Making Lists About God

October 5, 2017 By: Angela Parlin

I read the Bible, looking for what it said about me.

Specifically, what did I need to DO—or not do? These are the things I wrote down. These are the things I prayed about and thought about. Then I wandered off to live my life each day. But I missed so much of the great, big, beautiful point of Scripture. The LORD.

I missed knowing Him more and growing in relationship with Him.

In a lot of ways, I was just doing religion.

It makes sense, because I’ve always wanted to get it all right. I don’t ever want to find myself in trouble. Getting in trouble never made sense to me. Just tell me all the rules and standards and expectations, and I’ll go to great lengths to follow them.

So I read the Bible like a rulebook. A guide for getting my life right. A tool to keep me from anyone’s disappointment.

Read the rest of this post at PurposefulFaith.com.

When Storms Come In Like Wrecking Balls

September 12, 2017 By: Angela Parlin

It was Jesus’ idea to travel to the other side.

With His disciples, He left the crowd behind, and journeyed by boat to a new place on the other side of the lake. A furious storm suddenly raged. Waves crashed over the boat, and they nearly drowned.

Meanwhile, Jesus slept on a cushion in the stern.

If you think about what he had been doing before this little boat ride, his deep sleep makes perfect sense. At least from my introverted (and sometimes-exhausted Mom) perspective. He had been teaching crowds of people, eating meals with people, and traveling about talking with them and healing them.

Mark 4 tells us the disciples took Jesus along in the boat, “just as He was.” And what He was, was completely exhausted. Fully human.

The disciples woke him, with an accusation. Don’t you even care if we drown?!!

He immediately yelled to the wind and the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” (verse 39) And to the amazement of His friends, they elements immediately stilled.

“They were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him!'” Mark 4:41

Another version words the question this way: “What manner of man is this?” Divine. Jesus was (is) God.

He calmed the storm we read of in Mark 4, and there we see His power over the weather.

But He doesn’t always calm the storm.

We all just watched Hurricane Harvey blow through Houston like a wrecking ball. Even though we live on the east coast, far away from that storm, some of our family is now deep in the process of gutting their home and rebuilding. Over here, we’ve been watching the destruction of Hurricane Irma and wondering what’s next.

Jesus tells us to expect storms–and not only weather-related storms. We’ve all lived through stormy seasons that had nothing to do with the weather. And we know we’ll see more.

So what do we do when storms come through our lives like wrecking balls? When they blow and destroy and we nearly drown?

These 4 Responses to Wrecking-Ball Storms will encourage your heart:

Remember God is with you.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for You are with me. Psalm 23:4

Cry out to Jesus.

Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He brought them out of their distress. He stilled the storm to a whisper; the waves of the sea were hushed. Psalm 107:28-29

Praise the Lord.

I will extol the Lord at all times; His praise will always be on my lips. Psalm 34:1

Trust Him.

The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know Your name TRUST in You, for You, Lord, have never forsaken those who seek You. Psalm 9:9-10

I hope you’re not up to your waist in water today, literally or figuratively. Then you can store these words away so they’ll be there when you need them. If you are under water, living through the destruction, I pray you feel God near and praise Him for that.

I pray He gives you eyes to see beyond the storm.

xoxo, Angela

An InLinkz Link-up

Drawing Near Will Make You Want Him

August 17, 2017 By: Angela Parlin

Long ago, our kids asked for a dog.

A puppy is a lot of work, I said. So we gave them fish. But nobody can cuddle a fish, and next we appeased them with a guinea pig. That’s a long, smelly story for another day.

Soon we were back on the puppy train. The dachshund train, because I grew up with this sweet breed. I don’t know if you’ve encountered many dachshund owners, but there are no other dogs in the world, once you’ve loved a doxxie. My husband simply humors me.

The day came to choose a dog, and we picked Blaze. If we had known about his issues—how he would chew through shoes, bag straps, blue jeans, and even mess with the legs of our kitchen table—we might have named him Marley. 🙂 But we only knew his sweet baby eyes, that tiny whimper, and the way he snuggled into our necks and stopped crying when we sang to him.

Eight months later, the little guy’s quirks and offenses are clear, but so is the laughter he inspires.

Blaze lays at my feet nearly every day when I’m making dinner. He sits down and places one little paw over my foot. As I move about the kitchen, he follows me. While I know he wants to be near the food I drop, he also wants to be close to me.

No matter what I’m doing or where, if his eyes are open—they’re usually on me. He wants to be near me, all the time, no matter what.

It’s had me thinking about the way I long to be near God, and the times…

The One Thing We Must Always Return To

July 13, 2017 By: Angela Parlin

I was out-of-my-mind frustrated.

He had spewed mean words to his younger siblings too many times that day. We had talked. And talked. And prayed. Well, I had prayed. There’s no telling if he prayed along. This battle had been brewing a while, and I was over it.

So I sent him to his room, thinking I needed a few minutes to cool down before I could deal with his most recent outburst {in a calm manner}.

Unfortunately, I didn’t leave it there. I followed him, giving him an ugly earful of my own thoughts and feelings about the situation he created and the ways he was ruining my day.

I dealt with his outbursts by having an outburst of my own. And then I left his room with a sigh and that rotten feeling.

This is not the way I plan to, hope to, want to parent. But it’s the way I sometimes do.

As I walked down the hallway…keep reading this post at PurposefulFaith.com!

When the Gift is Rain

July 1, 2017 By: Angela Parlin

*If you’re joining me from the Ladder to Rooftop newsletter, Welcome! This post is part of my series on finding beauty in the chaos of the Writer’s life. Find out more by clicking here. Subscribe here:

I sat down one breezy June afternoon to write this post, only I thought I was writing an entirely different post. My screened porch roof covered me, as it began to rain.

The rain made me weep.

And I felt this quiet little nudge. Go, stand in the rain.

Those words made me cry more, because I don’t venture out into the rain much. Ever. Why? Because I’m one of those consequence keepers. Because I think in details, and I think too much and I think too many steps ahead, and I’m hyper aware that x causes y, and I don’t usually enjoy y. So I avoid x.

Know what I mean?

Like I fixed my hair already today, and I don’t like wet hair. It makes me cold. And I don’t like wet clothes. I’ll need to change.

Anyway, who has time to sit and cry at the rain, or to stand in the rain and soak?

Who has time for tears or raindrops?

Despite my objections, I stood on my deck in the rain, and my tears transformed into laughter. I stretched out my hands, looked toward the sky and said, Thank you.

Then this deeply spiritual moment ended, on account of window banging behind me. Because maybe I’m growing little consequence keepers. My daughter yelled, MOM, WHAT ARE YOU DOING??? And then she and little brother joined me in the rain, where my girl screamed, “This is SO not like you!”

It wasn’t like me. She loved it.

The three of us skipped and laughed and the rain poured over us, and after a bit, they climbed down to the playset, where they happily ran and hollered about this fun. Then the rain dried up. The sun came out, and I stood out under its warmth. Thank you.

A minute later, it poured again.

The rain spilled down my cheeks, soaked my blue jeans, moved my heart. It wasn’t just the rain. It was the hand of God. He invited and cleansed and once again lifted me, using drops of rain I’ve avoided thousands of times before. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

Suddenly I wanted to run, to pray, to blare music throughout the house. I wanted to sit in the corner and turn it all into words. So I did. And then I wrote more words, and they fell like rain.

I’d been on an Artist’s Date with the Keeper of Raindrops.

And to think, I almost didn’t have the time…

Making Lists About God

I read the Bible, looking for what it said about me.

Like this:

When Storms Come In Like Wrecking Balls

It was Jesus’ idea to travel to the other side.

“They were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him!'” Mark 4:41

But He doesn’t always calm the storm.

Like this:

Drawing Near Will Make You Want Him

Long ago, our kids asked for a dog.

Like this:

The One Thing We Must Always Return To

I was out-of-my-mind frustrated.

Like this:

Compassion International

I read the Bible, looking for what it said about me.

Share this:

Like this:

It was Jesus’ idea to travel to the other side.

“They were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey Him!'” Mark 4:41

But He doesn’t always calm the storm.

Share this:

Like this:

Long ago, our kids asked for a dog.

Share this:

Like this:

I was out-of-my-mind frustrated.

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Compassion International