Another Wild Ride

Yehaaaaa!  Roller Coasters got nothin’ on 2011.  Good thing we love the ride and trust its maker with our life!

Three family passings, and moment-by-moment opportunities to turn over our fear to our loving and creative God.  I don’t know where I’d find peace – as a parent of a traveling, far-away college athlete, a beautiful 13 year old who’s still ricocheting with cultural discernment, a six year old who is safety-averse and thinks he can fly; an armload of unknowns about our career futures, risky opportunities and heavy callings.

How can anyone make sense of getting out of bed if we don’t have God’s hand lifting us up!?  As it is, with His help, the prospect of beginning a new day – a new year – is positively exciting.

We are reading John Eldredge’s new book BEAUTIFUL OUTLAW and it’s changing our way of thinking.  It’s energizing us like no book has done in a long time. I’m a bit stunned at the timing of its release and immediate invasion in our life. …

Great books are everywhere and we love discovering them, don’t we!  Sarah Young’s Jesus Calling devotional was everywhere in 2011, and everywhere changing people’s days.  Ian Cron’s book struck such a chord in me that I carry it around for reference!  (This idea will be particularly funny if you’ve read the book.)

And if you’re seeing a trend in this short list, the name of Jesus appears in every title.  Weird, huh?  Unplanned, even quite unintentional and amazing [to me].

My favorite message woven through Eldredge’s Beautiful Outlaw is the inextricable God Jesus.  The way Eldredge wrote it is  … different.   His language plays like music; the symphony of God’s presence as Jesus.  We grow up knowing God sent His only Son.  But Eldredge writes it differently.  You’ll have to read it… because that’s just the beginning.

Throughout this year we’ve also studied more deliberately the Holy Spirit of God and His gentle and transforming power over our lives today.  Love it.  Jim Cymbala’s study is forcing us to examine untapped connections throughout each minute of our day.

And books that unlock creative vibes and connect us with our inner core are wonderful and I gobble them up (see: Pressfield!).  But Eldredge opens up a new door of excitement that’s raw and real and enticing and inviting.  Playful? Fierce? Extravagant?? Scandalous.

Eldredge asks “Is this the Jesus we pray to?”  Is this our God?

Yep, it is  … more than ever.

And with that, I feel excited to leap onto another roller coaster ride called 2012, as long as each wheel is tightly gripping the rails of God’s will for my life.  I breathe out and charge ahead with a wider smile and utter excitement for what’s in store.

I know my job is to say “yes!” and

(as my kids say as they charge into the volleyball or basketball game)

leave  it  all  on  the  court.