Gift Given and Given and Given…

FAITH…

A gift given by God…

Passed on by others…

Believer to Believer to Believer .

Paper doll people with hearts of love,

Held by the faith of others; supporting others through their own.

Believer to Believer to Believer

Paper doll people with hearts of love,

Reach out to the disconnected.

Building the kingdom one soul at a time.

Reach out to the disconnected.  Share the gift of your faith.  Dare to transform the world wherever God has placed you.

“For whoever is begotten by God conquers the world. And the victory that conquers the world is our FAITH.”

1 John 5:4

Suitcases…

What’s in your suitcase?

Regrets about the past, Anxiety about the future, To- do lists for the present?

Fear, Anger, Unforgiveness, Sadness, Apathy, Disappointments?

Cast away dreams, Broken promises, I can’ts and No’s?

The burdens in our suitcases tempt us to look for shortcuts.

Or to avoid big hills, rocky ground, and people.

Hands occupied, no longer able to lift heavenward in thanksgiving.

Eyes cast downward, backs aching from the strain.

If traveling to a foreign land, wouldn’t you enlist a guide?

There would be no fear in the capable hands of the one who knows the way.

The Heavenly Father is guiding us on this journey of the  heart.

Walk toward the dawn. Home is ahead.

Check your luggage. You don’t need it. It will only weigh you down.

Leave it at the foot of the cross.

Your Father will provide.

Trust in Him. Do not fear.

“He said to them, “Take nothing for the journey, neither walking stick, nor sack, nor food, nor money, and let no one take a second tunic” Luke 9:3

Mirror of Reflection….

If Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder…

If eyes are the window of the soul…

Beauty seen is a reflection of our Beauty within.

We have all known ah ha moments when Beauty catches our breath.

A pause as it sinks within.

Then we too must BELIEVE in the beauty within.

Extravagant, unique.

No two of us the same.

Yes, BELIEVE in this Beauty within.

The stamp of the Creator, His Divine image.

Heart within heart.

Let the scales fall from clouded eys. Vision restored.

livesofreflection.blogspot.com

Life IS beautiful. Your life IS beautiful. All life IS beautiful.

You are a reflection of Beauty.

“Before I formed you in the womb I  knew you, before you were born I dedicated you….” Jer 1:3

Are you Thirsty?..

Beauty exalts our mind.  Beauty feeds our soul.

Our thirst for Beauty can never be satisfied…

For we were created with a restlessness within that searches for Beauty.

Beauty is the Creator’s invitation.

To seek Him;  To find Him.

And in the finding the holes in our hearts are filled.

We find rest from the striving.

True thankfulness, praise and worship stream forth from the heart that rests in Beauty.

St. Augustine, a philosopher and a theologian, writes this of the journey of his heart:

“Late have I loved you, O Beauty so ancient and so new, late have I loved you!

You were within me, but I was outside, and it was there I searched for you.

In my unloveliness I plunged into the lovely things which you created.

You were with me, but I was not with you.

Created things kept me from you;  yet if they had not been in you they would not have been at all.

You called, you shouted, and you broke through  my deafness.

You flashed, you shone, and you dispelled my blindness.

You breathed your fragrance on me;

I drew in breath and now I pant for you.

I have tasted you, now I hunger and thirst for more.

You touched me, and I burned for your peace.

“Jesus stood up and exclaimed, “Let anyone who thirst come to me and drink.  Whoever believes in me, as scripture says:  ‘Rivers of living water will flow from within him.’ ”  John 7:37-38

Thieves and Pickpockets…

Thieves of the Mind….Pickpockets of the Heart….

(Beauty Revisited….)

Thieves of the mind attempt to rob the truth of Beauty written within. Whispering deceits of doubt, division, discouragement, despair. Emotions get twisted around the lies. Beliefs, not of God, swell and bring infection to the heart.

“I am alone”, “I am worthless”, “No one cares”, “No one loves me”

Pickpocket steals peace from the heart. Leaves it in broken bits.

Yet…….

A Whisper…softer but more powerful than the noisy din is heard.

“I AM WITH YOU”

Saturating the wound the whisper dispels the lies, the deceits.

“I AM WITH YOU”

 Jesus speaks from the cross.

The Blood of the Lamb streams forth.

Victory.

Christ allows His heart to be broken, in order to heal ours.

Let not the lies become your truth. The battle has been won.

You are chosen. You are loved. You are beautiful.

“Though the mountains leave their place and the hills be shaken, My Love shall never leave you nor my covenant of peace be shaken, says the Lord, who has mercy on  you.” IS 54:10

Believe in the Beauty….

“The stars, the desert – what gives them their beauty is something that is invisible…”

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly;  what is essential is invisible to the eye.”  Antoine de Saint Exupery

What is beauty? To see beauty, to know beauty is to drink in the Divine.  Who I am is beauty created by the One who is pure beauty, pure love.  I am not only a divine reflection of this beauty, of this love….it knits my being together.  Anything that assaults this truth is a lie that can never take away the Divine dignity within.  “God looked at everything He had made, and He found it very good.” (Gen 1: 31) Let go of the thieves of mind and heart that pickpocket the truth of who you are.

 

Believe in the beauty God sees in you and allow your heart to see the beauty of your brothers and sisters about you.

“See I am doing something new! Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?” Is 43:19

Be Bigger than the Bear…

Black bears can be found in the Smoky Mountains. They are basically shy animals but do come around looking for food when it is scarce. Many years ago I remember reading advice to hikers when encountering a bear. They are words that struck me then and are a constant reminder in this journey of the heart.

So  what does one do when a bear crosses the path?

BE BIGGER THAN THE BEAR!

Yes, BE BIGGER THAN THE BEAR…

When life hands you the unexpected….BE BIGGER THAN THE BEAR!

Conflicted relationships, financial downfall….BE BIGGER THAN THE BEAR!

Depression, aloneness, hopelessness, boredom…..BE BIGGER THAN THE BEAR!

Pain of the heart, the body, the mind…BE BIGGER THAN THE BEAR!

Begin this day…BIGGER THAN THE BEAR!

Live this day….BIGGER THAN THE BEAR

End this day and rest in the Truth….

You walk in communion with the Resurrected One!

“Blesssed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in His great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead…In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials.” I Peter 1: 3-6

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Be Who You Are…

Wildflowers spring up in the most unexpected places.

In neglected places of forgotten tracks, popping forth from untrodden leaves, growing vividly beside abandoned structures. Often a mystery how they came to be. Flourishing without assistance. They shout their beauty in places unnoticed.

Picked from their spot…how quickly they wither and die. As if made to occupy places desolate. Making a difference just where they grow. Bringing a smile to the childlike heart. Causing a pause to the hurried traveler.

How often we pass by the wildflowers in our lives. Robbed by busy-ness, eyes glazed over.

Heavenly Father, may we aspire to shout the beauty and color of who we are…

Just by being who we are, in the fields You have placed us.

“so that we may exist for the praise of His glory, we who first hoped in Christ.” Eph 1:12