tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-52576059804565706972024-03-14T00:38:03.350-07:00Flatirons Women's CommunityLara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.comBlogger181125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-21438869858009800072018-09-12T03:30:00.000-07:002018-09-20T06:26:09.838-07:00Change is in the Air<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H7o6BVe5uwg/W5PrWd8KFjI/AAAAAAAABX0/ivC0tsV_kVAYmN3bnwR8MEfuWwY-9zaogCLcBGAs/s1600/matt-bowden-515724-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1199" data-original-width="1600" height="478" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-H7o6BVe5uwg/W5PrWd8KFjI/AAAAAAAABX0/ivC0tsV_kVAYmN3bnwR8MEfuWwY-9zaogCLcBGAs/s640/matt-bowden-515724-unsplash.jpg" title="Trust, Change, small groups, Flatirons Women, Flatirons Church" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.talkingtojesus.com/" target="_blank">By Jeannie Blackmer</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"> <i> “Then the LORD said to me, ‘You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north.’” - </i>Deuteronomy 2:2-3<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Change is never easy. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I’ve been experiencing significant changes in my life the past few years. It’s been a roller coaster ride ranging from a delight-filled journey to a difficult grind. I’ve had my ups and downs, experienced thrills and monotony and hope and discouragement. You know what I mean, right? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><br /></span><span style="font-family: "arial";">One thing that is certain in life is we constantly experience change. </span></h4>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Sometimes change feels like an assault, something we didn’t choose but have to deal with. Other times we create the change because we know we’re stuck and we want to move forward. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">My husband and I chose to shake up our lives with choices we felt God was leading us to make. We had too much chaos, stress, and conflict. We knew we needed to simplify and focus on what matters most—relationships. Relationship with God and others. So, we sold our home, made career changes, launched our last child into the world, joined a small couples group from our church and had a few necessary surgeries. During this season we traveled and spent more time together and with friends. It’s been an adventure filled ride with both thrills and monotony. It hasn’t been easy but it’s been worth it. In fact, t</span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">hese p</span><span style="font-family: "arial";">ast few years have stretched me, sometimes painfully. But, ultimately for my good and growth.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial";">That initial decision, a few years ago, to let go of the life we had, has caused me to trust God in a much more tangible way. Bolstered in my faith with this experience, I'm feeling confident God is directing my path. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Now, I find myself asking, “What’s next?” Not with as much fear, as I used to feel when life was uncertain, but more with excitement and joyful anticipation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I recently read this verse, “Then the LORD said to me, ‘You have made your way around this hill country long enough; now turn north.’” <i>Deuteronomy 2:2-3<o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">You probably know the story about God miraculously freeing the Israelites from the tyranny of slavery in Egypt. Then, they wandered through the desert for 40 years because of their refusal to trust God fully with their lives. After 40 years of desert-wandering, God told Moses it was time to stop and enter the Promised Land. BUT…before going forward, Moses wanted to remind them of how God had taken care of them in the desert and reminded them of a specific time they had wandered around the same mountain for far too long. Then God directed them to “turn north.” This pivotal moment eventually led them to their land of milk and honey. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">From reading this I believe God is asking me to consider where I now need to “turn north” in my life. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I don’t have to have my future all figured out because God already does. </span></h4>
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial";">I just need to make a necessary "turn", or change, to go in the direction God is continually leading me. </span><span style="font-family: "arial";">I don’t know exactly the answer yet, but I do wonder if I'll end up somewhere doing something I never would have expected. And I'm hopeful my destination will be much better than I imagined. I'm certain I'll experience more change, and this ride called "life" will be anything but boring as I follow the directions God gives me. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">⁕ How about you? Where is God telling you to “turn north?” (Think about where you feel stuck or aimless in your life.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">⁕ What “turn” or specific change can you make to get you back on track with God’s direction and desire for your life?</span><span style="font-family: "arial";"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span class="" style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span class=""><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;">Speaking of change, Flatirons Community Church has decided to discontinue the Flatirons Women's Blog in its current format. We are truly thankful for all of you who faithfully read and share the content we've created here. </span></span></span><span class="" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class=""><span style="font-style: italic;">Please keep an eye out for future content from our writers on the new </span></span></span><i class="" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span class=""><span class="" style="color: #0563c1;"><a class="" href="http://flatironschurch.com/resources/" style="color: purple;">Flatirons Resources</a></span></span></i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-style: italic;"> page. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-style: italic;">May you continue to grow in your relationship with Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><br /></span> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oqHNlAK8lHI/WUvwBh1P7BI/AAAAAAAAAn8/31LippzEkfgFZgRCoDb7dHV2rGkuOOudACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Jeannie%2527s%2Bphoto.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="511" data-original-width="750" height="136" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oqHNlAK8lHI/WUvwBh1P7BI/AAAAAAAAAn8/31LippzEkfgFZgRCoDb7dHV2rGkuOOudACPcBGAYYCw/s200/Jeannie%2527s%2Bphoto.jpeg" width="200" /></a><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">Jeannie Blackmer is excited about her newest book, <i>Talking to Jesus: A Fresh Perspective on Prayer</i>, and hopes this book will ignite a desire for a deeper, more intimate prayer life for readers and help others see how relevant the Bible is today. She lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband, Zane, and their three sons. For more information visit </span><a href="http://www.talkingtojesus.com/" style="font-family: times; font-size: small;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial";">www.talkingtojesus.com</span></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">. </span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-21937573801180759682018-08-29T03:30:00.000-07:002018-08-29T03:30:04.753-07:00Is Your Fear Keeping You Isolated?<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tKnSldGOXP0/W3b1DvMxUDI/AAAAAAAABWs/GcEN0Djlz4IYh6uDWtcnUPToo2wv-oVEQCLcBGAs/s1600/aricka-lewis-208108-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1063" data-original-width="1600" height="424" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-tKnSldGOXP0/W3b1DvMxUDI/AAAAAAAABWs/GcEN0Djlz4IYh6uDWtcnUPToo2wv-oVEQCLcBGAs/s640/aricka-lewis-208108-unsplash.jpg" title="community, connection, small group, friends, friendship, lonely, afraid, Christian Women, Flatirons women, Flatiorns church" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">By Emily Donehoo</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A week ago, there was a snake in my garage. It was a big snake. It wasn’t like anaconda-sized or anything, but it was ew-ew-ew-ew-get-out-of-my-garage-sized. It wasn’t venomous, but it was gross. I know. Bull snakes are harmless, blah blah blah…</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">I still don’t want it in my garage. I don’t want to be surprised by it anywhere, and I really don’t want it to slither into my house. Most of all, I don’t want to carry around the fear that the snake is in my house/garage/basement/yard/car.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Because every time I go in the garage now, I am afraid I’m going to step on that snake. I’m afraid it’s going to slither over my feet. I’m afraid it’s going to wrap itself around something on the bottom of my car and slither in through the air vents like what happened to that one lady in Virginia. (</span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/local/wp/2018/06/06/snake-slithers-out-of-cars-air-vent-as-virginia-woman-is-driving/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.0669facb9e65" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/local/wp/2018/06/06/snake-slithers-out-of-cars-air-vent-as-virginia-woman-is-driving/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.0669facb9e65</span></a><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">) </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m afraid the snake is going to get in through the doggie door or through the back door when my kids leave it wide open again. I’m afraid I’m going to walk through the dark house at night on my way to the bathroom and step on it. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m afraid. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">*****</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">About six years ago, I made a super terrific awesome bestie best friend. We have always happened upon the same stages of life at almost exactly the same time. We share struggles. We share failures. We celebrate together. We bounce ideas off of each other. We call each other freaking out about whatever big life thing has us freaking out. When I’m alone and afraid and isolated for a while, I call her or go over to her house, and within minutes, she has encouraged and reminded me of who God says I am. She has been such a gift to me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She is moving across the country in two weeks, and I am heartbroken. I am hurt. I am lonely, and I am afraid of what this life is going to look like without her living in the next town over.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m also over-the-moon excited for her because she has wanted this move for a long time. She is so ready for this move. I can’t wait to hear about her new adventures and new friends. I can’t wait to see her big beautiful smile on the beach with her kids. I am so thrilled that she is doing this thing she’s dreamt of for so long. I am weeping and rejoicing over the same solitary action. (Mamas who have sent/are sending your kids off to college know this feeling all too well, I’m sure.)</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">*****</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What’s your point, Em? You’re talking about snakes and friends moving and fear, hurt, and rejoicing… Why are you telling us this?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m telling you this because Flatirons is starting this Groups thing where we sign up to hang out with people we don’t know once a week for 12 weeks. And people are scary. Going into a stranger’s home for the first time is terrifying. Signing up to commit to hanging out with people I don’t know for 12 weeks is… uncomfortable. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Thinking about signing up for a group for weeks and weeks is a lot like walking into your garage and wondering if a snake is in there.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Knowing the pain of a friend leaving you behind is a very real deterrent for putting yourself out there again.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">What happens if I show up to these groups and take out the trash that clutters up my head? What happens if I’m vulnerable and open myself up and care about the lives of other people? What happens if I listen and someone listens to me? What happens if my feelings get validated and I learn more about Jesus? What happens if I show up?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might make friends?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might become less selfish?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might learn how to love and serve without being bitter?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might grow and learn?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might be more like Jesus? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might learn that other people care about me?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might become a part of something bigger than my own wants and desires?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I might be better able to love God and others well?</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But what if I get hurt, rejected, judged, criticized? </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Well, the staff has prepared leaders to do their best to make these groups safe, welcoming places, but… there will be other humans who have lived on this planet making mistakes and getting hurt for years in these groups, so… you might get hurt. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But there’s probably not a snake in your garage. </span></span><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">So, go ahead and <a href="http://flatironschurch.com/groups/" target="_blank">sign up here </a>for a group. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span> <span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span> <a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dpwXpylxaIw/WBkJfPjBcXI/AAAAAAAAAOc/Of3F7xmcU9A8BT3nbChY3G776MCi6rbogCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="693" data-original-width="512" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dpwXpylxaIw/WBkJfPjBcXI/AAAAAAAAAOc/Of3F7xmcU9A8BT3nbChY3G776MCi6rbogCPcBGAYYCw/s200/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" width="147" /></a><span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" style="font-size: small; white-space: normal;" target="_blank">Emily Donehoo i</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small; white-space: normal;">s the only female in a family of five. She is a former High School English Teacher and National Trainer for the College Board. These days, when she isn’t scrubbing toilets, administering timeouts, working at book fairs, attempting to tackle dinner, laundry, homework help, dishes, and a preschooler’s incessant questions, she writes authentically about the hard stuff that really matters, hoping to uncover the truth that God has for us whether it makes us cry from laughter, pain or both at the same time.</span></span></span> <span style="font-size: 11pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-38550133169302356072018-08-22T03:30:00.000-07:002018-08-22T05:05:41.058-07:00We're Not Meant to Live Life Alone<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/groups/" target="_blank">By Lara Veve</a></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I have spent significant portions of my life trying to be perfect. The perfect daughter, the perfect friend, mom, sister, wife, employee… I mean, I really do want to please everyone and be everything to all the people I love, even those I don’t know. It is a pressure I put on myself. I’ve try to to keep all of the plates spinning and protect the perception I have it all together. I’ve been careful not to show weakness, sadness, pain, or fear. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">What I’ve realized is it sometimes takes a tragedy, trauma or devastating circumstances to bring us to our knees and cry out for help. This is my story. It took my marriage being rocked to the very core for me to finally let go of my “perfect” self and allow God to begin to heal my heart and life. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I have spent the past six years trying to find my real self, and be vulnerable and transparent in my marriage and my relationships. Trust me, it has been a process learning to trust others again with my heart, my story, and my being. It has taken intentional action steps along the way. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Some ask me, “Why and how were you so quick to forgive and move forward?” Well ladies, I want freedom and joy and I know bitterness only holds me back and I don’t have time for that! Also, I am a mom with two daughters and a son and I am their example. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">How did I move forward? First and foremost, I kept my eyes fixed on Jesus and accepted the precious gift of grace. A definite second to moving forward for me is the groups of women I am a part of who have linked arms with me and have said, “God sees you. We see you. You are loved and valuable.” <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Being fully known and knowing others is truly beautiful. It is often messy and hard, but within that depth of friendship, exists freedom and joy. These women speak truth in my life, even when I don’t want to hear it. They love me, cry with me and celebrate with me. They know me. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">I know it’s scary to share your real self and your story with others and this can be met with rejection, but for the past six years I’ve learned that doing real life with others allows me to become more like Jesus. The risk was worth it. And, if I am looking to Jesus as my example of how to do life, I see that Jesus did life with other people. He had 12 of his best friends who did life with him every day for three years. In fact, God has modeled this from the very beginning of time.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">(John 1:1-4)<br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span style="color: #444444;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Then, God made Adam and declared, <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">"It is not good for the man to be alone.”</span> </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">So even before the fall of man, God still chose to create a partner for Adam. (Genesis 2:18)</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Fast forward to the life of Jesus. <b>“</b>As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. “Come, follow me," Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” At once they left their nets and followed him.” (Matthew 4:18-22) <b> </b><br style="mso-special-character: line-break;" />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Then, we see how the first church model groups. <span style="mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer…All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they shared with anyone who was in need…. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.”</span> So, we see the first church learn and take in the Words of Jesus (the Apostle’s Teaching) in rows, just like our weekend experience in church, and then see growth, change, and connection happen in smaller circles (in houses, around tables) taking place outside of the weekend experience in every day life. (Acts 2:42-47)<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">So, if God has written the importance of groups into this world since the beginning of time, I think they MAY be an important tool for us to become more like him and to experience the abundant life he longs for us to live. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">Take a chance! Link arms with some other people. Help create a safe haven, a place to be vulnerable, a place of TRUTH and GRACE, so you can become more like Jesus with others desiring to do the same. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;">I’m still learning how to not pursue perfection but instead pursue authentic relationships, and have found that pursuit is so much more fulfilling.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #444444;"><i>*Some of the Open Groups will be present in the lobby at the Lafayette campus 8/25 and 8/26 after each service. Stop by to talk with the Leaders. Group Registration will be available online until September 10<sup>th.</sup></i></span><o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-scWbmX1ovNI/WG6BMMqO8rI/AAAAAAAAAYo/sWVnqhMfR20Y3Javxul2ZVS_KIC71gxVACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/FCC_Staff_66_of_114-300x300.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-scWbmX1ovNI/WG6BMMqO8rI/AAAAAAAAAYo/sWVnqhMfR20Y3Javxul2ZVS_KIC71gxVACPcBGAYYCw/s200/FCC_Staff_66_of_114-300x300.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #444444;"><sup><br /></sup></span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt;"><span style="color: #444444;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/staff-member/lara-veve/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" target="_blank">Lara </a><span style="color: black; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">is the Women’s Ministry Director at Flatirons Community Church. Lara and her husband Eric have been married for 17 years and they are parents to three teenagers. As you can imagine life is busy at the Veve household, but they embrace the beautiful chaos of life during this season.</span></span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-62567379613182257042018-08-15T03:30:00.000-07:002018-08-15T03:30:02.921-07:00Getting Back Into Friendships<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">By Rebecca Barnes</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don’t like many people. <span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s really bringing down my social life.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think I’ve met too many people that are horrible and now I’m afraid of new people. I’m afraid of people I already know, too. I worry they don’t understand that I cannot possibly listen to their problems—big or small. I’m a crust of a person, who is still recovering from raising a traumatized child (and other heavy stuff). So I’m equally terrified people will submerge me in their heaviness or enrage me with their petty thoughts.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So you can see how this is an issue—particularly now that the pressure is on for me to join a small group to further my way following Jesus. Flatirons wants all of us to get involved in a group.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But I am wary of awkward conversations. I’m terrified of angry people. I’m on the defensive against outspoken opinions. And I’m leery of weirdos.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And there are other things: I resent people who don’t show up, because I work so hard to show up. I resent people who show up fake, or out of control (drunk, emotional, loud, grumpy, overly optimistic) because I work so hard to hold it together. I resent people who suck the life out of me with their drama. These people don’t seem to realize how bad life can actually be and what a waste of time it is to spend it complaining.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All of this is madness. I realize that. I know that even if I can’t live with people, I also can’t live without them. And connecting with people brings joy. And while people can bring pain, so can loneliness. So, riding along with all this madness is the idea of good friends. These are the people who make me feel like I belong on this planet.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But I’ve been doing without good friends for a long, dry season. It’s been a hard season too—which is sometimes the way things work. Tragedy strikes and most people back away, or I push them away with the fear that they won’t understand what’s going on with me. I try to back away from my own tragedy as well. I do that by turning inward.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s like the time I was shoved inside a locker in eighth grade. I needed someone to let me out. But at the same time it was embarrassing to be in there. And it was difficult to shout for help while I was sobbing.<span style="color: red;"></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the thick of things around our house with our difficult kiddo it was hard to plan to be with people. It was challenging to schedule book club in between therapy sessions, court dates, and hospital visits. And even when I managed to show up to social gatherings, it was impossible to relate to women complaining about botched coffee orders.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">So loneliness heaped on top of tragedy and trauma.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But now, things have shifted. Our trauma is moving behind us and in a post-apocalypse moment, I’m shuffling away from the smoldering wreckage and beginning to lift my dirty head and wonder if maybe I could make friends again.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’ve met tolerable humans before. So I know that most of my ideas about how awful people are, are really my problems. I have to get over that. I have to turn outward. I have to start shouting, now that my tears have stopped rolling. I have to find somebody who will let me out of this locker. I need to let go of the shame that surrounds the tragedies I’ve dealt with, and forgive others and myself in order to move on. Sometimes I need to be alone to heal, but maybe it’s time to open myself up to others knowing I can’t control their reactions or judgments, or even my own sometimes.<span style="color: red;"> </span>Then I have to find some people I can hang with and get to know. I have to find people who seem safe enough to tell my stories to. I have to find people whose stories I can hear.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You've heard us say, "we learn in rows and grow in circles." Help us kick-off this brand new season here at Lafayette and all our campuses. I</span></span></span></i></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">f you missed the group sign up event in the backyard of the District in Lafayette last Sunday, that's okay because </span></span></span></i></span><i style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">August 18/19 and August 25/26, we will have a opportunities to meet leaders and sign up in the Lobby with the groups that are not quite full after each service. Or click <a href="http://flatironschurch.com/groups/" target="_blank">here!</a></span></span></span></i></div>
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<i><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/contact-us/" target="_blank">Rebecca Barnes </a>is married to an amazing man, who encourages her faith and listens to her typing a lot. She has three daughters and a son-in-law. She loves to cook for anyone who likes good food, and she feels competitive about weeding her flower garden. She lives in Old Town Lafayette because it’s a little eclectic, like her.</i></div>
Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-36997815241500227122018-08-08T03:30:00.000-07:002018-08-08T09:50:08.013-07:00The Cost of Following Jesus<div class="MsoNormal">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">I’ll probably lose a toenail by the end of summer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Occasionally, I work up the courage to look closely at my toe. It's not looking good. My husband and I went backpacking and summited a fourteener near Telluride over the Fourth of July. It was an intense three-day trip and, each day, I waffled between exhaustion and joy—except for the descent from the peak. That I was clear on, I hated it. My mind was tired from navigating the technicality of the peak; my hip was aggravated from the uneven terrain, and my knees! My poor knees! But all those aches paled in comparison to the throbbing in my toe. I winced with every step as I scrambled down rocks and scree, certain that toe would be a mess.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Sure enough, when we got back to camp, my toe looked like something out of an old school cartoon. Remember when a character would accidentally hammer his thumb? Then his thumb would swell up to three times its normal size, turn a deep shade of red and develop a heartbeat? I swear to you, that is exactly what my toe looked like—like I’d been hammering it for eight hours. I knew, with each slam of my toes against my boot, that my toenail wouldn’t make it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">A few days after our incredible trip, I read the story of the rich young man. I've read it before, but this time it's meaning for me was so real it was like another slam of a hammer on my sore toe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><span class="text">As Jesus was starting out on his way to Jerusalem, a man came running up to him, knelt down, and asked, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”</span><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><span class="woj">“You know the commandments: ‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. You must not cheat anyone. Honor your father and mother.’”</span><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><br /></i></span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><span class="text">“Teacher,” the man replied, “I’ve obeyed all these commandments since I was young.”</span><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><span class="text"><br /></span></i></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><span class="text">Jesus looked at him and loved him. "</span><span class="woj">There is still one thing you haven’t done,'" </span><span class="text">he told him. </span><span class="woj">“Go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”</span><o:p></o:p></i></span><br />
<span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><br /></i></span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><i><span class="text">At this the man’s face fell, and he went away sad, for he had many possessions."</span> </i>(<span class="woj">Mark 10:17-22, 28-31 NLV)<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span> <span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">We can learn a lot from this story, but in this season, it reminds me that following Jesus comes at a price. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span> <span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">For the young man, it was his wealth. For me, it means sacrficing my selfish desires and giving my time away.</span></span><br />
<span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span> <span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Jesus didn’t assure him that he would provide any immediate satisfaction or tangible comfort. Jesus definitely didn’t say it would bring him success or prominence either. Some guy (the Messiah) was asking him to give up everything he worked for and everything he knew to pursue a vague and unfamiliar calling. Can you really blame the guy for walking away? Jesus certainly wasn’t marketing the position very well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
<span class="woj"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></span> <span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">The rich man longed for a more meaningful life, but he couldn’t have that and all his possessions. Eternal life would cost him, and he wasn’t convinced it would be worth the price. But following Jesus is costly—that’s the point. The good news is, it’s worth the sacrifice.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><span class="woj">Have you been the rich man who walked away from Jesus’ invitation? I certainly have. I avoided committing to church and plugging into a small group the past few years. After my dad passed away unexpectedly,</span> I didn't have the emotional capacity to participate in more than just, well, waking up each day. The thought alone of going to church and especially joining a small group, was daunting to me. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">Now, in this stage of grief, I feel more whole and a little less broken. And after reading that passage, I felt convicted about the excuses I made to duck out of building community through church. Of course, committing would cost me things I enjoy, like my time, flexibility and freedom on a Sunday. but if the Lord was nudging me to finally commit to church and dive deeper into relationship with him and others, then obedience would gain me so much more.</span></div>
<span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span> <span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">What wild thing is he asking of you? </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It’s easy to be disobedient because sometimes he asks us to do crazy stuff. Like, be kind to other people. (Jesus, have you met "other people"? They are nuts.) </span><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He may be asking you to uproot your whole family, move to a different continent and trust him…because it’s all for his glory. Or maybe it’s smaller than that. Maybe he’s nudging you to join a small group or invite the annoying neighbors over for dinner. Maybe he wants more quiet time with you and needs you to say no, instead of yes.</span><br />
<span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;"><br /></span></span> <span class="woj"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">I don’t know what it is for you or how great the cost will be. But I do know that if the King of Kings is asking you to do it, shouldn’t you? I don’t want to be the rich guy who walks away from Jesus’ beauty and goodness, all my possessions and comfort in tow. No, I want to be in the boat with Jesus, discovering his prowess and strength as he calms every storm.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">You've heard us say, "we learn in rows and grow in circles." Help us kick-off this brand new season here at Lafayette and all our campuses. In the backyard of the District in Lafayette, we are going to be hosting all available groups so that you can find the one that's right for uniquely you! Jam to the DJ, grab some drinks and enjoy the food trucks while you meet the leaders! If you find a group that's right for you, sign up right then and there! 4-8pm Sunday, August 12<sup>th</sup>.</span></span></span></i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #1d2129;"><i><br /></i></span><i><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #1d2129;"><span style="background-color: white; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial;">Can't make it to this event? August 18/19 and August 25/26, we will have a similar set up in the Lobby with the groups that are not quite full after each service. </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #1d2129;">For ALL other campuses…Groups Kickoff will take place after the 9am and 11am service this weekend.</span></i></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She works at a marketing agency and loves to write, climb mountains and travel in her free time.</span></span><br />
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<![endif]--> <!--StartFragment--> <!--EndFragment-->Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-25138916137259867792018-07-25T03:30:00.000-07:002018-07-25T03:30:13.157-07:00Shalom to You Too<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7yMaPpj0Yj8/W1D0NX0REDI/AAAAAAAABUk/8DoYGFY0oAMl12USnYzFqs65rlVVbnvwwCLcBGAs/s1600/annie-spratt-583427-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-7yMaPpj0Yj8/W1D0NX0REDI/AAAAAAAABUk/8DoYGFY0oAMl12USnYzFqs65rlVVbnvwwCLcBGAs/s640/annie-spratt-583427-unsplash.jpg" title="peace, shalom, rest, chaos, moments, Christian women, Flatirons church, flatirons owmen" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><a href="https://www.emjimenez.com/" target="_blank">By Emilie Jimenez</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My husband is on a work trip this week, so I’m flying solo with my girls. It seems like every time he leaves, someone gets deathly ill. And by deathly ill, I mean someone usually ends up throwing up all over me. And that feels like death to me.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This time, I caved, and now both of my girls have been sleeping in the bed with me because I just can’t walk up the stairs one more time to check on them in the middle of the night. This morning, I woke up before them. I laid in bed and listened to their soft breathing and watched their sweet, relaxed faces. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This season of little kids is filled with lots of things. Lots of noises and toys and activities. Lots of refereeing and teaching and talking. </span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Not many noticeably peaceful moments exist in my normal day-to-day. Sometimes I get to bedtime and I feel like if anyone else needs anything from me, I will throw a tantrum. </span></h3>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This morning, as I watched my kids sleep, I got to take a deep breath. I stayed in bed and read a book. I watched them slowly blink their eyes open. Whisper “hi” to each other. Snuggle. We eased into the day in a way that doesn’t normally happen. It was quiet, cozy and oh-so-sweet. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Eventually, we got out of bed and hit the ground running. But it made me think, <i>H</i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">ow often do I miss these sweet opportunities? How often am I in such a hurry that these peaceful moments get lost in the chaos I create? The chaos I choose?</i> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Moments of peace are tucked into our days. These moments don’t demand our attention. They aren’t flashy or invasive or obvious. And in order to find them, they require our full presence. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had a friend in college who would greet people with, “Shalom.” He would say bye with, “Shalom.” He would pat you on the head if you were stressing out and say, “Shalom.” He would toast a cafeteria dinner with, “Shalom.” I always thought it was so funny and weird, but I never really gave it much thought. I’d just say, “Shalom to you, too.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Shalom means <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">complete </i>peace, a feeling of deep contentment, wholeness, and harmony. That rare feeling you get when everything seems right and good. Oh, how I long for these moments, for shalom, to be more of the norm in my little world and also in our great, big, hurting world.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The good news is our God is shalom. He is perfect peace. When Jesus says, “<span style="background: rgb(253, 254, 255);">Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you…” he says this as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a promise</i>. (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John+14%3A27&version=NIV" target="_blank">John 14:27</a>) It’s not just a lofty, good idea. It’s not some puzzle that we have to solve, some secret we have to uncover. As his children, we have full access to the perfect peace that is Jesus. This is part of our inheritance. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: rgb(253, 254, 255);"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He goes on to say, “Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not be afraid.” Part of accessing this perfect peace is in our hands. It’s in the moments when we’re tempted to choose fear. It’s in the moments when we look at how our broken world operates. It’s in the moments when we are tempted to just keep doing and keep going and keep pushing through. Shalom is hidden in all of these moments when we, instead, choose to fix our eyes on Jesus.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background: rgb(253, 254, 255);"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">As we walk closely with Jesus, contentment becomes less and less connected to our circumstances. We can brave the storms without fear, knowing that God is always for us. </span></span></h3>
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<span style="background: rgb(253, 254, 255);"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We can face the unknown with confidence because there is nowhere we can go that he won’t be. And we can face our sometimes brutally boring day-to-day knowing that Jesus wants to show up for us in the mundane.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: rgb(253, 254, 255);"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These little moments of peace aren’t always mind-blowing, right? I mean, my few moments this morning watching my girls sleep did not negate the crazy-ness that immediately ensued. But I think this moment at least prepared me a little better for the rest of the moments today. It let me start the day with a sense of wholeness, operating out of a deep breath and a present heart. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="background: rgb(253, 254, 255);"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And these peace-filled moments help us stay centered and focused on the One who is perfect peace. A great conversation with a friend. That first sip of coffee in the morning. A long, hot shower. Sitting down to eat a good meal. Sometimes it simply requires slowing down enough to acknowledge these moments, however brief they are. Sometimes it just requires our attention, our full presence, our showing up and patting ourselves on the back and saying, “Shalom to you, too.” <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UuGIHH2nstc/W1DygOHXOQI/AAAAAAAABUY/QEvb9T1vkdwNm90XwINRVv-K4wBOnR-nQCLcBGAs/s1600/Em-%2Bheadshot.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1060" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-UuGIHH2nstc/W1DygOHXOQI/AAAAAAAABUY/QEvb9T1vkdwNm90XwINRVv-K4wBOnR-nQCLcBGAs/s200/Em-%2Bheadshot.jpg" width="131" /></span></a></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-88037758669279415832018-07-18T03:30:00.000-07:002018-07-18T03:30:00.837-07:00God Sees You <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.3oclockwakeup.com/copy-of-about-us" target="_blank"><br /></a></span>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-747IfFndVjg/W0eCpB02iNI/AAAAAAAABUA/eklz7FGHMBIBJo7S9gICa1GQcqoCXHEmgCLcBGAs/s1600/tanaphong-toochinda-267381-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-747IfFndVjg/W0eCpB02iNI/AAAAAAAABUA/eklz7FGHMBIBJo7S9gICa1GQcqoCXHEmgCLcBGAs/s640/tanaphong-toochinda-267381-unsplash.jpg" title="God sees you, alone, lonely, purpose, Faith, Christian women, Flatirons Women" width="640" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.3oclockwakeup.com/copy-of-about-us" target="_blank">By Laura Busse</a></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>“The LORD your God is with you, He is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing.”</i> – Zephaniah 3:17</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">On a rare night out together, my husband and I wandered into a restaurant for dinner. Within seconds of being seated our waitress, Jessica appeared. Smiling and joyful, she took our order and sped away. While we waited, I kept catching Jessica out of the corner of my eye. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">First, I noticed her bounding up two flights of stairs carrying a tray loaded with enough food for two families. Less than a minute later, she was scrubbing down the table in front of us, also making sure that the floor and window around it were sparkling clean. Next, she sped by with a tub full of dirty dishes, heading to the kitchen. Seconds later, she burst back out through the doors with her arms full of clean silverware for an entire section of the restaurant. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My husband and I marveled at her incredible stamina and work ethic. We thought she must have been a manager, or even an owner, to work that hard with such attention to detail. I had to ask. So when our dinners arrived, I blurted out, “Wow Jessica! You sure are busting your butt here. Do you own this place?”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jessica only laughed, “No I’ve worked here for nine years. The woman at the front door is the manager. I don’t think she recognizes half of what I do around here.”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How often do you feel the same way? You work your butt off taking care of kids and no one sees how hard it truly is? You clean the kitchen and empty the dishwasher AGAIN and no one thanks you. You complete the same mundane tasks at work but have never received even a single compliment. You volunteer faithfully but wonder if it even makes a difference. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Who recognizes what you do to keep your boat afloat, the family fed, or your house functioning day after day?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I learned the hard way not to look to others for recognition, but instead to look to God for affirmation. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God sees you folding the laundry, cleaning the toilet, working diligently, and loving faithfully. He takes great delight in you and rejoices over you (Zephaniah 3:17). He waits for you to invite Him into every single area of your life. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You can practice the presence of God by:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Praying for the people whose clothes you are folding.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Listening to praise music while cleaning your house.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Read a Bible passage in the area you’re trying to grow right before leaving the house.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> (Or put it in the car so you see it every time you get in and out.)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">•<span style="white-space: pre;"> </span>Invite God to join you wherever you go or whatever challenge you face.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before you know it, you’ll realize you’ve spent the entire day with God close by. His presence will grant you joy even in the mundane tasks and daily routines. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Before leaving the restaurant, we left Jessica a nice tip with a thank you note. On our way out, I stopped at the manager’s station and praised Jessica’s hard work and hospitality. Even if the manager doesn’t recognize Jessica as a gift, God certainly does. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fDainX8vc7k/WgDJ8A81WsI/AAAAAAAAA1A/2dwxOJbwVokbkssLOxKH75ZiMGWFcykmACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/image.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="644" data-original-width="429" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fDainX8vc7k/WgDJ8A81WsI/AAAAAAAAA1A/2dwxOJbwVokbkssLOxKH75ZiMGWFcykmACPcBGAYYCw/s200/image.png" width="133" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";">Laura Busse lives in Boulder, CO with her husband and three non-stop teenagers. As the founder of The </span><a href="mailto:http://www.3oclockwakeup.com/"><span style="font-family: "arial";">3 O'Clock Wake Up Call,</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";"> she envisions a world where everyone in every nation gives thanks to God, every day at 3 pm.</span><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span></span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";">If you want to start getting daily 3 O’Clock Wake Up Call messages, you can either </span><a href="https://www.3oclockwakeup.com/copy-of-get-started"><span style="font-family: "arial";">download the free mobile app</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";"> (be sure to say “yes” to getting push notifications), or get text messages by texting <b>3PM</b> to 313131</span></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt;">.</span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span>
Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-3919689050847857472018-07-11T03:30:00.000-07:002018-07-11T04:54:39.439-07:00The Prayer Coin<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><a href="http://www.elisamorgan.com/" target="_blank">By Elisa Morgan</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">One Thursday afternoon, I headed out to Australia for a ministry trip, flying first to LA and then waiting some five hours during a delay. To bide the time, I chatted it up with my husband, Evan, back in Denver. He was to have accompanied me but surgery on his ankle about a month prior made the long flight unwise for him. Reluctantly, I boarded the flight to Melbourne, landing some 16 hours later to find a few messages from Evan on my phone: Call me and I’ll give you an update on my leg.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">I pulled my two-week sized rollaboard to the side of the arrivals hallway and dialed Evan. He answered, “I’ve had a little problem with my leg. I’m in ICU.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">What?!!! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">He was FINE when I left Denver and then when I left LA! In the 20 or so hours I’d been gone, he’d spiked a raging 103 degree fever and I was a million miles away with ministry on my plate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">My heart hit the linoleum floor of the Melbourne airport and from my soul-crumpled being, I reached out to God. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Help came to me from an unexpected source. From a verse in scripture I’d been considering as a possible paradigm-shifting provision on prayer. (That’s a lot of “p”s!)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">In the intense hours in a garden the night before he went to die on a cross, Jesus prayed “Take this cup, yet not my will but yours be done” (Luke 22:42). Two specific prayers: First: Take this cup. Then: Not my will. Such a duality powerfully displayed in three of the gospel accounts, and mentioned in the fourth. Two sides of Jesus. Two sides of us. Two sides of prayer. The Prayer Coin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">When Jesus says, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Take this cup</i>, that’s the honest side of the prayer. He reveals his own desire, “This is what <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I</i> want.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Then Jesus flips the coin, praying, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Not my will,</i> the side of abandon. Abandon is saying to God, “But what do you want, God?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Notice that in between the two sides of honest and abandon is the word “yet” which forms the edge of the coin – a pivot where we tip back and forth between each side, experiencing one side at a time: honest (what I want) – pivot – abandon (what do you want, God?).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Take this cup, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">yet</i> not my will but yours be done. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The Prayer Coin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Wow! This prayer is quoted more than any other prayer in the Bible. Yet …(there’s that pivot!), have I ever prayed it? For myself? For those I love? Have you?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Here – I’m holding out this Prayer Coin to you. Feel the weight of it as you turn it over and over in your palm. Honest. Abandon. Abandon. Honest.</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Now, are you ready to try? This Prayer Coin that might just cash in a deeper faith for you? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">First – be honest: What are you currently wanting, needing, desiring before God? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">You look around at other women, happy in their Pintresty friendships and you wonder what’s wrong with you. Take this cup of feeling excluded God. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Maybe you’re concerned about your three-year-old. Is she using enough words? Take this cup of delayed speech God!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Your husband isn’t very attentive –and you’re wondering why you married him. Take this cup of a lukewarm marriage God! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And after you’ve poured out what’s really in your heart … try a pivot. Flip the prayer coin to the other side: abandon. What might you want for me Lord?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Abandon asks how far will you go to commit your wants, needs and desires to what God wants for you and your life?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Women around you may be just as lonely as you are. I’ll go first and risk rejection in order to pursue friendship. Not my will God. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Your daughter may need testing – expensive testing. I’m willing to sacrifice my coffee money. Not my will, God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<!--[if !supportLists]--><span style="font-family: "symbol"; mso-bidi-font-family: Symbol; mso-fareast-font-family: Symbol;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">·<span style="font: 7.0pt "Times New Roman";"> </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Your husband may come from a family where affection was scarce. I’ll reach out to him rather than insisting he change for me. Not my will God.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And then in each need, back again to honest. Then a pivot to abandon. Again and again, learning more about what you really want and what God wants as well. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Prayer is like a coin. One side is honest: the freedom to be ourselves in relationship with God. The other side is abandon: the calling to yield to his desires in our lives. We spend prayer best, like a coin, with the currency of both sides: honest and abandon. Pivoting from one to another. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">As you do, you’ll journey deeper in your relationship with God, who uses both sides of prayer to draw us closer to him, just as he did in a garden long ago with his Son.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Oh, and my husband? He’s good. God gently nudged me to understand that he would use this health crisis in the lives of our adult children, raising them up to care for Evan in my absence. He used it in Evan’s life, assuring my husband of his care. And he used it in my life, empowering me to serve where I had to be since no flight could return me to Evan in mere hours. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">The prayer coin has since become a practice I pray on a daily basis, with honest and abandon, leaning in to the intimacy Jesus died to provide.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial";">Elisa Morgan was named by <i>Christianity Today </i>as one of the top fifty women influencing today’s church and culture. She has authored over twenty-five books. </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Her newest release is <i>The Prayer Coin: Daring to Pray with Honest Abandon</i> (<a href="file:///C:/Users/carlafoote/Downloads/www.theprayercoin.org">www.theprayercoin.org</a>). Elisa received a BS from the University of Texas and an MDiv from Denver Seminary and currently serves on its board. For twenty years, Elisa served as CEO of MOPS International and now is President Emerita. Today she speaks internationally and serves as a co-host of the syndicated radio program, <i>Discover the Word</i>, produced by <i>Our Daily Bread Ministries</i>. She also writes for that devotional and her blog, <i>Really</i>, which reaches thousands. With her husband of 39 years, Evan, she has two grown children and two grandchildren who live near her in Denver, Colorado. Wilson, her Rottie-wannabe, takes her on walks in the open space behind her home. Connect with Elisa and her blog at <a href="http://www.elisamorgan.com/">www.elisamorgan.com</a>. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-65378391271108189512018-07-04T03:30:00.000-07:002018-07-04T03:30:03.066-07:00Happy 4th of July! <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vg0bTHtWmIU/WzqySOEwmyI/AAAAAAAABTs/4FCya81Hxe0-ivkuwdMf_s47Qpy-DcW-ACEwYBhgL/s1600/frank-mckenna-184340-unsplash%2B%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1065" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vg0bTHtWmIU/WzqySOEwmyI/AAAAAAAABTs/4FCya81Hxe0-ivkuwdMf_s47Qpy-DcW-ACEwYBhgL/s640/frank-mckenna-184340-unsplash%2B%25282%2529.jpg" title="Christian women, family, fun, 4th of July, celebrate, give thanks, Faith, Christian women, Flatirons women" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>"This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it."</i> Psalm 118:24</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Happy 4th of July! </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">From the Flatirons Women's Ministry team. We're thankful for all of you! </span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-53867605632029413082018-06-27T05:30:00.000-07:002018-06-27T05:45:19.666-07:00Misunderstood<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W57Yp_bMr98/WzFo7WAuDSI/AAAAAAAABSE/34DF9x5liX4h7sDkw1k_cEnqFxMpXFUWgCLcBGAs/s1600/shutterstock_657580789.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1600" height="640" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-W57Yp_bMr98/WzFo7WAuDSI/AAAAAAAABSE/34DF9x5liX4h7sDkw1k_cEnqFxMpXFUWgCLcBGAs/s640/shutterstock_657580789.jpg" title="misunderstanding, known and loved, God, Christian women, Flatirons women, Flatirons church" width="640" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial";"><br /></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><a href="https://talkingtojesus.com/" target="_blank">By Jeannie Blackmer</a></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Have you ever said something to someone and the other person took it totally different than how you meant it? Misunderstanding. I think that happens often between two people. My friend recently told me a story about a miscommunication she had with her husband.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">They were talking about his desire to have more community and how it was difficult because they live in the mountains, their adult kids live far away and he works mostly from home. During their conversation, my friend said, “You should work at a coffee shop.” Her comment was met with silence. Then they went on with their normal day. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Two days later they were lying in bed and her husband said, “So, do you really think I should get another job at a coffee shop?” My friend was baffled. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“What are you talking about?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“The other day you told me I should work at a coffee shop. I’ve been thinking about that for two days.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“I didn’t mean get a job at a coffee shop, I just meant take your computer and work in an environment where you’re around people in our community.” Fortunately, they both have a great sense of humor and had a good laugh.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">My husband and I have certainly had our share of misunderstandings and we don’t always end up laughing. After 32 years of marriage, I still have times I wish he understood me better. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Feeling misunderstood is a vivid reminder that no one really knows us. </span></h3>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">No matter how long we’ve known someone or how well we think we know someone, we are human. We are not mind-readers, we can easily misunderstand each other and we don’t know everything about anyone. And by the way, people change.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">But God never misunderstands us. He <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">knows </i>us. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">“O Lord, you have searched me and know me! You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You search out my path and my lying down and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether.” </span></i><span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Psalm 139:1-4<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">One of our greatest human desires is to be known and loved, and guess what? Only God can fully meet that need. </span><br />
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">So, next time you feel misunderstood pause for a moment and remind yourself God knows you. God understands you. And God loves you.</span></h3>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Also, remember you’ve probably misunderstood someone at sometime, maybe even recently. You may have taken something somebody said the wrong way and stewed on it for a while. Maybe it’s time to clear that misunderstanding up and let that person know you care enough about them to understand them. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Don’t let little misunderstandings cause huge rifts in important relationships. Life’s too short, our days too precious and relationships too important to not keep growing closer to each other through intentional efforts of understanding of each other. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="color: black; font-family: "arial"; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">And don’t lose your sense of humor because sometimes misunderstandings can be quite funny.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qdzag7EhcDY/WzFqvV9zaEI/AAAAAAAABSQ/KTO3RPjS1hwma5ZEmSL-WVPEd2vBEuhYgCLcBGAs/s1600/Jeannie.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1215" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-Qdzag7EhcDY/WzFqvV9zaEI/AAAAAAAABSQ/KTO3RPjS1hwma5ZEmSL-WVPEd2vBEuhYgCLcBGAs/s200/Jeannie.jpeg" width="151" /></a></div>
<span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">Jeannie Blackmer is excited about her newest book, <i>Talking to Jesus: A Fresh Perspective on Prayer</i>, and hopes this book will ignite a desire for a deeper, more intimate prayer life for readers and help others see how relevant the Bible is today. She lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband, Zane, and their three sons. For more information visit </span><a href="http://www.talkingtojesus.com/" style="font-size: small;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial";">www.talkingtojesus.com</span></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">. She also manages the Flatirons Women's blog and is always looking for writers!</span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-32068917021997323232018-06-20T03:30:00.000-07:002018-06-21T06:51:28.515-07:00Lost and Broken<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span id="goog_882145136"></span><span id="goog_882145137"></span><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2UlEpf7G2OA/Wyus-irL39I/AAAAAAAABRM/F86mnamgtsQyQa3Q9AYVNtRjOER6D1TSACLcBGAs/s1600/tina-rataj-berard-168378-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-2UlEpf7G2OA/Wyus-irL39I/AAAAAAAABRM/F86mnamgtsQyQa3Q9AYVNtRjOER6D1TSACLcBGAs/s640/tina-rataj-berard-168378-unsplash.jpg" title="broken, content, summer fun, joy, Christian Women, Flatirons women, flatirons church" width="640" /></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">By Emily Donehoo</a></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">About a month and a half ago, our TV broke. Around the same time, my husband lost his wedding band. And then my car keys went missing. Then, I couldn’t locate my engagement ring. The diamond was wobbling in its setting, so I had put it in the box it came in and set the box in a safe place where it wouldn’t be misplaced. And then I couldn’t, for the life of me, remember where that safe place was. I could’ve sworn it was on my dresser, but it wasn’t there at all. No engagement ring that held the memory of my husband kneeling down in some random guy’s backyard asking me to spend the rest of his life with him while I sneezed and coughed all over him because I had been too sick with a nasty cold to be convinced to go to the mountains like he had planned. And then, a guy smashed the back half of our 18 year-old minivan. We were fine, and it still runs but it was just one more thing.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lost and broken. Everything, it seemed, in our lives was getting lost and/or broken. We have three sons. We are not strangers to lost and broke. But this was more than usual for sure.</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Our TV is still broken. I don’t want to fix it. It’s summertime. Summer is for popsicles and playing. Riding bikes around the neighborhood, running, climbing, swinging, exploring. We don’t need a TV in the summer because we have Outside. Our conversations now sound like this:</span><br />
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I’m bored, Mom.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Go outside.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“But the only thing that makes me not bored is playing video games or watching shows.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Bummer. TV’s broken. Go outside.” </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“But…”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Go. Outside. Or you can help me wash the dishes, fold the laundry, clean the bathrooms, take out the trash...”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I’m going to the park.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“I thought so.”</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fifteen minutes later, I hear peals of laughter coming from my children who are running, climbing, swinging… They are investing more of their time playing in God’s creation because our TV is broken. </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And we talk more with a broken TV. We spend time togethering. I know that’s not a verb, but it should be. We play games together. We tell stories together. We read together. And my husband? My husband </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">turned into a chatterbox. My introverted, keeps-his-cards-close-to-his-vest husband comes home from work and tells me things without me exhausting him with a million questions. </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s beautiful, this togetherness we’ve found because of the broken. </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The other things? The lost wedding band? He found it. It had slid off of his finger inside his baseball glove when he was playing catch with the kids, but while it was lost, it reminded him how much he loves being married to me. (At least that’s what he told me.) And it sweetened our relationship. I was never mad. These things happen. But the fact that it was lost reminded us how precious our marriage is. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The lost keys? They turned up. I knew they would. </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The engagement ring? I remembered the safe place I put it. And we realized that the valuable thing about the ring-- the memories-weren’t altered in any way. </span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The smashed back end of the minivan? We’re still figuring out the insurance in that situation, but I am confident it will turn out in a way that will be a blessing.</span></div>
<b style="-webkit-tap-highlight-color: rgba(26, 26, 26, 0.301961); -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); color: black; font-family: UICTFontTextStyleTallBody; font-size: 17px; font-style: normal; font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: auto; word-spacing: 0px;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lost or broken is not a death sentence, you see. Sometimes recognizing that things are lost and/or broken is a gift.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I think that’s the way God sees it, because when I believed I was just fine on my own thankyouverymuch, I didn’t need Jesus. When I didn’t believe I was broken, I could take care of myself, be the master of my domain and all that. But when I recognized my life, my soul, my heart as it was… lost and broken… it was only then that I realized what I really needed to be found and whole. </span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span> <a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dpwXpylxaIw/WBkJfPjBcXI/AAAAAAAAAOc/Of3F7xmcU9A8BT3nbChY3G776MCi6rbogCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="693" data-original-width="512" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-dpwXpylxaIw/WBkJfPjBcXI/AAAAAAAAAOc/Of3F7xmcU9A8BT3nbChY3G776MCi6rbogCPcBGAYYCw/s200/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" width="147" /></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; white-space: normal;" target="_blank">Emily Donehoo i</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small; white-space: normal;">s the only female in a family of five. She is a former High School English Teacher and National Trainer for the College Board. These days, when she isn’t scrubbing toilets, administering timeouts, working at book fairs, attempting to tackle dinner, laundry, homework help, dishes, and a preschooler’s incessant questions, she writes authentically about the hard stuff that really matters, hoping to uncover the truth that God has for us whether it makes us cry from laughter, pain or both at the same time.</span></span><br />
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-60741787808050972562018-06-13T03:30:00.000-07:002018-06-14T07:10:45.204-07:00Say Yes to Summer!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qXU89k3I0hs/Wx6ZeAFLQVI/AAAAAAAABQs/O8mNiCeIcuUYQbNAqNzGhuyuki1bfd9-gCLcBGAs/s1600/lindsay-moe-534745-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qXU89k3I0hs/Wx6ZeAFLQVI/AAAAAAAABQs/O8mNiCeIcuUYQbNAqNzGhuyuki1bfd9-gCLcBGAs/s640/lindsay-moe-534745-unsplash.jpg" title="summer, play, fun. adventure, God, wonder, joy, spontaneous, faith, women, flatirons women, flatirons church" width="640" /></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">By Maggie Bartlett</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">The other night, I noticed how filthy my feet were from a day “working” in the yard (i.e. putzing around attempting to pot some plants), so I quickly washed them before bed. It was like pressing the rewind button to my childhood. I recalled sticking my feet in the tub in our childhood home, the swamp cooler blasting and crickets chanting outside. I felt nostalgic. For summer days of swim team and tennis practice, flashlight tag and cookouts—days of easy living. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Do you remember washing your feet before bed? Mom and Dad used to have us clean our feet after a long day of running through the neighborhood chasing the next adventure. Having us wash our feet was likely Mom’s way of saying I still care about your hygiene but not enough to try to wrangle three children into the bathtub at 8:30 p.m. on a Wednesday. It was also about clean sheets, which is a highly underrated pleasure in life. She helped us scrubbed our feet down and dry them off as we sleepily wrapped up the bedtime routine. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Even when my freckled body was crusty with dry sweat, slipping freshly washed feet under crisp, cold sheets<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>was the perfect nightcap after a day of escapades. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Summer as a kid was the best. No school! Playing with friends all day, late nights watching movies and no real responsibilities. Are you kidding me? That’s not just a kid’s dream, it’s <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">everyone’s </i>dream. When summer rolls in, I’m itching for days at the pool and nights camping in the backyard. But then I wake up and it’s Monday, and joke's on me because I’m not 12 anymore and someone has to go to the grocery store so we can stop having “breakfast for dinner.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">This summer, I’m bringing the playfulness back. Because we don’t just believe in a powerful and mighty God, he’s also a mischievous and lighthearted God too. We can draw near to him in prayer and mourning <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and </i>in laughter and silliness. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">The seasons are a clever gift from Him because He knows we need newness and hope in spring, adventure and folly in summer, beauty and rest in fall and quiet and stillness in winter. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I’m thankful for the gift of summer excitement, especially as the craze of life continues to rise.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Let’s have <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">fun </i>this summer. We can still do our chores and pay our bills and show up to life like a real adult is supposed to, but we can also <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">play. </i>With friends, with kids, with spouses. Say yes! Yes to homegrown tomatoes for dinner and peach cobblers for breakfast, slip-n-slides in the front yard and chalk in the driveway and, sure why not, yes to the ice cream truck too (mostly because who knew those things still existed?). When the day’s so hot I feel like someone actually put me <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">in </i>the oven, I’m going to channel my inner child and run through the sprinklers to cool off. Hope you can make time to do something silly, too.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vGr4zH3dgrg/WJSJiuFNcMI/AAAAAAAAAac/15JpWwo_0ZQbMEVLOAe29rJ6G_7_BctdQCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/BARTLETTcreativeLLC_travel_Bali_771%2Bcopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="993" data-original-width="1500" height="131" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-vGr4zH3dgrg/WJSJiuFNcMI/AAAAAAAAAac/15JpWwo_0ZQbMEVLOAe29rJ6G_7_BctdQCPcBGAYYCw/s200/BARTLETTcreativeLLC_travel_Bali_771%2Bcopy.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Maggie Bartlett is a Colorado native, living in Denver with her husband. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She works at a marketing agency and loves to write, climb mountains and travel in her free time.</span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-13425739317785813232018-06-06T03:30:00.000-07:002018-06-06T03:30:12.583-07:003 Small But Important Things About Puppy Instincts and Traumatized Children<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zU-DdA60JQE/WxFNliE2FuI/AAAAAAAABQQ/3x97mC-U2uI9tW1EmyE8twsVwuGYXDobACLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_9722.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-zU-DdA60JQE/WxFNliE2FuI/AAAAAAAABQQ/3x97mC-U2uI9tW1EmyE8twsVwuGYXDobACLcBGAs/s640/IMG_9722.JPG" title="Adoption, abuse, trauma, love, grace, trust, Christian women, mothering, flatirons women, flatirons church" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/staff-member/rebecca-barnes/" target="_blank">By Rebecca Barnes</a></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">1. Puppies Behave Badly.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I guess we had too many shoes, so we got a puppy. He flings boots around the yard by their laces, rips the flip out of flip-flops, and chews my slippers so often that my toes have gotten used to their new slimy sensation first thing in the morning. And though he is clearly bent on destruction, he’s also a floppy-eared puppy. He’s white with tan freckles and spots, and one eye ringed in black like he lost a fight at the animal shelter. So his sweet face makes even his 5 am wakeup calls endearing. We call him Moby—like the whale.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Moby’s four months old now and he’s already potty trained—mostly. He does get excited to see people and leaks a little, but who doesn’t? He’s still learning not to puppy bite, or jump up on people, countertops, or the cat. But bad puppy behavior aside I was glad to get a young dog. It gives us the chance to train him correctly from the beginning. We can train him to wag instead of bark.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">2. Beginnings Make Things Good or Bad.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A woman I once knew rescued an adult dog that had been abused. It was a black, skinny thing that cowered under her desk all day growling and nipping at people who stopped by. The dog never wagged its tail, or excitedly licked anyone, or seemed happy to see people at all. This woman had saved that dog from a terrible life, but she had failed to rehabilitate it. It wasn’t actually her failure. She wasn’t the one who treated the dog badly in the first place. Some things puppies learn when they are very young cannot be unlearned, no matter how loving and caring a new owner may be.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Humans are like this too. Whatever happens to us when we’re very young creates our instincts for life. Humans who are abused, especially when they’re young, learn to snarl instead of smile, to bark instead of wag. Like abused dogs, they have their instincts turned on their heads. So when people try to respond to what they think these dogs or humans would want, they’re usually surprised with bared teeth and snarling.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If it’s serious enough, then it’s useless to try to get these sorts of creatures to stop biting people and growling. I thought about this a little when we set off for the Humane Society to get our dog. I was afraid we would get one that despite all our best efforts would not stop growling. I have that fear deeply ingrained in my mind now, because of our youngest daughter. We rescued her too, fostered her, and then adopted her. She was treated badly the first half of her life and never has stopped growling and nipping—not for the second half of her life. It was a reality check for us, like no other, that sometimes damage like hers cannot be undone. But we put her under our metaphorical desk for awhile—even if she was not happy, she was safe and cared for.</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">3. Believing Puppy Is Good Is Good.</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now we’re caring for Moby. He’s okay. No one hurt him. So his instincts are pretty good. Eating shoes, jumping on people, and puppy bites aside, he’s a good boy because that’s what we tell him, and ourselves, and we all believe it. We work on behavior and he learns. It’s a pretty good setup when it’s working the way it was intended—for humans and dogs. And even when things go wrong; when Moby tangles his leash around my legs and takes me to the ground, (like this morning) we make them right. I get back up. Moby licks my scratches and wags his tail. And we start running again.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Oso4NxPr2f4/WOTshsSjM1I/AAAAAAAAAgQ/P0WmnBrluX8U1B4Xo4eZsLlsAm5FEV6cwCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/headshot%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1331" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Oso4NxPr2f4/WOTshsSjM1I/AAAAAAAAAgQ/P0WmnBrluX8U1B4Xo4eZsLlsAm5FEV6cwCPcBGAYYCw/s200/headshot%2B2.jpg" width="166" /></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/staff-member/rebecca-barnes/" target="_blank">Rebecca Barnes</a> is married to an amazing man, who encourages her faith and listens to her typing a lot. She has three daughters and a son-in-law. She loves to cook for anyone who likes good food, and she feels competitive about weeding her flower garden. She lives in Old Town Lafayette because it’s a little eclectic, like her</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;">.</span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-83129890943309667732018-05-30T03:30:00.000-07:002018-05-30T05:14:27.749-07:00What Would You Tell Your 18-Year-Old Self?<div class="MsoNormal" style="background: white; line-height: 15.0pt;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><a href="https://www.3oclockwakeup.com/" target="_blank">By Laura Busse</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><i>"She walks in step with God, her path blazed by God, she’s happy. If she stumbles, she’s not down for long; God has a grip on her hand." – </i><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+37%3A23-24&version=MSG" target="_blank">Psalm 37:23-24 </a>(MSG) (pronoun changed from he to she) <i><o:p></o:p></i></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Aren’t you thankful the month of May is almost over and we’ve fallen into summer? Are you like me and your body, mind, and soul has been shouting at you for weeks now to slow down and relax more? (<o:p></o:p></span><span style="font-family: "arial";">I totally resonated with last week's <a href="http://flatironswomen.blogspot.com/2018/05/crazy-days-of-may.html" target="_blank">Flatirons Women's Blog</a>.)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I used to think that December leading up to Christmas was the most hectic time of the year. But no more. It seems that the month of May has become even crazier than Christmas. As daylight lengthens, so does our “To Do” lists: spring cleaning, yard work, planning for summer, wrapping up the school year, and of course, graduations. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Standing in Target, looking through graduation cards, I imagined what I would write if I could design one of my own. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Better yet…what would I say, if I could be the commencement speaker at a high school graduation.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">This past May, my daughter Abby graduated from high school. If I could’ve taken the stage at the ceremony and spoken a blessing over all the graduates I’d say, “I hope and pray you live out Psalm 37. For this is what I want for you: walk in step with God, let Him blaze your path, be happy with Him, and remember when you stumble God’s got you in His powerful hand. He will always lift you up.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Unfortunately, I don’t think my words would resonate with many graduates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">The world around them is screaming just the opposite… walk independently, not with God. Blaze your own path because you know what makes you happy. And when you fall, pull yourself up. Don’t ask for help, but trust in your own strength, and take the world by storm. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">This pep talk might be inspirational for many youths, but eventually, they’ll smack into the reality that, as Khalid, the rapper tells them, they’re really just “young, dumb, and broke.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">But weren’t we there once upon a time? Didn’t we think we were smarter than our parents, destined to do amazing things with our lives? Nothing and no one could stop us from living out our dreams. Maybe you’re still like the graduates, full of skyrocketing high hopes. Or perhaps you’re like me, and you wish to dream big again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Just imagine, if you could step back in time to when you were 18 years-old, what would you tell yourself? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Can you count on one hand five key truths you’d cling to?</span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Me, I’d tell myself:</span><br />
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Give God thanks every day, because each one is a gift from Him.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Love God and others on purpose, because love lasts forever.</span></li>
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<li><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Commit to long-lasting friendships. Hold on to the ones who knew when…</span></li>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I may not be speaking from a stage, but I will speak these truths to the one 18-year-old dearest to my heart, my daughter Abby. Who can you share your treasured, timeless truths with this week?</span><br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mXwFY3wozUI/WwwHO-ZbTgI/AAAAAAAABPY/nEBMIrB8qQU8AsSYklStNHuYX6O9jbJ9wCLcBGAs/s1600/laurabusse.photo.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="133" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-mXwFY3wozUI/WwwHO-ZbTgI/AAAAAAAABPY/nEBMIrB8qQU8AsSYklStNHuYX6O9jbJ9wCLcBGAs/s200/laurabusse.photo.png" width="133" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";">Laura Busse lives in Boulder, CO with her husband and three non-stop teenagers. As the founder of The </span><a href="mailto:http://www.3oclockwakeup.com/"><span style="font-family: "arial";">3 O'Clock Wake Up Call,</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";"> she envisions a world where everyone in every nation gives thanks to God, every day at 3 pm.</span><span style="color: #222222;"><span style="font-family: "cambria";"> </span></span></span><span style="font-family: "calibri"; font-size: x-small;"><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";">If you want to start getting daily 3 O’Clock Wake Up Call messages, you can either </span><a href="https://www.3oclockwakeup.com/copy-of-get-started"><span style="font-family: "arial";">download the free mobile app</span></a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial";"> (be sure to say “yes” to getting push notifications), or get text messages by texting <b>3PM</b> to 313131</span></span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt;">.</span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-33836350556073330992018-05-23T03:30:00.000-07:002018-05-23T03:30:10.316-07:00Crazy Days of May<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">By Emily Donehoo</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">May. The month of chaos for families across the nation. Graduations and ceremonies, baseball practice, dance recitals, concerts… </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="font-size: large;">May. The month of “Just eat it in the car! We’re late! Shoes! Go!”</span></span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The month for remembering the thank you cards and thank you gifts and cupcakes for this thing and </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">oh yeah, it’s crazy hair day...</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">May in the ‘Hoo house is just like that, friends. It is not only Crazy Hair Day, it is just plain Crazy Town up in here. Last week, we had tee-ball practice, baseball games, football games, a track meet, and one of my sons had a concert at his elementary school. You guys, Elementary School Music. I just couldn’t. I mean, I did, but I felt like my brain was being shaken around inside of my skull for an hour because… 4th graders with recorders and drums. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I know many people watch those concerts and think, </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Oh. How sweet. They are such little angels. </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Unfortunately, I am not one of them. I am more in the </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: italic; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How long is this going to last? Please make it stop </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">camp. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s not that they were bad. In fact, by Elementary School standards, they were amazing. But sometimes I forget that kids are learning, and I hold them to the same impossible standards to which I hold myself. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And I forget that my children are learning and their concerts SHOULD sound like kids plunking and squeaking and banging on instruments. Their baseball games SHOULD have errant throws and ugly swings. Their performances SHOULD consist of my kid crossing his arms and not singing because THAT IS WHAT IS ACTUALLY HAPPENING PEOPLE. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When I was a kid, my grandparents came to almost every game, meet, recital, and concert I had. They were there, beaming with pride, watching me compete and perform. And while most of my family consistently had opinions and suggestions about my performances, my Papa rarely had any advice to offer. He just watched, joyfully. He watched with a twinkle in his eye and happiness in his heart. He just showed up and enjoyed watching me grow up. If I threw the ball over the third baseman’s head, he’d chuckle. If I hit a home run, he’d clap once and wink at me if he caught my eye as I was trotting towards home plate. He just loved to watch me do the things I loved. He loved watching all of his grandkids the same way… with a bursting heart full of love. It was his JOY to love us. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You see, for years, I’ve prayed for my children. I’ve prayed that God would protect them and make them strong. I’ve prayed that God would change situations and temperaments and outcomes. I’ve prayed that the boys would do well at their games, meets, concerts, assessments. I’ve prayed that they would succeed. I’ve prayed that God would help them learn and become better.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And I don’t think that any of those things are bad things to pray about. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But I also don’t think that they are the most important things to pray about. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A few weeks ago, James Henderson, founder of Ashrei, a spiritual formation ministry in Latin America, told us that it is God’s JOY to love us. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: large; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">God DELIGHTS in loving us and being our friend.</span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: arial; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; white-space: pre-wrap;">All I could think of was the twinkle in my Papa’s eyes when he would sit in the bleachers watching me play ball. I could see his face light up when he told a story. He delighted in loving us. And the feeling of being loved without agenda was the best feeling in the world. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Friends, since then, my prayer has been, “God, please help me enjoy my children. God, please help me delight in loving them. God, please help me see them the way You see them. Please help me to choose showing up with an open heart and open arms for them. Please help me to be more like You. Please help me love them without agenda. Amen.”</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-weight: 400; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; white-space: normal;" target="_blank">Emily Donehoo i</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small; white-space: normal;">s the only female in a family of five. She is a former High School English Teacher and National Trainer for the College Board. These days, when she isn’t scrubbing toilets, administering timeouts, working at book fairs, attempting to tackle dinner, laundry, homework help, dishes, and a preschooler’s incessant questions, she writes authentically about the hard stuff that really matters, hoping to uncover the truth that God has for us whether it makes us cry from laughter, pain or both at the same time.</span></span></div>
Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-60377428983649108722018-05-16T03:30:00.000-07:002018-05-16T09:08:43.907-07:00The Gift of Imagination <div class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
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<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-family: "arial";">“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”</span></i><span style="font-family: "arial";"> Hebrews 13:8 <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Have you ever been at a loss for what to pray? I have. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Several years ago, as a mother of teen boys, I found myself desperate for guidance on how to pray for these wild guys in my life. My boys did crazy things like longboard down steep hills, throw firecrackers in the toilet to see what would happen, throw snowballs at passing cars, and other stuff I won't share. Stuff that makes a mom worry, lose sleep and knock her to her knees in prayer. I felt pretty helpless. My husband tried to explain, a thrill seeker himself, but I couldn't relate to their reckless spirits and had no clue what to do or how to pray for them (and for my peace of mind.) <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">One morning as I sat down to pray, I couldn’t find any words. I searched the Psalms in hopes of finding something inspirational because I LOVE the Psalms. But this particular morning, praying the Psalms felt like I was praying for me. I know God is <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my</i> refuge. He holds <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">my</i> right hand and shelters <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">me </i>under his wings. This is comforting, but I cried out, “I don’t care about <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">me</i> right now. I care about my kids. Show me how to pray for them.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Next, a thought entered my mind, </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="font-size: large;">If I believe Jesus is who He says He is, then can’t He do for me what He did for others when He walked on earth? </span></i></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I decided to search for encounters in the Bible for stories of parents who approached Jesus for help with their children. I found several including a ruler, two mothers, and a father. As I read these I was inspired because their prayers expressed my own thoughts and feelings. They begged Jesus for help. He was truly their only hope. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Using my imagination, I immersed myself in those stories. For example, I read the story of the father whose son kept throwing himself into the fire. (<a href="http://biblehub.com/matthew/17-15.htm" target="_blank">Matthew 17:15</a>) I imagined the father desperately begging Jesus to heal his son. Holding his breath as he waited for Jesus to respond. Hearing the rustle of the palm leaves gently blowing overhead. Then the relief and gratitude he experienced as Jesus intervened.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I could imagine. I could relate. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I turned the father's prayer into my own. “Jesus, my son keeps making scary choices like doing flips off an incredibly high ski jump and breaking his collarbone and leg..." Then, as Jesus said to the father, he said to me, "Bring him here to me." So, I began to continually bring my boys to Jesus in prayer. I imagined handing them over to Him, His care, His touch, His compassion, over and over again. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-size: medium;">Author of <i>My Utmost for His Highest</i>, Oswald Chambers, wrote, "Imagination is the greatest gift God has given us and it ought to be devoted entirely to Him." </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: large;">As I began this practice of imaginative prayer, my prayer life gained new life and I experienced a newfound sense of peace. </span></h3>
<span style="font-family: "arial";"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial";">Oswald Chambers also wrote, "Your faith and the spirit of God will work together." It's a profound mystery that I've found to be true. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt;">I'm still praying for my adventurous young men who like to do things like sunrise hike mountain peaks and encounter mountain lions, and who are making significant life choices about careers, lifestyle, relationships and so much more. I still </span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt;">imagine myself face to face with Jesus bringing them to Him and I intimately experience His healing words and comfort in fresh new ways.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt;">So, let's keep talking to Jesus anytime, anywhere about anything and know that He hears us.</span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">Jeannie Blackmer is excited about her newest book, <i>Talking to Jesus: A Fresh Perspective on Prayer</i>, and hopes this book will ignite a desire for a deeper, more intimate prayer life for readers and help others see how relevant the Bible is today. She lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband, Zane, and their three sons. For more information visit </span><a href="http://www.talkingtojesus.com/" style="font-size: small;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial";">www.talkingtojesus.com</span></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">By Maggie Bartlett</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I had a lonely day.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A day where loneliness was so pervasive even the distractions that usually make me feel better couldn’t disguise that weighty, almost sick feeling. I couldn’t seem to find the companionship I needed—nothing was comforting, nothing lifted my spirits. Occasionally I remember to look to Jesus on days like this. It seems so cheesy, but sometimes when friends don’t answer their phones or my favorite song isn’t doing the trick, I wonder if the Lord is nudging me to look to him instead. So, I tried looking to him this afternoon, through prayer. Just a simple, “Hello, I’m here. Are you?” while I cleaned the fridge. The immediate connection I felt made me cry sloppy tears, which led me to second guess my decision to pray because those tears weren’t helping my loneliness.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I started this 40-day prayer journal back in January. I’m still in the middle of it as we head into summer because I play fast and loose with discipline. It continues to be a challenging experience. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Prayer and I have a complicated relationship; it can be scary for me. </span></h3>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’ve witnessed some crazy miracles after minutes or years of praying and I’ve also seen a lot (I mean, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">a lot</i>) of unanswered prayers, too. Yet this prayer challenge keeps telling me to pray and ask for miraculous things. But it’s so vulnerable and precarious to pray big when I don’t know what the answer will be. What if I ask for too much and it’s unanswered? Will I question my faith or my God if he doesn’t answer a prayer in the way I expect or hope? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I’m still unraveling these and other questions around my prayer life and I think the Lord welcomes them. He’s inviting me into learning something new about him. Though these questions could prevent me from coming to the throne or to his feet in prayer, I’m choosing to show up anyway—questions in tow. I continue to pray; sometimes with trepidation as I ask for big things and sometimes with hesitation as I wrestle with unanswered prayers. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There probably isn’t a “best” way to pray anyway, even though we’ve all learned various approaches and methods for prayer. Prayer can be communion or meditation, intercession or begging. But I do know that on a particularly lonely day, when I paused to find my Jesus in prayer, he was there. I felt an immediate <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">withness</i>. He didn’t use a magic wand to make my troubles disappear, but I did hear him say he was <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">with </i>me in my sadness. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">Sometimes all I need is communion and intimacy with him; that’s often what I find when I pray.</span> </span></h3>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span> <span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I still feel lonely as I write this for some reasons explicable and others not, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">and</i> I feel his persistent presence and comfort. He gave me his presence through prayer and, today, that was enough.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><i>In this world you will have trouble but take heart for I have overcome the world.</i> – John 16:33<o:p></o:p></span><br />
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<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Maggie Bartlett is a Colorado native, living in Denver with her husband. </span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #444444; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She works at a marketing agency and loves to write, climb mountains and travel in her free time.</span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-53871423915956116452018-05-02T03:30:00.000-07:002018-05-02T03:30:20.988-07:00How to Pray So God Will Answer<div style="caret-color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-size: 14px; text-size-adjust: auto;">
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-66VLp67ytek/Wudc3hz97bI/AAAAAAAABJs/Cos_RTR_sSMUWCbJpHW0WZtewtFiIvfZgCLcBGAs/s1600/aaron-burden-255427-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="480" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-66VLp67ytek/Wudc3hz97bI/AAAAAAAABJs/Cos_RTR_sSMUWCbJpHW0WZtewtFiIvfZgCLcBGAs/s640/aaron-burden-255427-unsplash.jpg" title="how to pray, prayer, Christian women, Flatirons women, Flatirons Church" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/about/our-staff/" target="_blank">By Rebecca Barnes</a></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sometimes prayer is like texting someone who doesn’t text back. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You start to wonder. If the silence goes on long enough you text again. Maybe you question your relationship or think his phone is dead.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I like the story of Samuel, in the Old Testament, because it happens in a place and time when God was definitely not texting back.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Samuel+3%3A1-10&version=NIV" target="_blank">1 Samuel 3:1</a> says, “In those days the word of the Lord was rare and prophetic visions were not widespread.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Sounds like the 21<sup>st</sup><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>Century Western world—and the season of my life right now.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Despite this silence from God, however, people still brought their problems to him. People still prayed. I think that’s true today, too. I’m still at it as well.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The story goes that a childless woman named Hannah went to the temple at Shiloh to plead with God for a son. Hannah promised she would give this child right back to God to be a priest at the temple.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">I’m prone to bargaining with God in prayer sometimes.</span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But I think this was different. This was more about offerings and sacrifices that people made back when that was the agreement with God to be right with him. They took the first of their livestock, and grain, and everything else, and gave it to the Lord. Hannah was promising something similar.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I need to understand this. I need to understand the attitude of this, and how it shows God how we think of him. It shows him our worship, our gratitude; our understanding of where everything we have actually comes from.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">And that’s when God answers prayers—especially then anyway—when our attitude is right toward him.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Something else happened in this story as well. Hannah’s desire for a child aligned with God’s desire for a new prophet—someone through whom he could speak again. This sort of alignment is where God answers prayers in big ways. So Hannah got her son. And God got his prophet.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have had answers to prayers like this—Samuel moments. So I know it can happen.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One random Wednesday afternoon about ten years ago I prayed that if it would be possible for us to move back to Colorado to be closer to my mom, who was having health issues, that God would make a way for that to happen. The next day my husband came home from work and announced that someone in Colorado had called him out of the blue to offer him a job. I literally fell to my knees.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But the problem with God being so big and obvious sometimes is that it makes the wandering-around-feeling-deserted times even more difficult.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I don’t like pleading with the Lord for things he doesn’t give—maybe can’t give. <span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sometimes, if I get told no often enough, or if his silence lasts long enough I finally turn to him and ask, “Did I do something wrong? Whatever it is, please forgive me. I need you close. Please come back to me.”</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Instead, I should remember Hannah and consider<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>not</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>what God can do for<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>me</i>, but what<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>I</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>can do for<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>God</i>.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">How can what I want align with what God wants? How can I give him back whatever I’m asking him to give me?<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think in the end that’s what God wants from us—a connection so close that we’re thinking alike. That’s when it becomes easy for God to answer our prayers—because what we want is also what he wants.</span><br />
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E1H4rSO997k/WudDAn-VBwI/AAAAAAAABJQ/_MUSJnMcTLY74G0xUPOxXIJiOX93b1EiACLcBGAs/s1600/rebecca.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1331" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E1H4rSO997k/WudDAn-VBwI/AAAAAAAABJQ/_MUSJnMcTLY74G0xUPOxXIJiOX93b1EiACLcBGAs/s200/rebecca.jpg" width="166" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/about/our-staff/" style="color: blue; font-size: small;">Rebecca Barnes</a><span style="font-size: x-small;"> is married to an amazing man, who encourages her faith and listens to her typing a lot. She has three daughters and a son-in-law. She loves to cook for anyone who likes good food, and she feels competitive about weeding her flower garden. She lives in Old Town Lafayette because it’s a little eclectic, like her.</span></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-76629627796875065792018-04-25T03:30:00.000-07:002018-04-25T03:30:52.048-07:00Take the Next Step, Even if it's Scary<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My bestie left my house late last night. She was here making the final edits to a project we’ve been working on together for over a year now. I asked her to make it beautiful because I don’t have those skills. And she has been putting in unpaid late night hours for such a long time now.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">When we finally finished the latest version of the project last night, she was so excited. She wanted to celebrate. I wanted to puke.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Why aren’t you more excited?!” She said, “We’ve been working on it for so long, and now it’s ready for you to take the next step!” </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Um… because now I have to take the next step.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Because, you see, taking the next step is putting it out there in the world. And that means people will see this thing I’ve been working on, and they will either say, “This is amazing! Do more!” or “This is garbage. Why did you make it?” or even, “Meh.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And I don’t know which gives me the most anxiety. The pressure of another person saying something is great and trying to live up to those standards with everything else I create, the shame of others’ criticism, or working hard to create something I believe in, only to have it met with indifference. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 18pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It’s almost as if I’m doomed if I base my success or failure on other people’s opinions. Weird.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">So when we finished the edits, she sent me the file in an email with the subject line, “The Big Fat Scary Thing.” We took a selfie commemorating the occasion, and she left.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This morning, The Big Fat Scary Thing greeted me from my inbox. So I resolved to stop checking my email first thing in the morning. It just isn’t healthy. At least not until you’ve had coffee. In fact, I think I read a study about how not checking email first thing in the morning adds years to your life. Not checking email is linked to higher income, less chance of your kids winding up in jail, and all sorts of health benefits… Right? I mean, I’m pretty sure there have been like a million studies on that…</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But now, I’ve had my coffee. And The Big Fat Scary Thing is still in my inbox unopened, while I type up this very important blog post. It’s going to be detrimental to everyone’s lives later that I do all of the laundry and sweep the floors and wipe down the baseboards and play games with my kids later today too. In fact, I’ve just realized I’m not equipped to do The Big Fat Scary Thing.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Except, you see, God called me to make The Big Fat Scary Thing. I know I sound like a weirdo, but I literally heard a voice in my head that was not like the regular voice in my head, and it said, “Don’t you see what I made you for?” And memories of me doing all of the things that make my soul come alive flashed through my brain. And then came the vision for The Big Fat Scary Thing. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But for years, I said, “Dear God, it’s too hard and I don’t know where to start. And I can’t do this because I have kids. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For years, he said, “tap, tap, tap… I still made you for that thing I told you about.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">And at times, I’ve acted like my kids do when I ask them to complete a task. I did weird things that were in no way connected to what was asked of me. I whined and pouted and said,“I don’t believe you. Why do I have to do this anyway? This is never going to work.” But my own voice brought me back to reality, saying, “Dude, you know what you heard. Just keep showing up. Just trust Him. He is the God of the Universe after all.” </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I am certain The Big Fat Scary Thing isn’t yet the way God wants it in the end. It’s not perfect. It’s not by any means finished, either. But all I know is that God called me to do The Big Fat Scary Thing, and if the God of the Universe, the Lord of Lords, the Great I Am says to do The Big Fat Scary Thing, then I have to keep doing that Big Fat Scary Thing He told me to… even though it’s hard. Even though it’s scary. Even though the process will probably hurt. Even though I’ll mess it up… Because if God is the very best Father, I will do that Big Fat Scary Thing because I love Him, I know He wants what’s best for me, and because He said so.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7AO0l5Zo9Gs/WK3NC2FPsfI/AAAAAAAAAbc/a-B58pIDUGUDF5C_zZqRqRW51fu7QFG-ACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="148" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-7AO0l5Zo9Gs/WK3NC2FPsfI/AAAAAAAAAbc/a-B58pIDUGUDF5C_zZqRqRW51fu7QFG-ACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" /></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: "arial"; font-size: 11pt; font-style: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small; white-space: normal;" target="_blank">Emily Donehoo i</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small; white-space: normal;">s the only female in a family of five. She is a former High School English Teacher and National Trainer for the College Board. These days, when she isn’t scrubbing toilets, administering timeouts, working at book fairs, attempting to tackle dinner, laundry, homework help, dishes, and a preschooler’s incessant questions, she writes authentically about the hard stuff that really matters, hoping to uncover the truth that God has for us whether it makes us cry from laughter, pain or both at the same time.</span></span></div>
Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-43733210785052742672018-04-18T03:30:00.000-07:002018-04-19T10:24:17.162-07:00Get Comfortable with the Uncomfortable Because God Might be Teaching You Something<div style="font-size: 12px; font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal; min-height: 13.8px;">
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span> <span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For several years during and after college, I worked for a nonprofit based in Kenya. There’s a conversation from my time living there stays with me for many reasons and I come back to it often, exploring that moment with the Lord wondering if he has something new to reveal to me from it. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">This is where change happens—in the discomfort and the tension. That’s when the Spirit finally gets some <i>space to move</i>. </span></span></b></h3>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">These moments can’t happen if we’re afraid of discomfort and change or if we become so busy, we don’t make room for God to move in our lives. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Here's what happened. One of my friends and I spent an afternoon in Jikaze, the village our nonprofit partnered with. We were in Grace and Harun's home—a 200 square foot mud hut that slept six people—talking about the cost of food in Kenya. We mentioned how shocked we were that avocados only cost five shillings ($.05), while at home they cost closer to 300 shillings ($3). This naturally led to more questions about what things cost in America versus in Kenya (a dangerous conversation). Regrettably, I explained that my Chaco's cost about 10,000 shillings and learned the shoes they wore cost only 35 shillings. Then Grace, after adding up all the numbers we told her, said we could be walking around wearing close to 20,000 shillings worth of clothes. Remorsefully, I was thinking probably more.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In that moment, my excess was rudely exposed. I’d always known I lived lavishly in comparison to most of the world, but it felt like I was sitting under a great big blinding spotlight. I was sitting in a home that was <i>literally</i> made of mud, sticks and nails (<i>and that’s it</i>) with people who wear the same clothes every day, sleep in the same room they cook in and don’t eat fruit of any kind because it’s a luxury they can’t afford. Meanwhile, we’re discovering that my white tee from Target cost three times as much as the t-shirt Grace was wearing that she probably bought from some roadside stand.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">This conversation is a slippery slope and quite frankly, it’s stressful to think about. But, what are those cheesy sayings we see on signs outside of churches? “God never promised us smooth sailing, but he promised us a safe landing.” Is that the gist? Whatever it is, Jesus <i>didn’t </i>promise me any of this would be easy. I was so painfully uncomfortable that day—and it didn’t go away in an hour. I <i>still</i> think about it. Even as I write this, I feel my jaw clenching and embarrassment brewing. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When he finally has some wriggle room in our crowded lives, he shows up. I whine about not hearing God, frustrated by my assumption that he’s not working in my life, but the issue really is that I don’t give him the space to do so. I get distracted from the point so easily in the whirlwind of schedules and meal planning and buying stuff, that I forget to even<i> look</i> for God, let alone make room for him.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Now let me tell you how the conversation concluded. Harun, Grace’s husband, asked about people in America who cannot afford things like clothes and food. I started to explain homelessness and what poverty was like back home when Harun suddenly stopped me. His brow was furled, and his eyes deeply distressed. You know what he said about homeless people? "That is not good. That is not right."<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After all that, me kicking myself with every word that slipped out of my big mouth about how much money we spend on stuff—that is how the conversation ended. He was so deeply concerned about the homeless in America that his easygoing, goofy demeanor quickly became seriously overwrought. Homelessness and poverty in America rattled <i>him</i> even though my perception of his poverty rattled <i>me. </i><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I am <i>still </i>shaken by these people to the core. As I was stewing in my shame, Harun swooped in and gave me grace he didn’t know I needed. Shame was shackling me on the spot. But shame wasn’t going to transform me and carry me from that moment into change and freedom. With Harun’s breathtaking compassion, the Lord quickly unshackled me. He didn’t leave me where I was but instead drew me deeper into his faithfulness and lavish love. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I was grateful for Harun’s words that saved me from self-criticism. Through Harun, God revealed a new angle. Because putting myself down isn’t the appropriate response in tough, uncomfortable or hard moments. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<b><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;">Often the Lord uses those moments to teach us something new, and he shows us how to pivot and journey deeper into faith. </span></span></b></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: black;">It’s easy to distract ourselves from the truth, but it’s a mistake because we miss out on his magnificence and majesty. In a moment of discomfort, the Lord swooped in and showed me the way <i>in</i>—deeper into faith, trust, and grace—and reminded me to leverage my gifts and blessings for his glory. </span><span style="font-size: 12pt;"> </span></span></div>
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span> <span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span> <span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span></span></span> <a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iiUowxJ0K_M/WtXpVImgDCI/AAAAAAAABHs/UtrC0fKwbtwqEhT2efhDSC2777r2SbQEQCLcBGAs/s1600/maggiephoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><img border="0" data-original-height="132" data-original-width="200" height="132" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-iiUowxJ0K_M/WtXpVImgDCI/AAAAAAAABHs/UtrC0fKwbtwqEhT2efhDSC2777r2SbQEQCLcBGAs/s200/maggiephoto.jpg" width="200" /></span></a><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Maggie Bartlett is a Colorado native, living in Denver with her husband. </span></span></span><br />
<span style="color: #444444; font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She works at a marketing agency and loves to write, climb mountains and travel in her free time.</span></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rSbPUvfjym4/WszbBGeomaI/AAAAAAAABEQ/nLuyqv-mA1ERB2ozDyls32exEI9NL4W9QCLcBGAs/s1600/DSC_0772_edited-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-rSbPUvfjym4/WszbBGeomaI/AAAAAAAABEQ/nLuyqv-mA1ERB2ozDyls32exEI9NL4W9QCLcBGAs/s640/DSC_0772_edited-1.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Women who started businesses with microloans from Musana Community Development Organization in Iganga, Uganda.<br />
Judith is on the far right. </td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><a href="http://www.talkingto%20jesus.com/" target="_blank">By Jeannie Blackmer</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Judith stood beside me as I smelled a little white flower on small tree. In broken English, with a bit of a British accent, she said, “That’s a coffee bean flower. Have you ever seen one before?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">“No,” I answered. She showed me the little coffee bean next to the flower on the shrub and explained how they pick the beans and then roast them. Then she took my hand and said, “Let me show you some other things.”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I was part of a small group visiting the <a href="http://www.musana.org/" target="_blank">Musana Community Development Organization</a> in Iganga, Uganda. On this day we were touring Buwongo, a small village where some of the kids who go to school at Musana come from. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">In addition to providing education for more than 1700 children, Musana provides small loans for hundreds of women to develop small businesses so they can provide for themselves and their children. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I had lagged behind the group to take some photos and Judith hung back with me. Then she gave me a little tour of her own. First, we walked over to a sweet little mud hut with a few mounds of dirt beside it and plants growing out of the top of the mound. “That’s a sweet potato,” she explained. “Do you grow those?” I told her no, but I love to eat them. Then she asked, “What do you grow where you live?” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">How could I possibly explain that I don’t really grow anything? I don’t need to grow my own food for my three boys to eat. And most of the people I know garden as a hobby. I decided to tell her where I live we grow lots of corn and sometimes strawberries. She understood corn but not strawberries. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Then she showed me a chimney-like structure surrounded by red bricks and told me about Solimo, a mother of seven, who started a brick-making business in her own backyard from a Musana loan. She now employs several men and even rebuilt her own home with her own hands (and bricks). As we continued walking she pointed out the trees all around us. We were walking through a banana plantation, also locally owned by a woman who was providing lots of jobs for the people in their village. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">After that, we walked over to a hut with a woman sitting outside on the ground surrounded by baskets filled with what looked like peanuts but smaller and purple. They call them groundnuts or g-nuts. One of their favorite local dishes is mashed plantain with these groundnuts on top like peanut butter. The woman smiled and handed me a generous bag of these nuts. I learned later that groundnuts are one of the most important legumes grown and consumed in Uganda. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I realized we had wandered in a totally different direction than my team. I mentioned to Judith that we should rejoin them. She smiled and proudly said, “Don’t worry, I’m the chairwoman of the women here. I know where they are.” <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">She asked me questions and I asked her questions. She told me she had 10 children and five grandchildren. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I’ll forever treasure the short time Judith and I shared as we walked, talked and laughed together. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Later, I learned from the staff at Musana, that a few years ago Judith would have been too shy to talk with me. Now, her confidence had grown and she is a strong leader for the women. I have to mention we visited this project on International Women’s Day giving me a whole new understanding of the significance of this special day.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">These women, by the way, combine their earnings and if a woman in their group hits a hard spot and needs money, they help her. Once a year they “break their box” and divide up their profits. A woman needs about $20 a month to provide for her family in Uganda. To me, this is a beautiful example of a true community of women doing life together and sharing their possessions as we’ve been learning about in recent messages at Flatirons Church based on <a href="https://www.biblestudytools.com/acts/passage/?q=acts+2:42-2:47" target="_blank">Acts 2:42-47</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Judith then led me to a piggery where I rejoined my group and we watched piglets play in the mud. We learned about and met the woman who had started with two pigs and now had grown a successful business of raising and selling livestock. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">I listened in awe on this tour as I saw the resourcefulness of these women and realized how just a small loan can make a huge difference in their lives, their children’s lives and the impact on the whole community. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">Musana is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year! </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">What started with the hope of rescuing 80 children from dire circumstances in 2008 has shifted into a movement transforming the community of Iganga, Uganda. With the gracious help of so many, Musana is breaking the cycle of dependency in Uganda through sustainable solutions in education, health, and skill development, impacting more than 130,000 people annually. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";">To help or find out more about Musana visit </span><a href="http://www.musana.org/"><span style="font-family: "arial";">www.musana.org</span></a><span style="font-family: "arial";"> or email </span><a href="mailto:info@musana.org"><span style="font-family: "arial";">info@musana.org</span></a><span style="font-family: "arial";">.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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☀☀☀</div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial";"><i>Fun fact: Musana means “sunshine.” This became the name of the organization because the college girls who attended CU Boulder, and who started Musana in 2008, used to sing "You are My Sunshine” to the 80 orphans they originally rescued. </i><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;"><br /></span> <a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oG_AhDWiQIs/WszkbQ5ltlI/AAAAAAAABEs/STUcJdhA-yMNQ3M1JRVnNSE0jyzyNJ1nwCLcBGAs/s1600/Jeannie.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1215" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oG_AhDWiQIs/WszkbQ5ltlI/AAAAAAAABEs/STUcJdhA-yMNQ3M1JRVnNSE0jyzyNJ1nwCLcBGAs/s200/Jeannie.jpeg" width="151" /></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">Jeannie Blackmer is excited about her newest book, <i>Talking to Jesus: A Fresh Perspective on Prayer</i>, and hopes this book will ignite a desire for a deeper, more intimate prayer life for readers and help others see how relevant the Bible is today. She lives in Boulder, Colorado with her husband, Zane, and their three sons. For more information visit </span><a href="http://www.talkingtojesus.com/" style="font-size: small;"><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial";">www.talkingtojesus.com</span></a><span style="background: white; font-family: "arial"; font-size: x-small;">.</span><br />
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-90426188908330995682018-04-04T03:30:00.000-07:002018-04-04T03:30:15.398-07:00Take My Toaster, Please<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/about/our-staff/" target="_blank">By Rebecca Barnes</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The toaster has been missing for several days now. My first thought was that we really should start locking our back door. My second thought was,<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>who would steal a toaster?</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>But then I remembered that I said something hospitable to some guests recently and I hadn’t thought through all the potential ramifications of it. I told them to take whatever they needed. I guess they needed a toaster.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Don’t get me wrong. I could care less about our toaster. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I think the best guests are people who actually take me at my word when I tell them that if they need anything just rummage and take it. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But guests like these are rare. So when they show up I’m still a little surprised. It takes me off guard. While I give nearly everyone who arrives permission to treat my home as his or her own, only a few people actually do. And when people do, that’s when they begin to feel like more than guests, or friends of friends. That’s when they feel like family. And I like having family around.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We’ve had a lot of this lately. We’ve put the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>commune</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>in<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>community</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>around our place. We’ve had one boarder, one extended houseguest, and a handful of friends of friends taking turns staying in a room in our garage for months. By my count, we had an all-time high total of 12 people on the commune grounds one day last week. It was a flurry of piles of shoes at the door, dishes in the kitchen, and chatter. Friends took up every bed, couch, towel, and chocolate chip cookie in the place. And while a spot on the chair with the cat, and her hair, isn’t exactly the most welcoming of guest accommodations, I hope all these folks did, in fact, feel welcome—because they really are.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My particular challenge in this commune environment is usually finding a way not to let things get in the way of opening my home—which for me is so close to opening my heart. Often my heart is sad, and I don’t feel like opening it. But being with people is usually the best remedy for that. And if I can remember that it feels good to commune, I push through and have company. More often company pushes me. And I thank God for them.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We began to open our doors again last summer, after a long season of not being able to extend much hospitality. </span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">We had been dealing with trauma, a family member’s major depression, and hospitalizations. So it felt strange to welcome people. It felt strange to smile, to listen to funny stories. It felt like a betrayal to have laughter in the house again. But it also felt refreshing. At first, I was terrified. But turns out that not everything goes horribly wrong. And the people we’ve had staying here have brought more people. They come to eat, to watch games, to have beers on the patio, and to soak in the hot tub. And so I get to do all those things, too, or at least to watch other people enjoying life—which gives me hope that it can be enjoyed again.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I get the idea from my commune that I don’t have to sulk in a threadbare sweater of sadness. I can wrap a metaphorical blanket of hospitality around a friend’s shoulders and share it together. And then, especially then, I can understand what people are talking about when they say that God is always right here with me. Because when I find a stray glass on a bookshelf, then I remember where God is. He<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>is</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>right here. He’s sending all these people my way so we can commune. He wants me to feel connected, to love and be loved.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-97S1wecCKMA/WrQMysVrQtI/AAAAAAAABDc/oQrwzIC22HQ_VftIcom5KpTif6z4UqpCACLcBGAs/s1600/rebecca.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1331" height="200" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-97S1wecCKMA/WrQMysVrQtI/AAAAAAAABDc/oQrwzIC22HQ_VftIcom5KpTif6z4UqpCACLcBGAs/s200/rebecca.jpg" width="166" /></a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/about/our-staff/" style="color: blue;">Rebecca Barnes</a> is married to an amazing man, who encourages her faith and listens to her typing a lot. She has three daughters and a son-in-law. She loves to cook for anyone who likes good food, and she feels competitive about weeding her flower garden. She lives in Old Town Lafayette because it’s a little eclectic, like her.</span></div>
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<br clear="all" style="font-family: Helvetica; font-size: 14px; text-size-adjust: auto;" />Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-30946243978272710302018-04-01T03:30:00.000-07:002018-04-01T03:30:00.426-07:00He is Risen!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J-LyDtf2TVo/WrJdtcL88xI/AAAAAAAABCM/DPOiDzGB58MisoeFPk3GGHDNyS4OLUboQCLcBGAs/s1600/FFB7B5C9-6934-4D54-8715-C7C62647E5FD-3849-0000051A5E7081D1.PNG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="674" data-original-width="539" height="640" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J-LyDtf2TVo/WrJdtcL88xI/AAAAAAAABCM/DPOiDzGB58MisoeFPk3GGHDNyS4OLUboQCLcBGAs/s640/FFB7B5C9-6934-4D54-8715-C7C62647E5FD-3849-0000051A5E7081D1.PNG" title="Easter, celebrate, thankful, he is risen, women, flatirons church, flatirons women" width="510" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: large;"><i>"Lord, You loved this world so much, that you gave your one and only Son, that we might be called your children too. Lord, help us to live in the gladness and grace of Easter Sunday, everyday. </i></span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-58868956463156118402018-03-21T03:30:00.000-07:002018-03-23T14:34:21.431-07:00Circles<div class="MsoNormal">
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vhJ5P6WSP4k/WrEaEnsePWI/AAAAAAAABBo/CWcrJKJtOxgSGbA-A0heTFp_IcRzG_oagCLcBGAs/s1600/IMG_0004.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vhJ5P6WSP4k/WrEaEnsePWI/AAAAAAAABBo/CWcrJKJtOxgSGbA-A0heTFp_IcRzG_oagCLcBGAs/s640/IMG_0004.JPG" title="christian women, community, connection, small groups, flatirons women" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-size: 16px;"><br /></span></span> <span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-size: 16px;">By <a href="http://flatironschurch.com/staff-member/lara-veve/" target="_blank">Lara Veve</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">Have you ever argued with God? Have you been angry with him? Or asked him hard questions and heard nothing in response? Or did you hear him respond loud and clear, but it was a different response than you had hoped? <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">Well, this is a very recent occurrence for me and I’d like to share with you a little journey that Jesus took me on last month as I wrestled through a change in vision regarding community here at Flatirons.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">Recently you might have heard Jim Burgen talk about a new vision for the church regarding community all based on the Bible regarding spiritual formation and the first church. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">The goal of the first church was to spiritually form believers into the kind of people who had the character of Christ and shared Him with the world. This is the same goal God has for us now. So, we can use that model to find out how the first Christians pursued spiritual formation when the church first started. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">"<i>And they devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayers. And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved." </i>(Acts 2:42-47)</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">So, you had several thousand people who had nothing in common except they bumped into Jesus and He was changing them. They were gathering together in a big group to learn more. Then, leaving the big group, they opened their homes to one another. We heard Jim unpack this concept first coined by Andy Stanley:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666; font-size: large;">We learn in rows. We grow in circles.</span></span></h3>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">We learn and take in the words of Jesus in rows, our weekend experience at Flatirons.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">Then, we grow and see real change in smaller circles, in houses or around tables, taking place outside of the weekend experience in every-day life.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">So, this vision asks this question? What if we had thousands of people at a Flatirons campus on a weekend and sometime during the week, all, or most gathered in a circle around a kitchen table, or a campfire, or a booth in the back of a pub or coffee shop and worked through a truth that Jesus taught us. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If MOST of us did meet in smaller groups would THAT make a difference in us individually, in this church, in this world?<o:p></o:p></i></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666; font-family: "arial";"><span style="font-size: 16px;">The answer is YES! To accomplish this, the pieces of ministry that will be resourced and promoted by Flatirons will be the weekend services, (rows) so we can learn the teaching of Jesus. Then small groups (circles), so we can have a group of trusted people where we can take what we've heard on the weekend and unpack what it means for us daily. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt;"><span style="color: #666666;">I don’t know about you, but this makes me excited. The MOST frequent emails I receive ask, ”How do I get connected at such a big church? How do I find a small group? How do I find a place where I fit? I feel invisible. How do I get to know people?” With this new vision of community, we will have something intentional to offer everyone this fall at all five campuses.</span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">So, I was on board. All in… <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">But, what does this mean for current Women’s Ministry programming at Flatirons? It means May marks the end of our large women's monthly programs of the IF Gatherings and Mom's Day in Day Out (DIDO). </span></span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;"><br /></span></span> <span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">I'm going to be very honest and vulnerable with you. When I first heard this news, I was sad and angry. I experienced a roller coaster of emotions. Some stemmed from anticipation, relief, pride, a sense of failure, loss, excitement. You name it. I felt it. I wanted to hold tightly to programs I believed God had his fingerprints all over. I started asking God, ”Why did YOU allow these programs to be created, only to have them end in their current form? Was it all for nothing?” I have been on my own little journey trying to make sense of all this change. And I want to share with you what God clearly said to me about a month ago. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">As I was reading Acts 1:7 at a planning retreat up in the mountains, I experienced one of those moments where Jesus was holding my face in his hands, looking straight in to my eyes, not reprimanding me, but gently making it clear that I was NOT trusting him. I was arguing with him. <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“He said to them, It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own Authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you and you will be my witnesses in all of Jerusalem and in all of Judea and Samaria and to the end of the earth.” </i>(Acts 1:7)<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">I felt Jesus saying to me, “Lara, it is NOT for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own Authority!” My role is to trust Jesus and the Holy Spirit and be his witness. Not to control and question and overthink and be fearful. He was asking me to trust Him! But, I wasn’t quite done arguing with him. “But Jesus, I LOVE the women of this church!” and his response was, ”Lara, I LOVE them more!”<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">Then, he wasn’t quite done speaking to my heart. He spoke very clearly to me that this model <span class="text">creates an opportunity to become more like Jesus, to practice being disciples, to get far away from being consumer Christians, to truly experience Biblical fellowship, to have relationships with others so we can hold God up to the world. It can provide us a safe place to grow. And it can be replicated and it is sustainable. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span class="text"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">I felt tender and honestly, honored, that God would speak to me in those moments, because he is NOT always that specific. It was clear that for this season I needed to trust Him and trust the leaders that he has put in place to lead us. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">I believe all God has done in years past in Women’s ministry at Flatirons, was laying a foundation for what’s to come. </span></span><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Many of you reading this blog are women who have prayed, supported, encouraged, served, dreamed and helped build integral portions of community here at Flatirons and we are so thankful for you! <o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">I am asking you ladies to join us and link arms with us. <span class="text">We want to do TWO things really well. </span>We want to gather together for weekend services to learn in rows the teaching of Jesus. And be a part of circles, so we can grow and connect. <span class="text">We already have successful and vibrant Flatirons Connect groups, IF tables, IF discussion groups, and Mom’s DIDO groups that are meeting together. My hope is that ALL the facilitators will bring their groups and be a part of this new structure and adventure for the fall launch. We will provide tools and training and care for those willing to lead their circles. So, the programs will change, but community will continue, multiply and thrive. </span></span></span><br />
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<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508185284;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"><span style="color: #666666;">Sometimes God asks us to trust him, even if we have a hard time making sense of the process or outcome in our human brain. He welcomes our prayers and our arguing. He wants us to come to him, even in our anger or sadness or confusion. <o:p></o:p></span></span></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #666666;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508185284;"><span class="text"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">He is faithful and gracious and he can be trusted. </span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk508185284;"><span style="font-family: "arial"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZDZNe-8i1dc/WrEahIAdtQI/AAAAAAAABBs/TQqSHyVtY8sx0dFaYMV6qG938_-7XqXdACLcBGAs/s1600/lara%2Bveve%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="500" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ZDZNe-8i1dc/WrEahIAdtQI/AAAAAAAABBs/TQqSHyVtY8sx0dFaYMV6qG938_-7XqXdACLcBGAs/s200/lara%2Bveve%2B2.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://flatironschurch.com/staff-member/lara-veve/" target="_blank">Lara </a>is the Women’s Ministry Director at Flatirons Community Church. Lara and her husband Eric have been married for 17 years and they are parents to three teenagers. As you can imagine life is busy at the Veve household, but they embrace the beautiful chaos of life during this season.</span></div>
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Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5257605980456570697.post-58501283546555203482018-03-14T03:30:00.000-07:002018-03-14T03:30:38.228-07:00Thankful for Friends Who Accept Me Even As My Messed Up Self<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jwAxtRXHxWg/WpF4qzYopBI/AAAAAAAABBQ/-RsJoKqS1d4-lVt64iO1SmPFI5eSLoM4wCLcBGAs/s1600/chad-madden-171327-unsplash.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="426" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jwAxtRXHxWg/WpF4qzYopBI/AAAAAAAABBQ/-RsJoKqS1d4-lVt64iO1SmPFI5eSLoM4wCLcBGAs/s640/chad-madden-171327-unsplash.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">By Emily Donehoo</a><span class="s1"></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A couple months ago, I was so angry I just left my house.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Bye.” I said. No “I love yous.” No, “I’ll be back in a couple of hours.” No anything… just “Bye Felicia.” Without the Felicia.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="s1"></span><br /></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I didn’t know where I was going.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: large;">And I don’t even remember what specifically made me so angry.</span> </h3>
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<span class="s1">But I know it was irrational. To be fair, I have Chronic Lyme Disease. It’s been really well-controlled for the last 2 years, but a major drop in temperature and barometric pressure (yay Colorado!) triggered my arthritis to flare and my joints to lock up, which tipped off my anxiety, which spiraled into medical bills and <i>I can’t go through this again. My doctor said it was over.</i> </span></div>
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<span class="s1">Regardless, I had gone off on my husband and kids about something completely unrelated, and they had no clue what was going on in my body/mind, and I didn’t have any words to explain it. (Another weird side effect of Lyme—the words can’t seem to get from the place in your brain where you know what you’re trying to say, to the place that makes your mouth say them. Kind of like a word firewall). So, it just came out as a rage. And instead of continuing to wreak havoc on my family, I left.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">As I drove, I thought, <i>I can’t even go out in public right now. I can’t be around my family, and I can’t subject the general public to my attitude right now. I know I have a person I can go to, but I can’t think of who that is… </i>(Oh the joys of Lyme, I couldn’t even remember my best friend’s name.)</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Eventually, I broke down the firewall in my brain and called Jess.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Are you home?” I asked.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Yes.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Can I be at your home and not at my home?”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“You okay?”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Nope.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1">“Of course you can come over.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
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<span class="s1">Because of course, she will have me when no one else would have me, even if I couldn’t remember her name five minutes prior.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Because, for some reason, she’s my person, and she can accept my own personal brand of crazy.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">I went to her house and she was like, “Hey. I’m working on some stuff, but you’re welcome to keep me company.”</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
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<span class="s1">And you know what advice she gave me?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">None.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"></span><br /></div>
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<span class="s1">You know what she said?</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Nothing.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">She wrapped me up in a blanket, fed me dinner, and made me some tea. Then she sat there and worked on her projects and listened to me as the words fell out of my mouth and sometimes got stuck in my brain.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">And it was the most blessed nothingness in the world.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Her offering me a place to be not okay for a while was the greatest gift. But the best part is that she offers it to me all the time. Her friendship means that I can be not okay when I’m not okay. And her friendship means that I can celebrate when something awesome happens.<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></span></div>
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<span class="s1">Finding that is so rare.</span></div>
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<span class="s1">Because, when faced with meeting new people, we wonder,<i> Will I be accepted here? Will people love me here? Am I okay? Is it okay with these people that I look/act/am like this?</i></span></div>
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<span class="s1">And the only way to know whether or not they will really accept you is to show them your messed-up self.</span></div>
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<span class="s1"><span style="font-size: large;">And that’s the really cool thing about Jesus. He is always our person. </span></span></h3>
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<span class="s1"><br /></span></div>
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<span class="s1" style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">H<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: small;">e is always the place we can be not okay. When we aren’t fit for human consumption, we are fit for Him. Because, "God proves his love for us by this, that Christ died for us when we were still sinners. (<a href="http://biblehub.com/romans/5-8.htm" target="_blank">Romans 5:8</a>) </span></span></div>
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<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial; font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All we have to do is just keep getting to know Him better by being with Him as our messed-up selves.</span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6I8dGotjsiw/WpF5XkdX6fI/AAAAAAAABBY/XARE1v-ED1saqduMlSVeL3eeIxT12omAACLcBGAs/s1600/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="200" data-original-width="148" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-6I8dGotjsiw/WpF5XkdX6fI/AAAAAAAABBY/XARE1v-ED1saqduMlSVeL3eeIxT12omAACLcBGAs/s1600/Emily%2BDonehoo%2BPhoto.jpg" /></a><br />
<span style="-webkit-text-stroke-width: initial;"><a href="http://donehoo.blogspot.com/" style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;" target="_blank">Emily Donehoo i</a><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">s the only female in a family of five. She is a former High School English Teacher and National Trainer for the College Board. These days, when she isn’t scrubbing toilets, administering timeouts, working at book fairs, attempting to tackle dinner, laundry, homework help, dishes, and a preschooler’s incessant questions, she writes authentically about the hard stuff that really matters, hoping to uncover the truth that God has for us whether it makes us cry from laughter, pain or both at the same time.</span></span></div>
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<style type="text/css"> p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Helvetica; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000; min-height: 17.0px} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Helvetica; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} p.p3 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 14.0px Helvetica; color: #4787ff; -webkit-text-stroke: #4787ff} p.p4 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 15.0px Arial; -webkit-text-stroke: #000000} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} span.s2 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none} span.s3 {font: 16.0px Arial; font-kerning: none; color: #232220; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #232220} span.s4 {font: 16.0px Arial; font-kerning: none} span.s5 {font: 15.0px Arial; text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none; color: #39547f; -webkit-text-stroke: 0px #39547f} </style>Lara Vevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01488322853438876054noreply@blogger.com0