2020
Turn My Mourning to Dancing I was laying on my giant float in the pool desperately longing to feel the lazy days of summer. I’ve noticed the sun-kissed smiling faces of my friends on Instagram and wondered if they were feeling it, too. I feel …
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Identity Crisis
I’ve felt a shift. Have you? We are looking here, there, and everywhere to find our identity. We are grasping at many things to align ourselves with. Gender, sexual preference, political party, likes, dislikes, alumni, nationality, racial profile, what we stand for, what we hate. …
Death to Life
I have found one thing that we can all agree on. Gasp. I’m being serious. What is it?
F E A R
We are dealing with fear in some capacity.
Some of us are afraid.
Some of us are not.
Some of us are having a difficult time dealing with those that are afraid.
Where does fear stem from? I think I know the answer to that, too. Fear is rooted in our souls. What does that mean? Well, some of us have reconciled our souls. Some of us have not. When are souls aren’t reconciled, fear steps in and can strangle us like a weed.
rec·on·cile/ˈrekənˌsīl/verb
- restore friendly relations between.
- cause to coexist in harmony; make or show to be compatible
Our world right now is shouting fear at us from every angle. Many of us are scared. Some of us are terrified. Others are at peace. How, you ask, are people at peace? They’ve reconciled their souls.
What does it mean to reconcile your soul? It is an eternal perspective. Reconciling your soul is surrendering to Jesus; believing that He is your Savior. Jesus is the one who died on the cross and was raised on the third day. Reconciling your soul means this is not your home; not your everything.
When we reconcile our souls to Jesus, we find peace. The world can be spinning around us and while we are aware and effected, we are not moved. No matter what happens in this life, we still have hope. We know that our soul is at peace in Jesus. Heaven is our home. This is not all there is. (Thank God. No, really. Thank God.)
Maybe it’s time you reconciled your soul. You’ve tried to control all that life has thrown at you to no avail. Your soul has twisted and turned deep within you and you are tired. Exhausted. You feel like there is nothing left. But, there is. There is Jesus.
In a world that feels like a spinning top that just won’t stop, now is the best time to reconcile your soul. Surrender to Jesus. He is the peace you’ve been longing for. He is your hope. He is your future. Heaven is your home.
themessymingling.com
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11
"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord" Acts 3:19
"For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!" Romans 5:10
"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that in Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting men’s trespasses against them. And He has committed to us the message of reconciliation.…" 2 Corinthians 5:17-19
Living the Headlines
Hearts exposed Narrative Idols For the past few months, I’ve woken up, looked outside, and wondered what the day would bring. I start out hopeful; full of sunshine. By the end of the day, I would find myself exhausted. You, too? I started taking account …
2020: Clear Eyes, Full Heart, Can’t Lose
The Awakening When the ball dropped at midnight on January 1, 2020 in the middle of Times Square we were excited. This year was going to be the year of vision. Each of us had our own idea of how our enlightenment would play out. …
The New Normal
Everyone is talking about a new normal. People are saying that they don’t want to go back to our old normal. I get it. There is plenty I want to leave in the past. But, that doesn’t mean we have to wipe everything out. Not all of our “normal” was bad. We are in an all-or-nothing culture right now and honestly, I am exhausted. Not all of our old normal was bad. A lot of it is worth saving. Let’s take a deep breath before we throw it all away.
Not all of our old normal was bad. There is some worth saving. A lot worth saving.
themessymingling.com
I was an emotional teenager. I know all teens are emotional. But, I was something else. I was the teenager that stormed off and could throw a tantrum like no other. “Let’s just destroy it all!” I’d proclaim. None of it mattered anyway. This is us, right now. Let’s just burn everything down and start over. That is a huge mistake.
Let’s chat about Jesus and salvation, shall we. When it comes to our past, we are forgiven. The moment you believe and accept Jesus came to die for you and was raised on the third day, your past is forgiven. Jesus paid the price. That doesn’t mean you won’t have consequences and you get a hall pass. It means you have access to God and eternity.
A lot of people think that this means our past is gone. But, if you think about it, your past can never be erased. Forgiven? Absolutely? Torn down and gone forever? Not in the slightest. Do you ever wonder why that is?
Our lives are a journey; a beautiful messy journey. I think most of us can say that we are not the same person today as we were a year ago, five years ago, ten years ago. We are, hopefully, better then we were before. As we grow and what was once normal shifts and changes, we forge ahead bringing the good stuff with us and dropping the bad.
"Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything." James 1:4
2020 has asked us to persevere. Am I right? We’ve all changed in some way; many of us proclaiming that we will not go back to our old normal. Can I challenge you? Keep the good stuff. Shed the things that need to go, but don’t wipe it all away. Becoming mature and complete means some things stay. Your old normal wasn’t all bad.
There’s always room for growth. Change is a good thing. However, growth isn’t built on an empty foundation. Your life is beautiful; even the messy pieces. Don’t cancel everything. Let your life grow in the soil where He plants you. Just make sure you turn it over every now and again.
Growth isn’t built on an empty foundation.
Themessymingling.com
Privilege & Lives
Why Christians shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss white privilege and black lives matter.
He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? Micah 6:8
Oh, good. You’re still here. Today’s post is a doozy. Am I right? I’ll try my best to work through this mess respectfully and with an overabundance of grace. So, here goes nothing.
I love Micah 6:8. I love it so much, I painted it on a board and it is hanging above our couch in our living room. It’s a good one to quote. Who doesn’t want to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly? We all like to preach this. But, do we actually live it? Living out justice, kindness, and humility is easier said than done. Let’s figure out how we can do this when it comes to privilege and lives, shall we?
Grady, Wyatt, and I are currently reading through the chapter book, The Stars Beneath Our Feet. The book opens with a 13 year old boy walking home. He has one some coveted sneakers and is being followed. He is black and lives in the projects. As the story progressed, I stopped and asked the boys (10yrs & 11Yrs) if they knew what the projects were. They did not. I was shocked. I thought since we talk about pretty much everything, they would be aware of this boy’s lifestyle. They did not. Grady thought this didn’t happen anymore; that most people lived feeling safe and well cared for. He was sad and disappointed to learn that kids his age struggled and lived in fear.
Privilege.
My kids have it.
I have it.
And it’s okay.
We have a lot of feelings when we hear the term, “white privilege.” Most notably, we get defensive. But, God’s Word says to, “walk humbly.” What does privilege and walking humbly have to do with one another? When I acknowledge that I have privilege, I am humbling myself to realizing that I have something someone else does not. I have a choice to make in this realization: stay stuck in my pride or using my privilege to help someone else.
Acknowledging privilege does not mean I live in shame or guilt. God is not about shame or guilt. What that acknowledgment does, is awaken me to others. My lens is expanded and I finally see others. In this, I can live out Micah 6:8 even further: do justice and love kindness.
There are things I do not have to tell my boys when they leave the house. I do not have to worry about how they are dressed or how they will be received by the neighborhood when they are out riding their bikes or having a Nerf war. That, my friends, is a privilege. Realizing this leads me to become a better Christian, and, a better human. I can now fight for justice for my friends who do not have this privilege. I can be kinder, more gracious, and empathetic. I can walk in humility using my privilege to help others instead of hold it over them in pride.
These conversations about privilege are messy and hard. They don’t make us feel good. All of our hearts are exposed and we don’t like it. But, what I am finding, is that when you sift out the guilt and shame and move towards conviction and change, true healing beings. This is where we unify and heal. This is where justice, kindness, and humility are found.
When you sift through the guilt and shame and move towards conviction and change, true healing begins. This is where we unify and heal. This is where justice, kindness, and humility are found.
themessymingling.com
So, what about Black Lives Matter? What do we do with that?
The enemy would love to keep us divided on this. I bet if you polled the Christian church on this phrase you’d see a split between who supports this phrase and who doesn’t.
Here’s what I know: black lives matter. Period. We have got to stop living through hashtags and political movements. They don’t own us. They don’t own the words we use. Who cares if there is an agenda. You, dear Christian, live by Christ, not the world.
My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified. John 17:15-19
Whether we like it or not, Jesus asked the Father to keep is in this world. It’s what we do with it that matters. Throughout the New Testament, you find apostles preaching the message of a unified church. In order to be unified, we must be able to weep, mourn, and rejoice with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Right now, some of our siblings are crying out. It is time for us to lament with them.
Black lives matter. It is not a hashtag. It is not a movement to scream about in this moment and then move on. This is an opportunity: an opportunity to be the Church representing Jesus as we stand with our black brothers and sisters moving towards justice, kindness, and humility. And, we find ourselves back at Micah 6:8.
Black lives matter. It is not a hashtag. It is not a movement to scream about in this moment and then move on. This is an opportunity.
themessymingling.com
But, what about all lives? Don’t all lives matter. Look, I used to fall into this category when the hashtag first got popular. If I’m being honest and really showing you my mess, it made me mad. It made me feel like we were singling one people group out amplifying the problem. And then, Jesus. He sure likes to turn the tables (literally and figuratively). There were many times when Jesus singled out a people group in the New Testament. He needed that person to matter in that moment to make a statement; to teach us something and expand our view. Here are a few examples:
Having dinner at Zacchaeus, the tax collectors, house (Luke 19:1-10)
The Samaritan Woman at the well (John 4)
The Good Samaritan (Luke 10:25-37)
The Children (Matthew 19:12-14)
I will leave you with this…
Then Jesus told them this parable: “Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. Luke 15:1-7
It’s time we allow space for the one to be heard. This is an opportunity for the Church to shine: for us to unify and walk together for justice, kindness, and in humility.
All The Feels
How to respond when other people’s feelings are difficult to process. I am a Dateline junkie. It actually doesn’t have to be Dateline. Give me any crime story and I am mesmerized. One thing I notice a lot is when the detectives talk about suspects. …