Addicted to Speed

In a world addicted to speed, I blur the moments into one unholy smear.
(One Thousand Gifts, Ann Voskamp, p.66)

I have the tendency to do that…blur moment gifts into one unholy, unappreciated smear. In the end it leaves me ungrateful & in turn steals the joy in life. I have to be incredibly intentional about slowing down…taking the time to really see life around me…recognizing each individual holy moment.

Many days, I do that through the lens of my iPhone camera. It forces me to stop & see. This past Thanksgiving weekend I took plenty of time to slow life down. My friend Alece challenged us to create a “wall of thanks” (see post it pictures below :)). My dear friend Emory & I enjoyed a “staycation” complete with slow lazy mornings, plenty of naps, several movies, a leisurely walk, lots of chocolate, and of course a Friends marathon :) It was truly a weekend of recognizing & savoring the moments. And for that, I am grateful.

 

 

 

 

 

An Ode to Autumn

Fall is on it’s way out in Nashville, but it’s felt pleasantly long this year. Days of warm sunshine & cool breezes that give way to nights just perfectly cool for sitting around a fire. The return of hot coffee drinks. Foggy, dew covered mornings. All as the Artist puts on an amazing show in the death of the leaves. A death that brings vibrantly beautiful colors before it’s end & one that is necessary for the beautiful green of Spring we’ll have in a couple of months. It truly doesn’t get much better in my opinion. Autumn just begs for photos. And so, an ode to autumn…a symphony of photos…

 

Throwback Sundays…Beautiful Words

I think I still get chills every time I read these words…a poem…a liturgy of sorts that Mark Pierson included in his book The Art of Curating Worship. My favorite portion of the poem is below, but check out this post for the entire thing. It’s worth it!

We often forget the story which came to us,
Preferring order to uncertainty;
Orthodoxy to love,
And religious piety to unmerited grace

Come to us again, Lord Jesus,
And whisper your words of welcome;
Fill our hearts with reckless wonder,
And our minds with splendid nonsense

Awake in us the dream of the kingdom;
Resurrect our dead and perished visions;
Alert us to the heaven in our midst;
And quicken us to laugh and love

 

 

When Dreams Go Bad

I wonder how many of us have given up on our calling because of a dream gone bad. How many of us have taken the skin of a dream & grafted it to the skeleton of our calling without even realizing we’ve made the two one when that’s not what God intended.

I’ve lost count of the number of conversations I’ve had with people in the last several months who have wrestled with that very thing. People who have been tempted to give up on a calling because their dream wasn’t coming to life how they envisioned…and sometimes not at all. I’ve also seen the freedom they feel when they realize that their calling & their dream are not the same thing. That just because a dream project failed doesn’t mean they’ve been misunderstanding their calling all along.

After what I thought were two “life-long” career paths ended I’ve learned to try really hard not to confuse the skeleton of a calling & the skin of a dream. It’s a process…probably a lifelong one…but I’m learning to separate the calling God has placed on my life from the dreams He’s given me. I’m focusing on who I’m going to be for the rest of my life rather than what I’m going to do for the rest of my life.

Do you wrestle with separating your calling from your dreams?