...and the prisoners were listening

'About midnight Paul and Silas were praying

and singing hymns to God,

and the prisoners were listening to them...'

Acts 16:25

I absolutely love this story! 

Just imagine for a moment...

you're imprisoned unfairly...

dark. cold. damp. crowded. 

I can't be completely certain as to what my response would be; I would like to think that it would be gracious and joyful and eager to honor my Lord in the midst of it all, but given the comfortable life I am used to living, I am not entriely sure. 

Here are two men, Paul and Silas, in love with Jesus. 

Their lives completely transformed by the God who lived and died to save their souls. 

Imprisoned for bringing light to the darkness...hope to the hopeless. 

So here they sit...

the dampness unable to snuff out their light...

the shackles binding their feet but not their tongues...

the coldness adding stark contrast to the life giving warmth of the presence of God in that place. 

Paul and Silas were not clammering about the unfairness of the situation. 

They were not building support for a riot. 

They were praising and praying! 

...and the prisoners were listening. 

The unfairness of life can be slippery slope and a dangerous rabbit hole. 

The bitterness it brings can swallow a person whole. 

The only guard against it: gratitude. 

For everything I complain about, whether legit or not, there is something to thank God for. 

In that moment, I have a choice to make: 

complain or give thanks. 

The choice has the power to not only change my life, but the lives of those around me. 

Whatver 'prison' you may find yourself in, whether it is a challenging marriage, a dead-end job full of corporate politics, a barren womb, grief from loss or shattered dreams, unemployment, illness, financial strain.....

my prayer is that you will embrace the God who cares in the midst of the darkness and cold and dampness of life. 

I pray that the God who promised to be an ever present help in times of trouble would be so present that your soul can't help but sing. 

I pray that gratitude would spill out of you,
cutting through the darkness like a knife and bringing hope to your weary bones. 

And don't forget all those imprisoned around you...

they will be listening. 

blessing be yours. 

tiffany 

in God alone

'Some trust in chariots and some in horses,

but we trust in the name of the 

Lord our God!'

Psalm 20:7

O sweet Jesus--keep my heart from idols!

Keep my heart from looking to things or people for protection, deliverance or fulfillment. May my heart's affection and my heart's confidence be found solely in you. Grant me grace that I may always remember that the securities of this earth are temporary and while mortal men are eternal beings because of their souls, their presence on this earth is as temporary as a blade of grass. 

Today and tomorrow and the days to come, may my heart bow to you only and find it's security and peace and fulfillment and rest in your name alone!

peace. 

tiffany 

3,650

3,650 days.
10 years.
1 decade.
2 people.
young. oblivious. hopeful. hopelessly in love.
Stood before one hundred family and friends and promised to hold onto each other.
to love each other.
to love God.

Fast forward a full decade.
The sun has risen and set more than three thousand times.
Sunsets followed joy filled days and others were embraced knowing the day was over and a new one would bring a new beginning.
There has been laughter....laughter through tears and laughter that brought tears.
There has been tears...babies and their first cries...babies that made their Mama cry.
There has been pain...bones broken, power tool accidents, scraped knees and hot words spoken in anger.
There are new smile lines and aching muscles.
There have been mistakes.
There has been forgiveness.
There has been miles driven and destinations reached. Photos taken and milestones passed.
There has been diplomas earned and dollars returned.
There has been the unexpected and the expected...the nights spent in prayer and the nights spent under the stars.
We have raced...we have won...we have surrendered...we have held on.
We have held on to the the hope that Christ is glorified not through the illusion of perfection but through two people, daily making a choice to love Him first and to love others well...starting with one another.
In an earthly sense, we were destined to fail,
but we held onto the promise that if God is for us, who can be against us?
We remember that we have been forgiven and therefore we are called to forgive.

"For where you go I will go,

and where you live I will live.

Your people will be my people, and your God my God.

Where you die I will die and there I will be buried. 

May the Lord deal with me ever so severely if anything but death separates you and me."

Ruth 1:16b-17

Thank you for being my Beloved. 
Thank you for loving me as Christ has loved the Church and gave Himself up for her. 
I love you but I love God more. It is beacuse of that love for Christ, that my love for you continues to grow. I love the man that you are and I love the man you are becomming. 
Thank you for joining me on this journey of life and love. 
I am crazy about you. 
Yours eternally. 

<><tce

the freedom

'...But when they measure themselves by one another 

and compare themselves with one another,

they are without understanding.'

2 Corinthians 10:12b

I love this. Love. love. love. this. 

Paul is addressing the issue of self righteousness and spiritual comparison.... 

Ha, and we thought the Bible was not relevant to our lives today! 

As my soul savored these precious words today, a quiet and profound sense of freedom washed over me...alongside the solid conviction of my Sweet Jesus....

Baby Girl, 

when you compare yourself-your children-your home-your body-your yard-your accomplishments-your failures-your giftings-to that of another, 

you are failing to understand the beauty that I have in store for you and the work I am doing in others. 

Your journey will never mirror that of another. 

With my strength you will begin to savor that and the pull to compare will cease. 

Walk with Me. 

A prayer of my heart is the prayer for understanding. 

I long to understand who God is and the woman He is creating me to be. 

I long to understand my husband and children so as to love them more. 

I long to understand the hurt and anguish around me so as to minister His love and healing more effectively. 

I long to understand. 

When I fall prey to the pull of comparison, I am forfeiting the divine understanding of the Creator of all I compare. 

As I digest this profound truth, 

the beautiful result is sweet, sweet freedom. 

Freedom to leave behind the scrutiny of others and even more so the scrutiny of myself. 

I lay down the weight of judgement and condemnation and trade it for the yoke that only the Creator God can offer. 

And with that comes understanding. 

Freedom and understanding. 

Yes please. 

<><tce