Apologies to the 7 people that actually read this, I know it's been a long time. Honestly, I haven't found life all that remarkable in the past while. While it is possible to appreciate small things every day, like birds singing, good coffee, kids falling over etc...when life doesn't feel all that remarkable, it seems so easy to write these things off as the usual and to not appreciate them.
I went home to NZ for a couple of weeks recently, in realising that my head was a bit messed up and i needed some perspective and chill time with family and friends. Having some time off from life is a good thing, then you come back to reality (and in my case, Australia) and it all hits again.
Two days in, I felt like I was back to where I was when I left. Perspective is all well and good but unless you do something to change your situation, you'll stay where you are.
Having a remarkable life isn't just about appreciating the small things, though this does help. Ultimately, it's about the decisions you make. Firstly, whether you decide to live remarkably; will you care about people, recycle, be there for people, help the poor, smile at strangers, appreciate beauty, exercise and eat well, laugh, appreciate, be inspired, use your passions, use your talents, will you love and let others love you?
Secondly, i've realised it's continuing to do so despite the situation. Moving to a new country was exciting and amazing, but I think I lost track of what's important, mostly, loving and serving God, then loving and serving others. I think I did try to do this, to a point, however, in my attempts to think and be and accept and live, I lost track of all of this. Ultimately, a lot of crap things happened and I didn't have the foundations to back me up...the house on the sand went smash, really.
When you invest in your work, in your relationships, in your partner, in your health, in anything, you're at the risk of having it disappear, which, in my case, anyway, caused me to crash and burn. Life is changing, love is risky, nothing is certain except for the love of a God who cares for us, intimately.
I know when things crash, it sometimes feels like God doesn't care, won't care, even that he may have caused some or all of what has happened...selfishly, i've felt that way.
But something I've come to realise lately is the concept of grace. Even when my house is built on the sand and I run and hide from everything, God comes and seeks me. It wasn't about knocking on doors and trying to find God, it was about being where I was and letting him come and find me, where I was, as I was, who I was.
I know life can be pretty crap sometimes. You lose people you love. You lose out on what you thought was certain. You lose possessions, good health, dignity, talents, inspirations. You lose sight of what really matters, you lose the ability to be happy, you lose the will to live.
However, something that is ultimately unfailing, despite my arguments, my anger, my sadness, my rejections, is the love of God and his affections. Amazing, amazing grace. Never have I sang this song and truly understood as I do now.
It's grace that brought me safe thus far
and grace will lead me home.
I went home to NZ for a couple of weeks recently, in realising that my head was a bit messed up and i needed some perspective and chill time with family and friends. Having some time off from life is a good thing, then you come back to reality (and in my case, Australia) and it all hits again.
Two days in, I felt like I was back to where I was when I left. Perspective is all well and good but unless you do something to change your situation, you'll stay where you are.
Having a remarkable life isn't just about appreciating the small things, though this does help. Ultimately, it's about the decisions you make. Firstly, whether you decide to live remarkably; will you care about people, recycle, be there for people, help the poor, smile at strangers, appreciate beauty, exercise and eat well, laugh, appreciate, be inspired, use your passions, use your talents, will you love and let others love you?
Secondly, i've realised it's continuing to do so despite the situation. Moving to a new country was exciting and amazing, but I think I lost track of what's important, mostly, loving and serving God, then loving and serving others. I think I did try to do this, to a point, however, in my attempts to think and be and accept and live, I lost track of all of this. Ultimately, a lot of crap things happened and I didn't have the foundations to back me up...the house on the sand went smash, really.
When you invest in your work, in your relationships, in your partner, in your health, in anything, you're at the risk of having it disappear, which, in my case, anyway, caused me to crash and burn. Life is changing, love is risky, nothing is certain except for the love of a God who cares for us, intimately.
I know when things crash, it sometimes feels like God doesn't care, won't care, even that he may have caused some or all of what has happened...selfishly, i've felt that way.
But something I've come to realise lately is the concept of grace. Even when my house is built on the sand and I run and hide from everything, God comes and seeks me. It wasn't about knocking on doors and trying to find God, it was about being where I was and letting him come and find me, where I was, as I was, who I was.
I know life can be pretty crap sometimes. You lose people you love. You lose out on what you thought was certain. You lose possessions, good health, dignity, talents, inspirations. You lose sight of what really matters, you lose the ability to be happy, you lose the will to live.
However, something that is ultimately unfailing, despite my arguments, my anger, my sadness, my rejections, is the love of God and his affections. Amazing, amazing grace. Never have I sang this song and truly understood as I do now.
It's grace that brought me safe thus far
and grace will lead me home.
