I recently gained this insight from the African Dwarf Frog: all of life is a balancing act. These tiny little amphibians stay mainly in the water, and they live their lives always trying to find balance. Amazingly, these frogs can balance on anything: rocks, plants, walls all while using only one toe. It is quite entertaining to watch, especially when they cannot seem to find a good spot to land so they dart around from place to place.

As I watch them frolic about, the life application wincingly hits: I see a lot of that in myself. I constantly find myself balancing on school, church responsibilities, work, entertainment, even money. And, just like the frogs, after a while, I loose my balance and have to find another place to land. Am I like the tree frog, destined to go from place to place looking for perfect balance? Nope, because even the tree frog has a place where it finds lasting balance: on the backs of its friends. Although it is true that the tree frog bounces from place to place, when two or more need a rest, they simply rest on each other, like a chain effect. I found solace in this, becasue I too, need to seek out others to find good footing and rest. It remeinds me of 1 Peter which says over and over " Love one another deeply, from the heart" that's how I feel community should be, a continual excange of deep love. And, even though I bounce around, it is when I bring my balancing act in harmony with my community that I find a secure place to stand.

Few things are more annoying than pouring a heaping bowl of delicious cereal only to find the milk jug empty. Legitimately, since I do not have a roommate, and the responsibility of making sure there is milk in the refrigerator  falls completely on me, I have no right to be peeved.

However, the empty milk carton encouraged a thought to start rolling around in my head. How frequently in life does a prime opportunity go to waste because of emptiness?  Far too often, I find that my life shifts itself into neutral, and that I try to exist on personal ingenuity and caffeine fumes. What a sad declaration on my part! It is so easy to slip into a mindset focused solely on putting forth the bare minimum of effort in order to spend several hours empty and mindless.  Essentially, the word to describe this mentality comes to mind with bracing reality: lazy.

 Lazy? I'm lazy? Harsh, but sometimes true.  And, the real kicker is that my laziness does not come from anywhere else besides my own emptiness.

So, if laziness comes from emptiness, who has the responsibility of filling?Just like the milk carton, the responsibility of filling up falls on me. Luckily, I know what makes me full. Reading scripture and communication with God puts my life into rather harsh perspective, allowing me to see the big picture, and understand I answer to someone other than myself. This in turn gives me a full heart and mind so that I can go about my daily tasks with joy and determination... even if I'm still a little peeved at myself for forgetting about the milk.

Life has moments when words seem to have lost all meaning. This is not a melodramatic complaint written to the sound of oh so sad emo music; this is about the God-moments in life that surprise. Moments when the soul lifts up an indescribable feeling of praise to a holy and loving God

The past few days have been tinged ever so slightly with the feeling of insecurity and doubt, the gnawing feeling best efforts are not enough. It is as if the soul projects the sound of depressingly annoying flute music that is meant to make people cry during sad Irish songs.  Nevertheless, life can only go so far in that direction before God shows up. Truthfully, the common practice of God is to show up in small ways, in situations or moments that only last for a short while but that change the whole tenor of the day. And it is in those pockets of grace that peace, rest, and refreshment flow back into daily life.

But God does not limit his expression in these whispers of love. He is a God who, in the times when our backs are turned to his romantic nature, makes every effort to show His love for us with a grand gesture. It is a moment when life seems to fall away and the Father shows his beautiful and passionate nature. The One who speaks often in a still small voice does not continue to whisper forever. God loves to pursue us with grand, sweeping gestures.

Some may question the holy intimacy I am describing, but there can be only on reply to their doubts: Snow came to my little hamlet of the world today. Big, fat flakes fell from the sky. They tickled my nose, caught in my hair, melted on my tongue. I knew, in a big romantic gesture kind of way, that God chose to woo me this morning. He knows I think nothing on this earth can be more romantic than snow. So I put my tinges of worry, and doubt away. and my soul cut off the flute music and began to play the most beautiful song. 

And for a time, words lost their meaning.