#giftsofgod

The Spirit of God

“And afterward, I will pour out my Spirit on all people.”  Joel 2:28           After the Bible study, Chuck sat down with Peter, the teacher, and said, “I have a friend who tells me about being “baptized in the Holy Spirit” which enables him to speak in tongues. I definitely want everything that God has for me but I’m not sure about this experience.”           “Have you looked for your answer in…

I apologize for the long gap between now and my latest post. I’ve been meaning to write, but the whirlwind of spring semester has hit me harder than expected...but after almost a month, here I am again :)

For the past week or so, I’ve been struggling to put together a long, emotionally-loaded post explaining what’s been on my mind so far during this busy season...I’ve stayed up almost every other night, wrestling and straining to find the right words to express what’s been on my heart.

However, it being my Sabbath and all (or at least, it WAS when I initially began writing this), I felt inspired to simply write exactly what’s on my heart at this moment...

Joy. I love that word. Although some use it interchangeably with “happiness,” joy to me has a very special meaning, in that it seems to be a deep-rooted emotion that springs from a heart full of contentment and delight. To me, true joy is the feeling I get when I experience the power of God’s love for me...when I’m surrounded by brothers and sisters and family members who inspire me...when I get to worship and sit in the Presence of God every morning...and honestly, whenever I am able to simply take a breath and think about just how blessed I am to be alive.

Sunday (usually my Sabbath day) was filled with many of those “breaths”...

Although I started my day pretty roughly, God gifted me with so many moments of unexpected joy and rest... like the moment I was able to enjoy a delightful breakfast with four other beautiful sisters from fellowship...or the moment I had the privilege of witnessing a dear, treasured sister accept Christ as her Savior, and I started tearing up in church because I was struck by how powerful, healing, and deeply personal God’s love is for us; when God blessed me with the company of a wonderful friend, who really encouraged and uplifted my spirits, even though we had such a short time to catch up; when I got to see my beautiful dancers perform my choreographic piece onstage for the first time...the entire evening I got to spend in New Jersey in the presence of some of my incredible friends (family, really)...

Throughout my Sabbath, I was amazed by how God continually (and graciously) surprised me with His love and blessings...even when my heart and mind weren’t in the right place to receive them! Everything I mentioned above seems delightful, pleasant, and wonderful now that I’ve taken the time to appreciate them...but they fail to capture the shadows behind the moments of light: the tightness I felt in my chest because of a certain conflict I was dealing with, the anxiety I experienced in having to direct my piece for the first time...the frustration I felt in not being able to observe a complete Sabbath (what with all of the rehearsals scattered in between). 

Had God not stepped in repeatedly to re-center my heart and my focus, I would’ve spent the entire day feeling distressed, uptight, and downcast; I would’ve spent the entirety of my Sabbath worrying and stressing...and not breathing.

The final semester of college always seems to be a time when we have the tendency to stress out about the future and the answer to the dreaded question “what’s next?” As I’ve wandered into this season, however, I’ve actually been more interested in answering the question “what's happened?” Rather than look ahead, I’ve spent quite a bit of time looking back, wondering where all the time has gone...

I remember my pastor back at home asking me once if, because I was always so busy, I felt like life was just flying furiously past me...thinking about it now, I realize I do feel that way most of the time: that my life is just whizzing past, and I can only fling myself after it in the hopes that maybe, just maybe, I can capture the bits and pieces of my life that I want to treasure.

This is the mindset I’ve kept for most of my life...but the older I’ve gotten (20, I know--so old!), and the “further along” in life I’ve come...the more I’ve come to believe that there’s an alternative...that perhaps there is some way to treasure life always, to not be forced to scramble frantically from one moment to the next...

Sabbath. Maybe observing the Sabbath isn’t just some religious practice for Christians to make time for church and Sunday worship. Maybe the Sabbath isn’t just a day full of fun, enjoyable, and pleasurable activities. Maybe the Sabbath is simply a gift, and invitation from God...to step back from the craziness of your life, embrace the life and the love in and around you, and to simply take a breath.

Wishing you a restful, peaceful, and breath-filled week. May the love, peace, and joy of the Lord be ever upon you!

In Christ’s Love,