words i have been feasting on

I talked to Mary tonight for a long time, and she inspired me to post up several quotes and things I've written as I've been drawing closer to God the past few months.



These are from Mom's bible study:

"As we go to new dimensions in our relationships with the Lord, God often asks us to embrace a new phase of the journey that sometimes requires that we leave behind the familiar to embrace the new. While such steps are often painful, each is necesssary if our spiritural growth is to continue unhindered."

She had us answer the following question: "What has God asked you to relinquish as you journey on with Him? From the list in the margin, circle all that apply. (a person, a relationship, an ambition, a life goal, a habit, a lifestyle choice, a religious comfort zone, control of your time, other)

Then she asked, "How did you cope with those losses?" and "Briefly explain the danger of not letting go of the things God asks us to give up."

"Mourning is a healthy expression of sadness that assists us in moving on."

"While we should definitely take the time to mourn our losses, we must also come to accept them and use them as a springboard in the future."

"The loss of your Moses may be difficult, but take courage; Joshua is coming! As we grieve those things that must die so that we can move more fully in to the Spirit-filled, abundant life, let's remember that better things are on the horizon. Make a wise decision when to choose to stop the actions of mourning so that yhour heart can be encouraged and begin to heal. Lift up your head, my friend. God is up to something new and you won't want to miss it. May God heal our hearts so that we can fully embrace the next leg of our journey."



Here are some things I wrote in an email to a friend (John) at work about a Christ Community sermon we both listened to online:

"I will say that so far, the most thought-provoking soundbite from the sermon is this: "God never says "no" to something unless it is for our good and His glory... God never says "yes" to something unless it is for our good and His glory." This is just one of the many points and not the big picture theme, but wow... somewhat convicting, especially considering the ways I sometimes try to justify all the ways in which I not only fall short, but actively make poor decisions.

I'm about to start the "part 2" of the sermon - legalism vs. license."

"Holy cow, just finished the sermon. That third part kind of blasted me away... I never really have taken notes during the sermons because a) I am lazy and b) I think... when am I going to look at this again and c) I don't want to be one of "those people" but wow, I noticed so much more doing that tonight! (Also I really liked being able to pause and re-listen to parts the way you can't do when you are actually there live.)

I know you haven't listened yet, but keeps your ears perked for how the quote I picked out earlier, after all of the talk about legalism vs. license and how the law drives us to Jesus (which really drives us back to obedience - becoming eager to do what is good), comes back to this: "Lord, *whatever* is for Your glory is ultimately for my good!"



I have so much more to write but not enough time to do it!!! I may get back on later tonight and post a bit more.
Love you girlies.