Beautiful Life

     So much is happening in the world right now and I hardly know where to begin. Last night, a draft was released detailing the plans to overturn Roe v. Wade. This decision was only supposed to be made in late June and the release was probably done intentionally. I am being cautiously optimistic because, if this decision is cemented, up to 23 states will make abortion illegal. Unfortunately, there's a huge uproar right now with people on both sides being horrible. I've been praying all day for the safety of the Justices and for peace on all sides. I have no idea how this is going to turn out. I know that there are a lot of people who are furious right now and a lot of people who are scared too. As much as I agree with the decision to overturn the bill and for abortion to be made illegal, I do want to be compassionate for the women who are facing a decision like this. I may not agree with it but I can imagine how terrifying it must be to be faced with the reality of a baby you don't feel ready for. My heart breaks more for the unborn, granted, but more than anything, I pray that there is an overabundance of kindness in this situation. 

    I really want to get back to talking about holiness but I've fallen in love with a different book and until I am finished with it, I don't think I can go back to Jackie Hill Perry's, Holier Than Thou. Andrew Peterson has been one of my favorite writers for years because of his fantasy series, The Wingfeather Saga. I have sobbed and laughed over that series and I guarantee that I will read it again before the year is out. Adorning the Dark is one of his nonfiction books that I've owned for a couple months and been eyeing out for far longer. In last week's post, I quoted it and the more I read, the more I'm in love. There are some authors that I'm excited to read what's next and to own all of their books. Andrew Peterson is someone I'd like to sit down with a cup of tea and have a conversation with. His outlook on faith and life and beauty and creativity is so lovely. Even if you don't consider yourself a creative, I highly recommend getting a copy of Adorning the Dark.

    If you've been on my blog for any length of time, you'll know that I have an innate desire to make the most out of life. There's a YouTuber I watch and what she talks about the most is how to romanticize your life and be the main character in your story. While this gets tricky as a Christian, I watch those videos and feel so inspired to create and do and make my life as light and beautiful as I can. Andrew Peterson speaks to this desire. As a fellow reader, as someone who devoured fantasy novels, I relate to the desire to be whisked away on a fantastic adventure and was rather disappointed never to enter Narnia through my closet. We all have a desire to belong. We all have a homesickness about us that we don't always understand or feel eloquent enough to explain. We crave beauty and light and we want to see that in our lives, which can be hard in the world we live in. That is the life I want to create. I want light to permeate every aspect of my life. I want it to shine in how I conduct myself, the words that I write, in my interactions with people.

    I don't quite know why but it seems that I and everyone I meet are self conscious. We feel pressured by impressions and our own vanity. We don't want to be foolish or wrong and while I don't think those reasons are inherently bad, I don't think those should be the things that guide us. Granted, don't be stupid. Don't be rude. What I'm saying is, if you're passionate about something, go after it. Create light and beauty. Celebrate the places that are sacred because you're sacred too. You've been designed with beauty and creativity and light. Walk with peace, be kind, show love. Make the home you're homesick for. Set it apart and make it holy. Don't be afraid to be passionate and pursue the things you love, to live a life worth living. I don't know how long we'll be on this earth but I hope to make it worthy of the life that was given so that I could have this opportunity. 

    I've been re-watching one of my favorite tv shows and one of the lines from the first episode is, "we must do our best with what the Lord has given us." That's the choice we have each day when we wake up. It's not a choice I often feel qualified to make daily. I get tired and emotional, hormonal, there are circumstances and situations beyond my control. But God has never stopped being good. In fact, He hasn't changed at all. He promises to be the same, yesterday, today, and forevermore. Our calling is to proclaim God's dominion in every corner of this world and every corner of our hearts. We cannot truly desecrate what God has made sacred. Our job is to make that sacredness and His holiness known, to bring glory to the source of life and light and beauty. 

    Be reckless and faithful enough to to dedicate to God what is in our reach. Make your little corner of the world as bright as you can, adorn the dark. I've been thinking a lot about my life and my future because everything's changing for me. My life will be completely different in a matter of months and it's scary. I feel like I've achieved so little. That got me thinking; maybe I don't have to do a lot. I don't have to be the person who changes the world but I want to be the person who makes a difference in the life of someone who could. Behind almost every great individual this world has ever known has been someone who was kind and loving and encouraging. That's what we're called to do. We need to love and I hope that one day I can get close to loving the way Jesus does. It's hard. It requires you to lay aside your offenses and differences and preferences. Light is rarely as comfortable as darkness, especially because it can be turned into a spotlight. By no means does that subtract our need for light. I am no expert on facing my fears. I need courage in every area of my life but I hope that I am getting brighter every day, even if it's little by little. I hope that I'm kinder and softer and better at love because that's who God is and I believe this world needs Him. 

    Not everything can be romanticized. As I said, this world needs the hope and light found in Jesus. However, there is a lot to be said about making our own lives beautiful, so long as God is the center and foundation. My life is for His glory alone and I hope that He makes something beautiful out of it and that I can make it beautiful too. 

Yours truly,

Rey