Thriving...in Spite of It

As I sat and drew twining roses around the page this morning, thinking about this verse, I began to see a very definite connection—a path, if you will—between the things I do, the things I actually want to do, and the things I want.  Oh, how I would love to have a rose garden! But unless I invest the time and energy to plant the three rose bushes sitting in the garage, that will never begin to happen. Most of fruitful, worthwhile outcomes we enjoy don’t happen overnight. And they don’t happen on their own. As good and generous as God is, he wants us to invest effort alongside our faith toward the goals and dreams we long for. He wants us to ask, believing he can help us do it, and keep asking until it happens. He wants us to seek, with all our hearts, comparing our desires to his until the two align. He wants us to knock, persistently and deliberately, putting our own hands to work toward getting that door of opportunity to open.  If you’re believing for something today, put ...

If you've ever visited my home, driving up, you'll see piles of lush green foliage with splashes of color huddled in their respective flower beds on both sides of the front door. Lovely from the curb, but when you step closer, you'll easily see the disarray....much like a Renoir ... Aren't we all, really? We hope things look perfect from the outside, and do everything in our power with concealer, color, and shape-wear to make us look that way, but without God's mercy and grace, we could never have any hope of being what we intend to be. I'm picking on my hodgepodge garden for a reason.  It brings to mind three specific situations in our lives---conditions, really---that are calling for our attention...like that 6:00 AM songbird outside the window on Saturday morning. We can roll over, put a pillow over our head, and shut it out, or we can acknowledge the miraculous truth and beauty wrapped up in its notes... 1) What did you plant? Springing up between t...

If you are like me, you're plunging into the week today like an 18th century firefighter, a full bucket in each hand, running full speed ahead, using every ounce of strength, concentration and determination you can muster to keep from sloshing out any of the precious contents, or, worse yet, tripping and toppling, losing them all. One bucket is full of obligations -- the other, your passion, your mission, and the desires of your heart. Both are filled to the brim, heaving under the insufficient handles of good intentions -- handles that creak, slip, and blister your hands as you fight their heavy sway to hold them tightly. How can you possibly chase your dreams in such a precarious, painful state? Jesus made it a point to tell us to cast our cares on Him, because He cares for us. We do it, alright, but then we pick them up again. God pleads with us to find rest in Him, and we say, OK, just for a moment...you sit down, carefully easing your buckets to the floor. You look around ...