Stop settling for the usual and don’t stop until you achieve the supernatural

The soles of your shoes slam into the pavement with each graceful stride. The sound of pebbles crunching under foot is more relaxing than your favorite song. The sun light breaks through the trees and their leaves to temporarily blind you with a beautiful light from above. Wind hits your face and rushes down your throat to your burning lungs. The pain that you now feel is your euphoria; it’s what keeps you going. It enables you to enjoy every next step you take. You know that if you run through it, the feelings that you will feel in the end will be far greater than the pain that you feel now. While thinking this your body is telling you differently. This pain that was once your worst nightmare is now the force behind what motivates you to get through to the end.

You hit a wall. Not a physical wall but a mental wall. You begin to think that you can’t make it to the end. “The distance is too far and I am too weak” are your thoughts. The peeking sunlight that was once blinding and beautiful now feels as if it’s focused through a magnifying glass aimed at you. The burning in your lungs now feels like a fire that cannot be contained. You don’t think you can take another step. You then have two choices. Do I quit and allow this wall to stop me or do I go through it? Can I make this run have a positive or a negative outcome? Will this mental wall that I have allowed to be put up destroy me or will it make me get the most out of my run?

You push through and break down all the mental barriers that were in your head and end the run with a sprint that takes over your body. Your body becomes numb but it still knows what to do, one foot in front of the other. While gasping for dear life and any air that is available, you feel a certain sense of accomplishment in what you just did and now other life barriers don’t seem to be there anymore. With your hands on your hips and your face straight up in the air you begin to inhale and exhale a little more slowly, regaining composure. You pushed your body to the limit and you can’t wait for the next run to see if you can push it even further.

Later that night you decide to relax.

The sweet aroma encircles your nostrils as you take a sip from your favorite cup of coffee. The lighting in the room is calming and relaxing, just right. The room is filled with the scent of snicker doodle cookies on top of fresh ground coffee beans. It’s cold outside but the fireplace is roaring and the sound of its crackling wood soothes your soul. The words before you in the book in which you read tear away at your heart stings and make your heart and soul burn larger than the fire that you sit beside. This book is like no other and you know this. It affects you like no other words put together can. The words of Christ fill your mind as you read this book. They encourage and convict you at the same time. In this setting that you are in, it is perfect for you. You are surrounded by the word of God as you get wrapped in its text and paragraphs. You have reached the high point in your spiritual walk at this point in time, on this very day, in this very room.

You leave this majestic place and go about your way, living life as you usually do. You walk the streets with a smile on your face because of the love that you feel in your heart from your savior.

Is this all that your walk is about? Have you hit a wall of spiritual high? Or do you strive for more? You know that there is more love out there and more grace and more forgiveness. But do you strive past your own personal preference and contentment? God is bigger than you and your spiritual highs. Why do you stop when you think that that is all you need? You could never have enough. Don’t take a break in the middle of your walk, when you come to that wall of spiritual high, keep going. You must keep reading and keep praying and get past that wall of contentment and see what God really has in store for you. Stop settling for the usual and don’t stop until you achieve the supernatural. Don’t allow contentment in your walk with Christ to become a barrier for what Christ really has in store for you. Live everyday as if you’re trying to top yesterday. Mountains and valleys are far more beautiful than a plateau.

Oatmeal

As I was eating me some oatmeal this morning I suddenly realized something. Oatmeal is the proof of a seed in my life. Let me explain now that I have figured this out.

I really like oatmeal. I fix my oatmeal with butter, sugar, brown sugar and lots of honey. I don’t really prefer it this way, it is just the way it was made for me as a child and I just keep doing it, even though I think I do prefer it just plain now days.

I have very fond memories of spending times with my ma me, who is my great grandmother. She was a great women. She passed away a couple of years ago from alzheimer’s and I still think about her from time to time. But the reason why I say this is because I would spend multiple nights there as a child with just my brother, ma me and I. Every morning she would fix us oatmeal. Not the instant kind, but the long time on the stove kind. The kind that made little boys like my brother and I go crazy in the mornings because of our hungry little bellies were not filled yet. She would fill the oatmeal with all the ingredients that I mentioned in the above.

Growing up in a house of alcoholics, ma me was my only source of Christ in my life. I would not have known about God really at all before the 7th grade if it wasn’t for this woman. We would sit down and eat our oatmeal at her kitchen table and read these little cards full of scripture that were there in the middle of the table. For some reason I would always read these. They would captivate my 8 year old mind. God was moving and I didn’t even know it. (That I Feel, is amazing). God’s scripture was already molding me without me even knowing him. So my first experience with scripture is while I am eating oatmeal. I guess thats why I love oatmeal so much.

Ma me had this huge Bible that was about 2 feet high by 1.5 feet wide when closed. She kept this thing in a glass case all protected. It was always open though. I would sit there and stare at it like it was some treasure of some sort. Which to my surprise it actually is a book of treasure.

Ma me made me feel loved. Everyone loved her and you could tell. I guess thats why I always liked going to her house. I still remember the house, I remember its’ smells, I still think of her every time I see a Wendys or a poodle. Wendys was next door to her house and she owned 2 poodles and they were both blind. You can only imagine what a 6 and 8 year old set of boys would do to such dogs.

This women planted a seed in my life that I had never even known about until this morning. God is amazing in this way. I thank every one of you that I know that has watered that seed to this day. You are showing me the love that ma me had shown me. Her love was pure and beautiful and I miss her. I will see her some day again and when I do I think I will owe her some oatmeal and a giant hug and thank you.

I love you ma me and I miss you dearly. Thank you for your love. I pray that I may do the same.

The Lego Testament

I found this to be amazing to say the least.

The Bible told in Legos