Things That I am Not Afraid Of (and probably should be..)

Each of us have little secrets that we would probably be shunned from society for revealing. So I thought maybe I would start a trend, and go ahead and admit my own dirty little secrets of things I feel the need to apologize to society for....

1. I love, love, love Gilmore Girls. It is a sad, sad thing that sometimes I feel like they are my friends, but especially in the fall, we are bff. Forevs.

2. My current favorite rainy day/cold day movie is Twilight.

3. I have read all the Twilight books, and I am not sorry.

4. I get excited about Harry Potter. And I am not sorry.

5. I am a sap through and through. I love girly movies, but I also love action movies. So sue me for getting emotional about Pride and Prejudice.

6. I wish I could be an actress...mostly because I think it would be so fun.

7. I hate showering. Not because I am a dirty weirdo who loves b.o. But because the whole process of getting ready just takes too long...yes I am that lazy.

8. I pick my nose at least once a day. I think it is a nervous habit.

9. There are days I remember in High School that I sometimes wish I could re-do.

10. When I see "teen" movies, I secretly wish I could still be THAT ONE girl in high school...and I just graduated college.

11. I absolutely love getting lost in my imagination.

12. I wish I could just sit and create things for the rest of my life and get praise for it...

13. One time I ate an ant because my brother told me they had milk in them.

14. I forget to brush my teeth...often.

15. I hate hate hate shaving...so I look forward to jeans weather.

16. I think burping in public is funny.

17. When people fall down I can't stop laughing.

18. I get emotionally involved in things that are not real life.

19. I still get upset about people who have bangs...even if they are in style.

20. I wish babies had four phrases: "I'm hungry", "I'm tired", "I have a dirty diaper", "Something hurts". That way we wouldn't have to decode shrieks.

21. I secretly never want to settle in one place, but want to at the same time.

22. I think homeschooling is cool.

23. I still think cheerleading is a sport.

24. I know no one reads this and I still felt the need to share....

Good, better, and best

A wise woman once told me (and then repeated it several times throughout my life) that life is not often a question of right and wrong as we grow older, but one of good better and best. Having always stuck with me, this idea has directed many of my steps in my life. I don't claim to have made all the best decisions, but that is how I learn. I am just as thankful for my mistakes as my successes, because either way I am growing.

There is a song called "Picture of Jesus" and every time, it makes me think of that wise old woman, my grandmother, and the life she leads. She doesn't do it all right. She hasn't made all the right choices, that is not the key to her wonderful and full life. It is her submission to the idea that quiet service, overwhelming love, and humility are the only ways to live. I have never seen such a beautiful picture of Jesus than when I look at the lives of my grandparents. They grew up together, learned together and failed together, and that, my friends, is the church. That, my friends, is a "best" decision. Love has truly conquered all in their lives, yet I have never seen any life like theirs.

So my conclusion must be this. My life in service to Jesus will look much different than yours. The way we learn and grow may not match, but in the end, the church celebrates in this, celebrates in the moments of community that revolve around sharing life together, growing up together and failing together. There is not always necessarily right and wrong, there is different, there is mismatched, and there is good better and best. Let us love these distinctions.

It's Cliche because It's True

Lots of changes happening in the Morgan household these days, more updates on those later. But, today, I feel like I learned a valuable lesson.

It has been said to me, many a time, that Bible college can create unrealistic views of what is taboo, what is cliche and what is "lame". As I recently found myself criticising in a way reflecting these ideas, I became annoyed with myself, but this is hard habit to break, mind you, after it seems to be instilled in you as much as your weekely memory verses.

But today, I read an article about early marrige, compliments Anne Durham and Christianity Today, and something just snapped. So many things in this article would seem, to the average Bible College student, cliche or silly or "old news" as though we are entitled. All I found in this article was truth. Plain, simple truth. The problem is, we don't want to hear it, or we want to over-intellectualize it. We want to make it harder than it is. But truth is what it is. The end.

I believe this is where we get cliches. There is another saying that goes "It's cliche because it is true". It is so refreshing to just accept this. Yes there are falsities out there, but a lot of times the things that we so often dismiss or ignore are the quiet, simple things God desires us to truly learn in the first place. And chances are, the more we dismiss them the less we have learned of them, because anyone who has truly learned something in their heart, will always have a fondness of this memory, rather than contempt and a "too cool" attitude.

Buck up Christians, lets be honest, if you are a Christian, you are not too cool...in fact you are probobly not even cool. So lets be honest here and examine even the most cliche things we turn our noses up to, there is always ALWAYS something to learn.

I had a decent drive home yesterday and a dead phone, equally lots of quality thinking time. I came to realize something.

I have really been struggling with contentedness in different situations throughout my life thus far. As I tried to sort through the meaning behind this I found myself realizing it was because my idea of who I am and God's idea of who I am are different. I value myself much to highly in the grand scheme of God's purpose, and often view my menial tasks as purposeless. My conclusion...my submission to God has become some sort of conditional idea where I think I need to feel like I am being used or noticed. How sad, and incredibly selfish my service has become.

Sifting through all of this I have come to see that where I am is where I am, and never is it on accident. I may not be in ministry. I may not feel like I am placed in a situation where I am using my gifts or potential, but that kind of is the point. Contentedness cannot be situational, and for me it has become all about what I think of my situation. No wonder being submissive to God has eluded me this year. My incomplete view of God has caused my useful potential and growth to suffer. It is so silly for us to think that we should only do things where we are gifted. God must grow us somehow, and challenging our weakness is really the only way.

I am not above what I am doing as a nanny, or a wife, or a friend. I am not above the ordinary life, and I have no right to go around trying to change every circumstance I am placed in. If I am in rhythm with my Father, then I am exactly where He wants me. He reminded me of this:

He has never promised me I will be content with everything in my life, but He has assured me He will make me LEARN to be content in everything.