March 2012
64 posts
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It is hard to cultivate gratitude in people by giving them what they don’t want, while ignoring their needs.
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I realized today that like most Christians, I worry far too much about what my actions make people thing about God. As an aside, I worry far too much about everything — since we are instructed not to worry about anything as believers. But back to worrying about how my actions reflect on God. It seems that God can handle what people think about Him, as He exists entirely separately and...
We find out who we really are when our egos get bruised. Struggling every day to care more about the things that matter and less about the things that don’t.
Lonely today. These days make me long for Heaven.
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The redeemed are not those who have earned favor in God’s eyes, but rather those who have thrown themselves at the feet of His mercy.
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Thanks to the stress of residency, the business (busyness) of planning a wedding, and plenty of fresh foods, my skinny pants are now too big. Ugh. The dress tailor is going to kill me, since she already took in the dress once.
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My favorite response to the question, “How are you?” is: “Better than I deserve.”
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Now is a great time to stop complaining and start making a difference.
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Worship is the conscious decision to take our eyes off our own performance, good or bad, and focus on His glory.
So grateful my salvation does not depend on my performance, but on the One who is always perfect. And always love.
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God. You are our answer.
You are our hope.
Coercion suffocates relationship.
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Apparently, I am an idiot. And Bridezilla. And an absolute jerk.
God. I just want to survive until May. Help me be more like Christ. Give me a new name.
Some day, by God’s grace, I will write a book on emotional rape and learned helplessness. And how the cross is the answer to every human offense.
Today, I heard a sermon on anxiety. The pastor asked what we would request if we were allowed to ask anything from God, like King Solomon.
I thought about it for a minute.
I would ask for the salvation of many, and an attitude that would honor God (because I am tired of my negativity preaching a lack of faith).
And I realized:
That is exactly what God is trying to give me through this...
Head in hands, thinking how I yet again offered a poor example of Christ in a job that despite my best efforts, I continue to detest.
“Elizabeth, you need grace. Let yourself accept grace.”
Grace preaches. Especially from imperfect lives.
One thing I miss about my life pre-medicine is the ability to commit to any regularly scheduled activities. Can’t wait to be done! Only three more months of bondage :)
i-have-learned-the-secret asked: How about the worst gift you have ever been given?
i-have-learned-the-secret asked: What is the best gift you have ever given (for any occasion?)
i-have-learned-the-secret asked: What is the best present you have ever received for any occasion?
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Great Things About Night Float
1. Opportunity to see sunshine for several hours before work.
2. Don’t feel like eating at any time of day or night, therefore will better fit into wedding attire.
3. Outfits don’t matter, since the person being admitted at 2AM cares more about seeing the backs of his/her eyelids than your fancy clothes.
4. No clinic.
5. No clinic.
6. No clinic.
7. Psalm 30:5.
“We please Him most not by frantically trying to make ourselves good,but by...”
– A.W. Tozer
2 Corinthians 9:8 NIV
And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work.
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Second sermon of the day on the the “why?” our circumstances inspire. God uses our crises and the challenges we face to teach us to depend more fully on Him. This is exactly the word God laid on my heart last week when I was praying about the heartache of returning to a job I do not do well, that daily eats away at me. More than anything, I felt Him impress on my heart that this time...
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“I don’t want to go home.”
“You won’t be going home. Home is where we are together.”
“Home is where we are with Jesus.”
Man at the airport desk: Buffalo? Why would you want to go there?
Me: It’s where I am from. I love that city.
Man: Ma’am, you need to move down south.
Agreed.
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If I am ever too busy to hold the door for the person behind me, I am too busy.
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I have found it is very difficult to grit one’s teeth while singing.
“He has not promised to gratify all the appetites of the body and the humours of...”
– Matthew Henry
True and challenging.
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Every so often I notice a gnawing sense if entitlement gripping my heart. Like on Saturday morning when the vast majority of people are catching up on their errands and I find myself racing off to yet another day of work, trying to finish three loads of laundry befoere I leave. But today I realized: I am only entitled to the life God gave me. And I am responsible to live it well — Saturday...
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I think one of the things God is trying to grow in me is an appropriate response to criticism. When someone points out what I am doing wrong, I ought to apologize for what I truly did, turn those failures over to God, and let go of the rest. What I’m finding is how much easier it is to do those things from a place of unconditional love. I am blessed to have such love from both God and my...
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I started getting stressed and exhausted thinking how I was going to survive Continuity Medicine rotation the month before the wedding, and then I realized: He hasn’t given me strength for those days yet. I can’t think about mustering the strength for all of those days, because He is teaching me to rely on Him for each day’s bread.
“I have a hard time imagining a weak woman because I don’t know any, because...”
– Douglas from goodwomenproject (via mwali)
This is a nice sentiment, though I do think there are many weak willed women. They are even mentioned in Scripture.
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Stumbling around my dark apartment, I was struck by the realization that so much of the stuff we have is useless when it isn’t connected to a power source. Which made me wonder:
1. How did our society become so lame?
and
2. How often does being spiritually “unplugged” limit our effectiveness?
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His timing is perfect. I am sitting here, with the door to the apartment staircase propped open, eating generic Lucky Charms (the only food I could find in the dark that didn’t require heat and would require me to let the precious cool air out of the refrigerator). The power went out the day after I finished addressing invitations and the day before I need to get some extra sleep. He is...
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This is a precious time. I don’t know that I’ve ever needed Him so much. Or maybe, I never knew that I always needed Him so much.
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Tears of wonder streamed down my face as I thought of how good our God is. How beautiful. How gracious. How patient. So worthy of praise. I was overwhelmed, at once, by the beauty of it all.
“This is the life I want to give you, Elizabeth. A life of worship.”
And what an incredible life it is. How had I spent so many years living any other way?
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I sat in my car before clinic, singing praise loudly. Until the doubts crept in. How would I finish everything I needed to finish this afternoon? I am so behind. I felt the old, familiar performance panic rising up within me. And then a firm but gentle reprimand from God:
“Elizabeth. Do not give those things power in your life. Give me power.”
For the first time today, I realized...
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I realized this morning that when I worry about something, I am giving it prime space in my mind. This is space that could be far better utilized by the Holy. How effective could God be in my life and the lives of others if I turned this focus over to Him?
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http://www.huffingtonpost.com/mobileweb/2012/01/15/... →
Preventive food lessons from around the world.
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It often surprises me how quickly Americans vascilate between feeling entitled to have a baby whenever and however they choose, and feeling entitled not to have a baby whenever and however they choose. And these are our society’s adults.
