SAY WHAT YOU NEED TO SAY

Words are potent, this much is true, and has been true since the beginning of time. So how often do we take the time to think about the things we say and the way in which they are said? I'm not only talking about making sure that we don't say negative things to/about others (although that's not a bad thing to keep in check), but what about putting thought into the very words and statements that we speak towards people so that what we say is intentional as opposed to a relative knee-jerk response to the conversation. I, for one, feel that when I speak less I am actually saying more, as opposed to when I am speaking more but really saying less; in other words, I think that when I take the time to thoughtfully construct what I'm going to say it oftens leads to being more succinct but packing a greater punch than if I were to rattle off what came to mind first. . .and kept rattling until I thought that I finally made my point. Communication as a whole is definitely tricky, but at the same time, it is such an elemental aspect of life that it is worth the extra time and effort to try and improve on it. One Bible verse which is relevant to words and communication that has always stuck out to me is Ephesians 4:29, stating "Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." While most people are usually familiar with the first part of that verse (which is in fact important), it is the second part that set off a flare in my mind: "but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen." How profound is that?! Not only should my words be kind, and/or uplifting, but they should be in the best interest of that specific person. It's so easy to give someone a stock response or to tell them something based off of your own opinion, I know that I'm guilty of those instances many times over, but what about taking that person, in all of their uniqueness, into consideration and saying words to them that are actually going to be helpful and beneficial due to taking the time to think through what it is that they really need to hear, to say what you really need to say. Now that would be amazing.

FAITH UNCHALLENGED IS STIFLED FAITH

I apologize for not going into detail about all that is going on in my life at the moment, or truthfully, all that is not going on in my life right now, but I figured that it's actually for your benefit that I don't (you're welcome, in advance). However, due to the constant ups and downs that I have been experiencing in the past few months (and especially having them come to a head within the last week or so), I did feel compelled to give at least a little depiction of my current state of mind. I'm sure many of you have experienced this to some degree as well, so as much as my intent here is to give insight into where I'm at right now, it is also my hope to give encouragement for those of you who have been, are currently, or will be someday, in a place similar to where I'm finding myself these days. No, these following words are not my own, but I believe that they give better voice to my own thoughts and feelings at present than I myself would be able to, as well as providing me with a better perspective of where I'm at and where that might lead to.

"Faith untried may be true faith, but it is sure to be little faith, and it is likely to remain dwarfish so long as it is without trials. Faith never prospers so well as when all things are against her: tempests are her trainers, and lightnings are her illuminators. When a calm reigns on the sea, spread the sails as you will, the ship moves not to its harbour; for on a slumbering ocean the keel sleeps too. Let the winds rush howling forth, and let the waters lift up themselves, then, though the vessel may rock, and her deck may be washed with waves, and her mast may creak under the pressure of the full and swelling sail, it is then that she makes headway towards her desired haven. No flowers were so lovely a blue as those which grow at the foot of the frozen glacier;

no stars gleam so brightly as those which glisten in the polar sky;

no water tastes so sweet as that which springs amid the desert sand;

and no faith is so precious as that which lives and triumphs in adversity;

Tried faith brings experience. You could not have believed your own weakness had you not been compelled to pass through the rivers; and you would never have known God's strength had you not been supported amid the water-floods. Faith increases in solidity, assurance, and intensity, the more it is exercised with tribulation. Faith is precious, and its trial is precious too."

"Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine. When you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze. For I am the Lord, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior." ~ Isaiah 43:1-2

GOODBYE 2007, HELLO 2008

I wrote this last spring as my final year of undergrad. was drawing to a close, seeing as this year as a whole is going to come to an end in a few short hours, I thought that it was more than fitting to share these musings since they're even more pertinent at this time of year:

Each day a gift,
Each moment a blessing,
Where to go from here,
What to do with them,
So much can be done and seen,
What will have happened between now and next year,
Between then and the years to come,
Lives to be written,
Memories to be made,
What stories will be able to be told this time next year,
What opportunities will be presented,
What chances taken,
Excitement lies in the unknown that will be made known,
What a gift,
What a blessing,
That which lies ahead, in the year to come, and in the years to come.

Happy New Year everyone! May it be filled with wonder, growth, love, risks, numerous experiences, and a plethora of memories! Here we come 2008.

JUST SOMETHING FUN

I was taking a break from job-hunting and came across this nice little breather of an activity. What you do is type your answer to each question into the image search of an internet search engine and then pick one image from the first page of results (although, I elaborated a bit on some of the answers on mine, I couldn't help myself). Enjoy!

1. Age you will be at your next birthday
23

2. Place you'd like to travel to

anywhere and everywhere

3. Favorite place

by water and mountains

home sweet home

4. Favorite objects

photographsbooks
babies
(they're probably not usually classified as 'objects' but they are in this case)

5. Favorite food
chicken penne
crepe aux fraises
(crepe with strawberries)
6. Favorite colors
pink brown green

7. Nickname(s)
Megs

Meg
Jagan
8. Place you were born
Spokane, Washington

TWO FOR ONE

I think that it would be absolutely splendid if the Christmas-holiday season could last all year long. From the Christmas music, to all the festive activities. From the way that people band together at this time of year, to the joy that comes from the core of this holiday: the birth of Christ. To me, there is an indescribable type of feeling that exists during Christmastime. It is a feeling so divine, and cherished, and I would love nothing more than if it could survive beyond December 25th. . .much beyond December 25th at that (and yes, I will admit that I am one of those people who plays Christmas music intermittently throughout the year, I'm not ashamed). For the time being though, I suppose that I'll just stick to drinking it all in while it makes its annual visit. The festivities that I had the chance to partake in yesterday definitely helped in my efforts to 'drink it in' this year. After about a ten year hiatus, I found myself in the audience of a Nutcracker performance again and enjoyed the opportunity to view it with fresh eyes (due to my not having seen it recently as well as sharing in my niece's first experience of attending a performance). Aside from that stroll down memory lane, my Christmas joy was heightened even more by getting to spend some time in downtown Seattle as well. For those of you who don't know, downtown Seattle at Christmastime is a magical place. With Christmas lights and decorations on the buildings and lampposts, horse-drawn carriages, the over-sized star on Macy's, the carousel that only comes out this time of year, the immense amount of Christmas-shoppers that pop up everywhere, and of course, good 'ol Santa Claus, among other things, it becomes a surefire place to experience some of the best things of this season. My mom, sister, niece, and I continued our Christmas-y day by making our way from the Nutcracker performance to downtown Seattle in order to take in the annual gingerbread house contest that is put on, in which architecture firms create some exquisite, massive structures. Although they differ a bit from the norm of gingerbread houses, it really is excusable because they're great pieces of art. From there we headed to Pacific Place to catch the 'snow'-fall that takes place in the evening. Evidently I'm not the only one who loves snow because droves of people were there. . .and it's not even real snow! The festive day was topped off with a delicious dinner, which, when shared with family, is wonderful even when it's not Christmastime. All in all, it was a joyous day that helped to solidify the reality that the Christmas-season is upon us, and I couldn't be happier. So, after all this, the moral of my story is that I am thoroughly enjoying this lovely time of the year and all that it has to offer and I hope that you are too. . . because it only lasts for so long you know.



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On a relatively unrelated side-note, there was one thing in particular last night that stuck with me outside of the 'Christmas joy' realm. The aforementioned dinner had taken place at a restaurant that just so happened to be right next to a quaint park/overlook on the north end of Pike Place Market, a hotbed for 'street people'. I've visited the park a time or two during the daytime and have seen it inhabited by a fair amount of such people, but last night, there was an even larger than usual number of folks who had made it their home for a night, or maybe just a pit-stop as they were passing by. Either way, from where I was sitting in the restaurant the street-level window opposite of me provided a straight-on shot of the park, giving me full access to these people as they went about doing their thing. There I sat, on one side of the window, seated in a warm building, dressed in nice clothes, eating a lavish meal in a nice restaurant with the company of my loved ones. There they were, on the other side of the window, out in the cold of the night, dressed in clothes that they possibly have been wearing for days,weeks,even months on end, who knows when the last time that they had had an actual meal had been, and for the most part, they seemed to keep to themselves except for a few who seemed to be finding some form of joy in hanging around other similar people. In my head I pictured the scene that I was in and it felt almost surreal. At one point, one of these 'street people' was no more than a few feet away from the window, and I was roughly ten feet from the window on my side. There we were, around thirteen feet apart from each other, separated by a sheet of glass, but in reality, we were more than just feet apart, we were worlds apart, not separated by something as penetrable as glass, but by something greater, something uglier. It was such a vivid image to me that even now I find it almost ironic when I think of it. How did I wind up lucky enough to be on the side of the window that I was on? What has kept me from being on the other side of that window? What has kept that man, and the others, from being on my side of the window? I can't help but think of that experience last night as a wake-up call, not only for me, but for all of us. There is so much to be grateful for in each of our lives, particular blessings that have gotten us to where we are, whether or not we deserve to be there. And in much the same way that when things are tough for us (which can be often as well) we appreciate the help and care of others, it is important to offer help and care to other people who need it as well, no matter what position of life they're in, whether above us, below us, or even among us. For who's to say that we've necessarily had a direct hand in getting ourselves to what side of the window that we're on, or if that's even where we, or anyone else, will remain for the entirety of our lives? Even though we often are separated by windows, walls, or intangible things, we're also inextricably interconnected and not all that different at the core of things. I just wish that that concept would already be so etched into my mind that it wouldn't take such a drastic image for me to be reminded of it.

PURE AS SNOW

It's always a great day when snow is involved. Today was the first snowfall of the year around here (possibly the only one, we'll see), it wasn't much, but to me it was more than enough. I've always loved snow. Some of my most cherished memories consist of waking up on a winter's morning to find a yard that was completely bare the night before entirely covered in pure, white snow. Just as I bubbled over with childlike joy at such a sight way back then, it still holds true today, maybe even more so now. I think that that is one reason why I love snow so much, it has the power to bring out the kid in one again, to fill one with that same sense of euphoria that they experienced in their youth. Growing older I think that we're all aware of how we lose our childhood innocence, in thought and actions and everything in between, but for some reason, when the sky begins to fill with those white snowflakes we're taken back to a more simple time, when the world wasn't so faulty, stressful, or what have you, and we're able to find that peace and reverie once again. In much the same way, I can't help but look at the snow that falls upon the ground, covering the dirt and grime, and see such a vivid picture of God's own grace towards us. The snow, so pure and white, can cast such a thick blanket over all the filth that culminates on the ground that one would never even have the slightest idea of what lay underneath; not only that, but that same snow can take the darkest of days and illuminate it in white. By the grace of God, through His son Jesus, our own filth is not only covered, but washed away, and in doing so, our dreary lives become bright and full of hope. The hustle and bustle of selfish ambition, the pain of our own sins and those of others towards us, the imperfections, they're all stilled and covered in Jesus' blood, replacing our brandishing marks with the purity of Jesus, and granting us peace and joy. Whatever positive feelings that snowfall can bring about in a person, Jesus is capable of creating those feelings at least tenfold (and most definitely more). In such a day and age that we're in, I hope that not only will people find a peaceful escape in a wintery layer of snow, but I pray that they will see and know the grace, peace, and hope that God offers by way of Jesus.

SNOW

Pure and white, coming down,
Calm throughout,
Child-like fancies springing forth,
Simple pleasures,
Complexities leading to fascination,
Indescribably picturesque,
Stillness, peace, contentment, joy,
Gift from God, His beauty through nature,
Snow.

(I wrote this last year in the midst of watching a beautiful snowstorm envelope the bustling city, in those moments time seemed to slow down, not only for me, but for all the people around. . .I loved it)