In a Winter Daze
Wednesday, January 30, 2019
I
stepped outside onto the front porch, seeping in a breath of the crisp cool
air. A fresh coat of powdered snow
covered the ground. I slipped my sock
covered feet into my sister’s old boots and buttoned up my thick wool coat,
ready to take the trek up to town.
I
walked the old dirt road, the brisk wind flushing my cheeks. The sky was beautiful this time of day. A variety of pinks and blues interceding to
create a masterpiece of pastel perfection; the gentle moon its ideal
centerpiece.
I
walked into the town. Three young boys
were having a snowball fight in the middle of the road, and as cars came by
they hurriedly stepped to the side. Then
back at it they went. I walked into the
coffee shop and waved to the man who sat at the same table against the window
every single morning. His gray hair
neatly combed back, his spectacles resting on the edge of his nose, and the
daily newspaper grasped between his two firm hands, worn with age.
I took
a seat at the bar and ordered a cinnamon latte, a specialty this time of year. Outside the frosted window, I spotted little
Tommy walking his hound dog across the street, dodging the other boy’s
snowballs.
January
is a serene month. Its brisk winds and
harsh snows a cruelty to mankind, yet its invigoratingly fresh start makes you
flit with joy. It brings its challenges,
but more so it brings its vigor. Looking
around, bittersweet nostalgia floods my mind. But there’s also the sensational
feeling of what to expect in the future.
What might this year hold?
There’s so much familiarity as I recognize the regular sights that
refresh me daily, as I ease back into my winter daze.
When the Oceans Roar
Friday, October 5, 2018
She loved the serene
brutality of the ocean
The feeling of the
electrifying power
That surged through
her veins
When the frigid waters
enveloped her
The smell of the fresh
salty air revivified her
The cool wind breeze
enticed her
The seagulls in the
dark blue sky
Glide across the
water, flapping their wings in unison to one another
Escaping the water’s
forceful crest
The wind carries the
foamy white waves into the rocks
Creating a formidable
splash
Her feet penetrate
deeper and deeper into the sand
As she stands there
Listening intently to
the sound of the ocean’s roar
The water is her
refuge
And God is her
stronghold
When oceans roar
That is her calling
God calls her to deep
waters
Wave after wave His
love crashes over her
He gives her courage
He makes her brave
God is like an ocean
We cannot know Him by
His surface
Our relationship with
the Lord is not limited
To just one thing
To truly know Him
We must know
everything about Him
Just like the ocean is
much more than an exquisite painting
God is much more than
a being that we simply acknowledge exists
He has the power to
calm stormy seas
He has the
righteousness to establish inner peace
He has the grace to
drown our pain
He has the steadfast
love to wash over us
He has the genuine
compassion to keep us above the waves
When oceans roar
That is her calling
God calls her to the
unknown seas
As wave after wave
crashes over her
She is reminded of His
unwavering love
When her feet begin to
sink deeper and deeper she does not fear
For she knows her God
is holding her
She is made courageous
She is molded in
bravery
Dauntlessness is
interlaced with perseverance
In her fiery soul
When oceans roar
She hears God’s voice
She feels His presence
She embraces it
The water soaks her skin
and its coolness sends shivers up her spine
She is filled with
peace and her heart is no longer weary of longing
She’s found her
calling
She’s found her
foundation
Her God is what holds
her
His love is what
sustains her
All her worries are
washed away
She has found her
purpose
And though she has
fears
Her foundation is
established in the One True King
Who will conquer all
of her worry and despair
Courage is within her
And this is made known
to her
Time and time again
When the oceans
roar
Influencer? Or Being Influenced?
Friday, September 28, 2018
Have
you ever been to a party with a group of kids your age that don’t really share
the same values as you, or have you ever found yourself in a spot with some
people that might not appreciate your beliefs?
Have their
actions ever rubbed off on you? In a
good way or a bad way? Or have your
actions ever rubbed off on them? In a
good way or a bad way? I want to talk
about how our actions can affect other people, or how we can be affected by
other people’s actions- but not always in a good way. We need to be watching out for this.
In the
Bible, there are a numerous amount of verses that discuss having relationships
with unbelievers or being influenced not in good ways, or even being an
influencer. As Christians we need to ask ourselves, am I being a good
influence? Or am I allowing myself to be
influenced in a bad way?
First,
let’s examine ourselves. How do we know
if we’re being influenced or not? It says in Psalm 139:23-24, “Search me, oh
God, and know my heart; try me and know my anxious thoughts; and see if there
be any hurtful way in me, and lead me in the everlasting way.” When we can’t understand ourselves or
comprehend our feelings or our motives, God lets us take our internal struggles
to Him and look to Him for guidance and wisdom.
He understands what we do not and knows what to do when we don’t. We need to examine ourselves in light of the
truth that’s being revealed to us from God’s word and allow it to guide us in
the right direction.
1 Corinthians
6:14 states, “do not be bound together with unbelievers; for what partnership
have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with
darkness?” God tells us not to “be
bound” to unbelievers because of their influence on our lives. Did He say that we shouldn’t love the lost? No.
Did He tell us that we should treat them with unkindness or completely
ignore them? No, He didn’t. Instead, He says we must be mindful of how we
live. If the enemy grasps a hold in our
lives by tempting us to put in jeopardy our faith and demonstration of God’s
love and forgiveness, he will make significant progress toward sabotaging our
relationship with the Lord and our devotion to Him.
“How blessed
is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the
path of sinners. Nor sit in the seat of
scoffers! But his delight is in the law
of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by the
streams of water, which yields its fruit in its season and its leaf does not
whither; and in whatever he does, he prospers.
The wicked are not so, but they are like chaff which the wind drives
away” (Psalm 1:1-4). The Lord cautions
us to not “walk in the counsel of the wicked,” because the devil is out there
to tempt us and get us on his side, and by interacting with unbelievers we
could be tempted to follow their ways, resulting in weakening our relationship
with Christ. Instead, He encourages us
to delight in Him and His laws, that way we will be like a tree firmly planted,
yielding good fruits. By staying true to
Him, He will bless us.
“Do
not be deceived: ‘Bad company corrupts good morals’” (1 Corinthians 15:33).
When we stay connected
with or enjoy hanging out with people who have worldly morals, we risk
imitating their attitude, their language, and their habits. Before long we are
no longer of Christ, but of the world with its refusal of absolute authority,
its exclusion of the Bible, and belief system of relative truth and morality.
This can easily apply to young teens who are generally easily influenced by
their peers. Young people are often desperate for the approval of others.
They’re so motivated by the need for acceptance in our culture that Godly
wisdom in decision-making gets shoved to the side when faced with peer
pressure. That’s why it is so crucial that we are on the look out against the
influence of bad company.
How should we address
this? Let’s look at 1 Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my beloved brethren, be
steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that
your toil is not in vain in the Lord.”
As Christians striving to seek the Lord, we can stand firm against
ungodly influences that may endanger our walk with Christ. In all things we do, we are “self-controlled
and alert, [because our] enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion
looking for someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8).
We’re all still vulnerable to being influenced by ungodly attitudes and
actions, even if it’s small. But that
doesn’t mean we can’t keep ourselves accountable and do our best to avoid bad
influences. By staying alert and recognizing
the negativity or evil that enters our lives, we can do our best to obey the
Lord and continue to seek wisdom and guidance from Him, and ask Him to lead us
in the right direction.
As we continue with our
lives, let us stand strong in our faith, so that our light might be known among
our peers and the people around us, and that we would not be influenced by the
world, but strive to be Godly influences to the world by being obedient to
Christ and following in His footsteps.
Think about what kind of impact you want to make. Think about how you want to be impacted. How will it affect your character? How will it affect your relationship with
God?
Summer Nights
Thursday, August 30, 2018
Sitting there by the
campfire
Watching sparks
flicker in the cool night air
These summer nights
Cool and refreshing
The stars in the sky
shine
As they burn through
the inky blackness
The smell of fresh
pine floats in the air
I wiggle my toes in
the soft sand beneath my feet
The flame of the fire
reflects off the water
Little kids with jars
in their hands
Run around the beach
A shimmer in their
eyes,
As they watch
lightning bugs fly into their jars
And light up the glass
Familiar laughter
floods my ears
As I sit back and
watch
All of my family and
friends laugh and smile with each other
Enjoying each other’s
company and conversation
There’s something
about summer
The heat and the sun
beating against your skin
The smell of dew in
the early mornings
The scent of the fresh
cut grass your neighbor mows every Monday
Or smelling like chlorine
from being in the pool all day
Something about the
asphalt sizzling against your feet
From the late day
thunderstorms
Visiting the library
and checking out a stack full of new adventures
Those lazy days where
you would just collapse on the couch
With a good book in
hand to escape the heat
Something about those
bike rides at the beach
Getting ice cream on
the boardwalk
And never knowing what
time of day it is
Or those nights you
stayed up so late
In a tent in the back
yard with your best friend
Sitting in camping
chairs, watching fireworks on the fourth of July,
Twirling sparklers in
your hands
Blasting music
throughout the house and dancing
Because you don’t care
who sees you, you’re just having fun
The sound of bright
plastic flip-flops thwacking down the street
Chasing after the ice
cream truck with your siblings
Going to the movies,
our arms loaded with big buckets of popcorn
Attending concerts at
the fair, screaming at the top of our lungs
Trying on everything
in the store when shopping with your best friends because, why not
Dressing up like a
cowgirl with your fancy new hat and boots
Watching horses race
by you at the rodeo
Breathing in dirt as
you continue to watch the fun
And listen to the
country music
A little pride
escaping, for your country gal side
Waking up early to
watch the sunrise
Then spending hours in
the garden with mom
Going hiking in the
woods
Riding in kayaks and
splashing each other
Watching the sunset
from the front porch swing
And then laying out on
the grass late at night to watch the stars
Those long days of
driving to see friends hours away
Then running up to
embrace them because oh how you’ve missed them
Goofing off under the
basketball net trying to block each other’s shots
Tickling, and laughing
and poking fun at each other
Between our goofy hand
shakes and our silly nicknames
Wishing the moment
could last forever
Nights of skipping
through the parking lot, our arms linked together
And dancing and
singing together, our smiles bursting with laughter
Laying out in an open
field searching for constellations
Swimming, and playing
games in the gym
Chasing each other
down the sidewalks with cups full of water
Getting ourselves
soaked
Sitting by the
bonfire, our fingers all gooey from the s’mores
Our eyes full of tears
as it comes time to part ways
With long summer days
we’ve learned to love so dear
But we’re so full of
happiness and so thankful for the memories
We can hardly wait for
the next summer to arrive
There’s just something
about summer
About fall being so
close
Another year
Another Christmas
Another beginning
So much happens in one
summer
Between all the early
mornings and all the late nights
But everyone can pin
point back to one summer
And think about the
memories they made
The changes they went
through
The challenges they
grew through
It’s on those late
summer nights you really think about it all
And take the time to
appreciate
Every moment spent
living
Whether it be spent
laughing or crying
Those memories, wow
I thank God for my
life
And summer nights like
these,
You’ll never get them
back
So enjoy every hour
Every minute
Every second
Don’t ever let a
moment slip you by
Don’t ever forget the
memories
_______
I
know summer is practically over for most of us, but I really enjoyed writing
this and I wanted to share it with you guys. :)
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