(Because this is how you follow Jesus.)

² There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? ³ When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.     John 14:2,3 NLT

 

My parents flew home from a week in the Dominican Republic today. It’s got me thinking about coming home. I love going away – I love to travel and to explore and to visit. But every time I do, there comes a point where I long for home. Even if I’m having the most wonderful time. I’ll wake up in the morning, or be having a shower, or something else rather random, and suddenly – I miss home.

Home calls to my heart when I am away.

In the last 10 years, I’ve lived in three different places. And each one became home to me in a short time. There’s something about your own space – even when that space is fairly new-to-you. There’s a comfort that comes with sleeping in your own bed, and being surrounded by the familiar things of your life. You get to know your home’s noises and quirks. I find I rest better at home than anywhere else. When life gets hectic, I long for the comfort of a nap on my couch.

In fact, just saying the word home makes me feel better when I am rushed or weary. When I fly back into Toronto from wherever I have travelled, the moment the plane touches down, I whisper to myself, “home.” And I feel peace.

It is no surprise that ‘home’ has become a metaphor for Heaven. There’s an old spiritual called “Oh, Freedom” that speaks of going “home to be with my Lord.” This idea comes from what Jesus says to the disciples in the Gospel According to John. He tells them that he is going to prepare a place for them, and that he will return to bring them there, so that they will be with him. Heaven becomes the place where all of our fears and worries are shed, all of our tears have dried up, and we are home with Jesus.

This Lent, may you know the peace of trusting that Jesus has gone to prepare a place for you. That, putting your trust in him, your ultimate destination will be a home that surpasses any place you ever longed for on Earth.

 

Years ago I read a story set on a world with two suns. The author described how there were constant sun showers, and therefore rainbows, on that world. There were so many rainbows that they became commonplace and people stopped noticing their beauty.

I thought that was incredibly sad. I cannot imagine not noticing the beauty of the natural world. One of my favourite things about my condo is that it is high up in my building and faces west. I get to see sunsets regularly. I have watched storms blow in and snows drift down. I get to see the lights of my city shining in the dark night.

I often find my breath taken away by the beauty of an ordinary day. And every time I do, I feel God’s presence and God’s blessing in it.

This Lent, may your breath be taken away by the beauty that surrounds you. May you know whose handiwork it is, and may you draw closer to God.

I came across this verse and found it rather apropos. At Graceview, throughout Lent, we ha e been looking at ways to do something during this season. Rather than giving something up – which can be a meaningful practice for some, but often is relegated to an old tradition that no one really understands – we’ve been looking for ways to put what we have learned from the Scriptures into action.

This verse reminds us that the comfort God gives us is never meant to end with us. If we have received comfort from God, we are then meant to comfort others in His name. This is how it is with any gift from God – it is meant to be something we can then share with others.

It is as though God gives us gifts not so that we can hold tight to the gift that we have been given, but so that we can pass it on. And God delights in us when we do, indeed, pass it on.

This Lent may you take the time to recognize the good things God has given you. (Maybe make a list!) And may you then find ways to pass these things on to others – you will bless people and honour God in doing so.

I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭3:14‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Yesterday, after pushing “publish” on my Wordless Monday post, a little notification popped up from the WordPress app, letting me know that I’ve published 500 times on my blog.

500 times I’ve shared my faith and my journey and my life with some who I know very well (my Mommy reads my blog!) and some who I have never met (blessings to other WordPress people who follow me!). 500 times I’ve found time, in the hectic pace of life to reflect on my experiences and my relationship with Jesus. 500 times I’ve (hopefully!) managed to touch the life and faith journey of others – encouraged their relationship with Jesus.

This little notification made me smile and made me think. What does it mean, this milestone of 500 posts? Well, it made me think about the good of putting one foot in front of the other, of doing something consistently, even if only for a season. The good of pressing on towards the goal. The good that this blog has brought to my life and to the lives of those who follow it.

Sometimes the best thing we can do is to be consistent. To show up. To put one foot in front of another. To do the thing that we said we’d do. To follow through.

Life is made up of the consistent actions of a person over time. And as a person of faith, the consistent prayers, times spent in worship with brothers and sisters in Christ, the occasions spent in service of others, the gifts given freely and honestly, the little differences made in the lives of others. These things measure up to a life lived in the presence of God.

And that is a very good thing, indeed.

This Lent, may you press on towards the goal. May you live consistently and persistently in the presence of God. And may you be blessed.

(Also known as: I’ve been staring at a blank screen for 20 minutes and I really want to post SOMETHING this evening! Thank goodness for lovely thoughts found on Pinterest.)

I admit, I find it amusing that this is the verse of the day on my Bible app today.

The 2018 Olympics are drawing to a close in Pyeongchang, South Korea. For the past two weeks the world has watched as the best of the best in the world of winter athletics have pushed harder, gone faster, jumped higher and stretched themselves beyond what anyone thought was possible. It’s been beautiful and uplifting and frustrating and heartbreaking.

As with every Olympiad, some rose to the expectations that were placed upon then before the games began. Some fell far short. And some came from obscurity to capture international attention and Olympic glory.

I’ve loved the Olympics for many years now. I love the stories that come with the games. And my favorite stories aren’t necessarily results-based. I love the kids who are there for the first time; I love the competitors who are honoring parents or loved ones; I love the moments of kindness when one athlete helps another out.

It’s only in the past few years, though, that I have learned to love physical exercise myself. For most of my life I was sedentary. And then I began to work on my weight and my health. I began to lift weights. I began to do cardio. And over time, with great effort, I discovered that I like working out. I like being stronger today than I was yesterday. I love pushing myself and expanding my limits.

These are good things and they’ve brought greater health – physically, mentally, and I would argue, spiritually – to my life.

But I know that pursuit of godliness, pursuit of a stronger relationship with my Creator, Saviour, and Sustainer, matters so much more. As Reggie Joiner says, the only thing that will matter about any of us 100 years from now will be our relationship with God.

It matters in this life, and it will carry us through to the next.

This Lent, may you pursue godliness. May you draw closer to the One who created you, the One who laid His life down to save you, and the One who upholds you. May you know that such pursuit brings you blessings, now and forever.

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. ‭‭Philippians‬ ‭4:6-7‬ ‭NLT

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Today has been one of those days in which I ran from one thing to the next – many meetings and appointments to keep. I am home now, and tired with a day that had so much packed into it.

When I’m weary, I long for peace and comfort. I long to slow my breath down, and know that everything is ok. Not because anything was wrong today, but because the frantic pace of this world, this city, gets under my skin and into my soul. The frantic pace makes me feel frantic and frazzled.

I love what Paul writes to the church in Phillipi – this reminder not to worry, but to pray. That through prayer, the peace that is longed for will be found.

I need reminders like that when life gets busy. I need to remember that God’s got my back. That he’s known me since before I was born, and has watched over me continually.

This Lent, may you not worry about anything, but pray about everything. May you experience the peace of God, which is beyond understanding. May you live in Christ Jesus.

Because sometimes you just need to be reminded of the good things God has promised you: