I’ll be honest…It feels like I haven’t written much in my beautiful things journal lately. It’s not that there aren’t beautiful things to remember, it’s just that sometimes it’s hard to find words for them. Some beautiful things are best kept tucked away in my heart. And that, in itself, is a beautiful thing.
But I know this much–I want to live a life of simplicity.
Simplicity means walking with my Savior day by day, allowing Him to lead me through life.
It means letting go of my complicated worries and trusting His perfect plan.
It means getting rid of what’s crowding out my life–all the unnecessary wants and desires and fears–to focus on what matters.
It means delighting in simple things, because sometimes those are the most important things.
It doesn’t mean that life will be easy–because, let’s be honest, it isn’t–but it means that it will be livable by His strength.
There’s nothing wrong with big dreams and big accomplishments, but those only come after a lot of simple things have been done. Day to day life is full of simple victories. Every time we choose to do the right thing or speak the right words, we have done something great.
And perhaps one day, we’ll see how all the simple things we did each day were bigger than we’d ever dreamed.
This post is a little different than normal, because I just feel like chatting today.
I love writing on this blog, but some days I stare at the screen and wonder what on earth to say. Most of the time it’s not that I lack things to say, it’s just that I don’t know whether it’s worth saying.
I love words, but words are so small.
They’re too tiny to explain the vastness of the Creator of heaven and earth. I can’t comprehend His love for me. I can’t even begin to appreciate all that Yeshua Messiah sacrificed to save my soul, and how He lived and died and rose again so that all may live in Him.
I can’t capture the beauty of the world around me and fully express the joy that overflows my heart sometimes, and makes me happy just to be alive. And I can’t share the heartbreaking moments either, when I’m a crying mess, because…well…those are personal, and this blog is not the right place to share them. And yet, I try to share bits of these moments on this blog, hoping–and knowing–that they do encourage others.
My words will always be small, because Yahweh is so much bigger.
Sometimes I’m not joyful. Sometimes I’m ungrateful. I can come up with some pretty good excuses for being grumpy sometimes, but still I feel that longing of my soul to “snap out of it” and focus on all the beautiful things in life. Sometimes I need reminded of this verse:
You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11)
Sometimes I have to ask myself hard questions.
Do I let Him lead me in the paths of life?
Do I find fullness of joy in His presence?
My heart longs for life to be perfect, for everyone to get along, and for every day to be showered in sunshine. But this doesn’t happen. At least, not everyday. And as long as I’m living in this broken world, life will never be “perfect.” There will always be a storm cloud looming in the distance, or a worry in my heart that I need to deal with. There will always be tears. And there will always be myself. And myself drives me crazy sometimes.
But you know what?
There will always be fullness of joy.
At His right hand are pleasures forevermore.
Only when I put Him in center view can I see this. Only then can I delight in the simple beauties of life, no matter how small they may seem.
Today I want to find fullness of joy in Him. Today I want to focus on the beautiful things. Today I want to be thankful.
So without further adieu, here are some beautiful things:
Sometimes I think we forget how small and fragile we humans really are.
Sometimes I think we forget how much Yahweh is in control, and how much we can let go and trust Him.
Sometimes I think we forget what freedom feels like, because sometimes we forget what freedom is.
There’s a philosophy skipping around in our heads, and consequently our lives, telling us that freedom is following our hearts. Freedom is finding our own truth. Freedom is being independent, making our own decisions. But true freedom isn’t about us. It’s all about Him, the Maker of our hearts, the One who holds the stars in his hands.
You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. (John 8:32)
True freedom comes when we realize the Maker loves us and knows us better than we do. God is smarter than we are. He has a plan for each of us that is greater than we could ever imagine. It’s only when we surrender our fears and doubts, and accept His direction in our lives that we can know true freedom.
photo from pinterest.com
It is only in letting go of the idols in my life that it is well with my soul.
It is only in finding the One who made me that I truly find myself.
So why do I battle the Maker of the universe?
Why do I challenge the Master storyteller, insisting that I can write a better version of my life than He already has?
Why do I cross my arms when my heavenly Father is reaching out to me?
Why do I close my eyes when His truth is all around me?
Fear and doubt never want me to surrender. They remind me of the pain of letting go, but they forget to tell me of the joy. They forget to remind me of the closeness that I feel to my Savior when I put Him first. They refuse to dazzle me with the truth of what surrender really is.
Surrender is freedom.
photo from mandysantos.com
Perhaps there’s something in your life that you know you must surrender. It terrifies you to think of letting go, pestering your heart and haunting you at night.
Don’t let fear and doubt win. Trust your heavenly Father. Know that He loves you. He’s leading you, and He wants what is best for you.
It’s my adventure into the world of poetry, and a journal of some of the random poems that I will write along the way. At the moment it seems that I’m only capable of short poems, but perhaps that’s the best place to start. So in addition to this blog, you can also find me happily scribbling little poems on the Cherry Tree Poet.
Last week I watched the movie Unbroken with my family.
I suddenly felt selfish for every time I’d ever complained about my little troubles in life.
I’ve never floated on a raft on the Pacific Ocean for 47 days, battling starvation, storms, and sharks.
I’ve never been that close to death or been through the horrors of war.
Louis Zamperini’s story is dark. It’s real. But it’s also beautiful in a heartbreaking way.
It’s the ending that touched me the most (although the movie doesn’t highlight it much).
After all the darkness and nightmares and scars, Loius Zamperini found God.
He felt the redeeming power of forgiveness and shared it with others.
He visited Japan and forgave his prison guards in the POW camp.
He lived to the bold age of 97 and died with peace in his heart.
This is the type of story that knocks me off my feet and shoves my selfishness in my face.
Today I don’t want to complain, y’all.
I just want to be thankful for life. For the endless blue sky above. For the birds chirping in the treetops. For the songs my siblings sing together. For the breeze kissing my face.
Yesterday I visited an antique store with a friend of mine, and was reminded of my love for old things.
I especially love old books.
There’s something charming about picking an old book off the shelf, opening it, and smelling that familiar scent of age. I love the rhythm of old words, and the way they transport me back in time.
Old things also make me think about the future.
They remind me that everything I hold today will someday be old.
They remind me that today becomes tomorrow–again and again.
They remind me to live. To put my trust not in the things that I hold, but in the One that holds that whole world in His hands.
A dear friend of mine (who blogs over here) has inspired me to keep a diary of beautiful things.
I’m always finding a new excuse to start a journal, and this idea I knew I couldn’t resist. Keeping a diary of beautiful things could brighten my life and cause me to be more observant and appreciative of the beauty around me.
Beautiful things remind me of my Maker’s heart. I love beautiful things, because He loves beautiful things too. Creation testifies to that. He could have placed us on a dull planet, but He placed us on this earth where we have oceans and deserts and hills and meadows.
So often beautiful things are free, just waiting to be discovered. It can be the way sunlight slips through Venetian blinds in the morning, or the way that a baby’s cheeks dimple when he smiles so big.
I want to keep these things close to my heart. I want to capture the art that the Maker has created. I want to bring Him praise.
There’s so many beautiful things yet to be discovered, here are some so far:
