Sorry for the delay on a new blog post. Zac and I have had a busy month. We were on vacation in upstate New York camping with some old friends at Darien Lake in July. I got to go to Paris at the end of July and saw one of my childhood best friends, Rachel. Then I had two days off at home and went back to work for 9 days straight!! So I'm finally home for about a week, where I get to feel normal and cook my own food every night...the one thing I miss the most. Zac interviewed for a new job and was hired last week for a fencing company. He is very excited and will start training tomorrow morning, where he will be a foreman for the restoration department. The constant change and adventure continues...
I want to talk about a subject that Zac has been talking my ear off with lately. There must be a reason why he keeps beating a dead horse, so you can join the conversation with us. The subject is Identity. Who am I? Who are you? The answer to this question will determine the entire story of your life. If you belong to yourself, you will determine the direction of your life; but if you belong to God then He will determine where your life will go.
Anyone familiar with the term shame? Or how about guilt? When was the last time you did something that made you feel ashamed or guilty? Did you beat yourself up, did you wish you could have done better, did it make you hide or did you create a cover up for it? I have at one time been well acquainted with shame. The problem with these feelings is that they steal from who you really are, they keep you in this dark place and literally hold you captive. However the presence of shame can sometimes point out that you know you were made for more; you know this isn't the real you...but you can't seem to escape this feeling. At the core of every new believer's identity is the fact that you once had an old nature, but upon being born-again you became a new creation fashioned with a new nature and a whole new self. Your old self wouldn't be guilty about committing a sin because frankly it didn't give a damn that you did something wrong. But now after being born again your new nature now governs your conscience, and causes you to think differently about your actions. The presence of shame in the new believers life is an indicator that there's a better you inside. You were never meant to live under the shadow of shame and guilt. You are free from those chains. You are a new person that thinks and feels differently than your old self. This new identity, or new nature is called LOVE. You are called to be love because God is love and you are created in His image. You are therefore made of love, your actions are done out of love. Your purpose is to love others the way God so deeply loves you. Read through 1 Corinthians 13 and absorb the characteristics of love, they all describe your new nature.
Zac said the most profound statement last week when he took me to the airport. He said, "Most people say I'm not going to let people walk all over me and treat me like a doormat, but love is a doormat." I thought about that for a while..."love is a doormat." No one wants to accept that, but love is a place that you can come and wipe your feet off and it reads "WELCOME". It is the entrance to a home that we all long to live in. I've never heard someone describe love as a doormat, but what a great description. Love doesn't care if you brush off all your dirt on it, it doesn't care if you're broken, shamed or guilty. Yet all I've ever heard people say my whole life is "I'm not going to be somebodies doormat." Guess what, you signed up for that when you got married, had kids or gave your life to the Lord. You are called to be somebodies doormat. Love, just like a doormat always says, "WELCOME HOME", no matter where you've just come from. Love is an entrance, love is a home, love is you and me. We can't be hurt anymore by what others do, because we keep no record of wrong. We are not broken hearted by others actions because love is solid, love stands on it's own. Love is the most powerful force in the universe, and we are called to live from that place. We are so much more that we've been told. Discover who you really are! You are not what you've done, you are a new creation. The more you become love, the less you live out of your old nature.
Invite someone into your life and your heart this week. Let them drop their burdens at your door, brush off their feet from this past weeks mistakes and welcome them home. Zac would be so proud... I do listen. I am so humbled when I think upon the life of Jesus and what he did for us. He was the greatest doormat. He let people walk over him so much so that he was hung on the cross and charged with a crime he did not commit. Even on the cross Jesus spoke to the criminal that was hanging next to him with these words, "Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise." In laymen's terms he said,
Welcome Home to a criminal. What friend or family member in your life do you need to give another chance to and look past their sins and wrongs against you and just one more time let them walk over you so you can assure them that they are always welcome home no matter what. If no one has ever told you or you just forgot because you've been living out in the dog house too long, this is for you, WELCOME HOME!
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ He is a NEW CREATION, THE OLD HAS GONE, THE NEW has come." - 2 Corinthians 5:17 -
After five quick yet long months practically living in NYC I'm happy to announce that I finally got transferred to Atlanta come October. As adventurous as NYC has been it is not the life for me. I'm so thankful to have had that experience, but equally excited to bid it farewell. I'm also excited to announce that Zac has officially begun working at First Fence of Georgia as a foreman. He was handed the keys to his brand new company truck and trailer yesterday. I'm so proud of him! We are finally beginning to feel a little more stable here in Georgia. The last 9 months have been a season of sacrifice, humility and traversing the unknown. We are first and foremost thankful to God for blessing us in this season, and continue to await all that God has in store for us around the corner. 
