She Had a Gift

church-window-baptism-sacrament-glass-window

I first saw it in her eyes.

They were glued to the dancers, following their lithe movements, gracefully dancing along with them.

Then I heard it in her voice—“Oh, I wish I had my sketch pad!”

We engaged in conversation—me and this white-haired old lady in a wheelchair in a nursing home cafeteria. Her lucidity surprised me, and pulled me in deeper.

Together we watched the ballerinas leap across the cafeteria floor. But she was creating an even better scene in her mind’s eye, using her artistic vision. She said she wished she could dim the overhead lights, scale back the front lights, and use a spotlight on the dancers.

She had a gift. She wanted to use it.

Her vision was strong and active. So was her graciousness. She talked of how lovely the girls were; how wonderful it was that they were performing for them; how much pleasure they were bringing her.

But I asked for a little more. And she gave.

She told me that she was indeed an artist, as I had suspected.

In particular, an artist of stained glass. She had done several of the church windows in Huntsville. She spoke of her gift with both pleasure and gratitude, a gift well-used. She said she toys with the idea of using it again, but it is too involved, and she couldn’t manage.

Her name? Fran. And she wanted to know mine. We exchanged thank you’s for the joy we had brought into each other’s day.

Yet I was able to walk away, while Fran remained behind in her wheelchair.

But the next time I drive by a church in Huntsville and notice the sun reflecting off a design on stained glass, I’ll think of Fran.

And her gift of a life well-lived, then and now.

* * *

Do you have a gift that you used in your youth, but no longer use? How could you still share it? Please share in the comments.

revised from the archives


It’s Not About Looking Good

I’m trying not to be “all wedding,” all the time. But because we’re less than a month away from my baby girl getting married, it’s consuming a lot of my head space.

As a contemplative by nature, an ISTJ on Myers-Brigg, and a 5 on the Enneagram, I’m quite comfortable spending time in my head.

thinking

Checking off details in my mind can be a good thing (and even better when I get them onto a to-do list!).

But when an anxious thought follows up each detail, that is not a good thing.

So while I’m there in my head, I’m asking why I’m anxious. The wedding plans are actually running smoothly—all major decisions have been made; Jenna is an easy-going bride; friends and family are helping.

It must be this:

  • I’m still too caught up in pride.
  • I still wonder too much what others will think.
  • I still want everything to go perfectly, when I know the only perfect thing in my life is how Christ loves me.

Once again I need to ask God for forgiveness.

And replace pride with humility.

Humility is the only soil in which the graces root; the lack of humility is the sufficient explanation of every defect and failure.
– Andrew Murray

God is eager to help us in our weak spots. I want to be eager to receive his help. (Is it any coincidence that our worship ministry is beginning a new study together this month on Humility? Excellent timing, God.)

As I was praying over my theme for September in my year of Welcome,—see each month’s themes here—God dropped this on me and I’m praising him for it:

Welcome love. Let go of judgments.

And wedding planning is a perfect place to practice this.

When I start to get anxious, I want to remember the wedding doesn’t need to be flawless (although we do want it to be smooth and lovely for Jenna and Trey). But it’s about starting their marriage off with the right foundation: love for God, love for each other.

No, the wedding won’t be perfect. Neither will their marriage.

But both can be evidence of love, of grace, of God.

Because it’s not about looking good.
It’s about loving well.

It's not about looking good

* * *

How do you deal with your anxious thoughts? Is perfectionism a problem for you, too? Please share in the comments.

Related:


Links, Books, and Other Things I Love – September 2016 Edition

Once a month we share articles, books, and things we love at Leigh Kramer’s What I’m Into.

Here are some of my favorites from August and what I’m looking forward to in September.

1 Second Everyday 

[If you can’t see the 1 Second Everyday video, click here]

~ * ~ * ~

Around the Web

• Your Political Facebook Posts Aren’t Changing Your Friends’ Minds – They’re only judging you for them.

Facebook-politics

“Those long rants about how Trump is a bully and a buffoon, Hillary is a crook, and conspiring against Bernie Sanders has doomed America forever aren’t changing voters’ minds, a new study found.”

• What Does a Dog Want More — “Good Boy” or Treats?

“Is social reward on the same footing as food, or is it potentially more valuable?” he wondered.

• How Do We Evangelize Now?

“Our responsibility is to point people to Jesus, to tell the Story of Jesus, and to tell of our own story with Jesus.”

• To Lose Weight, Spend 45 Minutes in the Kitchen, Not the Gym

“While it’s true that exercise has many health benefits beyond weight loss, if you have only 45 minutes a day to spare, choose your kitchen, not the gym.”

• A Visual Guide to How Terribly the World’s Best Human Athletes Fare Versus Most Average Animals
“Usain Bolt might be the fastest man alive, but an average warthog could probably take him.”

Great-Athletes-vs-Average-Animals

~ * ~ * ~

On Reading, Writing, and Blogging

• Write Blog Posts in 30 Minutes with 5 Questions

It’s not a magic formula, but “after writing down answers to the 5 questions, you’ll be left with a crystal clear outline for your blog post.”

• Your Pictures on Facebook

Does this happen to you, too?

tagged-photos-vs-selfies

• Audiobooks: The Fastest-Growing Format in Publishing 

“Smartphones and multitasking have stoked an explosion in audiobooks. . . . Audiobooks are the fastest-growing format in the book business today.”

Audiobook-The-Martian

• Nine Books I Recommend

9 Books I Recommend

• Currently Reading

  1. We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
    by Karen Joy Fowler
  2. Without you, There Is No Us
    by Suki Kim
  3. The Jesus Creed
    by Scot McKnight
  4. The Telling Room
    by Michael Paterniti

~ * ~ * ~

Things I Love

• Reinforcements

We’re heavy into wedding planning mode for Jenna and Trey. When Morgan came home for the weekend, she went straight to work to keep us on track.

wedding-prep

Morgan-Team-Bride

• But it’s not all work. We had such fun at Jenna’s bridal shower!

bride-to-be-Jenna-and-mom

Jenna-Morgan-bridal-shower

• So thankful for my besties who celebrate life with me!

Kay, Lisa, and Selwyn

Kay, Lisa, and Selwyn

• Then Jeff and I left for a get-away to Seattle, Washington.

Mount-Rainier

Mount Rainier

• Doing scary things . . . not scary to Jeff, but for me it was terrifying to cross the Nisqually River on this “bridge.” Somehow I made it.

Nisqually-River

Bigfoot-Country

Being a true tourist

• Reuniting with friends who moved from Alabama to Seattle

Harrisons-Burgesses

Scott, Kirsten, Lisa, Jeff

~ * ~ * ~

On the Blog

• 4 Prayers about Politics

Do you know who you’ll vote for in the election? Here are 4 things to pray about, regardless of your political party.

• Why I Know It Will Work Out

The young black lady approached us white women to ask about hair. But it was so much more. I know we’re going to be alright.

• You Remember What You See—I Can’t Forget This

I pass the fire again in my neighborhood. But what I didn’t know was what was burning. Until later.

• Want More Grace? Books, Quotes, and a Giveaway

Read 31 quotes of grace. Or click through to read full paragraphs from 26 books on grace. Or download all the articles as a free pdf.

PDF-31-Quotes-of-Grace-Lisa-Burgess

* * *

What was one of your highlights in August? What are you looking forward to in September? Please share in the comments.

My previous link posts


On the Blog – August 2016


Nine Books I Recommend – August 2016

Below are nine books I recommend from what I read this month. 

9 Books I Recommend

Nonfiction

1. The Happiness Dare
Pursuing Your Heart’s Deepest, Holiest, and Most Vulnerable Desire
by Jennifer Dukes Lee

The-Happiness-Dare

It’s okay to want to be happy as a Christian. Jennifer shares why God also wants us to be happy. Her book offers ways to work with our individual personality types to achieve maximum happiness and holiness.

My book review here of The Happiness Dare

2. Hillbilly Elegy
A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis
by J. D. Vance

Hillbilly-Elegy

Now a lawyer, author J. D. Vance tells how he grew up poor in a small Appalachian town as what many label a hillbilly. He writes of what that meant then and now.

3. 10 Things Jesus Never Said
And Why You Should Stop Believing Them
by Will Davis Jr.

10-Things-Jesus-Never-Said

Did Jesus ever say, “It’s all up to you“? Or “This wouldn’t be happening if you were a better Christian“? No. Davis walks through 10 things that Jesus never said that we often believe. I didn’t resonate with everything, but enough to make the book worth recommending.

4. Listening Is an Act of Love
A Celebration of American Life from the Storycorps Project
by Dave Isay

Listening-Is-an-Act-of-Love

This is a beautiful collection of word-of-mouth stories heard in the StoryCorps’ booth. When we listen to each other’s stories, we are “bearing witness” to life and love and human dignity.

5. The Upside of Irrationality
The Unexpected Benefits of Defying Logic at Work and at Home
by Dan Ariely

The-Upside-of-Irrationality

This book contains more “irrational” things that we do and don’t do from author Dan Ariely (he also wrote Predictably Irrational, one of the favorite books I read in 2009). This one explains why bonuses don’t always work, why we should interrupt fun activities and push through boring ones, and why counting backward helps increase endurance.

6. Big Magic
Creative Living Beyond Fear
by Elizabeth Gilbert

Big-Magic

Gilbert reminds us that we all are creative beings. She writes to encourage us to bring out the treasures hidden within each of us. Even if we think it’s already been done. “Well, yes, it probably has already been done. Most things have already been done—but they have not yet been done by you.”

7. Running Scared
Fear, Worry, and the God of Rest
by Edward T. Welch

Running-Scared

I took multiple notes from this helpful book on worries and fears. Welch gives us a God-honoring view of how to trust more and worry less.

For me, knowing that there is grace for tomorrow has made the most noticeable difference on my own anxieties and fears. The hurdle that was always in front of me was that I couldn’t imagine that grace, which is another way of saying that I limited God to the size of my own imagination. Now I know that I could never imagine that grace because I have yet to receive it.

Fiction

8. The Serpent King
by Jeff Zentner

The-Serpent-King

This is a somewhat haunting novel about Dill, the teenage son of a fallen Pentecostal preacher in small-town Tennessee. It chronicles Dill and his two outcast friends Lydia and Travis as they work to navigate high school and life.

9. The Language of Flowers
by Vanessa Diffenbaugh

The-Language-of-Flowers

This novel also has a strange feel, but it sheds light on how a young girl might feel who grew up in foster care her whole life. When Victoria ages out of the system, she starts out homeless and penniless. The book keeps alluding to some hidden event that occurred earlier in her life that affected everything; I had to keep reading to find out what it was. As expected, it also contains many flower references, which I also found interesting.

Reading Now

  • We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves
    by Karen Joy Fowler
  • The Telling Room
    by Michael Paterniti
  • Without You, There Is No Us
    by Suki Kim
  • The Jesus Creed
    by Scot McKnight

* * *

What are you reading this month? Please share here.

Whats-on-Your-Nightstand-at-_5-minut

My books on Goodreads
Previous reading lists


Another Set of Grace Quotes

If you liked these 31 Quotes on Grace from two weeks ago (), here are more quotes and articles on grace.

Originally posted as 31 Days of Grace

The-more-grace-we-see-the-more-we'll-give

31 Days of Grace

Click on each title to see more.

1. Grace Is Opposed to Earning

“Grace is not opposed to effort, it is opposed to earning. Earning is an attitude. Effort is an action.”
– Dallas Willard, The Great Omission

2. Worship or Work?

“Worship, not work, flows out of the hearts of those who believe.”
– Emily P. Freeman, Grace for the Good Girl

3. Confident on a Bad Day, Too?

“God’s grace through Christ is greater than our sin, even on our worst days.”
– Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace

4. Committed to What? Why?

“We need to work at ensuring that our commitment to holiness is a commitment to God, not to our own self-esteem.”
– Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace

5. Fully Paid, Free Delivery Now

“One of the best kept secrets among Christians today is this: Jesus paid it all.
I mean all.”
– Jerry Bridges, Transforming Grace

6. I Exalt You, O God – Book review

“The lesson is obvious. God does note when we take time to thank Him and when we don’t.”
– Jerry Bridges, I Exalt You, O God

7. Tired of Talk

“Debates lose much of their heat when you are working side by side with Jesus for the kingdom.”
– Scot McKnight, Embracing Grace

8. Look Grace in the Face

The more grace we see, the more grace we’ll give.

9. Daybook, Grace Edition

Links and pictures where I’ve seen grace.

10. When You See Grace

“The strength of grace is best seen in the trenches, amidst the mud of misery and mystery.”
– Steve McVey

11. Bible or Jesus?

“We should pray for knowledge of truth that will change our lives rather than simply inform our minds.”
– Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace

12. How to Guard Against Temptation

Jesus told Peter to “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Mark 14:38).

13. New Grace Every Morning

Just when I’d seen it all  
New mercy breaks the dawn  
And with my eyes open wide  
It feels like the first time, first time
– Mercy Me, “The First Time”

14. Grace-a-Lot

“They believed in grace a lot. They just didn’t believe in grace alone. They wanted to add to the work of Christ.”
– Max Lucado, Grace

15. Your Grace Looks Different Than Mine

“My God is showing him grace too, through us but also to us, even though his grace looks way different from my grace and I’d rather keep mine, thank you very much.”

16. Grace Never Runs Dry

“God has enough grace to solve every dilemma you face, wipe every tear you cry, and answer every question you have.”
– Max Lucado, Grace

17. Stronger Than You Think

“And here’s the secret: The more real we become, the more love we experience.”
– Dr. Les Parrott, You’re Stronger Than You Think

18. Holiness – One Choice at a Time

“And what you are now becoming is dependent on the choices you make.”
– Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace

19. Intersections of Grace

A small glimpse of grace. A vivid view of God.

20. “Grace” by Tenth Avenue North

“Grace, only grace
Can roll your dead heart’s stone away
Grace, only grace
Can move us to a rhythm that will change our ways”

21. 3 Ways to Suffer with Grace

Don’t be a loner; don’t let enemies intimidate you; don’t despise suffering.

22. Shaking Off the Shackles

True Freedom is an inside job. I pray he finds Him.

23. Finding Grace in Books

“We are not one in opinion, but one in Christ Jesus.”
– Carl Ketcherside, The Twisted Scriptures

24. Grace Is God’s Best Idea

“Grace is the voice that calls us to change and then gives us the power to pull it off.”
– Max Lucado, Grace

25. Watch and Pray

“Our greatest source of temptation dwells within us.”
– Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace

26. Grace Meets Need

“God’s grace is given wonderfully, but not wastefully; freely but not foolishly; bountifully but not blindly.”
– John Blanchard

27. When I See It, I Am Speechless

“Your grace Lord Your grace
Oh I need it I receive it
I’m amazed so amazed
When I see it I am speechless”
– Free Chapel, “Speechless”

28. Stretch Out in the Hammock

“Of all the things you must earn in life, God’s unending affection is not one of them. You have it. Stretch yourself out in the hammock of grace.”
– Max Lucado, Grace

29. Receive Your Gift of Grace

“Our spiritual gifts and the ministries we perform are gifts of God’s grace.”
– Jerry Bridges, Transforming Grace

30. Your Right to Rest

“They have somehow bought into the false belief that, for the Christian woman, rest is selfish and unscriptural. Nothing could be further from the truth!”
– Denise George, A Woman’s Right to Rest

31. In the Pain, Is God Still Good?

“There is no such thing as pain without a purpose in the life of a believer.”
– Jerry Bridges, The Discipline of Grace

* * *

Do you have a favorite quote or scripture on grace? Please share in the comments.

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