Tuesday, August 28, 2012

The Body

Hi, it's Elizabeth! It's been a loooong time since I posted, I know (and I'm SINCERELY sorry). Not that it's a really good excuse (because, with or without this, I am still a lazy procrastinator), but I've had a bit of an insane summer.

Part of that involves me sticking my hand through a glass door (long story), getting a few really bad cuts, and in the end eighteen stitches. Thankfully, it's healing well, and I appear to not even be suffering nerve damage--which is nothing short of a miracle.

So, even though it's healing, you must understand that it is not fully back to normal yet. Two of my fingertips (as that was where two of the cuts were) feel especially sore when pressed on, and my middle finger--which was cut at the very bottom of my finger) is extremely swelled, and do to that swelling feels a little funny.

I have a reason for explaining this all to you, I promise.

The other day, my youth group went to my camp, in which is a fifty foot tall rock wall climbing tower. They only had the hard part open. I had climbed it before, and though it was very hard it was achievable. I was to the point with my hand where climbing wouldn't really damage it at all, so I gave it a shot.

At about ten feet from the top, I couldn't do it anymore. I reached, trying desperately to finish what I had started. I had never backed down on that wall, not once. But because my right hand wasn't fully functioning, I couldn't do it. My hand felt like it was on fire, and I could barely move my middle finger. I tried for several minutes. Sometimes I even got pretty close, but I just couldn't do it.

Why?

Because I didn't have every piece of my body working together as it was designed to. There was a flaw; several pieces were not doing what they needed to do, making it impossible to accomplish what I wanted done.

Like my physical body, the body of Christ needs to all be in sync. Every piece needs to be working, and working together with other parts of the body. Yet even if one little part falters even a little, it stops the body from doing what Christ wanted it to do.

We are, of course, sinful creatures. Because of our sinful nature, we are destined to sin. There is no way around it.

But when the Church stands together, despite denominational differences, backgrounds, preferences, genders, it can do (only in and through God) some pretty incredible things.

Your thoughts?

"For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us." Romans 12:4-6


~Elizabeth

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Music for Forever

Hey guys!

I've decided to do something that has never before been done on this blog...

I am going to post a song!

I know, I know -- I actually do that a lot, but what can I do?  I'm addicted, inspired, challenged, changed, and uplifted by music.  When I'm sad, I listen to "How He Loves" (David Crowder Band), angry -- "It's Not Me It's You" (Skillet), happy -- "Faster and Louder" (Peter Furler).

And today I'm reminiscent...  maybe a little bit sad.  And so I wanna hear this song.  Maybe you do to?

   

-Aylin

Monday, August 13, 2012

Today is an AWESOME day

Today is the greatest holiday of the whole year.

Seriously.

Today is -- Left Handers Day!  (insert applause here)

I know, I know, Christmas is Christ's birthday and all -- and trust me, that is an awesome holiday.  But (and I'm sure Elizabeth will agree with me here) Left Hander's Day is simply MONUMENTAL.  If you aren't left handed, you probably won't understand.

The world is designed for right-handed people.  Stick-shift cars (of which I have to learn to drive, btw), gulf clubs and hockey sticks, mugs with pictures on them, and scissors -- they're all designed for right-handed people.  And we left-handed people are left to cope with awkward maneuvers because silverware are set in the wrong spot and guns just aren't made right (ummm, I mean left) for us.

Or, we could hope to go back in time and be born into extremely wealthy families who will buy us those nifty -- yet expensive -- lefty scissors and crossbows.

The good thing about lefties is that we are more versatile than right-handed people.  We often learn to shoot like a righty.  We throw a ball like them, too, just because it's easier for our teachers to teach us to properly pitch that way.

And driving stick shift?  I still haven't figured that one out.

So, please give a hand for Left Hander's Day, and recognize the struggles and trials of every day life for your left-handed brothers (or sisters) of the world.  Thank you.

-Aylin

Monday, August 6, 2012

Our Lover

You know those people who don't like some Christian music because, unless they know what group is singing the song, they can't tell if it's a song about God or a song about somebody's boyfriend?  In a way, I get their point.  Some songs it's difficult to tell the difference.

But, I kinda like that.

Why?  Well, I'll tell you.  Sometimes, I think we get so caught up in how God is our Father, our holy Judge, the Righteous One -- that we forget that He is also our Lover.  Not in a weird, creepy way, but in deep, true way.

The way I see it, almost everything we long for, hope for, wait for in a boyfriend/girlfriend/spouse is more totally fulfilled by our Bridegroom.  He is secure, understanding, forever, steady.  He won't desert you for anyone else.  He never stops thinking about you.  He would do anything for you to show you that He loves you. 

And He's not boring because He's perfect.  He's not entirely safe to be with.  He's sometimes wild, radical, and un-orthidox in the world's eyes.  Yet He will always take care of you.  His strong arms will always be there to hold you when the journey is tough.  In the words of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe - "He is not a tame lion, but he is good."

So, I sometimes like music that almost sounds like a love song because it reminds me that -- oh, yeah, God is the greatest, most complete and perfect Lover I'll ever have.



I love the chorus to this song!

-Aylin

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Today

Today is...

- My mother's birthday
- The county fair
- The beginning of Camp NaNoWriMo (I have only written about 100 words today [otherwise known as -- Definately Not Enough])
- A day in which I am very tired and my feet hurt from walking all day at the county fair
- When I am going to ever-so-lamely post a song for you all who happen to unfortunately glance at this post ;)



-Aylin