Deeper Still

Tonight I rose up with the moon,
and looking down from high above
I saw a world carved and confused
into valleys deep in need of love
And falling down all thick with grace,
Heaven's cloud of mystery
Was filling every empty space,
down to the depth of human need

-Bebo Norman, "Deeper Still"

Anonymous. A word that just kills a curious person as myself. I don't know who commented a couple of days ago with these words, but much thanks. These words just hit the nail on the head. The world is in such need of Love...and God's grace is what can fill every nook and crany of that need. I mean think about it, He's everywhere...who brings the new buds to the trees after a harsh winter? This one always gets me...who feeds the sparrows in the cold, snowy months? They don't fret because they know that their Creator will provide. Sparrows always inspire me not to fret, but to simply believe. God sustains our very life and goes beyond that to give us His Son so that we can spend eternity with Him. Someone once told me, "Your reality is God's grace." As much as I didn't want to believe those words at the time, they are Truth. God's grace-His forgiveness and love that I don't deserve-that is the reality that I live in...that is what keeps me going.

Brennan.

So can I just say that if you ever have the opportunity to hear Brennan Manning speak, go for it! The man has such a beautiful grasp on grace and he helps bring about a new understanding of it through sharing his own life, which has been filled with many ups and downs!

I just wanted to share some of the thoughts that hit me from the weekend's retreat...

In God's loving us, He has made us lovable.

God not only loves you, but He likes you, too!

Healing our image of God heals our image of ourselves.

Breathe in and breathe out the following statement daily, "Abba, I belong to you."

If you truly believe you are Abba's child, "notify your face!"

Our primary identity is as Abba's child.

"How can you say you love me if you don't know what hurts me?" God truly knows what hurts us and truly loves us.

God says to us, "I expected more failure from you than you expected from yourself."

The only way people are going to understand that they are treasured by God is if we treat them in that way.

My Story

"I was the lion." And as Shasta gaped with open mouth and said nothing, the Voice continued. "I was the lion who forced you to join with Aravis. I was the cat who comforted you among the houses of the dead. I was the lion who drove the jackals from you while you slept. I was the lion who gave the Horses the new strength of fear for the last mile so that you should reach King Lune in time. And I was the lion you do not remember who pushed the boat in which you lay, a child near death, so that it came to shore where a man sat, wakeful at midnight, to receive you."

"Then it was you who wounded Aravis?"
"It was I."
"But what for?"
"Child," said the Voice, "I am telling you your story, not hers. I tell no one any story but his own."

-CS Lewis, "The Horse and His Boy" (Chronicles of Narnia)

Sometimes God brings comfort. Sometimes He brings protection. Sometimes He brings pain. Someday when this life is over and I stand face to face with Him, I want to ask Him what my story is. I want to see this tapestry in its fullness. I know many of the situations in which He has brought me comfort. I know of a few times when He has protected me, though I am sure there are infinitely more. And I know of the periods when He has orchestrated pain in my life...I want to know what the purpose was. I want to see this life through His eyes. But I'm not there yet.

As for now, I must live content in what I do know...simply that He is good...not safe, as Lucy discovered, but certainly good. When life pulls the rug out from underneath me, I can rest assured that He is good and loves His children. Show me grace, though...I'm a slow learner and am still learning to believe it in my heart at times.