confetti ✨

what is in the sky of your life?

God deeply longs to create again in us. to pop His confetti cannons in our hearts, explosions of colorful yes’s, bursting & booming across sunrise banner.

will you let Him?

each second is a treat, an opportunity to receive & to rejoice, to let the Lord be the Lord. & as we submit to Him, His love dust settles in the cracked places, to mend to heal to make again. because we need the dew of heaven to revive us, to rest on us, to be within us always.

like confetti, like dust or dew drops, there are many small things here which add up.

breaths

cells

cents

seeds

seconds

 many individual grass blades create a lawn! like these little yet important things, our yes to God matters.

slow down & remember—little yes’s add up!

give God your yes right now, then repeat over & over until your life is a lush lawn of green abiding in Jesus, each second one blade of grass & may we be drenched in dew, covered—in rest.

Do not despise small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin.

Zechariah 4:10

One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much

Luke 16:10

The seed is the Word of God…as for that in the good soil, they are those who, hearing the Word, hold it fast in an honest and good heart, and bear fruit with patience.

Luke 8:11&15

By the Holy Spirit who dwells within us, guard the good deposit entrusted to you.

2 Timothy 1:14

with all this small talk, also know: God is in the details, the small parts of life. He cares about you. He sees you. He knows the number of hairs on your head. He catches your tears in a bottle. there is no thing too small to carry to God in prayer. if it matters to you, it matters to God. slow down & thank God for the little daily blessings. choose to see the good all around you & realize God is bigger than you think yet somehow still actively involved in every tiny detail of life. He dances over you with little happy confetti gifts falling like dew, giving like rain, making everything new every second—if we let Him!

Even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Do not fear

Luke 12:7a

God, thank You for little, which is actually big. help us see. help us receive. rest, remain in us. may we be the product of You, & no one else. may Your dew rest on our grass. rain Your rainbow confetti, all over, all the time! we love You Lord, let us love You like we are created to. celebrate in us Lord. help us slow down & see & may every second be a party—with You, in You, for You. hallelujah here! 

proposal on a hill ✝️

have you ever said hi to a dragonfly? taken the time to hear his story & laughed together over brunch? or you could knock on cloud’s door—she has many stories stored up just waiting to outpour. what about that rock in your backyard? even that fellow knows a thing or two.

all creation sings the same song.

slow down & you can tune in, too.

Yahweh’s beauty. His majesty. intricate glory, gorgeous wisdom. He is in everything & everything is for Him.

do you know Him?

that sunrise can be an introduction. your first hello. He’s jealous for your attention & longs for your mind real estate. toss that tiny screen you shine in your face & opt for the sun instead! He’s singing. He’s saying your name. meet Him, too. He is patient. He is kind. full of goodness & tenderheartedness. He waits for you to come to Him.

all this life is is an opportunity to meet God.

if you say no long enough to the open, waiting arms of love, He will eventually reject you like you rejected Him. He doesn’t want to. He wants you to say yes to Him, to know His lavish love for you! that while you walked contrary to Him, while you turned your back to Him & did evil, He ran after you. chased you with His goodness. found you in your pit. but at some point you need to let Him love you! you need to respond. it’s not hard, or scary. God is the best ever. & knowing Him? there is nothing else!

like finding a treasure in a field, you’ll sell everything else just to buy that field & gain the Lover of your soul. lose it all to discover a new life in succulent juicy real raw right now Father in love with you!!

all life is is an opportunity to meet God

God Laughs

have you ever thought of God as having a sense of humour? the more i get to know Him, the more fun we have together.

He Really wants to have fun with His kids.

so loosen up. laugh. play. let Him push you on the swings, go down tube slides together & don’t forget to have tickle times & pillow fights, together! 

here are some funny things from creation God showed me. we had a good laugh, together. i hope you can smile with Him, too.

ostrich faces!

horse teeth!

cow udders!

ape butts!

octopi!

wow, good one, God! 🤣

for more about the laughter of God, check out the book i drew, inspired by the fact that a joyful heart is good medicine!

https://www.amazon.com/Bubble-Lighthearted-Look-Life-Lockdown/dp/1737724812

i hope you LAUGH

breaking up with conformity

I don’t want familiar.

I’m done with comfortable.

All the books i’ve told myself for decades—the tapes i’ve played in my mind, the memories i’ve clung to, the past i’ve lived in, the volumes of self and the information of memory…

I just want free. I want to be everything You give.

So empty me of me. Take the trinkets, the boxes of horror, even the pretty things that I think hold value. I’ve been a hoarder, my fingers and heart crevices stuffed with myself, me, and i. full of things You never gave me. Now You’re offering me the gift of a lifetime—of eternity—but i’m too stuffed with high school pimples and what happened when I was two, to be able to receive from You. I’ve got all my yearbooks, that first break up, a lot of fear closets and some hidden lie monsters in the cellar, i’ve got pretty shiny things like thinking i’m good apart from You, some dollars and some thoughts I love that You know don’t make value or bring cents in Your Kingdom.

I’m full of trash that I call treasure. If only I could see this so I could finally fall down, give it all to You, so You could fill me with real treasure.

I want the heaven gold. I want forever jewels. I want You. You are the treasure. Your Presence the gift! So take these hands, erase them. Take this heart, break the idol factory. Help me careen to the end of myself so I can fly (more like fall) into Your hug.

I want to have space to receive what You give.

Help me let go.

Help me empty.

Help empty me so You can flood so You can fill so You make me Your home, come sit on the throne of my heart. come Lord come Savior come Friend. Initiate a demolition, a full rehab. Destroy all my interior so You can have Your way inside me. Get all heart real estate and take up all mind space. Get every cell and occupy each iota of all atoms. I love You, I need You. Come Jesus have all of me! I’m Yours Lord! Set me free!

hello my One True Love

to sky muralist and water wave stepper. to the one who carved my thumb whirl and sealed my heart, hello my one true Love. You will never abandon or break up with me. never abuse or hurt me. You never change. faithful and true. each millisecond brings something different, yet You remain. steady, constant, firm. from the first tick of time to the final second of earth, You’re the unchanging rock. my hiding place, my everything. praise You for each mountain sculpture. You rearrange the sky tapestry—an ever escalating beautiful stratosphere singing Your glory. the rain, the coral, the forest, the fire, the water, the cacti, the blankets of space. nature—each line and curve, color and song—the proof of God’s glory!

this excerpt is taken from my story, Microwave the Moon available on Amazon!

vein vessels

waterways flowing like oxygen &

wind

throughout limb &

back again

circulate pattern—the goodness of God

the life is in the blood

capillaries to cells tickle

elbows—remind us to dance

what’s in your blood?

a chex mix of God-gifts? or toxic trinkets?

have your veins been emptied yet—to be filled with His blood?

coursing, giving, receiving, going.

never stagnant or unconnected

veins flow from heart—where God’s love poured!

start there—

love

trusting in the waiting

progress is not pretty, piped frosting.

growth is not rehearsed ballets.

flowering is more like a rowboat with oars rubbing against its sides—the forward motion comes through friction.

another picture of this is the bow scraping against violin strings—the beautiful music coming through tension.

no one wants to watch a film without conflict. we all have housefire shipwrecks.
the question is, what do you do with them…allow the ruins to draw you to

surrender,

or harden your heart?

let’s take heart because the greatest beauty emerges from pitch dark cocoons.
so don’t waste your pit.

put your trust in the God who fills the clouds with water.

after all, the flowers won’t grow without downpour.

put your trust in God!

home is a blink away.

thanks giving

thank You for water as it rises, the kind that cleanses & covers. take away the debris & let everything sparkle & shine

thank You in this evil age, You are here, in our midst. You are good & you do good

like a mosaic of music, You compose the things we go through into a giant mural of good. & though we can only see one note at a time, by faith we understand the symphony song will be in harmony with Heaven when we fall down & allow You to compose

thank You for compost, the trash & broken that crashes from our silhouette as we follow Your tune—yet not for waste, but for gold. You take the trash & turn it into treasure, something beautiful, useful & a tool to transform others

You are good & You do good. thank You

thank You for socks. the comfort, the cushion & the protection that covers our soles, our souls. You are good & You do good

thank You for hugs. thank You we don’t have to leave Your forever hug. every other thing ends. not You, not Your hug, it is an eternal embrace. & we can live there now

thank You for grass. that simple green blade after blade reminder to remain, abide & rest. &, as we live with You now, You multiply those little moments of enjoying You into a lifetime lawn of lush love & laid down flourishing. You’re goodness gushes when we stop rushing& just lay down, slow down, be

thank You God. You are good. You do good. You are good.

together

each day-start, I open a new book with fresh pages, & paint a glory hello. greet Me, too. open your eyes & sing.

& at the end of the evening, I close the book, put the day on My shelf of stories & cuddle into bed with My beloved.

I love cold grass tickling between My toes with you, I like to take you to breakfast—Me, you, runny egg yolks & rye toast. I’ll never forget your smile. breakfast with you.

You’re there when my dad died & the black hole opened in my mind. You stooped to stay close when I laid on my carpet for 10 months.

You’re right here.

like waterfalls, You ever-gush.

You’re not afraid of my darkness. unphased by that thing I hide from everybody else. You just want to hug me. all You want is a hug. a hug that never ends. so open my toes, curled & clenched, let’s go back to barefoot in grass.

let’s go to the forest—just you & Me—let’s discover new berries, wind secrets, open stars together.

I love you.

you’re My friend.

will you be My friend?

one grass blade at a time makes a lawn

little yes’ add up. like breaths add up to a lifetime, cells & atoms compose creation, cents make a million,  seeds sow to orchards, & seconds tick to century, little yes’ to God count, create a life of rest & praise pleasing to Jesus. like these seeds & cents,  our lives matter. our tiny daily choices matter—what we choose to think, what we do with our time, how we treat others, how we steward what we’re given,  how we respond to the love of God. it all matters. it all adds up.

& it starts with one yes.

one yes in response to God’s yes to us. then another, another, another yes! little by little, more & more, we draw near to the Lover, & we are changed. made to be like Him, from glory to glory, from faith to faith.

so rest. submit to God. live in His yes, to you.

& you will find a life of abundance in His Holy Spirit. a life of peace. of joy & of so much more than you can ask, think, or imagine.

He wants to do this & He waits for your yes. God delights to see the work begin.

today is the day of salvation. the day to be, belong, receive.

so rest.

say Yes

Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin. Zechariah 4:10

The strong right arm of the Lord is raised in triumph. The strong right arm of the Lord has done glorious things! I will not die; instead, I will live to tell what the Lord has done. The Lord has punished me severely, but he did not let me die. Open for me the gates where the righteous enter, and I will go in and thank the Lord. These gates lead to the presence of the Lord, and the godly enter there. I thank you for answering my prayer and giving me victory! The stone that the builders rejected has now become the cornerstone. This is the Lord’s doing, and it is wonderful to see. This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. Please, Lord, please save us. Please, Lord, please give us success. Bless the one who comes in the name of the Lord. We bless you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God, shining upon us. Take the sacrifice and bind it with cords on the altar. You are my God, and I will praise you! You are my God, and I will exalt you! Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. Psalms 118:16-29

the upright enjoy acceptance.
Proverbs 14:9

I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
Psalm 16:8

on the day you die, what will you regret?

think about it.

change it now, while there is still time…

let’s bake!

use what you’re given.

don’t let those ingredients just sit on the counter! partner with Grace to become what He paid for

spend time standing at the kitchen counter, seeking the directions for the ingredients in the recipe of God

take what you’re given & GO forward in what to do with it

God wants us to advance His Kingdom in the earth

do what you’re told

move forward in faith

don’t grow weary or allow tired

be His

become in the secret quiet

live a life set apart to the King

He is your strength

live IN Him

don’t leave

don’t wander, but stay in the confines of your King, the safety of His walls, the gates of His garden

be His. & through communion, create. let Him use you.

intimacy multiplies.

let Him love through you! the Word of God never returns void. live His way, be faithful to Jesus, & He will multiply Himself into His earth through you. be His

enjoy fellowship, enjoy communion. live a life laid down, in humility & truth

 be His

 there is nothing else. yield to Him & let Him take the things the ingredients He’s put in you& around you, & to make something beautiful.

sometimes you’ll be beaten like whisking batter, or broken like eggs, left to rise like dough or given to the fire like an oven, but no matter the process, trust it’s all for something good, according to the recipe plan of God. & the result will be sweet. it will all be worth it, just trust the One behind it all. know He’s got the plans the design & He, is good.

so trust, rest, be. belong & become. & through rest, find power to multiply as He works through you

partner with Him, seek Him. & the fruit will be sweet

know how to live

have you ever baked banana bread? or scones? any baked good?!

baking requires exact measurements for it to come out great, so using a recipe is wise if you want a moist bread or gooey cookies.

in a recipe, there is an ingredient list complete with measurements for each ingredient, and a numbered list of directions of what to do when with those exact measurements, including the number to preheat the oven to & the amount of minutes to put the tray in the oven for. it’s all there.

“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”

Psalms 23:1

when the Lord is our shepherd, we shall not want. we lack nothing. there is nothing missing. though it can feel like we lack, the truth is we have everything.

so, what is the recipe in your life? you already have every ingredient available in the Holy Spirit, but what is the *how* and the *when*  in applying what God has given you? what do we do with what God gave us & how do we do it?

God wants to give each of His children their recipe. the Bible says to ask for wisdom.

“But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all without hesitation and without reproach; and it will be given to him.”

James 1:5 TLV

ask God for your recipe.

He’s given you EVERYTHING. now you must partner with Him to produce fruit. like a recipe, ask for the directions. ask to know what to do with what you’re given!

God longs for His kids to pursue Him.

our instructions from the Lord can differ season to season, but just ask Him, right now, what to do when.

God wants to give you instruction.

just receive.

Matthew 11:29 says—to be taught by God. God The Giver, The Maker, The Author, The Creator! just come to Him, cleave, be with Him, Enjoy His Presence. He’ll do the rest.

infinite / finite \ infinite

my elbows & thought balloons, my cell smiles & hair slides, every heart flicker & each blink—they all fit inside Your palm.

so there they’ll stay—every piece of me.

& as You eclipse my mondays & decembers, i’m fine to be found in You. my little bits contained in Your eternal embrace.

Infinite Friend, You know no end.

i want to lose my drops in Your endless ocean!

teach me to stay in Your hug.

the unknowing

going forward in God is a lot like a squirrel with hundreds of hidden nuts. the closer you get to God, the more quiet you become, the more you live in the secret place, He whispers things to you & you no longer feel the need to tell another human, instead you hide it in your heart.

 there are things we think we know. but really we need to unknow what we think we know, so we can actually know. anything we think we know, we do not. & until we’re willing to admit & recognize we don’t know, we can’t receive a thing. but when our eyes are opened to see we know nothing, then we can begin to truly receive.

 what do you have that you did not receive? 1 Corinthians 4:7

go be His, Rest. know you are loved & let that love fill you to full.

 stars sparkle & shine in sync with Jesus. we’re called to shine too, but this light comes from being, not trying. rest & receive. then you will become, in Him.

know Abba. get undressed, take off, drop everything you were never given, so you can receive true knowledge.

bless, reflect the sunrise & live like light Himself dwells inside you

go, become in Him

this, is life. to know God.

but first we need to l o s e all we claim to know, all we think we have, so we can gain true. become in Him by submitting to Him & you will never lack, never fear, never be the same again. do you want strange, new, different? are you tired of thinking you know? then just fall down, where you are, & let Him strip you of gunk, so you can receive grace. it’s all gift!

this is what we need—to lose ourselves in Someone who desires to consume us completely like a fire, a fire of love. let Him have you.

 what do we have that we have not received?

every thought a step

our brains contain roads, thoughts the feet patterns. the more you walk down a road by thinking that thought, the more cemented, used, familiar, real that road becomes.

the neat thing is our roads can change.

“do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Romans 12:2

what a gift! to think new thoughts and pioneer new paths!

the more we think those different thoughts, the easier it will be to believe them. it might feel strange or difficult at first to believe new pathways of thinking. but that’s just because the old feels familiar. you’ve been in that before mindset your whole life! the reality is you’re a new creation in Christ. now for our minds to catch up to truth!!

what a gift—to think new thoughts. what an opportunity, to be changed by them! yes Lord! help our minds change. help us align our brains with You, by grace.

“set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.”

Colossians 3:2

our brains are created to think happy thoughts!

“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭8‬ ‭ESV‬‬

find one happy thought! hold onto it. then simply find your next happy thought. adopt an attitude of gratitude. because the truth is you are loved. the truth is you are enough in Him. the truth is Jesus! so fall down & be loved. be found where you are. & by His grace, may your mind catch up! 🩷

seek Father

Light up cave—lantern burn

No

Salt air whips hair as I sail

Churning waves—eyes set on quest

No

Rocket to stars, singing in weightless velvet

No

Wood waiting, roots hiding

Sunlight sifts through

Canopy maze

Shadows waltz, a content quiet

A heavenly soup

Here?

A whisper—yes.

Pause—rest.

Be a moment, as love overcomes.

Seek God!

He promises—

 if we seek Him, we Will find Him!!

 Happy are those who keep his decrees and seek him with all their heart

Psalms 119:2

“You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart.”

Jeremiah 29:13

Go out and stand before me on the mountain,” the Lord told him. And as Elijah stood there, the Lord passed by, and a mighty windstorm hit the mountain. It was such a terrible blast that the rocks were torn loose, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire there was the sound of a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And a voice spoke

1 Kings 19:11-13

Seek & you WILL find! Can it really be true? Can it be that simple? That good? Did you hear?! We can Find God! He’s Available to us!!! Not aloof, not impossible to know. But Here. Now. With us. Take a deep breath, & WOW!!! Let it sink in. Sit in the love.

It  is the glory of God to conceal a matter, But the glory of kings is to search out a matter.”

Proverbs 25:2

God wants us to look for Him like He’s looked for us! His mad, relentless pursuit of us—choosing to come to earth in infant & die to forgive us—(what love is this!) chases us over hilltop & mountain side, up creek & down river, around our excuses & excusing our sin in Him. We’re forgiven so we can fear Him through humble obedience. Do you see? Then be filled with Him & live differently.

“There was a man in Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian Regiment. He was a devout man and feared God along with his whole household. He did many charitable deeds for the Jewish people and always prayed to God. About three in the afternoon he distinctly saw in a vision an angel of God who came in and said to him, “Cornelius.” Staring at him in awe, he said, “What is it, Lord?” The angel told him, “Your prayers and your acts of charity have ascended as a memorial offering before God.”

Acts 10:1-4

Seek God through obeying Him. No act of obedience is ever in vain. God sees. God hears! God rewards those who seek Him!!

“Now without faith it is impossible to please God, since the one who draws near to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”

Hebrews 11:6

Trust God. Rest. Look. FIND. Be found. Fall down. Be. Repeat!

fill this mold with jell-o!

Your Fire tickles my toes, flames lick each tip, lighting me to dance

don’t stop telling me secrets—whisper it all

I want to Know—the  flowers’ dress sizes the stars’  names & where the wooly mammoths used to find You in the morning. I want to know what the volcanoes know, and where is the rain stored? I want to know. I want to know You More. come close, I can’t breathe without You. everything else is mannequin mirage, crumbs & vapour, coming to nothing. The earth waits, for You. so make me pregnant—expectant of You. like Moses met with You, FACE to FACE — I want FULL communion! I can’t unsee You, i’m wrecked for anything anyone else But You. I’ve met the most beautiful One ever& now Only You will do. You Sparkle You outdress everything else. nothing here comes close, nothing even brushes the surface of Your glory! I wanna be Your house, live here, move in, tear down all the walls & barriers (especially the kitchen island) renovate, flip, wreck, remove even the memory of before. Eclipse it all Lord. break this house! though I feel so inadequate, You whisper: I can work with this. SO go to work! Demolition!! like an HGTV house flip, let the end result be so far from the beginning that people wonder. make me so beautiful, new, & different that only You can get the credit. I Love You God & I just want MORE!!! come here! Come Near! do not be far! when You renovate my house, can You build a dance floor first? when You fix my insides to be Your home, please, make a space for this, because all I wanna do is slow dance with You—the rest of my life until time expires & eternity.

Your Fire tickles my toes, flames lick each tip, lighting me

to dance

field to french toast

eggy & sweet, spongy & tasty to eat—french toast breakfast delicacy delivers cinnamon-y & syrup-y goodness!

from flour milled to bread baked, French toast requires time, care, & work, to eventually produce this delightful morning time sweet—a process!

like cooking French toast, our lives are process. we don’t wake up to insta-sweetness. we wade through grief. we battle sickness or even the fight to believe. but when we submit to Jesus, trusting His process, we will find goodness in the end. it won’t always be sweet in the moment, but we can look ahead to the glorious, good ending, & be encouraged.

french toast starts with bread.

bread starts with flour.

flour starts with grains, seeds or roots.

making flour is a process. wheat flour comes from wheat berry undergoing cleaning, soaking, separating, milling, sifting, maturing & packaging.

like the flour creating process, the book of Ruth in the Bible contains some great wisdom concerning waiting, trusting, & being in God’s will & timing. when Naomi returned to her homeland, with no husband & no sons, she was so devestated that she changed her name to Mara, meaning bitter. what if the story stopped there? her debilitating grief would have been a tragic ending. maybe in the moment, that was all she saw. but it was not the end.

it was the middle.

you are in the middle. it could feel like the end. it could feel like life will never get better. but when we surrender & put our trust in Jesus, the best is yet to come.

what if we stopped when french toast was flour dust? would that taste very good? yuck, how bitter! wait, keep going. it gets sweeter.

once flour is made, it needs a person to purchase it.

then, the next step is baking bread.

baking bread involves gathering ingredients, adding proper amounts of flour & its friends, kneading, rising, waiting, shaping, rising again, preheating, baking, cooling. another process.

remember Naomi? her life seemed hopeless, but wait. watch. she may have felt it was over but it was not done yet. her daughter in law began to glean. her daughter in law went to the threshing floor of Boaz, Kinsman Redeemer. there was yet story to tell.

if there’s breath in your lungs, God’s not done. it’s not done yet!

once bread is baked, we need to make French toast!

step one: wait. french toast tastes best with stale bread! so wait for that bread to become stale. wait. i’ll say that again—part of the process is waiting!

Naomi, after quite the rollercoaster, eventually became the grandmother of Obed—one of the descendants of Christ! her waiting was worth it. & yours will be, too!

next in french toast saga: beat a bowl of eggs till the yolks are broken & blended, & be broken yourself, open & humble. add cinnamon. milk. vanilla. then soak the stale bread. soak, rest, be. fry the bread, both sides, till it becomes rich breakfast dessert! lather in butter, drench in syrup & Walla! ENJOY the fruit of the PROCESS. (& ENJOY the process, too!!!)

so, from field to French toast, from Ruth to Boaz, from your birth to your death, it’s all PROCESS. learn to submit to Jesus & trust Him in the middle. don’t bemoan where you are or despair because you can’t see beyond. but choose to rejoice because the Process Maker is Good! then enjoy where you are when you are, rest.

the best is yet to come.

know + go

For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to Sheol. I am counted among those who go down to the pit; I am a man who has no strength, like one set loose among the dead, like the slain that lie in the grave, like those whom you remember no more, for they are cut off from your hand. You have put me in the depths of the pit, in the regions dark and deep. Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and you overwhelm me with all your waves. Selah You have caused my companions to shun me; you have made me a horror to them. I am shut in so that I cannot escape; my eye grows dim through sorrow. Every day I call upon you, O Lord; I spread out my hands to you. Do you work wonders for the dead? Do the departed rise up to praise you? Selah Is your steadfast love declared in the grave, or your faithfulness in Abaddon? Are your wonders known in the darkness, or your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness? But I, O Lord, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you. O Lord, why do you cast my soul away? Why do you hide your face from me? Afflicted and close to death from my youth up, I suffer your terrors; I am helpless. Your wrath has swept over me; your dreadful assaults destroy me. They surround me like a flood all day long; they close in on me together. You have caused my beloved and my friend to shun me; my companions have become darkness.”

Psalm 88 ESV

Do you know how you need healed?

“Yahweh claims the world as his. Everything and everyone belong to him! He’s the one who pushed back oceans to let the dry ground appear, planting firm foundations for the earth. Who, then, is allowed to ascend the mountain of Yahweh? And who has the privilege of entering into God’s Holy Place? Those who are clean—whose works and ways are pure, whose hearts are true and sealed by the truth, those who never deceive, whose words are sure. They will receive Yahweh’s blessing and righteousness given by the Savior-God. They will stand before God, for they seek the pleasure of God’s face, the God of Jacob. Pause in his presence So wake up, you living gateways! Lift up your heads, you doorways of eternity! Welcome the King of Glory, for he is about to come through you. You ask, “Who is this King of Glory?” Yahweh, armed and ready for battle, Yahweh, invincible in every way! So wake up, you living gateways, and rejoice! Fling wide, you eternal doors! Here he comes; the King of Glory is ready to come in. You ask, “Who is this King of Glory?” He is Yahweh, armed and ready for battle, the Mighty One, the invincible commander of heaven’s hosts! Yes, he is the King of Glory! Pause in his presence”

Psalms 24

Do you know Him who fills? When you feel the broken, do you try to paste the pieces together yourself? Do you pretend you’re okay? Or do you go to God? Just fallapart at His feet!  He will touch you & you will be well.

Know the Lord. Become. Belong. Believe. Partake of Real.

What is the food of God?

“Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.” So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and they died. This is the bread that comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.” So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.””

John 6:27-40, 47-51, 53-58 ESV

What is God saying here in John 6? Ask Him. Receive from Him for yourself. Know. Go. & all out of Be-ing. This, is the life of God.

lily pad well

the sweet repose of a water lily paints a picture of stillness & rest.

a refuge, for frogs & dragonflies, insects of all families, to pause.

the green leaf only a glimpse of the plant, as long stems wind down to pond bottom where roots nestle, a hidden network. it’s through secret connection the flower floats & flourishes, through this abiding deep below the water, all things flow.

rest is enjoyed, by many, because the water lily is planted, tucked in & secure in a deep place only it knows.

because of this, it grows & it provides a place of refreshment for the world around it.

in all this, its quiet strength is an invitation to you & to me to come & be.

another picture of abiding like the architecture of the lily pad, is a well. A string connected to a bucket pulleys down, drawing on the depths of the springs of water.

like the water lily, may we have secret hidden stems that sweep down, anchoring & connecting us to Life Himself, apart from whom we can do no thing. & from this place of abiding, we enjoy rest & are made into rest for those around us to be refreshed to be renewed, to pause & be a while.

 may the life hidden in us become a living spring, welling up to water the world around us with beauty, rest, & love.

 may we lily pad & draw on Jesus well—today, & each day.