by Melody Paris

​Why can’t I learn from my mistakes? Why do I insist on doing the same stupid things? Why does God keep loving on me when I can’t seem to get past my “evil deeds”

This year has been rough on me. I describe my circumstances as chaotic and myself as stuck. Just about every aspect of my life has changed, from home to family to job to much more. Yet, I seem to be standing still in the midst of my chaos. A friend suggested that this was a time of growth, that God was using this as an opportunity to draw me closer. The problem with that plan is me. I continually find myself choosing avoidance. The distractions around me (TV, books, friends, internet, social networking) are getting plenty of my attention. Actually, they get most of my attention outside of work or family obligations. Where is there room for God?

These are mistakes I thought I’d learned from years ago. Yet, when life became harrowing, instead of turning to God, I turned to distraction. I continue in my distracted deeds instead of facing and dealing with my life and embracing God. Once again, I find myself making the same mistakes over and over again. When does the cycle end?

It is in my frailty and weakness where God’s true essence can be seen. He loves, encourages and embraces me despite my sin. I feel His presence even now hoping that I’ll respond today. Maybe one day I will once and for all let Him break my repetitive chains. Maybe today I’ll open up and feel embraced by His grace, because I am loved, I am redeemed and I have been forgiven.
​
What are you struggling with that you keep repeating over and over again? Have you asked God to help you let it go? Are you trusting Him to be the one to break your repetitive chains? I encourage you to learn from my mistakes and let Him step into your struggles. Believe that any true and lasting change in our lives must first come from the changes He makes in our hearts.

by Linda Sant

​“Owning our story can be hard but not nearly as difficult as spending our lives running from it. Embracing our vulnerabilities is risky but not nearly as dangerous as giving up on love and belonging and joy—the experiences that make us the most vulnerable. Only when we are brave enough to explore the darkness will we discover the infinite power of our Light.
We cultivate love when we allow our most vulnerable and powerful selves to be deeply seen and known, and when we honor the spiritual connection that grows from that offering with trust, respect, kindness and affection.

Love is not something we give or get; it is something that we nurture and grow, a connection that can only be cultivated between two people when it exists within each one of them – we can only love others as much as we love ourselves.” 
--Brene´Brown

Oh, how hard it is when I dare to consider the risk of owning my own story. Stories of enormous rejection. Receiving bitter responses from a parent when I was asking for love, or discovering the betrayal from a best friend, when I longed for a safe place, just to name a few. I feel as if I’m reliving the scenes every time I recall them—making it all the more challenging to risk further rejection when sharing them. 

But, I’m committed to pressing in. Because, like Brene, I can tolerate a great deal less the alternatives. There are dangers with giving up. Indeed, a life of self-protection results in losing out. I am at risk of living a life alone—without a single real connection. And One, my friend, truly is the loneliest number!  
​
I’d like to encourage you to join me in the quest for the living bravely. I dare you to be vulnerable. Step out of your comfort zone and commit to nurture and grow. Embrace your story within, and discover what’s waiting—with the infinite power of our Light—Jesus!  

Rick Snodgrass
 
Sometimes I think I know stuff. And sometimes I think I’m entitled to know…even what needs to be left in God’s protective custody. Sometimes I think I know stuff…I even know that He knows that I don’t even know what I don’t know, but I forget. Then, I look at some of the 77 questions—kind, funny, in-your-face, thought provoking questions—that God asks Job, when Job thought he knew stuff. Questions that remind Job, and me, that He is God and I am not.
 
Here is a taste…
 
The ostrich flaps her wings grandly
…but they are no match for the feathers of the stork.
 
Are you as strong as God?
 
Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
 
Who kept the sea inside its boundaries?
 
Have you ever commanded the morning to appear
and caused the dawn to rise in the east?
 
Have you explored the springs from which the seas come?
 
Have you explored their depths?


Do you know where the gates of death are located?


Have you seen the gates of utter gloom?


Do you realize the extent of the earth?
Tell me about it if you know!
 
“Do you still want to argue with the Almighty?
    You are God’s critic, but do you have the answers?”
 
…do yourself a favor—read the rest.