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What Matters More?

What we do matters less than who we are. How we do things matters less than for whom we do them. (From the book Ascent of a Leader by Thrall, McNicol, and McElrath)
Living in God’s grace means living our lives out of who God created us to be. We can only reach our human potential outside of allowing Him to guide us to our true destiny. This path requires humility, which is not self-deprecation but rather choosing to trust God and others with ourselves by being vulnerable and truly allowing them a voice in our lives. Faith takes action as we choose to act on conviction rather than opportunity. This grace-based, relationship-oriented lifestyle leads us to be less focused on selfish ambition and more experienced in being loved and loving others.

For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8-10, ESV)

-Neil


 

Admission: The First Step to Freedom

Words have felt stuck in my throat.  They are stuffed down and unable to come out.  It has been a while since I have written.  I have not even been doing my personal journaling.    

Describing my words as being stuck, stuffed and unable to come out is a reflection of how our lives can be at times as well.  I do not know about you but I have definitely encountered periods of time where I felt stuck, stuffed down and unable to shake it off.     Continue reading “Admission: The First Step to Freedom”

Easy Going

“Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?” (Galatians 3:2, ESV)

A common lie that I have caught myself falling for is this:

“The only thing of value is something I have to work hard for.” Continue reading “Easy Going”

Sharing a great blog!

A good friend of ours, Michael Ramsey, wrote a blog this week that I felt resonated with some of the things we have been recently discussing.  We talk a lot about knowing who we are and this blog fits in perfectly.  He says “When people don’t have a clear sense of who they are, they are in danger of becoming whoever they are around.”  Michael then goes on to give some tips on being your authentic self. Continue reading “Sharing a great blog!”

The Real Gift We Have to Offer

“…we tend to forget that our real gift is not so much what we can do, but who we are.” (Henri Nouwen)
One lie that we often believe is that we need to do more. “Do less bad!, do more good!”, we are told. For some of us, we feel and are told that what we do is never enough. Perhaps that is not our problem. What if we don’t know or have forgotten who we are? What if we are more than what we do? As Nouwen puts it, maybe the real gift that we have to offer the world is being who God created us to be. To offer the best of what we have, we must be able to see ourselves the way God sees us. In Christ, we are loved, we are blessed, we are forgiven, we are secure, we have purpose, we are unconditional accepted, and we are everything God wants us to be. With that kind of perspective and understanding of ourselves, we can offer others an awesome gift anytime we interact with them: us.
-Neil
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We Are Being Lied To

I look in the mirror, and I do not like what I see. The labels of failure, loser, outcast, and idiot all whirl around inside my head. Do you ever have days like that? I’m talking about those days when we do not feel like we measure up. We find ourselves comparing ourselves to those around us. We don’t feel as well put together as the people we see and know. Continue reading “We Are Being Lied To”

Lessons from The Lion King 

I’ve been searching and searching for how to fix this funk I’ve been in lately.  The more I search and read the more deflated I’ve been feeling.  I just beat myself up over and over again.  I’ll never measure up.  I’ll never figure out why I am so irritable.  I’ll never be content.  The more I search, the more this is enforced and believed.  God keeps whispering to me to quit searching and just go back to the truths of who I am.    Continue reading “Lessons from The Lion King “

Free Devotional Series

Our friends at Trueface have released a free 7 day devotional available on YouVersion.  It’s titled “Two Roads: Please God…or Trust Him?”.  You can find it on the YouVersion Bible app on your phone or click here for direct access.  Neil and I have started it and it has brought about some great conversation.  Hope you enjoy!

-Melissa

****Over the summer months we will continue blogging but we will also slow down a little along the way so we may not post every Tuesday. We hope you enjoy your summer!

 

Priceless

When something goes wrong with the HVAC unit at my home, I have someone I call for help. He has all the knowledge and ability to repair and perform maintenance on the unit, but that’s not the main reason I call him. Of course, those things are important, but there’s something much more important to me. I trust this guy. He does what he says he is going to do. He is dependable. He is honest as well. One time, he made a minor mistake, but he owned up to it immediately. I would have no problem leaving him a key to my house for him to go in while I wasn’t there in order to complete a job. Continue reading “Priceless”

Pivoting in Life

There are many turns in life.  One chapter ends and another one begins.  Ups and downs throughout the process.  We recently experienced another turn in our life.  Our son graduated from Campbell University!  It was a very happy and memorable day and we celebrated all weekend.  See Neil’s post from last week for more on this wonderful occasion. 

Prior to the graduation, I was thinking about our son and our life with him.  There have been happy times, sad times, good times and not so good times.  Each one created a pivot in our life’s journey.  I asked myself what I was most happy about during this graduation season.  It would be easy for me to say that I was proud of him because of what all he has accomplished and I am.  I could also say that each pivot was a literal turning point in our lives and those pivots helped make him what he is today.  That is true.  But it boils down to something much more……who he is. 

Pivots do not define us.  They can describe something we did or did not do but they do not define who we truly are.  Life’s pivots can mature us and teach us more and more about who we really are.  Life experiences offer an opportunity for us to look a little deeper at ourselves.  What made us choose this or that?  What part of my true self does this experience reflect?   

I encourage you to look at pivots in your life and take some time to reflect on them.  What have they taught you about who you are? 

 -Melissa 

****Over the summer months we will continue blogging but we will also slow down a little along the way so we may not post every Tuesday.  We hope you enjoy your summer!