Friday, January 31, 2014

Five Minute Friday: Hero

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I get to hold his hand as he says grace over dinner every day...

I sit next to him at the table and watch his interactions with our monkeys and sometimes, he absolutely takes my breath away and I just stare at him with wonder and awe. He never notices. And he never thinks I notice. But I do.

I watch him bring one in for a hug, wipe away a tear, talk away a worry, teach a lesson, smooth a brow, tend a wound, touch a heart... He can leap quadratic equations in a single bound and still have enough energy to give driving lessons. His words can bring them up short and calm them right down. He loves fiercely, with a loud voice and a big heart.

His is no shining armor. Our oldest son would say that is a good thing. Shining armor hasn't been tested in battle. And his has been tested, is still being tested, seven times tested...

His shining armor was first broken in, purposefully and lovingly, by two amazing young women. There was still so much use left in that suit of armor that he made a choice- an overwhelmingly beautiful and courageous decision- to open his heart ever wider to five more tender and trusting souls who needed to be loved that well.

His is the heroic unsung lullaby of a dad who didn't have to be. 

Stop.

Every Friday, a new prompt & intentional 5 minute freewrite for bloggers.
Awesomeness? I think so! 
FiveMinuteFriday

Thursday, January 16, 2014

Five Minute Friday: Encouragement

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Most of the time, I need encouragement like I need air. I am desperate for affirmation. I need confirmation, divine or not, to let me know I am on the right path, making the right decisions, becoming the "right" version of myself...

And yet, I know better. In my heart, I understand more than I can explain that I live for an audience of one and His approval is the only one that matters. But sometimes, I am just so desperate for encouragement that I will take it from anywhere and won't seek His voice first. Because, I can't hear Him sometimes over the din of my everyday life. And I live in a world of instant gratification and I have a hard time being still. And as much as I consider myself a good listener, I still feel the need to listen to someone I can hear, instead of the One I can feel with all of my being.

I rarely have an issue giving encouragement and I am quite happy to be the one who does so. It is so much easier for me to pour into other people than ask for myself. When I receive it, I savor it, replay it, let it soak into my bones. When I don't, I become this hobbit of a person I hardly know, with a wanting I can hardly stand. 

The Word became flesh and dwelt among us and left His life story as an encouragement. What I desperately want is that as I consume His Word, that it be enough for me, so that the real life encouragements, when they come, will be a sweet enrichment for an already encouraged soul.

Stop.

Every Friday, a new prompt & intentional 5 minute freewrite for bloggers.
Awesomeness? I think so! 
FiveMinuteFriday