this is impressive. one day...

in september

the colors change.

in september
the afternoon light grows richer and redder
and the days are warm
and my window is open.

on the way to school i stop and gape at the light around me--
i beg: Envelop me.

in september 

i wear the long-sleeved shirt to bed

but i keep the nike shorts cause

i like the feeling of soft blanket on bare legs.

i wake up a little cold in the dark--

cold enough to put a pot of water on the stove. 

then it's 6 a.m. again
and already life moves too fast. 

Christ's mission

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord" (Luke 4:18-19). 

Christ was anointed and sent by the Father to preach to, heal, and liberate:

the poor
the broken-hearted
the captives
the blind
the bruised

Comforting, no?

evangelicalism

I've wondered what exactly scholars mean when they refer to evangelicalism, and I've wondered which religious groups it includes.  Thank you, Dr. Rachel Cope, for clarifying:


"Evangelicalism includes Protestants who fit within what David Bebbington calls the Evangelical Quadrilateral: Biblicism (belief that all truth is found in the Bible); crucicentrism (a focus on the atoning work of Christ on the Cross); conversionism (belief in the need for conversion); and activism (belief that the gospel needs to be expressed in effort). This means that some Baptists, some Methodists, some Presbyterians (and even some Quakers, Catholics  and other groups claim to be evangelical in thought and experience) are Evangelical, and others are not. It is those Protestants who hold to those beliefs, and who claim the spiritual rebirth/ born again experience."


And now you know.  

dying to write

Feels like I'm dying to write.

Since I'm not getting words out on paper (okay, on word document), my very blood is going to start spilling out of my body.

Frustrating how during the semester I never seem to find time to read and write what I want to read and write outside of school assignments.

Need to make time for it.  No excuses.

We humans have this basic need to let words flow from our bodies.  Maslow, add that to the base of our hierarchy of needs pyramid.  

I long to pray to the One who, because He knows me, teaches me about myself

"Prayer invites self-reflection and demands wakefulness." 

-R. Marie Griffith, God's Daughters: Evangelical Women and the Power of Submission, pg. 1


Through prayer, I attempt to express myself to God.

I lack ability.

I can't speak the right language; I can't put how I feel into words. Beautifully, though, God understands me no matter what words I pray.  And He understands the words I never pray.  

So why pray when God already understands what I'm feeling?  I pray to show my devotion and gratitude to God, of course--but why try to express myself to God and why ask Him for things when He already knows what I need?

Because prayer isn't about asking God to understand me (He already understands before I ask!!).  Rather, prayer moves me to a place where I can understand parts of myself that I can't possibly "get" until I attempt to commune with God.

God already knows my heart, but I don't really know my heart until I look to my Father.  Prayer gives me the opportunity to learn about what's going on in there.  In my attempt to articulate how I feel, I begin to learn the meaning of the things I experience, the things I do, the things I want.  I begin, in a small way, to understand my soul.  And I've found that as I begin to understand myself, I begin to honor my need to commune and connect with Deity.  I begin to understand what it means to be "home."

I long to exercise my voice.  I long to hear and express and understand myself. I long to pray to the One who, because He knows me, teaches me about myself.

happy Sabbath!

some of my favorite songs to listen to, especially on Sundays :)

sex...

is all over the place in our media.

We never really talk about it in a good way, though. 

I wish we talked about sex in a good way. 

how bad do you want success?