Created to Create

Anything you've ever created has already been created. When, through instinct or a studied-hand (or both), we create art in its various forms it has come from an urging inside us. This urging, or inspiration, can come from seeing a garden filled with vivid colors, the blue upon blue found in the sea, or even from Pinterest via your phone screen.

But see, anything you've ever created has already been created. That water color painting of garden flowers?

The flowers formed by His hands.

That powerful Instagram photo of the rushing waves?

The waves called to the shore by His voice.

So in our creating we are really only re-creating what He has done.

And this re-creation is a very fine and good act of worship. The desire to take pretty pictures, draw pretty landscapes, and write pretty words is an urge God had, too.

Genesis 1:26 says that after God created the earth and everything in it He said, "Let us make man in Our image and in Our likeness." Or the Message version says, "Let us make human beings to reflect Our nature."

He created us in His very nature - hands, feet, arms. and legs. Yes. But also laughter, compassion, joy, and the desire to create, to manipulate with our hands. In our gardens, in our kitchens, in our sewing rooms, in our journals, with our saws and hammers. In our loving touches.

The urge to create comes from our Creator. The still, small Voice that calls you to put pen to paper, to put voice to song. That Voice is the very One that spoke you into being.

The Creator calling His creation to create.

Let's worship Him in all we do with our hands.

Lord, may it be so.

We'd love to host your small group at A Place to Land or at your church. We accommodate all age groups and would love to meet you. Contact us via email or Facebook.

In It to Win It

During the school year I will often ask my class, "Who's in it to win it today?!" And when one of them participates, answers questions, and works hard I will yell out, "Yeah! T.J. (or whoever) is in it to win it!"

They love this.

After I make this exclamation about T.J. (or whoever) you will see hands shooting up left and right because, by golly, everyone wants to be in it to win it!

I love this.

As an adult, I like to think I'm "in it to win it." I strive for success in my career, in my writing, in motherhood and as a wife. I cannot falter in any of these areas because they are of critical importance. I mean, I can't fail as a teacher - that's my profession! I can't fail as a mother - yeesh. Who wants to mess up their kids?!

But am I in it to win it when it comes to Jesus?

1 Corinthians 9:24-27, The Message version says this:

24-25 You’ve all been to the stadium and seen the athletes race. Everyone runs; one wins. Run to win. All good athletes train hard. They do it for a gold medal that tarnishes and fades. You’re after one that’s gold eternally.

26-27 I don’t know about you, but I’m running hard for the finish line. I’m giving it everything I’ve got. No sloppy living for me! I’m staying alert and in top condition. I’m not going to get caught napping, telling everyone else all about it and then missing out myself.

Do I live out my faith like I'm in it to win it? Do I see heaven as a prize that is worthy of a strong run? Do I see an eternity with Jesus worth a marathon that will require training, injury, and pushing myself to the limits?

My sweet friend, Sumer, is a runner and she wrote about her training several days ago:

So many people don't understand running, why people want to run, or when it gets "easier." I have only been running for a little over a year now, so I still have a lot to learn, but I do know that every day is different. A run today can feel completely different as the exact same mileage and pace tomorrow.  I am thankful to have the opportunity to run in the mornings now, but today was brutal. It's hot. It's unbearably humid. My body is sore from Pilates and yoga this week. I'm attempting some new running techniques that don't feel normal yet. Whatever the reason... Today was not a good run. I am usually pretty good at pushing myself on a run, but today I had nothing left to give. I can't remember the last time I've wanted to stop and walk as badly as I did today. But I didn't. I kept going, even when I thought I couldn't go any further. I only went six miles, but I know that tomorrow is a new day. I will lace up again to prove to myself that today will not define me. I will continue to push and I will continue to surprise myself... Through the good and the bad runs. If there is one thing I've learned, it's that runners never quit. 

The same can be said for our race as Christians, right? Some days are easy, the conditions are just right. We sail through the day with happiness in our hearts and birds chirping. We're like Snow White in sneakers. We love Jesus!

But then...there are other days. It hot, it's unbearably humid. We're sore from the stress of work and kids and problems. And we don't run as well that day. We don't even want to lace up our shoes and feel like being just another runner somewhere in the back of the pack. 

What Sumer says about these kinds of physical-running days should be encouragement for these kind of spiritual-running days: "I kept going, even when I thought I couldn't go any further....Runners never quit."

Runners, in their race for heaven, can't quit. Hebrews 12:1-3 says, 

"Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!"

This Jesus-follower thing can be hard. Society calls us bigots, hypocrites, and delusional. Am I running every day to prove them wrong? Am I running to bring glory to His Precious Name? To serve as a witness to a world that is dying and in need of Him? Do I give Him my best even when I'm sore and out of breath?

Today I will go forward, running at a steady pace in order to claim my prize: Him. I am running for Jesus. I will fix my eyes on Him, the Author and Perfecter of my faith. Knowing He is worthy of a well run race. Hoping He will one day look at me and say, "Beloved! Well done, runner...

You were in it to win it."

Lord, may it be so.

Picture (Im)Perfect

I have the privilege of living in a charming craftsman home on a lush five acre lot. This home has been handed down for four generations in my husband's family. It was a treasure generously given to my little family and every day I am thankful.

Our home is easy to spot. Actually most people in my town know exactly where I live because my house has existed longer than any living person in our town. And most likely, God willing and the creek don't rise (Yes, literally the beautiful creek nearby.), it will exist long after we're all gone.

The house stands on the corner of a popular cut-through between two well-traveled highways, so in addition to its history, it is also a landmark to travelers in this area of the county.

Because of this renown I'm a complete perfectionist as to what the outside of our house looks like. 

Which is a major problem.

Because the outside of my house usually looks like a wreck. 

In the years since we've lived here we've seen a tornado and a hurricane.

Tornado is almost six and loves baseball and sidewalk chalk. Hurricane is two and likes to pee in the grass and break all potted plants.

Therein lies my problem: a picturesque yard ain't happenin'. At least not for approximately 15 more years when Tornado is paying rent in his own place and Hurricane is enjoying his full ride to Duke. (Let's hope he stops relieving himself in the yard by then.)

Here's the thing: I don't care that my yard is not always mowed. Or that it has an obnoxiously large trampoline in it. Or that it currently looks like a Wet n' Wild water park complete with sprinkler, Slip n' Slide, and baby pool. I love it. My boys love it. They play. We laugh.

But I do care what others think of my yard. I cringe when I create in my mind what others are saying as they drive by.

What a gorgeous home - too bad it looks like a Toys R Us blew up in their grass.

That house has such history - I hate that they let those chickens walk around everywhere. 

(Did I forget to mention the chickens? Their names are John Adams, Darth Chicken, and the red one.)

I'm happy with my home, but I'm not happy with what others think about my home.

And friends, this attitude is not okay. I should not feel the need to apologize for the evidence of healthy, active children and chickens. 

Proverbs 29:25 says this:

It is dangerous to be concerned with what others think of you, 

but if you trust the Lord, you are safe. 

Truth be told I live in a sweet little town. And most likely when people drive by they say, "Look at those precious boys playing in their yard."

But I shouldn't care either way. The only judgement that should matter to me concerning my yard, my decisions, or my life is God's. I cannot concern myself with pleasing others. I must concern myself only with pleasing God.

If the clutter in my yard is evidence of a life lived with joy and love then I am guilty. I need to release myself from the guilt of a home that is not picture perfect. And I need to start taking pride in a life that is picture perfect.

I am so tired of looking at myself through the lens of other people and even the lens of my own, narrow vision. My life is best viewed through the lens of my Creator's eyes. And if I'm in Jesus then when He looks at me all He sees is perfection: the perfection of Jesus. 

One day, in years that will go by too quickly, my yard will be well-manicured and not a baseball field. Toy-free, but childhood free. Full of bright blossoms, but not one broken pot. Not one single kid peeing in the bushes as you drive by. 

So today I will appreciate the clutter and know that God, the only One whose opinion matters, thinks my yard looks pretty fantastic.

Lord, may it be so.

Begin Again

I ain't gonna lie: this teacher loves her some summer vacation. Time with my own kids, no bed times, trips to the beach. Days where the only thing on the To Do List is to breathe.

During summer I not only recover from the previous school year (Yes, I said, recover. Teaching is hard, y'all.), but I recharge my batteries for the upcoming school year. See, that's the greatest thing about being a teacher - there's always the chance to begin again. Because when I'm staying up late, beaching, and breathing I'm also planning. Planning ways I can make the next year even better. From bulletin boards to lesson plans to relationships, I reflect on ways I could be different.

What a blessing. Every year the clock is reset and I get to begin again.

There are places in all of our lives, teachers or not, where a reset button would be nice. Relationships, finances, attitudes, decisions. And in some ways these new beginnings are much easier to make. I begin again in August.

You can begin again today.

So what is it, friend? What part of your life do you need to reset? Return to start? Find the largest eraser possible and rub out?

Let today be the day you begin again.

2 Corinthians 5:17 says, "This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!"

God is faithful to make us into something entirely new and fresh when we come to Him in Jesus' Name. He is faithful to not only supply salvation, but to help you repair those areas of your life that haven't been working.

That's the beautiful thing about living life in Jesus' Name: it's never too late. As long as you have breath in your lungs and a beat in your chest, it's not too late to wipe the slate clean and start anew. Even if what you need to begin again is your relationship with Him. 

This time of year I think of my teacher friends who are retiring. I'm sure there's uncertainty in what their classroom-free lives will look like; a bittersweet goodbye to a long career. But, oh, the excitement in their fresh start, their renewal.

New beginnings are scary, but they carry with them the hope of something good, something different. Something better.

August is my restart date. My new, different, even better school year. But let today be yours.

Beloved, begin again.

Lord, may it be so.