Stress isn't a situation...

College students are inherently busy. There is always so much to do, see, and become. We're at a stage in our life where we are discovering ourselves, and the Lord's purpose for our life. We're finding new passions, meeting new people, and developing habits that will define us into adulthood. We're often working, building relationships, struggling to get the grades we need to maintain scholarships, or searching for the perfect summer job.

Sometimes, it can all be a little overwhelming.

There are days I think to myself... my brain is so full of to-do lists it can't possibly hold any more information!!!

As soon as that thought enters my brain (which is quite frequently), I catch myself.

My first instinct is to grab a sticky note and try to discharge those to-do lists from my brain in order. But I need to stop.

Step back.
                            Sit.
                                            Still.
                                                               Laugh.

Life goes on and God is good,

    even if my to-do lists aren't all crossed off
    even if I'm running a few minutes late
    even if I get less sleep than I would choose
    even if I don't get the ideal summer occupation
    even if I'm unsure about my future
    even if I wonder when (or if) the light will appear at the end of the tunnel.

"Stress isn't a situation. Stress is a state of mind."

I lecture myself out loud... If I'm in a constant state of stress, that probably means my priorities are a bit out of whack. Doesn't urgency over everything imply that God is in control over nothing?

I know you've been here too. We all have.

Life moves in waves of busyness and this may be your crest. I want to challenge you not to psych yourself out during this time. Rather, allow your peak of craziness to allow God to prove His faithfulness.

He is not bound by time or worldly hindrances. He is the God of the universe and we owe it to Him to keep that center and focus amid our stressful schedules.

"When the cares of my heart are many, Your consolations cheer my soul..." Ps. 94:19

Breathless situations...

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take but by the moments that take our breath away."

When I read that quote a few weeks ago, I immediately put it as my gtalk status. What a great quote! I thought... I love those moments when my breath is just stolen by joy and happiness.

But two days ago, that quote took on a whole new meaning as my breath was taken away in a not-so-fun-or-cool way. We all have experienced that feeling in one way or another...


It was a car accident.


The cancer is spreading.


She died in combat.


We found him in his house.

Those moments when it's all you can do to go on with your life... the moments that take your breath away.

For me, I wanted to curl into a ball and pretend nothing had happened. But then I remembered that quote. Life is measured by the number of moments that take our breath away. This is life! I was blessed with another one of those moments that marks the passing of time. Another situation for God's goodness and grace to be shown to me and my family.

6 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7 emphasis added (NIV 2011)

The afterlife of shocking news often molds and changes us in a greater way than even the happiest of moments. If we allow Him to work, these experiences will not break us, but will bring us to a new level of intimacy with our Savior.

Searching for joy, even in these breathless situations...

Praise, not perfection

I cleaned my room today… for the sixth time this week. Out came the vacuum and the feather duster. Laundry was done. Dishes were re-washed. All my drawers were dumped and re-organized.

This is my desperate attempt to grasp control of my seemingly out-of-control life.


Though my room is spotless, my mind and heart are cluttered. I haven’t lived up to my own expectations, I fell asleep while trying to read a school book, I missed a phone conversation, I haven’t even begun the many essays that are due soon, and I haven’t had any time to give to friends.

I’m overwhelmed and drowning and I can’t save myself… I am messing everything up.

But then I read it… the words from One Thousand Gifts, “Praise, not Perfection. He wants my praise not my perfection…”

I take a breath…

In… out… in… out…

I don’t have to have it all together. I need to take my rambling thoughts and worries captive and continue counting my blessings…

"As long as THANKS is possible, then JOY is always possible." - Ann Voskamp

Thank you, Lord, for family. For crunchy leaves for me to step on. For people who appreciate me. For spontaneous trips with friends. For wide smiles across rooms. For three hundred voices worshiping You in unison. For laughter. For silence. For peace.

“Ah, Sovereign LORD, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you." Jeremiah 32:17

1,000 Blessings. . .

Have you ever woken up and said to yourself that getting out of bed isn't worth it?

I have.

Life is too messy. I am too much of a failure. Nothing good will come of it. Tiredness, bitterness, and fear can pulse through my veins, impacting my thoughts of every day life.

But that's where I miss it: I'm living. I can swing my legs over the side of the bed and stand on two strong feet. I can savor the taste of breakfast, no matter how rushed it may be. I can take deep breaths of the morning air as I take early morning walks. I can utilize my mind and intellect as I push through school during the day. I am a living, moving creature created by a loving, wonderful God!

"I get to. I get to live."

We have a decision to make. Do we live life to the fullest extent, fully alive and thankful? Or do we live in empty nothingness, simply forcing ourselves to wake up each morning?

I choose to live fully. And in order to do this, I need joy. Joy in my Lord. 

"Deep chara joy is found only at the table of the euCHARisteo - the table of thanksgiving. I sit there long... wondering... is it that simple?"

Is the extent of my chara joy found in the extent of my eucharisteo thanks?

The word "eucharisteo" is used 38 times in the New Testament:

And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks [EUCHARISTEO], and broke them, and gave to his disciples, and the disciples to the multitude. - Matthew 15:36

On the night when he was betrayed, the Lord Jesus took some bread and gave thanks [EUCHARISTEO] to God for it... - 1 Corinthians 11:23

Both of the examples just listed are times when Jesus gave thanks, with grace and joy, in the midst of seemingly difficult times... I mean, who gives thanks for food that is not sufficient for the crowds before it is multiplied!? Who gives thanks for the fact that they are about to die for the sins of the world!? Jesus is setting an example for us. 

Maybe, getting out of bed wouldn't be so hard if we would take the time to give thanks for the little things in life...?

In One Thousand Gifts, by Ann Voskamp, she challenges her readers to do this very thing in quite a practical way: record 1,000 things you are thankful for.

They don't have to be verbose or eloquent. 

They don't have to be large -- in fact, it's better if they're the everyday, little blessings that we run into along the way.

I just need to pause. . . stop with the running around! Take time to see the little blessings God has placed in your life. Write them down. And when I'm having a bad day, they really put things in perspective. 

All of this results in chara joy, rooted in eucharisteo thanks. 

So here I go. These will be the bulk the posts on this blog... I'll be documenting stories, struggles and victories as I chronicle 1,000 things that the Lord has blessed me with. I encourage you to join me! I think everyone could use a little more thanks and joy in their life. . .

1. hugs from little people....

2. tumbles in the snow...

3. phone conversations with old friends...

4. cold weather that bites your nose... 

Looking for a Joyful-Godfilled life...

How can we live lives of joyfulness in the Lord when we are bogged down by life?


fear,
disappointment,
worry,
school,
family,
deadlines,
pain,
drama.


Life hurts. It's often too much trouble to put on a happy face and pretend everything is okay. So we force ourselves through the days, just "getting by", avoiding anything that might make us feel guilty about our mopiness. That's what it really is, isn't it?

"We look and swell with the ache of a broken, battered planet..." 

If we're honest with ourselves, we will admit that this attitude towards life roots itself to the idea that our Creator is indifferent and deficient. Otherwise, he would fix things. He would fix our lives. 'Cause then we could be happy (duh!).


Does this sound familiar? Many of us (myself included) have reached this point at some time in our lives. But I am starting this blog to share with you a greater truth:


Our Lord has a startling, beautiful, glorious, and spectacular purpose in all this suffering.


"His secret purpose framed from the very beginning is to bring us to our full glory." (Cor. 2:7)


We need to pull our eyes off of ourselves and our perceived "troubled lives" and get our eyes back on our Creator who wants to bring us to our full glory.


But how? I can barely get out of bed in the morning! The lists in my head, the disappointments, the guilt, the judgement... it is too overwhelming. My life, my pitiful life, could never be brought to Full Glory. 


Friends, I would posit that we can obtain a road map to the Joyful-Godfilled life through the understanding and appreciation of the word "eucharisteo".


"Eucharisteo" is a Greek word that has a three-strand meaning: thanksgiving. grace. and joy.

A triplet of stars, a constellation in the black. A threefold cord that might hold a life? Offer a way up into the fullest life? Grace, thanksgiving, joy. 

Eucharisteo. 

Join my journey in discovering eucharisteo and how, through thanksgiving, grace, and joy, I can better understand, appreciate, and love my Great Savior.


I don't want to go through the motions. I want a life of dynamic joy in my Lord.