Lust for Life

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There’s this beautiful teaching in Judaism that words create worlds. The creative force inherent in our words, written and spoken, has the potential to bring to life what wasn’t there before.

Personally, I find this teaching most applicable in books. I love reading and sifting through someone’s words put together to teach, inspire, and instruct. I get lost in words.

We take in words everyday, but every once in a while, you come across a set of words that stick with you, that change you, that inspire you. Recently, for me, this was reading the book Lust for Life.

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Change Is Good For Your Soul

Used with permission: http://www.freeimages.com/photo/tunnel-1434220

Used with permission: http://www.freeimages.com/photo/tunnel-1434220

I recently re-read a little book that has had a profound impact on me and countless others. It’s called Who Moved My Cheese? by Ken Blanchard. The book is a short story about how to face change in our lives.

The book asks questions and challenges the reader to shift their perspective when it comes to change.

-What if we lived our lives not from a place of fear, but from a place of curiosity and wonder? What if new opportunities weren’t stressors in our lives, but invitations to grow and learn?

The truth is, I’m learning that we have the potential to view change in a positive way. And when we do, change takes on a new meaning.

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The Presence In The Absence

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Used with permission: http://www.freeimages.com/photo/alone-1492668

Lately, I’ve been acutely aware of both the presence and absence of God. There are days when God feels present in the whole thing, like I couldn’t escape Him if I tried. Other times, however, He seems aloof and nowhere to be found.

It’s like David Crowder once sang, “Sometimes you’re further than the moon; sometimes you’re closer than my skin.” How do we reconcile this feeling of nearness and distance? Partly, I believe, is a recognition that there is a presence even in absence.

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Loving Life In The Rut

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This year has been good, but–and this is a big BUT–it’s also been incredibly difficult and unbelievably challenging. For much of this fall season, we’ve felt like we’re stuck in a rut.

Setbacks, financial struggles, and disappointment. These and more describe what the past few months have been like. In the turmoil, though, we’ve been reminded of something lately–the rut, as tough as it is at times, is life. And life is good. And we’re trying to love it.

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