John 3:16

It is probably the most well-known Bible verse of all time.  “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” (NIV)  The Message paraphrase says this, “This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son.  And this why:  so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life.”

I love this verse.  I do.  It’s the introduction to God’s love story for us all.  It reveals God’s character and His plan.  It’s inclusive, and teeming with love.  But it’s the following verse, John 3:17, that reads like an exclamation point to me. “God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was.  He came to help us, to put the world right again.”  (MSG)

So many people go through life believing that God goes around pointing an accusing finger, shaking His head in disappointment and sighing at our shortcomings and failures.  But it’s simply not true.  His heart is to help, not to condemn. He sent His only Son into the world to set it right again…to set us right again.

He is our hope.  Not just for life everlasting, but for life right now. 

God’s hope is available to us whether we’re drowning in a sea of laundry or a sea of depression.  We can experience true joy whether life seems relatively easy or we are walking through some of our darkest days.  We can learn to trust His heart whether our circumstances make sense or not.  We have hope for this life right now because Jesus didn’t just come to tell us how bad things are, but He came to help make things better.

Whether this season finds you thriving or just barely surviving, the truth remains the same.  God is our hope and He came to mend things.

A prayer:  Thank you, Father, that You alone are our hope.  Whether we feel especially hopeful or not, You remain our constant.  Help us truly believe that You are not in a continual state of disappointment with us, but rather that You delight in us.  Psalm 149 reminds us that You delight in Your people and You crown the humble with victory.  Father, today, crown us with your victory.  As we humble ourselves before You, please mend broken hearts and fractured relationships.  Thank you for coming to help.  We look forward to the day when all will be set right by You forever. Amen. 

Sometimes the really important work in life doesn’t feel very important when you’re in the midst of it.

Instead, it feels hard, looks quite unimpressive and would be easier to just dismiss.  Because of this, I often find myself wanting to move on to things that look or seem more important.  I want to work on the seen things.  Our minds are trained to believe that if nobody sees the quiet, hard work, then does it really matter? In a world that glorifies what it sees, or what is posted on FB or Instagram, often it’s the small personal areas of our mind, heart & soul that we neglect.

Photo by Eric Ward on Unsplash

To be honest, I’ve been in a bit of a “blah” season of life lately.  Nothing particularly awful, but just a lot of normal crap.  You know what I mean.  Life is like that sometimes.  But what I’ve noticed is that when I feel like this, it’s easier for my mind to wander.  I am more prone to comparison, a tad more easily offended and just overall, a less fun person to be around.

But being that you don’t actually live in my mind with me, (go ahead and say a quick “Hallelujah” right now) I can easily present a fairly put together package on the outside while inside, my thoughts are leading me astray.

Chances are, you’ve experienced this yourself at one time or another.  From the conversations I’ve had over the years with countless women, it seems to be something that we females struggle with quite a bit.

I recently spent a glorious week basking in the Florida sun with my daughter and some of our dearest friends. The trip was an early birthday present for my daughter and her friend who have been asking to make this trip together since they were in the First Grade. The forecast for our time there was absolute perfection and the weather lived up to its promises.

We spent our days swimming in grandma Mary’s pool, sightseeing & discovering different beaches. I am a sun & sand lover by nature but honestly, my favorite thing about the beach is the ocean.

I was reading recently about WWI and about the story of the Christmas Truce of 1914. It was a little over 4 months into the war when on December 7th, Pope Benedict XV suggested a temporary hiatus of the war in order to celebrate Christmas. Although the warring countries refused any official cease-fire, on Christmas Day the soldiers in the trenches decided to declare their own unofficial truce.

On Christmas Eve of 1914, the sound of German and British troops singing Christmas carols to each other could be heard from across enemy lines. On Christmas Day, German soldiers emerged from the trenches, crossed through no-man’s-land, (a desolate area comprised mostly of decay and rotting corpses) and approached the Allied lines while calling out “Merry Christmas” in their enemies’ native tongues.

Our giant oak tree came down today.

The city sent out a crew, on our request, to take out the gigantic tree that sits near the road and is eating into our driveway.  Standing on our sidewalk, all you can see for blocks is an army of trees lining the boulevard, standing tall and proud, keeping guard like a watchman.

It’s a beautiful stretch of foliage that in the summer gives way to a canopy of lush green leaves and in the fall, with the late afternoon sun gently resting on them, takes your breath away with the dazzling hues of crimson red, golden yellow and burnt orange.  Honestly, I will miss the grand old oak.  But we have had too many close calls and several accidents involving people trying to back out of our driveway. It was starting to impede with everyday life. 

A couple of weekends ago we traveled up north to our old stomping grounds of Hibbing, MN. As soon as we turned onto Hwy. 53 a receiving line of pine trees appeared and welcomed us, gently guiding us north toward our destination.  If there is a stretch of road that holds more memories for my husband & I than this, I am unaware of it. The 30 plus mile stretch would tell stories of

I L-OOOOVE decorating.

It’s something that really gets my artsy vein pumping. I have a hard time leaving my furniture in the same spot for very long, I
like to switch things out and rearrange them.  Most of my time spent sitting on the couch in my living room involves dreaming of the perfect piece to add:  a seasonal decor item, something from the new Target line that whispers sweet nothings in my ear or that appliquéd pillow with just the right POP of color.  Then I’ll start daydreaming  about that old slab of wood lying in my garage that is just begging me to do something with it. Paint me, put some cool knobs on me, cover me with chalk paint. Do something to me!!!

I hate being misunderstood.

Lately I’ve discovered it’s something that I really struggle with. It frustrates me. I don’t like it when people only see or hear a “snippet” of something and then draw a biased conclusion based upon it.  It makes my inner person want to stand up and scream, “That’s not fair!!!”  I want to explain myself & let them hear my side of the story. I want to defend myself. As my husband would say, “Kitchen Jessica” would make an appearance. (This is the name he has given me for those times when I just have to get something off my chest, set the record straight and unleash all my big feelings on him…and usually this takes place in the kitchen.)