Happy Weekend, ya'll! I pray you are able to enjoy it... to take even just a few moments for you... breathe in deep... do something you love... and enter into His rest a bit!
With the gorgeous weather, and me - trying to find my routine again... I have been somehow reading a bit less, and moving a bit more! It's a good thing... and rest assured, I am still finding plenty of Awesome to Gather here for you from across the Interwebs!
Enjoy!
* This one by Shauna Niequist on Getting Out of a Life Rut... "There are people and situations that take us back to old, old stories, and even though we’re moms now, not children, or even though we’re business owners now, not adolescents, we find ourselves acting out stories that haven’t been true for a long time, or stories that were never true to begin with... This old story isn’t helping me anymore, so I’m writing a new story."
* This one by Shauna Niequist on Getting Out of a Life Rut... "There are people and situations that take us back to old, old stories, and even though we’re moms now, not children, or even though we’re business owners now, not adolescents, we find ourselves acting out stories that haven’t been true for a long time, or stories that were never true to begin with... This old story isn’t helping me anymore, so I’m writing a new story."
* This post by Emily Wierenga with Part 3 of 3 on Why this Former Progressive is Returning to Evangelicalism... (I highly recommend reading all 3 posts!) "I’d been taught to view the church, and world, through my behavior.
And my behavior was either wrong or right, and there was no middle-ground, there was no grace, because I didn’t start with Christ.
It’s not bad to have rules. In fact, it’s good, and sin is something we battle from day one, and we need saving from it. We need to overcome it, and live in the fullness of the resurrection. We need sanctification, justification, and one day–glorification.
But before all of that, we need grace."
And my behavior was either wrong or right, and there was no middle-ground, there was no grace, because I didn’t start with Christ.
It’s not bad to have rules. In fact, it’s good, and sin is something we battle from day one, and we need saving from it. We need to overcome it, and live in the fullness of the resurrection. We need sanctification, justification, and one day–glorification.
But before all of that, we need grace."
* This post by Hannah Boning on the Split Second Before You Jump Off... "...it feels like a lot of things, at all once, and also nothing. because it feels like all of my feeling are a jumbled mess of kite strings, flown by a child who doesn’t know how to handle the wind. because it feels like I am a child who has been handed a kite, but no one told me how to handle the wind."
* This post by Ann Voskamp over at Incourage.me on When You Feel Like You Just Keep Blowing It... "Why do I blow everything, again and again?
Will I ever be who I already am in Christ?
My chest hurts. I know what I have to say."
* This one by Lisa-Jo Baker on When You're Tired of the 'How-to' books About Parenting... "We keep score.
We are hard task masters. We cut ourselves so little slack. We judge our piles of laundry our kitchen counters. We are angry at ourselves for accomplishing too little in too short days.
...Motherhood isn’t a competition it’s a calling."
* This one by Tonya Salomons on An Act of Obedience... "When it all really boils down to the truth of what niggles away at my heart I want a feel good kind of faith. You know the kind I mean the one wrapped up in "you're a good person so good things will happen to you."
I've written about it before, how I struggle with a gospel that includes suffering and yet somewhere beyond the I wish fors, and God couldn't you do it this way, just this once, I really want a gospel that brings me closer to Jesus - even if it means donning a sack cloth and heaping proverbial ashes on my head."
* This one by Shannan Martin over at Flower Patch Farmgirl On Discovering Why We Need Each Other... "Slowly, often imperceptibly, we drag each other back out into the noonday sun, where all the filth is exposed and there's no time to find shade. We teach and learn and I hate the ways we keep screwing things up.
But the point was never perfection.
The point was community - sharing a messy life, in slivers and in shards.
There is no us/them. There are humans fighting for each other, humans more aware of each other, humans believing God wasn't playing games when he called us His family, effectively binding us together despite the barriers that always made us think we were meant to stay apart..."
* This post right HERE from Abiding Love, Abounding Grace where I talk about The Power of Encouragement, about motherhood... about holding close and letting go... "She got the call of confirmation, saying yes - she and her girlfriends got the house and her first response was a shaky exhale, followed by tears... and a coming in close... a little weeping and rejoicing all mixed in. It's the letting go so as not to tear apart and it's hard work, ya'll - but it is worth it! So all week long, I have been reminded of our benches -of all the places we have made ourselves at home together and talked real... talked deep... talked truth."
* This post by Ann Voskamp over at Incourage.me on When You Feel Like You Just Keep Blowing It... "Why do I blow everything, again and again?
Will I ever be who I already am in Christ?
My chest hurts. I know what I have to say."
* This one by Lisa-Jo Baker on When You're Tired of the 'How-to' books About Parenting... "We keep score.
We are hard task masters. We cut ourselves so little slack. We judge our piles of laundry our kitchen counters. We are angry at ourselves for accomplishing too little in too short days.
...Motherhood isn’t a competition it’s a calling."
* This one by Tonya Salomons on An Act of Obedience... "When it all really boils down to the truth of what niggles away at my heart I want a feel good kind of faith. You know the kind I mean the one wrapped up in "you're a good person so good things will happen to you."
I've written about it before, how I struggle with a gospel that includes suffering and yet somewhere beyond the I wish fors, and God couldn't you do it this way, just this once, I really want a gospel that brings me closer to Jesus - even if it means donning a sack cloth and heaping proverbial ashes on my head."
* This one by Shannan Martin over at Flower Patch Farmgirl On Discovering Why We Need Each Other... "Slowly, often imperceptibly, we drag each other back out into the noonday sun, where all the filth is exposed and there's no time to find shade. We teach and learn and I hate the ways we keep screwing things up.
But the point was never perfection.
The point was community - sharing a messy life, in slivers and in shards.
There is no us/them. There are humans fighting for each other, humans more aware of each other, humans believing God wasn't playing games when he called us His family, effectively binding us together despite the barriers that always made us think we were meant to stay apart..."
* This post right HERE from Abiding Love, Abounding Grace where I talk about The Power of Encouragement, about motherhood... about holding close and letting go... "She got the call of confirmation, saying yes - she and her girlfriends got the house and her first response was a shaky exhale, followed by tears... and a coming in close... a little weeping and rejoicing all mixed in. It's the letting go so as not to tear apart and it's hard work, ya'll - but it is worth it! So all week long, I have been reminded of our benches -of all the places we have made ourselves at home together and talked real... talked deep... talked truth."
Finally... our video pick:
I know... I'm sorry! If it makes you feel any better,
I don't own this new book yet either...
but oh how this trailer makes me really, really want to!
So - what did you think? Had you read these yourself already? Did you find something that is not listed above? If so - share some Linky Love in the Comments below!
The encouragement you have gathered this morning--oh, just what my heart and soul needed! Perfectionism is one of my threats to "spiritual whitespace." And take it from me, you really, REALLY need to read Bonnie's book. I'm seven chapters in (part of her book launch team), and oh, my goodness. My spiritual whitespace this morning was on a bright, John Deere yellow swing surrounded by some very loud (and not too happy) birds because I had invaded their space this morning. Thank you again!
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