Seeing through spiritual eyes

It all started on a hot day in August after sprinting to catch the tiger transit(Auburn University's bus system) with Anna....looking up to see a wrinkly old face shining a smile in my direction...love. Ever since that day I have been in love with the sweet spirit of my 80 yr.(give or take some) bus driver. He never delays his goodbyes or ceases to continue to do so after the 100th time he has said it throughout the day. Never is there a smile not returning back to me as I leave or enter the bus. And, never is there an annoyed face waiting for me after I have made the whole bus wait as I run to catch the bus before it leaves the neighborhood.

      Today however,  I noticed the absence of a wedding ring. And, I couldn't seem to understand why this sweet old man was not wearing one. Could his wife have died along the way of their long journey together. Or could he have been one that got overlooked in his younger years because he didn't own a pair of costas or wear rainbows, everyday of his life, unless it was raining when the sperrys came out... Even though he had the best and sweetest personality out of anyone that had a date every weekend because of a high status and expensive clothes.

  I know that could very well not be the case but it got me thinking. I then began to realize how blessed I am to not have that mindset. That I can look at someone and find beauty in that person..no matter how they dress/look/speak/think/ or feel. Every human is unique and different in their own way. And, just as well, every human is alike in the sense that we were made by the Creator of all things who makes us in His image. Looking at it in this perspective it should almost be impossible to  not only see the ugliness in someone. Looking past peoples barriers and outside appearance is where the true beauty lies. We may never know what some people are going through or have gone through over the course of their life, but we can be the ones to look them in the eyes and realize a hug is just what they need at this point in their life or a true, "You are beautiful and I think you are wonderful".

     Once this mind-set is accomplished life is seen through different eyes. People are differently seen. And, its not just the regular ,"Man, they get on my nerves." But, its the,"God made this person and loves them beyond my comprehension and I think they are amazing." Not saying that people won't annoy you or make you mad...but its a lot less likely and when happening, realizing a step away is all that is needed to see the wider and larger view. So, instead of getting annoyed when I'm late because I was driven to class at 20mph, I take that step back and realize he is just enjoying the beautiful day outside, no hurries and no worries, and then I too, try and do the same.

Letting Life pour back into your body

"Sometimes praise comes face to the ground, unable to move because we are so aware that this Holy God has busied Himself with bringing us back to Him.

Let it flow like blood to sleeping limbs, and feel them tingle as they awake in awe.

Shake life back into your hands and let them clap for His goodness.

Shake life back into your legs and let them carry you running with wind and thunder.

Shake life back into your chest and let your heart beat in pounding reverence.

Let praise come face to the ground, trembling with LIFE and AWARENESS that we are found by a HOLY GOD."- David Crowder, Praise Habit

Whenever you feel lifeless like you are laying face down on the ground, trying so hard to catch your breath...as if every moment to live is a struggle, let this be your anthem. Embrace the ground. Don't be fooled to think it is too low to be found and touched by God. It is a mind battle. Make up your mind that you do in fact want God to come to your rescue. Then believe it. Life is hard. He knows this. That is why we can go to Him, with every breath, when everything else seems to fall apart little by little. 

The heaviness of day to day life

After hearing a message by kris Vallotton yesterday, my heart carried a heaviness  to it. This heaviness had nothing to do with me. It was the heaviness of the world around  me and the people I love who feel it on a day to day basis. One cry of my heart is to carry a compassion inside of me for the hurting, just like our Savior does. And, after this message, my hearts c ry came alive. I always try and see the potential inside each and every human being instead of who they are at the moment. 

Why do we act so differently as we grow up. As kids we were so excited and free!  But then, we do something wrong. And time after time of doing so we begin to dislike ourself. And we put on all this heavy clothing that holds us back when we were made to feel free. Throughout our life we are never told that the person who falls in the biggest hole finds the most Gold. Don't believe in your circumstances more than you believe in the power if God.

Examples: 1. Rahab- the lying prostitute. She lies to the King-Josh 2:1, she hides spies, saves her family. And then where do we see her next? In Matthew 1:1 in the lineage of Christ!

2. David- He was a King, a fugitive, a murderer, a liar, an adulterer. Yet, look at how God viewed David. He moved Gods heart. As David Crowder says in his book Praise Habit, " Davids awareness of rescue was deep and continual. He dressed himself in rescue, redemption, and righteousness.  There is impoliteness in our experience of living. There is darkness and pain. But, the wonder, joy and surprise comes in the middle of darkness with the unexpected presence of God."

In part Kris' message he talked about the difference in conviction and condemnation. Condemnation= not of Christ. He did not come to condemn us, He came to offer us a hope out of our sinful life. Condemnation links our sin to our identity. With condemnation you begin to believe that since you sinned, you are now a sinner. NO! Wrong. Completely wrong. If you believe you are a sinner you will sin because you believe that is who you are. Thats the beauty of what Jesus did and when He steps into the picture. Our sin is not our identity. It is not who we are. He knows we are going to mess up even after we are saved. He offers us a life that says," I WAS a sinner. And, even though I still might mess up every now and then, I am still precious in His eyes."  We have got to understand this to function properly in who we are. We need to live with conviction not condemnation. Just like Kris said yesterday, "Conviction says, "You are a royalty now, come on, you are better than this. Lets fix it :)" We need to realize that just because we mess up, that does not mean we are worse than dirt.

Quit living by your feelings! It will destroy you! QUIT LIVING BY YOUR FEELINGS AND LIVE BY THE TRUTH. The way you treat yourself is the way others will treat you. Change your mindset about yourself. Realize you are awesome and other people will begin to see the change. 

I think this is what separates us from responding to God like we wished we could. We come to God with our head down and ashamed. And, the whole time he is saying, "Stop it! You are acting like the price I paid isn't good enough for you! Come to me. I am so in love with you child. Yes you messed up, but I still love you just as much!"