One Word, Five Voices: Stop

Lent is such an obvious time for stopping something, isn't it? It's when people give up chocolate, Facebook, radio/music in the car, the elevator at work, etc. It's a time to stop doing something so you can fit other things in more easily, like prayer, study and time to focus on God.

It's why I love Lent. It's extra time to focus on what matters, and put aside things that distract from that, or add something in that helps me focus more clearly.

That's what can make Lent a dangerous time, too. When the ritual of giving something up every year starts to get in the way of the reason for doing it—that's when faith becomes less about the heart, and more about the rules. And that's never good. That is something that should most definitely stop—not just during Lent, but every day of the year.

Faith isn't about the rules because we don't serve a God who works on technicalities. Faith is too important for that. We are too loved for that.

Whatever it is you're stopping for Lent, I pray that it draws you closer to the knowledge of how truly loved you are, and draws you away from a list of rules followed out of guilt. Because that, my friends, is not how we were created to be living.

_________________________________________________________________________________

 Check out what my friends think of today's word on their blogs: Shawn, Heather, Steph and Brian.

One Word, Five Voices: Wise

Sometimes, you can have years of study, research and knowledge about a situation, but still not be wise enough to handle it.

I felt that way before I became a mom. I read books on breastfeeding, talked with experienced moms about what to add to the registry, and made lists of milestones and dates they should be hit. I stuffed myself full of knowledge in preparation for his arrival and still didn't feel ready. The thing is . . . wisdom didn't come from any of those places—it came from an ability God gave me—the fact that I knew my baby better than anyone.

True wisdom is proper discernment. It's knowing when something just doesn't feel right and having the moxie to change course if needed. It's being able to trust, and for me, have faith to hear what it is God wants me to do in a situation.

That's hard sometimes. Usually what God wants me to do is uncomfortable, or at the very least, not what I would necessarily choose on my own. Sometimes it means going against the status quo, which can be even harder. But what I continue to learn is that on the other side of whatever that situation is, I am always wiser, always stronger, and always more faithful.

So do I still gorge myself on information when I'm unsure about something? Sure. It's in my nature. But the more faithful I've become, the more I realize I must also indulge in a heavy dose of prayer and discernment as well.

_________________________________________________________________________________

 Check out what my friends think of today's word on their blogs: Shawn, Heather, Steph and Brian.

One Word, Five Voices: Knowledge

Today's word had me thinking about how much we truly seek to understand and learn about those around us every day. What knowledge can I say I really have about my co-workers, neighbors, acquaintances?

Maybe that lady at work who always seems so cranky and quick-tempered has an aging parent she's caring for that's stressing her out. Maybe that goofy guy who won't shut up at the library has no one else to talk to. Maybe the kid who's picking on your kid at school gets beaten every night when he comes home. I'm sure every single one of us can pinpoint at least one person who is a thorn in our side at times, but how many of us can say we seek to understand why? And furthermore, how many of us try to reach out to that person and get to know them better?

I'm as guilty as anyone when I say, "Yikes! Not me!" It's human nature to protect ourselves and stand up for ourselves when we've been wronged. But when we start to learn about who someone is, scars and all, something happens. We gain knowledge. We start to care more. Community is built and somehow, the things that drove you crazy don't bother you as much, or they start to not happen at all anymore, because instead of hurting and lashing out in anger, the other person softens . . . because now they feel known.

The famous philosopher G. I. Joe told us that "knowing is half the battle." I jest here, sure, but in reality, that's so true! The more you know about someone, the less likely you are to get angry at them over silly things, and the more grace you extend to them when those little things happen. So here's a little challenge I gave myself over Lent: get to know someone I can't stand. Who knows what might happen by Easter!

Who can you get to know a little better?
_________________________________________________________________________________

 Check out what my friends think of today's word on their blogs: Shawn, Heather, Steph and Brian.

One Word, Five Voices: Sabbath

When Ryan and I were newly married and still trying to figure out how this eight sides of family thing was going to work, we felt awful saying no to family engagements or dates with friends, especially when we had no official plans. But as time went on, our Saturdays and Sundays started to get booked up week after week. Several weeks would go by before we realized we hadn't had a free weekend to rest and recharge in recent memory. It wasn't until some friends invited us to dinner and our next open time was more than two months away that we realized something had to give.

We decided some "Days of Nothing" were in order, and started actually scheduling them into our shared calendar. They are what you might imagine days of nothing to be—restful, jammie-clad, take-out-consuming kinds of days with no plans of any kind . . . other than the "nothing," of course. When someone asked us to do something, it was easy to say, "sorry, we're all booked up that day" because it was actually scheduled in our calendars.

Today's word, sabbath, reminded me of our days of nothing. A sabbath is intended to be set apart. There should be no work, just rest. It's a time to recharge from the week that's passed and get ready for the week ahead—true relaxation.

I'll be the first to admit that days of nothing became harder with little ones around, but the older our boys get, the more we'll try to foster this sense of rest in them. And from the multiple requests I get from my oldest for a "jammie day," I'm guessing it'll catch on just fine.

When's your next day of nothing?

Recent jammie day fun with the little man.

_________________________________________________________________________________

 Check out what my friends think of today's word on their blogs: Shawn, Heather, Steph and Brian.

One Word, Five Voices: Speak

Have you ever noticed how quickly you can diffuse a situation by speaking kindly? When you know someone is pissed at you, whether you've done something wrong or not, give the other person a little bit of grace and you can almost physically see the walls come down around them. It's kind of amazing. 

So many of us walk around with defenses up, ready to fight for ourselves at the first opportunity. That guy dinged your car at the grocery store? Speak love. That friend ignored a kindness you extended? Speak love. That bully was a jerk to your kid? Speak love.  

What would happen if we chose to speak kindness and love into the lives of those who have wronged us? What if those we've wronged chose to show us kindness instead of anger?

Though it's crazy, amazing

we can turn a heart with the words we say.

Mountains crumble with every syllable.

Hope can live or die . . .

So speak life, speak life

to the deadest, darkest night.

Speak life, speak life . . .

when the sun won't shine and you don't know why.

Look into the eyes of the brokenhearted,

watch them come alive as soon as you speak hope,

you speak love, you speak life.

Toby Mac, Speak Life

_________________________________________________________________________________

 Check out what my friends think of today's word on their blogs: Shawn, Heather, Steph and Brian.

One Word, Five Voices: Beloved

Beloved means so much more than just your plain, everyday type of love. I can love tacos, but they're not beloved. I can love watching ridiculous reality TV, but those shows are far from beloved.

Beloved conjures a slew of mushy words—cherished, precious, adored—but it's a love that has a certain intimacy and closeness that run-of-the-mill love can't come close to. It's a deeper, more spiritual love that can cover a multitude of wrongs.

Though I'm sure we still have a lot to learn, 11 years of marriage has taught Ryan and I that even when we don't like each other, we can still love each other. But loving in spite of ourselves doesn't come from us—it's something we can't do on our own. Loving each other when we can't stand each other comes purely from God. It's when we sit in His love that we are able to look at each other the way He sees us.

Because He first loved us, we are able to love each other fully.

I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine.    —Song of Songs 6:3

_________________________________________________________________________________

 Check out what my friends think of today's word on their blogs: Shawn, Heather, Steph and Brian.

One Word, Five Voices: Follow

The word "follow" has changed definition with the rise of social media in the last several years. Think about it—I "follow" lots of people on Pinterest or Twitter, but really, it's only because I think that meatloaf recipe sounds good or they have a knack for comedy in 140 characters or less. It has nothing to do with giving my allegiance to something as Websters defines the word.

In a way, social media has weakened the term "follow" by making it a much more casual interaction. In biblical times, the word "follow" meant to drop everything and quite literally follow someone wherever they went—live their lifestyle, eat the same foods—essentially, you immersed yourself in the life they were leading.

What is it that we follow today? So many of us say we're believers, Christ-followers—but when something becomes a challenge and things get a little tough, we forget what it was we were following in the first place.

To truly follow this Jesus guy means to love always—when it's hard, when you don't want to, when you don't think you should, when it's not fair. Everything we do as believers should be covered, surrounded and fortified with love.

How will you follow today?

_________________________________________________________________________________

 Check out what my friends think of today's word on their blogs: Shawn, Heather, Steph and Brian.