AGAPE

“above all keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins.” 1 peter 4:8

the word earnestly in this verse can be interchanged with ‘intently’ or ‘fervently’, which means eagerly and passionately. we are suppose to love others in this very way. 

a clean slate. 

we all could use a clean slate, a do over, all of our spots washed away. good news, jesus did that for us, on the cross. he died for us to be made clean, a new creation. that is the best news i’ve ever believed to be true, i want everyone to know what jesus has done for us. part of me wanting every single person to know this good news, is to live a live full of actions that are christ centered, and pleasing to him. which is hard. i’m learning. i’m not the best, but i’m learning. i know that god has called us to love others just as he loves us. unconditionally, undeservedly, and never ending. 

this kind of love is based on actions, not words. agape love is selfless love. what i’ve come to learn lately is that you have to pour out grace on people and forgive in order to truly love selflessly. not everyone will accept it, that’s not the point. we must learn to humble ourselves, set our pride aside, and wipe the slate clean with people that we have ill feelings towards. that means, forgive them whole heartedly, for everything they have ever done to wrong you. forgive them for the past, and forgive them as you move forward in the future. wiping the slate clean means that you no longer bring up that thing they did 2 months ago to make you mad, or that one time they left you out last summer, the slate is clean. pure. white. 

to walk in christ’s foot steps, in my humble opinion, is to love people the way he loves us. this means, share the good news with them, love them through the muck of life, forgive them and continuously wipe the slate clean, and encourage them, build them up. 

it’s definitely the hardest lesson that i’m still continuing to learn. 

DEVIL'S DEN

⟼the drive up the the campsite, with low clouds. 

⟼3/5ths of the hammocks. 

⟼afternoon rain shower. 

⟼me standing on the edge of yellow rock realizing how tiny i am compared to this world. 

⟼a surprise ending to the trip, a treacherous downpour. 

this past week i went camping with the colorado family at devil's den in arkansas, 

it was the perfect week for relaxing, eating, and fellowshipping. i took countless naps 

in my eno, read my favorite book over again (the catcher in the rye), and had some 

pretty amazing heart talks with my favorite people. 

while standing on the edge of yellow rock, i was reminded of something important. 

i was reminded that my life is but a spec in time. i'm here only for a smidgen. i need to 

use this precious time to further the kingdom and to demonstrate christ's love. to show, 

not just tell. our lives are precious, our lives are short. we need to live each second with

purpose. don't take you spec in time for granted, you're important. your life in special. 

INK'D

august 1st. 

i got my very first tattoo. 

now i'm all for meaningful tattoos, and i'm also a fan of the ones you get just because they look cool, 

but, this one, this one means so much to me. 

the word and the placement.

hallelujah can be defined as: god be praised (uttered in worship or as an expression of rejoicing),

i chose to place the word 'hallelujah' on my left forearm just above 37 scars. 

reminding me daily to rejoice in being free from the bondage of self harm. 

this was not my doing, but god's. to him be the highest praise from my lips. 

this is the start to a beautiful collection of ink. 

i hope to have a half sleeve as soon as possible, full of meaningful ink and ink that just looks cool. 

but for now, i'm delighting in my simple, yet profound first tattoo. 

hallelujah.