Mar 12, 2017 |
Frankly, On Faith: Do All Things
by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68
Frankly, On Faith.
So, just how busy are you?
Are you overwhelmed at times? In need of some “down” time? Is coffee more necessary than enjoyable? If your people had just three words to describe you, would “multi-tasker” be one of them?
Do you feel exhausted more often than not?
Yeah. I hear ya. Sometimes just breathing takes more effort than I want it to. This pesky life with its pesky chores at its pesky pace of lightning speed . . . Sometimes I just wanna scream.
You, too? Phew. Good. Thought I was alone for a minute.
Oh, not good that you’re going through it. Not even good that you understand. Because, really. Wouldn’t it be great if fewer people understood the chaos of a demand-it-now mentality? But still. I’m glad you’re in it with me.
So. Here we are. Holding on to the ropes as the sea churns a little more than it used to. Trying to keep our heads above the water more often than not.
And the storm comes and drops something else on us. Right? Another wave. Another hit. Another emergency.
It’s enough to make This Girl want to jump overboard.
But alas, I know all too well that even though the ride is rough, there’s better safety in the boat than out in the sea itself. So I stay. You stay. And we look at each other and say, “What are we even doing here?”
The high waves come and rock the boat, but then the seas calm, the sun comes out, and we’re happy to be warm and dry again.
And we can think clearly again.
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
~Mark 4:39, NIV
And it’s with a deep breath and clearer vision that we realize the Captain has been here all along. He’s the one who tethered us to the boat in the first place!
So we feel good about what we’ve overcome and we decide to take on more.
STOP. DOING. THAT.
Stop taking on more. Stop ignoring the peace He has gifted you. Stop being addicted to busyness.
Just be still.
In this moment, we can give ourselves permission to sit back and let Him navigate. All we have to do is row. All we have to do is let go our grip and let Him take over.
All we have to do is have faith that He will get us to our destination. And when the Son is out, it’s okay to relax and enjoy the view.
CLICK TO TWEET: Frankly, On Faith: Are You Addicted to Busyness?
With fair winds and following seas,
~Molly Jo
Frankly, On Faith: Are You Addicted to Busyness?
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
Dec 21, 2011
I just watched “The Nativity Story” on dvd. I’d borrowed it from my friend Julie nearly a year ago but never watched it until today. And I admit, I cried.
Just earlier today I realized there’s only five days til Christmas and I had yet to feel that Christmas feeling. That certain feeling of peace and joy that I get regardless of what’s going on in the world around me. That certain feeling that everything’s alright, even now. That certain, indescribable, feeling.
And I can finally say, while watching this movie, I found that feeling. It’s not about how many gifts we have or don’t have under the tree. It’s not about what foods we’ll eat this weekend. It’s not even about making it to Church on Christmas Eve with the family or visiting with friends through the week.
It’s just about… well, it’s about being still. And being at peace with whatever comes.
I adore this movie for how it portrays Mary and Joseph in their marriage. They’re in it together. He didn’t just hang on the sidelines while Mary and God did all the work. Joseph fought for her, protected her, cared for her. Accepted her completely. And gave his name to her baby.
Mary didn’t just follow him. She respected him. She got to know Joseph as a person, as her husband. She let him share in her pregnancy and didn’t shut him out. She needed him. She loved him.
Now, there are some Christmas stories that are so ingrained in my upbringing that even though I “know” them, sometimes to think about them takes me by surprise. And this movie did just that. I found myself realizing things I hadn’t considered before; things that made me stand more in awe of God and His power; and of Mary and Joseph, individually and together.
Mary could have, should have, been stoned to death for conceiving before her marriage ceremony. Joseph was willing to quietly walk away so that wouldn’t happen. After all, his reputation was on the line. Here he was, a Good Guy, and his betrothed is already pregnant! Mary didn’t have to return to Joseph. She could have stayed far away with her cousin Elizabeth. But that would have meant breaking her promises. And Mary was a Good Girl. So she returned.
After the Holy Spirit refreshed and instructed him, Joseph took Mary to be counted in the census at Bethlehem. And that’s when my thinking really started.
At the age of sixteen, this young woman is pulled from her family, from her mother and father. She is on a difficult trip with a man she hardly knows. And she’s pregnant. Who does she turn to? What does Joseph see in her? Did she cry herself to sleep out of fear and loneliness? Did she trust God completely and not worry at all? Or was it a little bit of both?
What went through Joseph’s mind? Did he know he’d be a good dad, because God Himself chose him for the part? Or was he worried? How did he comfort Mary, his wife yet a stranger, as she gave birth otherwise alone in a manger? Did he feel helpless and alone too?
At what point did Mary and Joseph stop being strangers in each others’ minds; and think of each other as husband-and-wife not in title, but in love?
When Jesus was born, how often did they cradle him and wish it could be different? That they could stop the world from invading their family, stop the evil that required the life of their son? And when the Lord’s Angel sent them to flee into Egypt, what did that do to their plans to return home to see Mary’s family again?
Did Mary ever wish it hadn’t been so, or did she always just say, “I am the Lord’s servant.”?
Here they are, parents to the Greatest Person Who Ever Lived, and they run in the dark, they flee into hiding. Their hearts are always burdened, always broken. Being the parents of the King is not always a joyous position.
But they did it.
No matter what.
They did it. They assumed their responsibilities. And they didn’t let God down.
I’m sure it wasn’t easy. It wasn’t fun.
But it was worth it.
It had to be.
They were parents of The King.
And Frankly, My Dear… that’s all she wrote!
Oct 3, 2011 |
by Molly Jo Realy @MollyJoRealy
I’m not terribly concerned with being “Politically Correct”. If something is wrong, it’s wrong.
People are entitled to their opinions, and there are more than one way to skin a cat (although, [a], why would you want to, and [b], whoever thought up that phrase?! I mean… seriously!!!!).
My way of making a bed or boiling an egg or handwriting a letter are different from yours. That doesn’t make it wrong. And I respect your ability to fold sheets and heat water. In fact, I may even learn a thing or two by paying attention.
I don’t force my lifestyle on anyone. But I also don’t let people tread on me, or get away with excuses. One of my top pet peeves (again with the animal reference! I see how this is going…!) is people who whine and don’t do anything. Another is people who say one thing and consistently do another.
I’m guilty of both actions. I know I am. But as a habit, I try not to be. As a habit, I try hard to set a good example for my family, be there for my friends, and keep my word. There are times when I’m flakey, irresponsible, negligent, and even rude and spiteful. I pray those times are few and far between.
I don’t know what’s gotten into me lately, but I found myself keeping quiet when it comes to my faith. Maybe I feel like I’m not a public speaker so I don’t have to scream it. Or I’m not a Pastor so I don’t have to preach it, and honestly, who would I preach it to? Maybe I’m afraid of being viewed as being a hypocrite. I’m afraid that if I share too much faith, the world won’t want me. And I do so want the world to want me, to treasure my words in any manner: poetry, blog, stories, screenwriting… heck, I’d be happy writing greeting cards the rest of my life as long as I could get paid enough to support my family and retire nicely, all due to my writing.
All of those are excuses. Reasons to run me into a silent wall, to feel inadequate. To stifle not only the creativity in me, but the Creator working through me. So here it is. At the risk of alienating people and losing “friends” and possibly ruining future options for worldly success…
I believe in God. I pray every day. I try to read my Bible, but I have never read the entire book and I am not good at memorizing most of it. I am a failure, but He is my success. I have made mistakes, I have done wrong, I have hurt people and been hurt through the consequences of my own actions. That doesn’t matter.
Because I also believe in Jesus Christ. I believe He once walked on earth in physical form. I believe He was born of Mary and Joseph. I believe He went into Heaven, and is preparing to unite Heaven and Earth when God’s time is right.
I believe His timing stinks by my clock but is spot on by His. I believe I am forgiven, and therefore am able to forgive others and must forgive myself, or else I pretend He is a liar and I am smarter. Neither of those options are true, or healthy.
I believe in this life I will continue to sin, continue to fail, continue to hurt and be hurt. I believe most of this will be unintentional because I believe in saying/doing/living in God’s love and showing that love to others.
I don’t believe in political correctness when it disagrees with the Goodness in the world. I believe Christ died to save everyone, but I believe not everyone will accept that, and that makes me sad.
I believe it’s my job, my calling, my purpose, to write about God. In anyway I can. To share Him and His grace and mercy and love and unconditional forgiveness and everlasting presence with anyone who will read my words and understand they come from Him through me, and not from me alone. I believe this can be done boldly and directly, but also subtly and indirectly.
I believe I won’t be fully happy if writing means not being faithful to Him. I believe that by being faithful to Him, He will open doors for my writing. I believe I need to not stifle glorifying Him, but I also believe that doesn’t mean I can’t write crime dramas because mine will have a redeeming quality. Not all endings are happy. Not all characters are main. Not all emotions are healthy.
But my God is.
And this is my Apology for keeping Him in a box this long.
It’s time to let Him out, let Him work, and let Him love in ways I can’t. It’s time to live the life I keep thinking about; and step out in faith instead of hiding back in fear. No more shadows of intimidation.
This is me. Loving, and being loved by, God.
He’s pretty awesome, isn’t He?
*** *** *** *** ***
“God is Offensive” [written March 4, 2009]
To those who don’t want to follow His lead, His commands,
and go their own way, in their own way.
To those who choose to not show love but be selfish and take it instead,
breaking hearts and hurting people in many different ways.
To those who don’t give to others but make others work for them
without any form of recognition or encouragement.
To those who live for today, without caring for their future
and give no thought to the future of their life, their family, their world.
To those who do as they please,
instead of doing what pleases Him.
God is offensive.
Except to me.
He is the wonderful fragrance of Eternal Life, and I drink Him in, endlessly.
He is the beauty in my picture, and I paint as He guides the brush.
He is the Word already spoken, unspoken. The Only Word that matters.
He is the everything that gives meaning to my nothingness.
And I love Him.
