Not Forsaken — Perfectly Loved

What the war on faith looks like from the trenches, and the chance we have to rewrite a Christian legacy of fear and doubt.

When your world is spiraling out of control, it will be the peace of God that carries you through.

Offenses will come, injuries will happen, and hurt will take up residency in our beings. Nevertheless, there is one thing greater than these that enables the injured to pursue reconciliation, and one thing needed to complete it.

Where to find true forgiveness and what to remember when stepping into the pursuit of another.

Meditating on life and where to find healing when it’s your turn to ride the roller coaster.

When lust takes a hold of us; when greed gets the best of us; when we find ourselves signing on the dotted line of sin and shame; who is able to deliver, and who can forgive? None other but God.

When it’s not your fault, but you still have to pay; when injustice arises to take center stage; this will we do to claim a higher way.

A public service announcement for those fallen prey to the tender mercies of the wicked.

Finding your joy and holding onto it. Define and defend.

Strength culled from the flames of hell.

Familiar patterns found in a world foreign to them provoke investigations into a bigger picture lurking deep inside the recesses of the shadow lands.

Digging into who you are will uncover the purpose for why you will endure, and even find a way to translate bad experiences into a productive ones.

Seeing the rationale behind sitting with one’s loneliness.

Reflections from Psalm 119: navigating the darkness with the light of God’s Word to find love and acceptance; peace, and stillness.

Reading of the prayers of Psalm 119 from the King James Authorized Version (public domain). To be prayed over one’s life who is afflicted by them that follow after mischief and make void the law of the Lord; and yet continue stedfast in his ways.

No sooner is the skill made known that the inevitable materializes.

No effort of surrender is without its due reward.

Accepting myself for none other than myself.

Here’s to hoping in the future while living in the now. 1 Peter 1:3-7

I will lift you up, even in my lowest valley.

Hearing the word “no” is just as hard in your adult years as it is growing up. But should it matter?

Everybody loves to fantasize about time travel. But what if I told you it was real?

After a long, hard day, I find peace in reflection and remembrance of how Jesus foretold this day would go, thousands of years before it happened. #enlisted

Triggers are inevitable, but emotions can still be managed.

Finding fulfillment in the here and now: a battle worth reflecting on.

Episode capture of an easily found, yet easily forgotten modus operandi toward our enemies out of Luke 6.

Free from the attachments that suck the life out of you, surrender looks like a train whose windows let you see what has only been holding you back this whole time.

Reaching the declaration of surrender.

Reflections from a journal entry written June 20, 2023 on the significance of embracing the process.

What to do when you’re feeling insignificant and unproductive.

Working through the pain of yesteryear that still brings you to your knees. #enlisted

Auditing a session of prose, I discover the condition of my latest work to be sought after: written from the scar, not from the wound. In this, I come to accept the way things are, as I reflect upon being invited back to tell my story.

Keeping your mind at ease while life is busy can be as simple as listening to a podcast or watching a show. Staying productive while your life is in lull or pain isn’t quite as straightforward.

Learning to be present with the Holy Spirit through the waiting and the pain.

When hope has failed and purposes are disappointed, God’s word remains to be fulfilled. | Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths. (Proverbs 3:5-6)

When I heard from their own mouths about “the man of God” rising from these ashes, compassed about with a cloud of witnesses, it was then I realized and could finally believe what my life has come to: accepted and loved.

Falling apart and laying all down at the foot of the cross, with open hands. This has been the biggest thing for me to date; things I refuse to forget. | “You are chosen. God has given us only 24 hours in the day. Take this one day at a time, no more. Weeping and letting it all out is healing, and it takes great courage and strength to do that; it is not weakness. The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; that is where you are at right now, and the LORD is near to you now. Sometimes you can’t see the light at the end of the tunnel—because you’ve never been down this road before—and then suddenly, you’re out. I’ve watched as you’ve grown from where you started to today; as a flower in bloom. You are very articulate and eloquent; you should become a writer.” | I, even I, am he that comforteth you: who art thou, that thou shouldest be afraid of a man that shall die, and of the son of man which shall be made as grass; And forgettest the LORD thy maker, that hath stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and hast feared continually every day because of the fury of the oppressor, as if he were ready to destroy? and where is the fury of the oppressor? The captive exile hasteneth that he may be loosed, and that he should not die in the pit, nor that his bread should fail. But I am the LORD thy God, that divided the sea, whose waves roared: The LORD of hosts is his name. And I have put my words in thy mouth, and I have covered thee in the shadow of mine hand, that I may plant the heavens, and lay the foundations of the earth, and say unto Zion, Thou art my people. (Isaiah 51:12-16)

A tribute to the longing, waiting, and hurting.

Some new reminders for myself to just keep going, but also rest.

Taking ownership of your pain begins with recognizing what is causing it. The struggle is real, but truth is still at hand. | Bless the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits. (Psalm 103:2)

It’s a thing.

God cares about the things we care about: both our sufferings, and our dreams. Making of a list of things hoped for in this life—and not being a forgetful hearer—brings clarity and contentment in the waiting.

Acknowledging the heaviness, feeling the fire, and settling into its purpose for a season.

Three important reminders from a friend to get me through the night and keep moving forward. | The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. (Psalm 34:18)

Once you begin to discover your joy, it’s time to put it to work: saving for a rainy day responsibility.

Two requirements for this to work: 1) it has to come from within, and 2) it has to be something you can accept [as valuable].