I think everyone needs inspiration every second of every day, and everyone needs a creative space and outlet to share their ideas and feel validated and worthy; to be received wholly and imperfectly as we are. I want this to be a space for me to do that-to share my thoughts and opinions and share in Christ’s vision for me to develop into someone who can influence others through the power of words.
Throughout my life I have struggled with worthiness and shame. The two are polar opposites, however you cannot experience one without first experiencing the other, much like most of the dark and light in life. I am learning to hold the good and the bad together- realizing that you cannot separate the two, and that there is so much beauty in that. I used to see stark white or black; no in between, no shades of grey. But I have learned that the shades of grey are what make up our existence, the mundanities and realities of our everyday life. If the shades of grey are all that we have to hold onto in this world, doesn’t it make sense to embrace them instead of diminish their existence? Yet this is what have done most of my life: tried to ignore and discount everything that didn’t fit into my box or version of reality which really wasn’t reality at all. I’d rather fit in a box than float around freely in the realm of ordinariness and averageness, at least that’s what I used to think. Now I see the power of being like everyone else; it connects me to other people in a real and raw way, and I am able to recognize and empathize with our shared human experience. It took me a while to figure out, but I finally feel that I’m at a place where God can use me for something greater than the limitations I’ve always set on Him. He stripped away my little rebellions, self-righteousness, and self-pity that held me captive for so much of my life and has opened my eyes to the beauty of the every day, allowed me to appreciate the little things in life and be grateful for what I have instead of constantly wishing for what I don’t have.
I hope this is a place that inspires and energizes others to live their best lives and be their best selves- the selves that God created them to be. We may all just be ordinary people living ordinary lives, but we serve an extraordinary God who has unique and incredible plans for each one of us, whether that means a mission trip to Africa or a simple, quiet trust in our hearts through all circumstances-the good, the bad, and the shades of grey.
rhythms of grace 