grab another cup: June 2011

Monday, June 27, 2011

a story of faith.

i heard a story yesterday which hit home for me. i have not experienced anything remotely close to what happened to this young woman, but i can learn from her experience and i think that's why god gives us stories; they are meant to be shared.

sunday morning at church, our congregation sang these words:

no guilt in life, no fear in death
this is the power of christ in me
from life's first cry to final breath
jesus commands my destiny

i'll be honest with you; i sang these words half-heartedly. maybe because i was distracted in thought, maybe because they are almost too familiar. but then some friends and i grabbed lunch and janelle, a labor and delivery nurse, told us that she lost it and started crying during that song, because she had been having a hard time dealing with losses at work and questioning why some people never get their first breath. she told us a story of a woman who went into labor prematurely and the baby was stillborn. the mom gave janelle a blanket she had knitted and asked her to keep it with the child, and said that all of their tears and prayers were in that blanket. the mom held her lifeless child to her chest and kept repeating these powerful words: "everything's a blessing. everything's a blessing."

i am blown away by the faith of this woman i have never met. my struggles are trivial in comparison to what has happened to her, and yet she has more clarity into god's promise for her.

i don't really have any grand conclusion for this post. i just felt i needed to pass this story along. i know there are others out there who need to hear it just as much as i did.

Friday, June 24, 2011

friday photos: 2011.25

friday, june 17

random picture of our living room

saturday, june 18

brooke waggoner rocking musician's corner

sunday, june 19

writer's round with nick, stacy and some other guys.

monday, june 20

first summer in six years with air conditioning in my car. hallelujah!

tuesday, june 21

lydia brought over some pretty flowers from the shop.

wednesday, june 22

jenny went to colorado and brought me back this paper. win.

thursday, june 23

sick day = majority of my day spent in bed. womp womp.

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

wednesday wisdom #17

josh garrels recently released a new album titled "love & war & the sea in between". the whole album is absolutely gorgeous, and available for free on his website.

for this edition of "wednesday wisdom", i'm using his song, "night owl"

when the night comes,
and you don't know which way to go
through the shadowlands,
and forgotten paths,
you will find a road

like an owl you must fly by moonlight with an open eye,
and use your instinct as your guide,
to navigate the ways that lay before you,
you were born to take the greatest flight

like a serpent and a dove, you will have wisdom born of love
and carry visions from above into the places no man dares to follow
every hollow in the dark of night
waiting for the light
take the flame tonight

child the time has come for you to go
you will never be alone
every dream that you have been shown
will be like living stone
building you into a home
a shelter from the storm

like a messenger of peace, the beauty waits to be released
upon the sacred path you keep, leading deeper into the unveiling
as your're sailing
across the great divide

like a wolf at midnight howls, you use your voice in darkest hours
to break the silence and the power, holding back the others from their glory
every story will be written soon
the blood is on the moon
morning will come soon

child the time has come for you to go
you will never be alone
every dream that you have been shown
will be like living stone
building you into a home
a shelter from the storm

Tuesday, June 21, 2011

the simple truth

sometimes i feel as though the lessons i'm being taught aren't new lessons, but rather the same one over and over. it all boils down to one simple truth: he is all i need. at the root of anger is fear, and the root of fear is sin, and the root of sin, idolatry. and it all goes back to the original sin: eve wanted to be like god, and so she ate the forbidden fruit. i am no different.

Friday, June 17, 2011

friday photos: 2011.24

friday, june 10

in this picture, 2-year old rachel is telling me the story of what her mommy did when there was a cicada in the car. "mama said, 'ahh! cicada bee in my car!' then she squished it."

saturday, june 11

birds.

sunday, june 12

the summer of 2005 was easily my most defining moment. everything about that time has since been symbolized in this mug. today it slipped out of my hands and broke on the kitchen's hardwood floor. this all happened in the presence of a friend who played a huge role in that summer, and from whom i purchased the mug. there was definitely a moment of silence as we both recognized that this is more than just a coffee mug.

monday, june 13