Growing up I learned that questioning things meant I lacked faith. That I should pray and God would give me a sense of peace about my decisions. In "Lies My Pastor Told Me", Cole Brown addresses this by saying that Jesus himself felt incredible agony over God's will for his life. So much so that he sweat drops of blood. That's not the sign of someone who has a "sense of peace".
Shortly before I posted A Question, I had a great talk about school with a friend of mine. When the topic first came up I hesitated - out of fear - because her children go to a Christian school and my children go to public school. My fear was that she would think I was presenting my way as the "right" way, or the "only" way. In the moment I recognized it was actually fear motivating me to shy away from the topic, I realized that shying away from the topic would mean I'd miss out on an opportunity not only to get to know the heart of my friend better, but I'd also miss out on learning from her. We simply shared our hearts and listened to each other. Hearing her heart on the matter gave me the opportunity to be reminded that God's hand is on both of our lives and our decisions as we trust in Him. My fear could have been the thing that led to her believe that I think I'm right and she's wrong and I could have been tempted to see my way as being the only way. The time and the place was right and because we didn't hold back in fear we learned from each other. (Like iron sharpens iron.)
There is certainly a tension between comparing ourselves to others and learning about how God is leading or teaching other believers. If I'm comparing my decision against someone elses than one of two things can happen. I could build in my mind nothing but reasons as to why they're wrong and I'm right OR I will feel pressure to do things their way because I haven't thought it through for myself. Neither of these reactions are healthy or good. If I'm open to hearing where God is leading you, what wisdom you have gleaned on your own personal journey I'm pursuing wisdom and allowing God to show me things I've never considered before. I need to have God at work in my life in this way! Being led by the Holy Spirit and pursuing wisdom are inseperable. I can't truly pursue one without other.
Tuesday, 31 May 2011
Monday, 30 May 2011
Make Me Smile Monday
It's beautiful outside today and I'm beginning to believe that maybe summer is really on it's way. I'm really looking forward to summer and all of the simple pleasures it brings. Strawberry picking, soccer, the fair, the beach, camping, the park and the zoo are some of our families personal favourites.
Thursday, 26 May 2011
Clean and Tidy - May
If you're inspired to be more organized but like me you're new to the process there are a few things I want you to know!
1) You need purpose. The thing that motivated me to begin getting organized was knowing what I wanted from it. I wanted the freedom to do everyday stuff without the obstacle of having to a big tidy-up before I could get started. I wanted to be able to invite people over without the stress of a major clean-up/tidy-up job. I wanted my house to be reasonably tidy/clean not only when people were expected but most of the time! I also wanted to start getting away from living a life of excess.
2) It will take time. The initial organizing process for me took about a year - literally! I can be rather impulsive (especially when I'm excited about something) and so I had a really hard time sticking to one room at a time although I would recommend doing just that. I found it worked well for me to break it down even more than that - one area of a room at a time.
3) There will be a transitional period. Be prepared for a period of time when things will feel like they're in a bit of an upheaval. (Going one room/area at a time helps minimize this.) Just remember that it's only for a period of time and it will pay off in the end! Be deliberate about the changes you're making and keep plugging away.
4) "Warn" your spouse! ;) Let them know there's going to be a transitional stage. I let Jason know early on what was happening and he was really supportive. I explained to him that while things would be a bit crazy for a while that in the end the benefits would be for everyone. We would all enjoy how the house would look/operate when I was done.
5) "Brainwash" your children. OK, so of course I'm kidding about actually brainwashing them, but I do believe that children pick up on our silent expectations when it comes to both atttitude and behaviour. Have faith in them! Don't just expect that they won't like it, they're blank slates and don't know yet that they're "not suppose to" like certain things. If you can sincerely present them with new ideas/plans and let your excitement show they will pick up on it. I explained really simply that I was going to be making some changes in our house so that everything would have a "home". I told them this would be good for them, because it would be easier for them to tidy up their toys and they would have an easier time finding their toys. I also talked about how it would be easier to do crafts and play games when the house was tidier. I presented all the changes as being really exciting ones and they picked up on the excitement.*
If you think you can't muster the excitement, be honest with them admit you're not excited about the work involved either, but you know the end result will make it worth it - and that you're excited about the end result. Focus on the benefits that will come after the changes have been made and all you have to look forward to.
6) Involve your family. Unless you live on your own, not everything is yours anyways! My daughters S and R are now 8 and 5 and they did an incredible job when I asked them to help sort through their stuff. With Jason the approach was different. Jason's a planner, so with him I let him know in advance that I wanted to sort through an area of his and then when the time was right we went through it together. Item by item he would let me know whether it was to be kept, thrown out or given away.
7) You'll benefit from letting go of misconceptions. My first misconception was that being a good housekeeper meant that I needed my house to be immaculate any time anyone came through the front door. It turns out it has more to do with making things eaiser to maintain. If you drop by unnanounced, there will always be children playing, or doing crafts and running all around the house. I'll likely be in the middle of cooking, baking, cleaning or some other project and if Jason's home he'll be in the middle of doing something too. Our house is a home and our home has a pulse. It won't look like your stepping into a house off the front cover of House and Home. My other misconception was that being organized wasn't for me, because it wasn't one of my natural strengths. It's relieved so much stress for me to realize that neither of these things need to be true. Getting rid of clutter and becoming more organized has made housekeeping easier and it's even made it...fun!
*Jason told me the sweetest story a little while ago about something S (our 8 year daughter) had said. She was in her room one day rearranging books on her shelf and she said, "I'm just like mom because I'm trying to find the best way to organize things." It just totally melted my heart!
1) You need purpose. The thing that motivated me to begin getting organized was knowing what I wanted from it. I wanted the freedom to do everyday stuff without the obstacle of having to a big tidy-up before I could get started. I wanted to be able to invite people over without the stress of a major clean-up/tidy-up job. I wanted my house to be reasonably tidy/clean not only when people were expected but most of the time! I also wanted to start getting away from living a life of excess.
2) It will take time. The initial organizing process for me took about a year - literally! I can be rather impulsive (especially when I'm excited about something) and so I had a really hard time sticking to one room at a time although I would recommend doing just that. I found it worked well for me to break it down even more than that - one area of a room at a time.
3) There will be a transitional period. Be prepared for a period of time when things will feel like they're in a bit of an upheaval. (Going one room/area at a time helps minimize this.) Just remember that it's only for a period of time and it will pay off in the end! Be deliberate about the changes you're making and keep plugging away.
4) "Warn" your spouse! ;) Let them know there's going to be a transitional stage. I let Jason know early on what was happening and he was really supportive. I explained to him that while things would be a bit crazy for a while that in the end the benefits would be for everyone. We would all enjoy how the house would look/operate when I was done.
5) "Brainwash" your children. OK, so of course I'm kidding about actually brainwashing them, but I do believe that children pick up on our silent expectations when it comes to both atttitude and behaviour. Have faith in them! Don't just expect that they won't like it, they're blank slates and don't know yet that they're "not suppose to" like certain things. If you can sincerely present them with new ideas/plans and let your excitement show they will pick up on it. I explained really simply that I was going to be making some changes in our house so that everything would have a "home". I told them this would be good for them, because it would be easier for them to tidy up their toys and they would have an easier time finding their toys. I also talked about how it would be easier to do crafts and play games when the house was tidier. I presented all the changes as being really exciting ones and they picked up on the excitement.*
If you think you can't muster the excitement, be honest with them admit you're not excited about the work involved either, but you know the end result will make it worth it - and that you're excited about the end result. Focus on the benefits that will come after the changes have been made and all you have to look forward to.
6) Involve your family. Unless you live on your own, not everything is yours anyways! My daughters S and R are now 8 and 5 and they did an incredible job when I asked them to help sort through their stuff. With Jason the approach was different. Jason's a planner, so with him I let him know in advance that I wanted to sort through an area of his and then when the time was right we went through it together. Item by item he would let me know whether it was to be kept, thrown out or given away.
7) You'll benefit from letting go of misconceptions. My first misconception was that being a good housekeeper meant that I needed my house to be immaculate any time anyone came through the front door. It turns out it has more to do with making things eaiser to maintain. If you drop by unnanounced, there will always be children playing, or doing crafts and running all around the house. I'll likely be in the middle of cooking, baking, cleaning or some other project and if Jason's home he'll be in the middle of doing something too. Our house is a home and our home has a pulse. It won't look like your stepping into a house off the front cover of House and Home. My other misconception was that being organized wasn't for me, because it wasn't one of my natural strengths. It's relieved so much stress for me to realize that neither of these things need to be true. Getting rid of clutter and becoming more organized has made housekeeping easier and it's even made it...fun!
*Jason told me the sweetest story a little while ago about something S (our 8 year daughter) had said. She was in her room one day rearranging books on her shelf and she said, "I'm just like mom because I'm trying to find the best way to organize things." It just totally melted my heart!
Tuesday, 24 May 2011
Clean and Tidy - April
You may have noticed there are a few words I like use when I talk about taking care of my house: clean, tidy, organize and declutter. For fun (because I really am a nerd like that) I thought I'd give you my own definition of the words clean, tidy, organize and de-clutter. :)
Clean/Cleaning: This is the aspect of housework that typically involves water and soap or cleaner and some sort of cleaning "tool" like a cloth/mop/broom. This was always my favourite, until more recently when I discovered a love for organizing simply because it has made both cleaning and tidying more enjoyable. There's a greater sense of accomplishment for both then there used to be.
Tidy/Tidying: Putting things back where they belong. Ideally this would happen immediately after an item was used every single time. But hey, we're people not robots! ;) Even though I continue to work on this (and I'm training my children in this as well) I don't expect perfection from myself (or my children).
De-clutter/De-cluttering: Sorting through the things you don't want, can't use, don't fit into, or are broken and then either recycling, fixing, disposing of, selling, donating or giving away these things. Keeping only what you need, want (sometimes we keep things because they're very sentimental) and know you will use.
Organize/Organizing*: This (along with de-cluttering) is what makes the first two more manageable! It's about decluttering and finding permanent "homes" for your things. This is the aspect of housekeeping that saves a lot of time and effort! Tidying can be an endless, stressful and exhausting job when things aren't organized, because you're constantly in a state of flux moving things around (into temporary homes) trying to figure out where they should go.
So there you have it. This is how I define the words clean, tidy, organize and declutter. Each one plays an important role in keeping things "clean and tidy". :) Any thoughts?
*This was the missing piece to the puzzle for me. I mentioned in another post about the "aha!" moment when a friend shared this with me and I thought, "how have I never figured this out before?!". It's the reason I love talking about organization so much! And even though organizing in a way is "never ending", you can get to a stage where it becomes about tweaking what you have or setting up new items as you bring them into your house.
Clean/Cleaning: This is the aspect of housework that typically involves water and soap or cleaner and some sort of cleaning "tool" like a cloth/mop/broom. This was always my favourite, until more recently when I discovered a love for organizing simply because it has made both cleaning and tidying more enjoyable. There's a greater sense of accomplishment for both then there used to be.
Tidy/Tidying: Putting things back where they belong. Ideally this would happen immediately after an item was used every single time. But hey, we're people not robots! ;) Even though I continue to work on this (and I'm training my children in this as well) I don't expect perfection from myself (or my children).
De-clutter/De-cluttering: Sorting through the things you don't want, can't use, don't fit into, or are broken and then either recycling, fixing, disposing of, selling, donating or giving away these things. Keeping only what you need, want (sometimes we keep things because they're very sentimental) and know you will use.
Organize/Organizing*: This (along with de-cluttering) is what makes the first two more manageable! It's about decluttering and finding permanent "homes" for your things. This is the aspect of housekeeping that saves a lot of time and effort! Tidying can be an endless, stressful and exhausting job when things aren't organized, because you're constantly in a state of flux moving things around (into temporary homes) trying to figure out where they should go.
So there you have it. This is how I define the words clean, tidy, organize and declutter. Each one plays an important role in keeping things "clean and tidy". :) Any thoughts?
*This was the missing piece to the puzzle for me. I mentioned in another post about the "aha!" moment when a friend shared this with me and I thought, "how have I never figured this out before?!". It's the reason I love talking about organization so much! And even though organizing in a way is "never ending", you can get to a stage where it becomes about tweaking what you have or setting up new items as you bring them into your house.
A Question
If you read Fade to Grey you may remember me saying that I am very passionate about public school and that I would love to share why sometime. Since then I've been struggling with whether or not I should get into it. If you're a parent, like me you are likely very protective of your children. And the way you raise them (which includes how you educate them) is a very personal thing. We tend to shy away from discussing how we educate our children because it is so very personal! I'm not sure why it is - I just know it's an emotionally charged decision and topic. It's a discussion that people typically don't have unless they're talking with someone they agree with. It's a discussion that if we're not careful could result in heated arguments and hurt feelings. And in some cases people might be hurt even when the topic is approached in love simply because it is such a sensitive topic. (Although I would really like to avoid this!)
Despite all of that, however, I am feeling so compelled to get some sort of discussion going. I have a couple of reasons. It's partly because I think that as believers it's healthy for us to be able to lovingly discuss these types of issues and walk away with the security of knowing we're still family and friends. Personally I don't like the feeling of "I can talk to so and so about just about everything...except that"! I'm also very curious to know whether there are thoughts I haven't considered. All I know is why I believe in public school the thought process (and prayer) that led me to my decision and I'm so interested in knowing the thought process that goes behind choosing Christian schools or homeschooling. I imagine some of you are curious as to why I see things the way I do, too! ;)
I'm convinced that we've all done the same thing. We've looked at the risks involved with each option (public schools/Christian schools/homeschooling) and after weighing them we've chosen the option we feel involves the least amount of risk. And I know we've all wrestled with and made our decision in love.
I would love to do a post outlining the risks I feel are involved with each option and share my heart with you on why I believe in public schools so I can get the discussion started. I would love to hear thoughts and ideas I have missed, I would love to hear what makes you passionate about your decision - even if you are passionate about public school. :) I would begin by setting up some guidelines for how and what we share to keep the tone open and above all loving. My hope is that it will bring us closer together, help us all to be more understanding and maybe even help us all consider things we haven't before!
So what do you think...is there anyone out there who might be interested?
Despite all of that, however, I am feeling so compelled to get some sort of discussion going. I have a couple of reasons. It's partly because I think that as believers it's healthy for us to be able to lovingly discuss these types of issues and walk away with the security of knowing we're still family and friends. Personally I don't like the feeling of "I can talk to so and so about just about everything...except that"! I'm also very curious to know whether there are thoughts I haven't considered. All I know is why I believe in public school the thought process (and prayer) that led me to my decision and I'm so interested in knowing the thought process that goes behind choosing Christian schools or homeschooling. I imagine some of you are curious as to why I see things the way I do, too! ;)
I'm convinced that we've all done the same thing. We've looked at the risks involved with each option (public schools/Christian schools/homeschooling) and after weighing them we've chosen the option we feel involves the least amount of risk. And I know we've all wrestled with and made our decision in love.
I would love to do a post outlining the risks I feel are involved with each option and share my heart with you on why I believe in public schools so I can get the discussion started. I would love to hear thoughts and ideas I have missed, I would love to hear what makes you passionate about your decision - even if you are passionate about public school. :) I would begin by setting up some guidelines for how and what we share to keep the tone open and above all loving. My hope is that it will bring us closer together, help us all to be more understanding and maybe even help us all consider things we haven't before!
So what do you think...is there anyone out there who might be interested?
Sunday, 22 May 2011
Make Me Smile Monday :)
I promised a while back that I was going to start shaking things up a bit on Monday's with some guest posts. I'm so very excited to say that that my beautiful friend Krisjana has written today's Make Me Smile Monday. I met Sjana when I was 17, and it was as though we'd known each other for years. We've been friends ever since. Sjana and her husband Jed just celebrated thier 11 year wedding anniversary a little over a week ago. Sjana and Jed are one of those couples that are just made for each other. Together they have 5 beautiful children. (Be sure to check out Sjana's blog here: http://pitterpatterletsgetatter.blogspot.com/ )
So without further ado...
I’m very honoured to have been asked to participate in a ‘Make Me Smile Monday’. Brenna is one of my very dearest friends, a true Proverbs 27:17 friend to me.
So without further ado...
I’m very honoured to have been asked to participate in a ‘Make Me Smile Monday’. Brenna is one of my very dearest friends, a true Proverbs 27:17 friend to me.
Friday night we were having a party/fire in our backyard
At one point while sitting outside, we felt droplets of rain. Looking up into the sky there were dark grey clouds overhead but coming behind them were the fluffy white ones in a blue sky.
Well, the rain increased and it chased most of us into the house for a few minutes. When it cleared up we headed back out. I heard one of the kids say, “I wonder if there’s a rainbow!” I thought, “It rained for five minutes it’s unlikely we would see a rainbow.
Guess what? Up in the sky in the direction that the rain cloud had come from was a very faint rainbow. Yes, I was surprised. Pleasantly so but still surprised.
I’ve thought about it a bit since and have discovered that what I was lacking was expectation. In my skepticism I could have missed out by failing to even look up.
Children have such great faith and great expectation. If you don’t know this yet, talk to a child someday soon.
They expected to see a rainbow and there was one. I didn’t expect to see it and was surprised.
There it shone.
Reminding me of a promise.
Maybe next time I will have greater expectations, like those of a child.
Because rainbows always make me smile.
Sjana.
Monday, 16 May 2011
Six Weeks - The Results
So my six weeks are up and things didn't go as well as I'd planned. I only managed to lose 3 pounds in these past 6 weeks, which is a far cry from the 8 to 10 I'd been hoping for. BUT I'm not going to see this as a failure (despite my disappointment) because I still went down and that's good. I've lost 19 pounds, so for now I'll just enjoy this accomplishment.
Tomorrow I will begin my Six Week challenge - take two! This time I won't be setting for myself a specific number, but I will focus more heavily and staying under my calorie goal each day and working out 4x a week. And from there I will just have to wait and see what happens!
I will check back in with you on Tuesday, June 28th.
Tomorrow I will begin my Six Week challenge - take two! This time I won't be setting for myself a specific number, but I will focus more heavily and staying under my calorie goal each day and working out 4x a week. And from there I will just have to wait and see what happens!
I will check back in with you on Tuesday, June 28th.
Make Me Smile Monday :)
On friday our youngest of three (and brother to two older sisters) turned 3. At the same time my incredibe sister was giving birth a couple of hours away. So on Saturday Jason and I packed our kids in the van and travelled down to meet baby A and give our congratulations. Jason did the honours of driving two and a half hours both ways through the rain, for which I'm incredibly grateful! ;) Despite the bad driving weather, it was a great trip and I'm glad we all went together. I have to say she's absolutely beautiful! Look at that perfect little baby nose, and those tiny little fingers. I love her already!!!
The picture is a little blurry, because she was resting in an incubator when we went to meet her so they could monitor her breathing. She was born very quickly and that didn't give her quite enough time to clear her lungs and as a result her breathing was quicker than they would have liked. By the time we saw her late Saturday afternoon her breathing was almost where they wanted it and for that I'm thanking God! Here she is...my beautiful little niece!!!
The picture is a little blurry, because she was resting in an incubator when we went to meet her so they could monitor her breathing. She was born very quickly and that didn't give her quite enough time to clear her lungs and as a result her breathing was quicker than they would have liked. By the time we saw her late Saturday afternoon her breathing was almost where they wanted it and for that I'm thanking God! Here she is...my beautiful little niece!!!
Monday, 9 May 2011
Make Me Smile Monday :)
When I was a little girl I thought my mom was Snow White. Well, I didn't really, but I thought she looked just like her. With her black hair, fair complexion and hazel eyes she was my very own Snow White and just as any little girl would be I was very proud to have "Snow White" for my mother. :)
My mom taught me how to cook and bake from a young age. She taught me to clean, embroider and cross-stitch. She taught me to be compassionate towards the "underdog", that even though not everyone knows it we're all equal in God's eyes. She taught me that when the time came to marry I should choose a man who genuinely shared my faith, who treated his mother and sister(s) with respect. She taught me to watch out for watch for certain warning signs (substance abuse problems, anger problems, problems holding a job, being irresponsible with money etc.). In my little girl heart and mind she was perfect!
The interesting thing about growing from a child into a woman myself is that while it did mean discovering that she is in fact human I also discovered strengths of hers that as a child I couldn't fully appreciate in the same way.
 |
| My mom. She's so beautiful! You can see why I thought she was Snow White! :) |
If I had to choose just one word to describe my mom it would be advocate. My mom's an RPN and works with the elderly, and has for years. She cares for them with great compassion and respect. It's not about the fact that she is a nurse, although that is great it's about how she's a nurse. She makes an effort to get to know each of them as people and in doing so I know she adds a little sunshine to their day. I've seen her in action first hand. When we were kids, every once in a while she would take my brother, sister and I over to the nursing home so we could meet the residents and we got to know quite a few of the residents living there. I knew even then she was bringing us because she valued them so much and she always told us how seeing children could brighten the day of the sick and the elderly. Then when I was 12 years old my mom encouraged me to begin volunteering as a "tea girl" at the nursing home where she worked. I went every Saturday for about an hour and a half and I would take the tea cart from room to room offering a drink and a bedtime snack. I volunteered there until we moved a few years later. After high school I got a job working as a Nurse's Aide there and got to see my mom in action in an even greater capacity. She was always incredibly kind and patient with the residents. She knew who they were. She made conversation. She would joke with them and make them laugh. And all because she cared not out of a sense of obligation. The residents knew and loved my mom back because they knew she cared.
In more recent years I've been amazed to discover how incredibly deep this compassion goes. It's a part of who she is. I don't even know if I can do it justice in explaining the heart she has for the residents and her nursing peers, but I'll try.
First and foremost her heart is for the residents. She'll speak on their behalf if she feels their care is being compromised. She'll intervene for them is she feels something is being overlooked. She will lovingly fight for them if their not getting the respect they deserve. She knows first hand how the care of the residents is connected directly to the nurses. So she lends her voice to management on their behalf, letting them in on the struggles that are just naturally a part of being a nurse on the floor.
I think that this compassionate heart of hers is God-given. That God has placed her in different places to be there for people when they had no one else to be there for them.
My prayer for you this Mother's Day mom (and always) is that you would "have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is" and that this understanding would be what gives you the strength to love the people God places in your life with that God-given compassion that fills up your heart!
I love you mom and I'm so grateful for the many incredible things you've taught me. Thank-you for nurturing me and helping to make me the woman I am today. The woman I'm becoming.
Wednesday, 4 May 2011
Stained Glass Windows
Recently I was visting another church building for a service. The building had a different style then ours and I enjoyed looking around and noticing the differences in the building itself. It had solid wooden pews. Our building sports wooden pews as well but with cushioned seats. There was a theatre style floor while ours is flat. There was a large space in the front where a very large choir could gather and a piano, but at our church we have room carved out for a full set of drums instead. There was a balcony, which we don't have. And their super high ceiling came more to a point at the top while ours is flatter and not quite as high. It was a beautiful room really. What really captured my attention though, were the colourful and intricately designed stained glassed windows.
It was just one of those moments. I was sitting in this beautiful room looking up at these windows when it struck me how very ironic it is to have stained glass windows in a church.
Stained glass windows have a rather clear purpose. They are made simply to be beautiful. (And sometimes they tell a story.) And even though you can admire their beauty from outside you can't fully appreciate the beauty from the outside. They're designed to have light shine through them. And you have to sit inside the building to be able to admire their sparkle and shine as sun light comes pouring in reflecting the colours of the rainbow. You can see little pools of colour splashed on the floors and the walls of the room. As the sun moves though the sky so does the direction of the beautiful colours. It's the light of the sun that gives them a deeper kind of beauty. But we can only really see it from the inside. So I suppose, the purpose of the stained glass window is having something beautiful to look at only for those who are...on the inside.
But what about the beauty of what God has done through Jesus Christ? The Bible says, "God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for us." In Him all of creation has been redeemed. All of creation! Which includes every person. Everywhere. No matter what they believe, where they live or how they've been hurt. No matter how angry they are at God, what their religious beliefs, if they choose to deny His existence, or change their idea of who He is to suit their own taste. They may not be for Jesus, but Jesus is for them. And that is a beautiful truth!
So even though I can appreciate the beauty of a stained glass window, and I recognize the hours of time, the planning and the care that went into making them - I don't want to be a stained glass window. If I were a stained glass window, I would simply be living life, letting His light shine into my life so I can enjoy the "colours of the rainbow" all to myself. I would hide behind walls I've built for myself, walls built by the world I live in and and I would never share this beauty with others.
My prayer for me - and for the church - is that we determine not to be stained glass windows hogging the beauty of the sun all for ourselves, but that we would choose to embark a journey. A journey that involves getting out from behind the walls we've been containing ourselves in (and unfortunately sometimes our God) and begin to discover how we can share this infinite, eternal, all-embracing beauty everywhere we go. And that we would in fact be willing to "go"!
It was just one of those moments. I was sitting in this beautiful room looking up at these windows when it struck me how very ironic it is to have stained glass windows in a church.
Stained glass windows have a rather clear purpose. They are made simply to be beautiful. (And sometimes they tell a story.) And even though you can admire their beauty from outside you can't fully appreciate the beauty from the outside. They're designed to have light shine through them. And you have to sit inside the building to be able to admire their sparkle and shine as sun light comes pouring in reflecting the colours of the rainbow. You can see little pools of colour splashed on the floors and the walls of the room. As the sun moves though the sky so does the direction of the beautiful colours. It's the light of the sun that gives them a deeper kind of beauty. But we can only really see it from the inside. So I suppose, the purpose of the stained glass window is having something beautiful to look at only for those who are...on the inside.
But what about the beauty of what God has done through Jesus Christ? The Bible says, "God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One) died for us." In Him all of creation has been redeemed. All of creation! Which includes every person. Everywhere. No matter what they believe, where they live or how they've been hurt. No matter how angry they are at God, what their religious beliefs, if they choose to deny His existence, or change their idea of who He is to suit their own taste. They may not be for Jesus, but Jesus is for them. And that is a beautiful truth!
So even though I can appreciate the beauty of a stained glass window, and I recognize the hours of time, the planning and the care that went into making them - I don't want to be a stained glass window. If I were a stained glass window, I would simply be living life, letting His light shine into my life so I can enjoy the "colours of the rainbow" all to myself. I would hide behind walls I've built for myself, walls built by the world I live in and and I would never share this beauty with others.
My prayer for me - and for the church - is that we determine not to be stained glass windows hogging the beauty of the sun all for ourselves, but that we would choose to embark a journey. A journey that involves getting out from behind the walls we've been containing ourselves in (and unfortunately sometimes our God) and begin to discover how we can share this infinite, eternal, all-embracing beauty everywhere we go. And that we would in fact be willing to "go"!
Monday, 2 May 2011
Make Me Smile Monday :)
So, Jason has been playing some Star Wars Lego on his X-Box lately. Are you familiar with this game?
This game to me is rather family friendly. None of the kids play it, but I don't mind if they watch while he plays. Watching Jason play Star Wars Lego sometimes wins out over watching a movie* and as a result the kids have learned a bit about the "Star Wars Universe". The other day Jason was leaving to go pick R from a birthday party and as he was putting on his rain jacket (a dark blue jacket from Old Navy) he was playfully telling S he thought his jacket looked like a Jedi coat., which S thought was just great. I didn't realize how great until this morning when we were all leaving the house (I was heading to the school and Jason was leaving for work) when S enthusiatically said to all of us getting into the van, "Daddy's wearing his Jedi coat!" It was one of those moments when it's so hard for me not to laugh as a parent when R looked over at her older sister and said in complete sincerety and even a little bit of surprise asking, "Where did daddy get a Jedi coat?"
*Watching daddy play his video game gets treated like watching a movie. Typically they watch no more than 3 shorter movies during the week and we often have a family movie night each week when Jason and I sit down to watch a full length movie together with the them. They actually don't watch any TV, unless it's sports with dad! :)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)