Sunny&80Incorruptible Love.
Posted on November 2, 2019
“Grace be with all those who love our Lord Jesus Christ with incorruptible love.” Ephesians 6:24 NAS
Life as a tween mom is akin to an Uber driver. Our vehicle is equipped with all of the snacks, chargers and melt-downs of home. But “the middle” is off limits.
“The Middle,” where all of the important things crucial to driving and my full control of the volume lies. In the tween-age tradition of pushing boundaries, occasionally a cute little elbow will drift into the forbidden zone and bump the shifter into neutral.
My daughters and I daily lose it on each other, take jokes too far, have an absence of patience, and a slew of other things that can probably be explained by fluctuating seasons of life on all sides. But drifting into “the middle” of the vehicle ignites a completely irrational level of panic and anger in me.
I’m grieved when I lose my temper or harshly criticize my children. Though I cannot love them perfectly, I can see glimpses of how it’s supposed to be.
Shame is strong. It’s intent is to accuse. Squash it, and all of it’s distorted thoughts attempting to convince us we’re undeserving, unfixable, and dysfunctional. Because Jesus says …so what if you are?
True love is incorruptible.
“Incorruptible love.” A powerful statement no human being is capable of living up to apart from Christ. We are all, by nature, corrupted.
My flip out over “the middle” being breached ignites a firestorm, but it always ends in laughter. The reactions are too ridiculous not to re-enact.
Grace is the key to unlocking incorruptible love. It will flow throughout our lives and look foreign to many. Grace doesn’t play favorites. Jesus came to save us all from the power of sin. Incorruptible love, this side of heaven, is extending grace to ourselves and others.
As a mother, there are many days that end to the tune of my apologies. For losing my temper, criticizing, or spending too much time gazing into my phone instead of connecting with my kids. The routine of apologizing creates an atmosphere of grace.
There’s nothing Jesus holds over our heads and says …oh, not that one. You’ll pay for that one. I can’t forgive you for that one. We can and should grow and get better. But Grace should be our number one priority.
“Always forgiven,” I assure my girls, “and never loved less.”
That’s how we’re loved. By Love, incorruptible.
The Cast Call (#jammed daily devo, day 357)
Posted on December 23, 2018
December #jammed: Grace, gifted.
Day 357: Callbacks.
The story of Christ’s birth tells of ordinary people who loved God, and ended up together 
on what would be the night that changed the face of the earth forever. Humanity …we long for benchmarks, standards, and qualifications. If we were in charge, the people that were picked to be Jesus’ earthly parents would not have been Mary and Joseph. They were ordinary. And Jesus would not have been born in a manger. That’s too simple …and not sanitary.
Humanity would have had Jesus born unto royalty and into a castle …not in a stable under the stars.
Tryouts. Auditions. We’re constantly having to live up to each others’ standards.
Jesus wasn’t worried about any of them. His appearance was common. His birth was common. His parents were common. Yet, the angels still lit the sky on the night He was born.
Someone once told me that no one else can tell my story. Human life is like that. It’s so intricate and unique, one to the next, that no one story is ever duplicated fully. If that’s not a miracle in and of itself …
We like to compare, thinking it will give us a certain amount of stability to know where we stand. But God knows us all. Loves us all. Jesus knew us all before we were born. Perhaps the greatest thing we can learn from Jesus’ arrival on earth is that greatness isn’t packaged the way we think it has to be. That a humble and quiet life is heard at the same volume as the loud and flashy ones.
Father, Praise You for Christ’s humble birth, and thank You for loving every person the same on this earth. Forgive us for seeking favoritism and elevation among others, and bless our hearts to receive and give Your authentic love. In Jesus ‘ Name, Amen.
Get the conversation started by commenting below, and let’s encourage one another as we face life in 2017 armed with grace!
#greatgrace17
Happy Lane-Walking,
Megs
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The Dinner Scoops (#jammed daily devo, day 326)
Posted on November 22, 2018
November #jammed: Gracious.
Day 326: Thankful for ice cream.
“Listen to me, Jacob,
Israel, whom I have called:
I am he;
I am the first and I am the last.” Isaiah 48:12
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” my husband asked my two daughters as the lake 
water dripped into their eyes.
“ICE CREAM FOR DINNER?!?!” they screeched.
A vacation time tradition, that’s just what we did. It’s not the healthiest habit in the world, but it’s seriously fun. Ice cream has it’s own budget when we go on vacation.
Today’s verse reminds us that we are called. We are God’s chosen ones. He is the Creator of all and has chosen us. Whether we eat ice cream for dinner on vacation is irrelevant in God’s eyes. But our joy is. Our joy matters to God. And if that means getting a double scoop in place of a healthy meal after a day at the beach, that’s OK.
This life tends to twist us up into too much worry over what we put into our bodies and are supposed to look like. It’s so important to take care of ourselves, but it’s also important to take care of our souls. The best way to do that, sometimes, is to let go of the twisting and turning and let Him bless us. With ice cream for dinner. With the sweet smiles of a couple of sandy kids that will remember that day full of smiles and sweets forever.
And through it, see a glimpse of our Father’s love.
Father, Praise You for ice cream, and thank You for loving us so immensely and so perfectly. Help us to remember to bask in the joy of Your love. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Get the conversation started by commenting below, and let’s encourage one another as we face life in 2017 armed with grace!
#greatgrace17
Happy Measuring,
Megs
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The Reading Glasses (#jammed daily devo, day 133)
Posted on May 13, 2018
May #jammed: Growing Grace.
Day 133:Unneeded.
“Do not withhold discipline from children.” Proverbs 23:13 (VOICE)
They are still a permanent part of my pen holder. During a season riddled with health 
issues, I obtained a set of reading glasses to correct odd headaches. Looking at a screen through different lenses didn’t cure me like it had many others. The only solution that proved to work was stepping away from the screen. But I had work to do!
God gives us the perfect amount of time to live …each day. The discipline to listen to God as He guides us through life is essential in finding what works.
Today’s verse reminds us how important it is to discipline our children, and that corporal punishment is OK. This is something society is definitely not OK with. As with anything in life, we should prayerfully consider all things …including parenting. There isn’t one blanketed way that works for each child. Even children from the same household need to be seen differently when disciplinary measures are considered.
Look at each child through a different pair of glasses, as each one is unique. The heart of parental discipline is learned by taking the time and effort to know the children God has entrusted us with. He made our children. It would behove us to ask Him what is best on their account.
Sometimes, we just need to take a break from the screen. Walk away, no matter how pressing we think the issue is or how offensive their behavior was. Until God gives us a clear understanding on how to handle our children, and other disputes in life, it’s best to remain calm and silent in prayer.
“Do not withhold discipline from children,
since corporal punishment will not kill them.
In fact, it may be that kind of punishment
that will save them from an early grave.” Proverbs 23:13-14
I have discovered that a quick flick to the forehead zips my kids lips faster than any other method of silencing them. One flick. Nice and hard. To the middle of their foreheads. Shocked faces. Instant quiet. Pray hard into finding what works.
Ask Jesus for leading, and then listen to it. Look through His lenses for your life. He died for our misbehavior. Try to extend that grace in return.
Father, Praise You for this verse, and thank You for our children. They challenge and grow us like none other! We confess our tempers and impatience regarding them, and ask for Your hand in guidance to discipline them in a way that leads them to Your feet. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
Get the conversation started by commenting below, and let’s encourage one another as we face life in 2017 armed with grace!
#greatgrace17
Happy Flicking,
Megs
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The Squid Hat (#jammed daily devo, day 40)
Posted on February 9, 2018
February #jammed: Dunked in Grace
Day 40: Grace is more predictable than we think.
Squeezed through rows of squishy plastic poop balls with eyes, rubbery octopus tentacle
finger puppets, shell necklaces of every unnatural color imaginable, and high powered fluorescents exposing the junk my kids love to collect, my eyes landed on the bottom shelf of hats.
“Look at these, girls!” I beckoned.
We rolled over laughing as one daughter suddenly appeared to have her head bitten off by a shark and the other turned into a squid with legs. It’s been my favorite thing to do since I can remember, laughing over the possibility of purchasing such nonsensical creations attached to the notion of , “who would buy this?”
Most of the time, I do. Marketers unite. Unearthing these little treasures in our house months later always ushers in the return of laughter and makes an unworthy purchase worth it all over again. This day would be no different.
Today’s verses bind us together. “One” is written seven times in these two verses. Seven, in the Bible, is the number of perfection. I love how the VOICE commentary adds to the tenderness of Paul’s plight in this text: “Paul encourages them to do whatever it takes to hold onto the unity that binds people together in peace.”
One …body, Spirit, hope, Lord, faith, baptism …
All of these things have nothing to do with what our hands are capable of creating.
“…one God and Father is over all and through all and in all.”
Jesus lives. Jesus unifies. A heart home to Him holds the key to unity. A walk behind the trail of His earthly sandals leads us to the peace God longs for all of us to reach.
“..that unity is founded on God’s oneness and work in the world.” (VOICE)
Whether you rock a squid hat or just laugh at the girl who does, we all have something uniquely special that unites us in His name.
Father, Praise You for the unique way You created all of us. Thank You for grace, and the way it washes over us.. Forgive us for mocking those whom You created and help us to live in unity. Bless us with peaceful, Christ-like hearts. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
What’s the wackiest souvenir you’ve ever brought back from vacation? Get the conversation started by commenting below, and let’s encourage one another as we face life in 2017 armed with grace!
#greatgrace17
Happy Souvenir-ing,
Megs
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