[definedbyyou]

The first and most basic thing we can and must do is to keep God before our minds... This is the fundamental secret of caring for our souls. Our part in thus practicing the presence of God is to direct and redirect our minds constantly to Him. In the early time of our 'practicing' we may well be challenged by our burdensome habits of dwelling on things less than God. But these are habits—not the law of gravity—and can be broken. A new, grace-filled habit will replace the former ones as we take intentional steps toward keeping God before us. Soon our minds will return to God as the needle of a compass constantly returns to the north. If God is the great longing of our souls, He will become the pole star of our inward beings.

Dallas Willard

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finish well. 

your last impression leaves a lasting impression.

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"other than as a memory, the past was no longer available to him. he had only one direction —forward." [e.mcmanus] (at Old San Juan)

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this day was magical.

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in case you missed it the first time :)

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this day was magical.

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a better way.

never in my lifetime have i experienced an election where the two candidates for presidency are so strongly disliked by so many. one is a racist, misogynistic, sociopath who has a history of lies and abuse. the other is a crook who completely refuses to be held accountable, and has a history of lies and negligence that have put our country in grave danger time and time again.

so the opinions of most fall into choosing “the lesser of two evils,” because after all, a vote for a third party candidate is a wasted vote right? except that’s the thing, it’s not.

something i didn’t understand well enough until this year, is that a candidate needs 270 electoral votes to win. if no candidate hits the magic number of 270 electoral votes, the decision then falls into the hands of the house of representatives.

because of this, a vote for a third party candidate is not a wasted vote. a third party candidate does not need to get enough votes to win. as a matter of fact, they wouldn’t have to even get close. they simply need to take enough votes away from the “two evils” to prevent either one of them from reaching 270 electoral votes.

i would urge those of you who cannot stand to think of the future of our country with either of the main two candidates as our leader, but feel forced to choose from the lesser of two evils simply to prevent the greater of two evils from winning, to reconsider.

the only way that is our only option, is if everyone who truly hates the thought of either candidate running our country, refuse to believe there is another way. because there is another way, a better way, and it’s up to you whether or not the better way will become our reality.

i, for one, will not choose evil at all.

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in the past 48 hours, i have watched two videos of black men being killed by cops. my heart broke as i watched these atrocious acts caught on video. i was filled with both deep sorrow, and deep anger, as i saw two separate men begin to bleed out from bullet holes caused by men whose role is supposed to be to serve and protect. i choked back tears as i watched the 15 year old son of alton sterling break down as the realty of the grave injustice of what happened to his father hit him like a ton of bricks. my eyes could not hold back the tears as listened to the girlfriend of philando castile cry out desperate prayers to God to save the life of her boyfriend whose life was slipping away before her eyes just moments earlier. and then again as her 4 year old daughter attempting to comfort her as she broke down saying, “it’s okay mommy, i’m here.”

we live in a world that is extremely broken. and in the middle of the brokenness there is a God who is extremely good. a God who is love. i feel overwhelmed, not knowing what i can do. but i know that as believers, we are called to love. and that’s a great place to start.

if you are a black man or woman and you are reading this, i want you to know that you matter. i’m sorry for what continues to happen to all of our brothers and sisters who share the same skin color as you. your voice matters. your heart matters. your lives matter. if there’s anything i can do to help, please let me know. if you need an ear to listen, i’d love to hear what’s on your heart. we’re family, and my heart breaks for you.

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here’s to a God who doesn’t get exhausted 

from the endless amount of times i’ve thought or said, 

“tomorrow i’ll change.”

“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases;    his mercies never come to an end;  they are new every morning;    great is Your faithfulness.”

[Lamentations 3:22-23]

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this weekend i proposed to my best friend in a bakery with a giant donut that said “will you marry me?”

it doesn’t get much sweeter than that.

special thank you to plaid poppy for the amazing photos!

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Scripture presents God as a father to trust and enjoy, not a boss to slave for and endure. This means sometimes He will overjoy us. And sometimes He will disappoint us. But He always does both as a good father who loves His children well and is not afraid to fight for them.

Sammy Rhodes - This Is Awkward (pg. 20)

[lomitch]

Attack anything that makes you feel unworthy, inadequate, hopeless, powerless and useless. That is the evidence of the enemy. All those things need to be attacked with joy, with peace, with love and grace, with mercy, with kindness and the goodness of God.

Graham Cooke (via lomitch)

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excellence is not about perfection of performance, but posture of the heart. it’s less about the outcome than the process.

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one sided.

i recently read the words, "love requires two people to daily make the choice to be devoted to each other." and that sounds great. but Love repeatedly chooses devotion despite the choice of the object of His affection. and for that i will be eternally grateful. because even on the days where i fail to choose Him, He still remains devoted to me.

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there's as much beauty in the unfolding as in the unfolded. enjoy the process.

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when you're obedient to the Lord,

the outcome doesn't matter.

because what is often seen as a failure in the eyes of others,

is a victory in the eyes of the Lord.

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i’m in the middle of a season that has lasted far longer than i would have hoped. not understanding why certain thing have happened the way they have, or why other things haven’t. in some ways it’s left me feeling a bit lost. but then i’m reminded of a past revelation:

a child can always ask his Father why he does what he does. but when the child understand the perfect love of the Father, he might still question the method, but never the motive.

and even when he doesn’t understand or agree with the method, he chooses, in faith, to trust. because he knows the motive is always love.

i may not understand the method, but i’m choosing to trust that Love is leading.