"But I just wanna help. . ."

I'm pretty sure we've all said that at some point in our lives.

To most of us, the desire to help seems natural, almost impulsive.

We have to do it.

We want to do it.

And sometimes most of the time, we can't.

Not in the way we wanted to, not as much as we wanted to, or sometimes just not at all.

I saw this the other day on Pinterest:

It reminded me of a time where I was trying to help two individuals, but it just seemed like every time I tried, I hit a brick wall. I felt like I was giving, and giving, and giving, and giving, and it was just going nowhere.

One simply wasn't listening to advice - and instead making me their personal shrink complaining about problems they could have prevented, not if they'd listened to me, but if they'd used a bit of wisdom and common sense - and the other was simply convinced they couldn't forgive themselves for mistakes made in the past and that they couldn't change.

Needless to say, the fact that I wanted to help them so badly and I couldn't didn't exactly make me feel like a very good friend.

I felt like crap.

And that didn't help anyone.

That period ended, and those two friends and I just sort of . . . stopped.

Stopped everything.

Whether or not their situations got better or not, I don't know, and I'll probably never know.

I hope so.

All I wanted to do was help.

Fast forward about ten months.

I see that pin.

And I start thinking.

I realize that whoever made this pin is right.

You can't help everyone.

That's not to say your desire to or advice you may give isn't worth anything, but it just may not be what they need right then.

You may not have the experience, the knowledge, the skill, or the wisdom at that time to really help that person where they are.

But there's Someone who can.

And last time I checked, He takes referrals.

But there are people you can help.

People that need your experience and wisdom from where you are to help them where they are.

You may find those people to be few and far between, but they're there.

While you may not be able to help everyone, you can help someone.

And it's the someones of this life that count the most in the next.

Falling in Love ~ Part 1

People say falling in love is easy.

Sometimes it is.

Sometimes it is not.

People say they love God and God loves them - which is true - but I don't think people really understand what that means.

When you realize how much He loves you, it is so much easier to fall deeper in love with the Lover of your Soul.

He is a Father: He carries us when we're weak, He defends the orphans (Hosea, Proverbs).

He is a Friend: He shoulders our burdens, He listens to our cares (Matthew, 1 Peter).

He is a Lover: He woos us to Himself, He keeps us secure (Hosea, John).

He is a Judge: He is holy, He rules justly (Psalms).

He is a Redeemer: He justly forgives those He saves, He desires to save all (1 John, 2 Peter).

Do you see?

There is no one like this.

Even though we may know some people who have some of these general qualities in degrees, only God is all of them.

And He loves you.

And who could pass that up?

One Who loves you and sees past your mistakes, past your failures, and past your flaws.

One Who loves you and wants to heal your scars, provide for you, and shape you into a purer you.

I can't.

I've fallen in love.

Have you?

My, Oh My

It's August 15th. 

Summer is over. 

My, oh my, where'd the months go?

My younger sister started her dual enrollment at the local technical college this morning. My younger brother starts his freshman year at the Citadel this weekend. I start my senior year next week. 

My, oh my, where'd the years go? 

I guess all we can do is honor God with our hours, and trust Him in the moments, because He sees the years behind us and the years before us. 

Those years are made of months, weeks, days, hours, and moments. 

Live them well.

Learning to Let Go

Normally, this is the time of year people are flooded with "OMg its like finalzzz peeps so scared lol" posts.

And this is sort of one of them, but not really.

I'm not really worried about finals this semester. I've already done three, and I only have three left, and only two of those are actual tests. 

No, I'm gearing up to learn a really hard lesson that they can't teach you in a classroom.

I'm learning to let go.

I'm not talking about a relationship, though this lesson has infinite applications.

No, for me, it's my GPA.

I'm not bragging here; I'm stating a fact: these past two and a half years, I've earned a 4.0.

And I'm really scared I'm going to lose it.

I know a B and / or a 3.9 is nothing at all to sneeze at.

And I wouldn't be letting anyone down by getting a B.

Except me.

And that's what I'm struggling to let go of.

I don't want that to be my idol.

I don't want that to bug me.

I want to have peace about it.

And I can.

It's just a struggle.

But it's a good struggle to have.

I mean, at the end of my life, God won't be judging me on my grades.

He'll be judging me on how I lived for Him.

And that's worth so much more thought than a GPA that only matters for four years.

It is Friday!

So, I wanted to write a snarky, witty post about it being Friday, but I've come up with nothing. 

I also wanted to write a beautiful, moving post about it being Good Friday, but I've got nothing there, too.

I guess the best way to tell it would just to tell it as it is.

God created Man knowing full well we'd fall and spit in His face.

Yet He still loved us.

He spent millenia pointing forwards to One who would offer to free us from death and love us as no one else could.

And we didn't listen.

Yet He still loved us.

He sent His Son, who willingly lived on earth with few of our comforts.

We didn't accept Him.

Yet He still loved us.

We stripped Him naked, nailed Him to a cross, and caused His heart to break.

(It really did burst.)

We had no compassion for the Man who spoke of love, who fed the hungry, who healed the sick.

We laughed at Him and mocked Him and cursed Him.

Yet He still loved us.

Yet He asked that His Father would forgive us.

He died for us.

But that really does us no good if death can defeat Him.

But it didn't. 

He rose from the dead on the third day, defeating death for everyone.

And He loves you.

Some people say they're not worthy of His love.

No, you're not.

But His love is no credit to you; it's a testimony to Him.

Others think they don't need His love and grace.

You do.

It doesn't matter who you are, where you've come from, what you've done.

Even if the worst thing you've ever done is tell a little white lie, you still need His forgiveness.

If you're a murderer, you still need His forgiveness.

And this week there's been all the discussion about homosexuality.

Yes, it's wrong.

God calls it an abomination because it twists and distorts the physical love he created for a man and his wife - a picture of His love and sacrifice and relationship with the church.

But God doesn't hate you.

He doesn't at all.

He loves you.

He wants you to know Him.

He wants to forgive you.

He wants to love you.

Let Him.

Space Travel? Whatevs.

I feel like this generation is sort of jaded.

No, not in terms of morality - though I think that is true - that's not actually what I mean this time.

I think we've lost sight of what real ingenuity and creativity is.

Point en case: in a class yesterday, we were starting technical writing projects on drones. To get us thinking (it was 8 in the morning), our professor played some clips of robots used today. One of them was the landing of the NASA Discovery Mars rover.

And nobody really cared.

Fifty years ago, that would have been breathtaking and incredible. 

Now it's just . . . meh. 

I mean, we put men on the Moon and brought them back with computers less capable than our smartphones. 

Yes, that's terrifying to think about, but that means that the people involved with that had to know what to do. 

They had to do the math in their heads or with scratch paper. 

They had to be willing to put their lives on the line for that goal. (And think about how awful it would be to die in space if it failed. . .)

They were dreamers. 

But more than that, they were thinkers and doers.

Granted, technology has grown and evolved by leaps and bounds, and I'm not faulting that - I love technology. 

I'm not really sure I'm "faulting" anything.

I'm just lamenting the lack of wonder in our generation. 

I'm lamenting the fact that we don't look at the sea with wonder, remembering that we can go miles and miles down and see the creatures God made.

I'm lamenting the fact that most of us can barely see the stars anymore, and when we do, we don't remember that God knows each of them by name, and that we've put people on the Moon, and rovers on Mars.

I'm lamenting the fact that singers and songwriters with real talent aren't recognized for it, and the fame goes instead to somebody who will shock you rather than move you.

We need to recapture the innocence, the wonder, and the appreciation of simple things that we've lost. . .

You Can't Fix Blonde

Sometimes we miss the obvious.

Like the pen right in front of us that we’ve been searching for for five whole minutes.

For me, it’s a case of being slightly blonde.

For others, it could be a case of being slightly blind.

Don’t worry, it’s not the end of the world.

There are glasses, you know.

I know some people don’t want to buy glasses because they think they’ll look dorky or something, but – and I know this from experience – if you buy the right kind, they’ll suit your face really well. I even know some people who have two or three pairs of eyeglasses: one for every day, one for fancy occasions, and one for working or playing in (usually an old pair that they don’t mind if it gets chipped or completely broken).

Now, I could technically use them, but because my eyeglasses prescription is so small, it really doesn’t make too much sense to do that. It’s also changed in the opposite direction (one year positive and the next negative and so on), that it just wouldn’t be smart for me to get any, though I have thought about it because they have some brilliant coatings that block glare and everything. To me, it would almost be worth it just for that.

And speaking of brilliant. . .

MY problem can’t really be fixed with glasses – it’s a problem in the noggin.

But yours could, perhaps.

This post was sponsored by GlassesUSA.com.

All opinions are my own.

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A Realistic Self-Image

I'm sure a lot of us made New Year's Resolutions to lose some extra pounds.

I know I did.

But what do we really want?

To have a smaller number on the scale (which nobody knows but us), or to look slimmer?

If I were to be honest . . . it would have been the latter last year.

But not this year.

What changed?

My self-image.

How I see myself has changed, and for the better.

This is really hard to do, and took a while for me, but it's worth it.

And pretty simple. 

Skinny does not necessarily equal healthy.

For some, it might, but not for everyone.

For years, I thought I'd have to be skinny to be healthy, or pretty, or anything, but now I see that's not the case.

Now, I'm not one to get my advice from Hollywood, but I kinda like Jennifer Lawrence as a person (and no, I haven't seen the Hunger Games, nor do I plan to).

This quote is from Pinterest, so if it's not really her, sorry, but it sounds like something she'd say. 

In Hollywood, I’m obese. I’m considered a fat actress. I’m never going to starve myself for a part. I keep waiting for that one role to come along that scares me enough into dieting, and it just can’t happen. I’m invincible. I don’t want little girls to be like, ‘Oh, I want to look like Katniss, so I’m going to skip dinner.’ That’s something that I was really conscious of during training. I was trying to get my body to look fit and strong, not thin and underfed.

Now that is a good mindset.

But think about it.

How many models, actresses, and normal girls look like they haven't eaten in days?

Too many, I think.

Seems like everyone thinks it's cooler to be thin.

Don't get me wrong; it's not bad to be thin - it's just . . . well, a bit overrated.

It would probably surprise you to learn that less than a hundred years ago, curvy girls were considered "more beautiful".

That's not entirely correct either, but do you know what makes everyone change their minds?

The media.

All of it.

Ever see some of those "plus size" models?

Ever notice how they look . . . well, normal?

Since when was that not attractive?

Since when was that weird?

Since when did preteen girls care about how many calories they had?

To say it's only the media's portrayal of weight and obesity would be a lie, but I'm only trying to make one point here, and you have to admit that that's certainly a large part of it.

Anyhow, what I'm trying to say is that even if you do lose all the weight you said you would, and even if you do fit into your high school jeans again . . . will you really, honestly be happy with yourself? Or will you never be slim enough or light enough?

God made you as you are for a reason.

Heck, maybe you're the way you are just to encourage someone like you who may struggle with the same thing. You never know.

And while you may not like it now, He does, and He doesn't make mistakes, nor is He ever mistaken.

I once heard someone (I think Chip Ingram, but I'm not sure) say that the trick is you have to think of yourself correctly: you shouldn't think of yourself too highly, but you shouldn't think of yourself too lowly, either.

Thinking of yourself too highly results in pride, arrogance, and a general sense of annoyance to everyone around you.

Thinking of yourself too lowly results in depression, bitterness, and a lack of joy, which will be felt by everyone you're around, believe me.

Thinking accurately about yourself allows you to 1) see what areas might need improvement and 2) see what's genuinely great about yourself.

So no, you may never fit into that size you wanted, or see the number you wanted when you step on the scale, or get picture perfect skin, or have hair that actually does what you want it to, but you're still made in the image of God, and as long as you're taking care of your temple, you're beautiful, even when you don't feel like you are.

Waiting.

I will be the first to admit it: patience is not one of my strengths.

It's not easy being patient.

And something's occurred to me lately that I thought I should share.

Shouldn't it be (theoretically) easier to be patient on God?

That's not to make Him sound slow or anything, just our perception of time.

I mean, we know He's promised to provide for us.

We know He'll bless us.

And we know He has our best at heart and in mind.

So why are we so antsy?

We know the answer, but just in case you don't want to own to it, I will:

we want what we want when we want it.

I do. And I'll bet you do, too.

And nothing's wrong with wanting something (assuming it's a good thing).

But when we let that get in the way of trusting God, we end up making the thing we want - or sometimes even the wanting itself - an idol.

If God wants us to have it, we'll have it.

If He doesn't, we won't.

Waiting's hard.

I know it is.

But if you're waiting in God's time with a good attitude . . . it'll be worth it.

Always.

What are you waiting for?