:32-37:

The whole congregation of believers was united as one—one heart, one mind! They didn’t even claim ownership of their own possessions. No one said, “That’s mine; you can’t have it.” They shared everything. The apostles gave powerful witness to the resurrection of the Master Jesus, and grace was on all of them. And so it turned out that not a person among them was needy. Those who owned fields or houses sold them and brought the price of the sale to the apostles and made an offering of it. The apostles then distributed it according to each person’s need.

James 5:13-20:Are you hurting? Pray. Do you feel great? Sing. Are you sick? Call the church leaders together to pray and anoint you with oil in the name of the Master. Believing-prayer will heal you, and Jesus will put you on your feet. And if you’ve sinned, you’ll be forgiven—healed inside and out. Make this your common practice: Confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you can live together whole and healed. The prayer of a person living right with God is something powerful to be reckoned with. Elijah, for instance, human just like us, prayed hard that it wouldn’t rain, and it didn’t—not a drop for three and a half years. Then he prayed that it would rain, and it did. The showers came and everything started growing again. My dear friends, if you know people who have wandered off from God’s truth, don’t write them off. Go after them. Get them back and you will have rescued precious lives from destruction and prevented an epidemic of wandering away from God.



---That last part of James gets to me. If you know people who have wandered off from God, go after them! Never give up on them. Try even harder!

Make me selfless, Jesus. Help me to see Your people through Your eyes. For my eyes continually fail me.

My prayer is that we are not so focused on the lost, that we leave those in our family in the dust. Lord, help us to find the balance between the two.

I have long had a passion for writing. I feel as if it runs in my blood, constantly coursing and moving - flowing. Unfortunately, I have always had a problem getting what I want said down on paper (figuratively of course, for here I "write" on a computer). When I speak of writing, I don't mean private thoughts - because I journal constantly. I mean stories, or even simply musing about whatever is on my mind. I don't discriminate between fact and fiction when it comes to what I prefer to write, although fiction has always been more of a challenge for me than non-fiction. When it comes to writing (publicly) I am often vexed by a general lack of dexterity on my part to "get the job done." I think that this issue is largely due to a lack of confidence on my part about the subject matter, or it could simply be impatience. But both tie in to my concern for originality. "There is nothing new under the sun." When I set out to write something, I often doom myself from the start by rehearsing that phrase in my head.

So what could I write that has not already been written? What could I say that has not already been said? If the answer is that I could never write, or say anything that has never been written or said, then why write it or say it in the first place? It is at this that I throw my hands up and walk away from the pen and paper (or computer).

But I think I have learned something valuable - especially in relation to writing about my faith. I hear God's word speak:

"Let the redeemed of the Lord SAY SO, whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy, and gathered out of the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south." Psalm 107: 2-3

Let the redeemed of the Lord say so! Check that out! It seems so simple, no? Just say so! I guess God's word speaks to all of His children in different ways, but it is always the same story being told, is it not? His grace is abundant - it saves, redeems, fulfills - I believe this. But out of fear of sounding cliche, or redundant, I have refused to speak, or write. I often think, someone much more capable than I has already said that! But it leaves me silent, and my insatiable desire to WRITE about the things that God is teaching me remains unsatisfied. Why should I be so concerned about originality if it is almost unattainable these days any way? I found an awesome quote on originality - from the mind of C.S. Lewis:

"Even in literature and art, no man who bothers about originality will ever be original: whereas if you simply tell the truth (without caring twopence how often it has been told before) you will, nine times out of ten, become original without ever having noticed it."

So here, in this blog, you will be hearing from different Christ-followers, myself included. Here we will share our hearts, and God's word as He has taught it to us. Some of the articles you read here may be deep - others may be more light hearted. You will hear from the young and naive, as well as the more seasoned, "wiser" folks. You may agree with whatever theology is presented, or you may not. Think of it more like a bible study, you know, the part where everyone present gets a chance to share whatever it is that they may have heard the Holy Spirit speak to them - or how God uses what ever word may have been brought to open their eyes in some way.

We are no authority on scripture, for God's word testifies of itself. But you will hear from unique, beloved children of God who have made the choice to share with you something precious - and invaluable - that God has laid on their heart. If it has been written a thousand times before, here you will read it written again!

And I leave it at that! Happy reading, and may Christ be MAGNIFIED!