Wednesday, September 2, 2015

THE SUMMER OF MAGIC


"This is the kingdom, to see like a child, to live loved with my siblings, to work and to dance and to be filled up like a hollow, howl of laughter, fruit of joy." Wild in the Hallow, Amber C Haines

It has been the best summer of my life. 
There have been adventures and road trips and giant waterfalls.
Glasses of wine sipped with dear friends and the giggles that follow.
Sunburns in all their painful glory and splinters from running on boat docks barefoot.
I have played with kiddos in sprinklers and chased them through fountains.
Waves of fireflies covered moonlit fields as I sat with Jesus.
Waves of ocean water washed over my feet as I walked along the sand with my little brother.
I sang "Oh How He Loves Us" with new friends over high school kids as they wrestled with the Lord.
I sat on a wooden bench on a hill at Windy Gap with one of my best people and cried over the fear and the goodness of the truth that we are fully loved and fully known.
I tried new restaurants with my older brother and we shared desserts that tasted like Heaven.
I have watched the sunset over a lake and a river and the ocean.
There has been mountain biking, and go kart racing, and jeep riding.
Pools and beer and swan floats.
Darts and cornhole and Catan.
Weddings and fairs and drive-in movies.
A lot of iced coffee and a lot of ice cream.
It has been full to the brim with love and life and wonder. 
And every magical moment has felt like, what one of my heroes likes to call it, "colliding with the holy." This summer has made me feel new all over again and reminded me that Jesus is ALIVE. That He is here with us and is constantly inviting us to dance.
The summer is just a season and I know good and well that I won't stay on this mountaintop forever, but I hope and pray that I don't forget the magic. That when the winter comes and life feels heavier and colder that I would remember the lights and the love and the fireflies.

Monday, June 15, 2015

Extravagant.

 
Oh, how He loves us so....


Last night I took a long drive down a country road that I know well. The road leads to "my spot"...a gravel turnaround surrounded by open fields that is far enough from the city to see the stars. Technically "my spot" is the entrance to someone's private property, but the property is currently for sale so that means I'm not really intruding, right?

I rolled down all my windows to soak up the air, thick with summer, and blared the new Chris Stapleton album through my speakers as loud as it could go. The soulful country tunes seemed to be the perfect soundtrack to my drive. I let my foot lay heavier than on the gas pedal than it should (don’t tell my mom) and turned my steering wheel back and forth as I weaved down the windy road. Freedom.

I pulled into "my spot" and turned off my car. My heart bubbled with adrenaline for a second when I thought about being out in the middle of nowhere by myself, but the symphony of crickets quickly drowned out my thoughts and filled me with peace. I climbed up on the hood of my car and starred out over the fields. I knew it was firefly season, but still somehow seeing a sea of them lighting up never ceases to amaze me.

I looked up into the sky at the stars that seemed to be shining brighter than I had seen them in a while…and then it hit me. This is my God. This is my crazy extravagant God. This is the Love that knows no ends. Love that would create a tiny little bug with a tail that lights up every few seconds and sprinkle thousands of them out over open fields in the summer to make a magical light show...all for me. Love that would place these unimaginably large balls of fire in the sky and make them twinkle like diamonds, all whispering “you are my bride.” Love that created crickets to sing songs of praise. Love that wraps me in warm air so that I would know a true embrace. My God is Love. And My God is extravagant and powerful and magical and he has been wooing me with fireflies and music and summer and backroads. And my God does it all because he loves me and he wants me to know how much. All because I am his.

So, my friends, here is to a summer of magic and extravagance and learning just how loved I am by my Papa. Praying the same for you.
 
How he loves us so...
 
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