Sky Diving

                     I'm sitting on the 27th floor of the Signature MGM Grand in Las Vegas observing tiny people in the pool and streets and in little cars.  I was asking God what to share about, and He showed me an image of a person falling off the building.  Can you live your life with complete trust in God?   Would you jump not knowing who or if someone would catch you?  A life surrendered to Christ is often like that person free-falling with no assurance of safety,  other than their own personal trust and faith in a faithful God.

              Zac recently said to me faith is more about believing in who God is than it is about believing for something we can get from God.  If you have faith in God then you already know He will protect and provide for you, because that is in His character.  Too many of us are spending our time trying to believe for provision or protection or even healing and its getting us no where because we don't believe in the One who can give those things freely.  It's like a man who doesn't even know who his identity is.  Let's say he was born a prince but never knew it and lived his whole life as a peasant...he won't think like a king or act like one because he believes he is a peasant.  Is our faith in things and promises and ideas or is it in God?  Who is God and what is He like? Who are you in relation to Him?  Who do we believe we are?
                Since I've been flying the world has become much much smaller.  I can be in four states in one day and still be home to sleep in my own bed that same night. There is no distance in the spirit and you may feel far from God, but He is near, there is no distance between you and God...He lives in you and He is closer than anyone will ever be to you.  From 35,000 feet our problems become unrecognizable, the world is miniature.  This perspective from up above has allowed me to get a glimpse of how high God's perspective is.  It is so so so much higher than ours.  It can be so hard for us to see things from God's perspective, but just remember it looks nothing like what we see.  Just like my view form the airplane window the world is a very different place from the sky.  Take a big step back from all your problems and issues and worries and have faith in a loving and faithful father who sees it all...every minuscule detail; and He is too good to see what He sees and not do something about it.  It's okay, you can jump, He might let you fall, screaming till your breath runs out, but He'll always catch you.  Until you jump, it's all about you, you're holding on, you're in control, and you just won't let go of your perspective for His.  Close your eyes if you have to, count to three or hold your best friends hand...do whatever it takes, but just jump and let go.      

Cuz Baby You're a Firework!

               In light of the recent holiday I want to share the significance of this day for Zac and I...some of you may know that Zac and I dated very briefly in college and then broke up for two years.  Within those two years I moved from Tennessee to Hawai'i and he moved from North Carolina to New York.  Nearly 5,000 miles apart it's a real miracle that we ended up together today.  I once heard my father say, "love knows no distance, and two people in love are like magnets, the whole world can't separate them; there's a force that always brings them back together."
               After two years of not seeing each other, we finally met eyes at a New Years party at Zac's parents house in 2011.  This story I will hold for another time, but that particular meeting is probably the reason we are together today.  Had we not seen each other that day, I believe all hope would have been lost for us...you never know the impact of one single day or moment in time.  Had it played out any differently our lives would be drastically different.  But back to the significance of the 4th of July...  Zac eventually came to Hawai'i to visit me in July of 2012.  We took a leap of faith, not really knowing where either of us stood on a potential relationship and we split Zac's ticket fare half and half so we were both investing equal efforts into his trip.  He came out for about ten days and we had a wonderful and adventurous time exploring Oa'hu and the idea of "us".  We were given symphony tickets to the Hawai'i orchestra so we went on the 4th of July to hear them and watch the fireworks.  It was that day that Zac confronted me about 'us' asking, "so what are we? Dating?"  Me being so stubborn and not really understanding the possibility of us, being that we practically lived in different countries, was really reluctant to agree.  He pointed out how he had sent me a pending Facebook request to be boyfriend and girlfriend that I hadn't approved.  I argued that I didn't want people to comment and be in our business, but to him he needed the world to know that the girl he loved for years was finally his girlfriend and that all his efforts weren't for naught.  I reluctantly made it public via Facebook and the rest is now history.
                  This year I laid in a grassy park in Appleton, Wisconsin of all places and looked up in awe of the fireworks display light up the sky.  I was reminded of the love and light that Zac has brought my life.  No matter where I am in the world I'm happy knowing that he's mine and I'm his.  There is a certain freedom in giving yourself up to another person...therein lies safety, love, commitment and a promise of a future.  This freedom is a picture of Christ who gave himself up for us on the cross, He gave his life so we could have life more abundantly, and in return we can give our lives back to Him for a promise of a future and a hope.  We are to be like Him, and as we walk out this life, woven into our lives are tales of His kindness and love.  Let your everyday life teach you the mysteries and depths of His love.  He invaded the fabric of my life and I will not forget His promises for He has given me a future.
                           Above is the oldest picture that I can find of Zac and I together.  It was taken on the 4th of July in 2008 at Kings Mountain, North Carolina.  I was visiting Zac's family with my roommate and Zac's sister Becka over the summer.  If anyone has any older photos of us please send them our way, we would be so excited to see them!!!