Tag Archives: sinners

Finding My Brave

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I am the cowardly lion friends!

I have found my courage!
Last year, “brave” chose me as my one word and this week as I have reflected on this past year and begun to live into my new one word “embrace,” I have begun to realize that, much like the cowardly lion in the Wizard of Oz, I have had courage all along. I just had to find it! (Good thing I have friends like the wizard, Dorothy, the scarecrow and the tin man who have helped me to find it!)
I am reminded of these words from the movie: “As for you, my fine friend — you’re a victim of disorganized thinking. You are under the unfortunate delusion that simply because you run away from danger, you have no courage. You’re confusing courage with wisdom!” (Wizard of Oz; imdb.com)
Courage and bravery looks different for each and every one of us. Brave is in sharing our story even when that is the last thing we want to do. We simply have to trust God. Brave is in hearing the call to ministry even when you wonder if God knows what God is doing in calling you. Brave is trusting fully and completely in a God who calls us each of us by name, knows the desires of our hearts, and also knows what we need. Because the thing is friends, God is the one who gives us that courage in the first place.
“And that though I am flawed, God is loving me and refining me and reminding me that God in me is where I can place my trust. And that is the place where I find my courage.” (Learning to Be Brave; Annie F. Downs; P.37)
These words speak straight into my heart, because each and every one of us is flawed. Yet God still calls us saints and sinners alike. God claims each and every one of us as God’s beloved children and continues to refine us and remind us that God is the very one we need to place our trust in. Because it is in that very holy sacred place that we find our courage; that we find our brave!
(Also if you missed my 2015 One Word recap post earlier this week, I would love for you to go read it: A Year of Brave)
I am linking up with these lovely ladies today: Holly Barrett and Testimony Tuesday, Jennifer Dukes Lee and Tell His Story, Kelly Balarie and the RaRa linkup and Holley Gerth and Coffee for your Heart:

 
 

Authenticity

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Authenticity is something that I strive for every day. Every day I try to be completely and wholey who God created me to be. All admit that I screw up. I’m not perfect! I am definetely a Lutheran…simultaneously both saint and sinner. Recently at the ELCA National Youth Gathering, the youth heard some phenomenal speakers (at least in my opinion)! However there are many who were and have been concerned about these speakers. It makes me sad because I think our youth (and even our adults) need to hear these stories. Yes, Pastor Nadia used to be big into drugs and alcohol BUT the truth is that by the grace of GOd and other believers, she has gotten out of the depths of those darknesses. I dont believe that her story teachs our youth that its ok to take drugs. I think it does quite the opposite; it teachs them what happens when you get into drugs and alcohol. My hope and prayer is that they take Nadia’s and all the speakers messages and makes a change in the world. I may be wrong..I may get to heaven one day and God may tell me something else…But what I do know is that Jesus was a radical. Jesus sat and ate with tax collectors, sinners and the outcasts!