That Thing I Do Now - Vol 65

So - first off, if you are a subscriber and I forgot to mention earlier that it is October... I apologize!  By "October" I mean #Write31Days and so that means way more posts than usual! I promise it will get back to normal in a few weeks! Until then, I hope you are reading along and diving in to Resting in Him with me!

Last weekend, on a whim - and keeping in line with Resting in Him, my Honey and I took a Sunday Drive.  Like, for real... we headed up to the mountains in search of Autumn!  It's been a hot, long summer and the trees around here are just starting to change... but still - we had to look, real slow-like, because - Hello Sunday Drive(r)!

With all the writing I've been doing (#sorrynotsorry) - I haven't had as much reading time, but I can't bring myself to let you down! So here... the Gathering of Awesome for this week... Enjoy!

Featured today are posts by Kris Camealy, Cara Strickland, Lori Harris, Brian Dolleman, Alia Joy and the #Write31Days blogger who is somewhat new to me: Aliza Latta... and - of course - a video!

Happy Reading! 

(Ya'll know to click on the authors' names to read their whole posts, yes?)

* This one by Kris Camealy on Why You Need To Believe In Impossible Things...
"We’ve struggled lately, it’s not a secret. And in the thick of it, believing in the impossible has felt exactly that–impossible. Ridiculous, even. I’ve turned my chin up at wonder. I’ve squinted my eyes to imagination.

The sunlight filters between the pickets casting a shimmery haze over the remains of the recently chopped logs waiting to be stacked. This golden hour shines with a hope that sometimes goes unseen under the blazing sun of noontime. I confess, my hopes had waned. I whisper it to the birds underneath the feeder. I’m not proud of my doubts–but I am no longer ashamed of them either.

The shimmery haze reveals tiny insects a whirl of steady activity. When I step to the right, with one foot down the hill, they disappear from view. I play this game for a few moments, stepping up and down the hill. They are visible, then invisible.

Visible, invisible.

It’s not them that have moved, but me,  they remain even when my eyes fail to see."


* This one by Cara Strickland over at Little Did She Know with Making Peace With My Mental Illness...
"Since getting some clarity about what was going on with my mental health, I’m surprised by how much better I feel. The fear that I had harbored for my entire life had come true: I am mentally ill. But that admission is allowing me to be more supported than I’ve ever been. Instead of a life-sentence, I’ve found that embracing this truth is life-giving.

My friend Rachel suggests in her book, Eat With Joy, that everyone has an eating disorder. I’ve taken that to heart, trying to understand my relationship with food and the different ways in which it is disordered in different seasons.

In the same way, I’m beginning to think that everyone is mentally ill. We might not all have a diagnosis, or chemical imbalance, but we all have things in our past and present experiences that sneak up on us and try to get us to believe lies. I have believed those lies for a long time."


* This post by Lori Harris  with Be His Wife...

"“I’m not going to say what I thought of your sermon,” I say. “Every week I tell you what I think of your sermon and every week we talk it to death. I’m done.” I wink at him for good measure. “Today, I’m just your wife and I think you’re one amazing man.”

“But if no one tells me, how am I supposed to know how to improve? How am I supposed to get any better?” he asks. His face is flushed and I know I’ve rattled his cage.

I shrug my shoulders. ” I don’t know, but I’m done with being your critic. I want to be your wife,” I say. “I want to look at you with the same eyes that see you on a Saturday night. No more critiquing.”" 

* This post by Brian Dolleman over at Northwest Leader with My Only Regret...
"I don’t have many regrets. Not that I think everything I’ve done in the past 20-some years of ministry is particularly praiseworthy or commendable. No, there were plenty of mistakes and poor choices and embarrassing things done and/or led by me.

There is one regret I’m clear about. If I could go back and do it all over again, I would give more grace. I would be kinder, gentler, more compassionate, less-judgy, less controlling… I would be more grace-filled, gracious, and grace-giving."


* This post by Alia Joy from her 31 Days series with An Open Letter to the Ones Whose No Didn't Count...
"Your no counts.

Even if it was whispered through smudged crimson lipstick. Even if your breath smelled of beer and cigarettes. Even if you smiled wide when he leaned in and tucked a stray strand of hair behind your ear. Even if you thought he was cute. Your no counts even if you didn’t see it coming. It counts even if you were in the wrong place at the wrong time. It counts even if you don’t have predator warning nail polish . It counts if you say it with your eyes shot through with fear or closed and unable to squeeze out anything at all.

It counts because we all carry glory right there in our skin, in our hair, and eyes, and the crinkle of our smile.

We carry glory as a reflection of our creator and these bodies were made for holy things." 

* This 31 Days series, 31 Days of Choosing Enough by Aliza Latta with The Words of a Lion Heart...
"It was November, I think, and a snowfall had just begun outside. My seat was beside the window so I could see the flakes floating down and I was tired, yet wide awake. There weren’t very many serious writers in the class. Most of the kids were taking it because they thought it would be easy. I was taking it because I thought I might be found.
That’s usually why I write."


* This one right HERE from my own series, 31 Days of Resting in Him with Rest Will Not Just Happen...
"...it will not just magically unfold before you with unicorns and rainbows and all kinds of chocolate! No.

Moments of Rest... sure! Unscheduled afternoon naps or gloriously cancelled plans... (What? That's just me?) Of course!  From time to time, Moments of Rest are spread out before us like an unexpected gift, waiting to be enjoyed!  Praise God and Hallelujah!

But true Rest -Rest that runs deep and refreshes long after the moment has passed- the Rest that God offers us, that must be sought after, pursued, protected.  We must be intentional if we hope to grab hold of the Rest that outlasts time!"

And lastly... the video... because, that's just how we wrap this Thing up (and ya'll know how I love me some Poetry Slam!)

Happy Weekend, ya'll!