Best Friends Forever:-)

Have you ever been in a place in life where you suddenly felt uprooted after a long period of stability? That's kinda where I've been. There has been so much beauty in being unsettled for me, because it has provided the opportunity for God to highlight some areas in my heart and life that I need to work on. One of these areas is my marriage.

When you find yourself going through the motions in marriage, there can come a time when you don't feel fully alive. Things can be good, but I believe they were meant to be Great!

I'd noticed these comments that my husband and I had been making- wishing for friends, seeking awesome experiences with close friends, but finding few opportunities.  It didn't help that a very close friend of mine recently went back home after an impromptu visit about a week and a half ago. I had forgotten what it was like to have someone chasing you through the house, doing hair or sitting together saying nothing. I had forgotten what real friendship was like.

I was washing dishes the other day in the kitchen and wanted to just chat on the phone with someone. I have hundreds of contacts in my phone, but no one jumped out to me as someone I would just love to chat with for hours about nothing...except my husband.  Hmm. There is something to be said about that. We gravitate to those who know us more than anyone else- those we feel at home with.

So, it was then that I decided to propose something to him. I felt a little silly, but I knew it was something that we both needed. When he came home from work, I asked him if he would officially be my best friend. He said yes:-)

There was a lot of giddy school girl giggling from both sides as we laid out our terms. We would workout together, he would need to learn to do my hair, make-up and nails (preparation for when I'm old and can't put my lipstick on straight.) There would be card games, movie nights, bike rides, escapes out on the town. Most of this stuff we do together anyway, but now it seems like a switch has flipped and we are so much more intentional.

We consider each other more because we are "best friends"- as it should be. I even searched Etsy for matching necklaces- found one with barbells and a metal medallion that said "Swole Mates." Nice and masculine for the hubby. We're definitely having fun with this.

So tonight, we may just snuggle up on the bed with popcorn and watch the Hart of Dixie or do a quick workout in the garage gym after we put the kids to bed tomorrow. Yeah,  I'm starting to get flashbacks of us in high school...but now, it's oh so better:-) I can't wait to see where our friendship takes us! Matching back tattoos? Maybe. lol


-Melody

The Value of Heaven

I've been feeling the weight of loss lately. So many painful tragedies occur. So many lives are cut short. It seems to hurt worse when life is snatched away from the young. 

How can a heart cope? How do you reconcile the loss that you feel in your heart to the continuation of everyday activities when life must go on? Such a question. 

I recall when I was in the thick of facing my own losses. The only thing that would give me some sort of comfort was the reality that heaven had become a lot more valuable. I know it seems simple, but think about it. Many spout sonnets concerning the afterlife, cherubs and streets of gold. I happen to truly believe there is such a place as this paradise- although I don't know what it will look like. Because God reigns there, I know it has got to be good, as He indeed is. Because of His presence there and the presence of my loved ones, this "heaven" is valuable to me. I truly believe I will see them when I pass away. Although the pain of the waiting is tangible, joy comes in the morning. 

In the realization of the value of heaven, I rest in the knowledge that safety and security do not need to be sought down here. Because of His great love, there is no fear in death. I can rest in knowing that even if I pass away, things will turn out ok. I will be fine. My family will survive because they find a home in a loving Savior who can meet all of their needs. 

This tangibly looks like the overwhelming strength that one feels when plagued with sorrow. This looks like moments of great joy that carry you when you've felt like you have no tears left. This looks like community surrounding you and provision given when financial needs are present. 

In the midst of sorrow, God is Here. He is close to the brokenhearted and crushed in spirit. Because of the value of heaven and the precious gift of my life, I choose to hide myself in the wings of my Savior- the one who carries me and shows me daily, the true value of heaven.

Love,

-Melody

The Beauty of Springtime

How many days have gone by since the day you were born? How many mornings have you spent in joy, or in shame? In reluctance or in bliss. In awe or in wonder?

For me, the last 29 years have been a whirlwind. The last 8, a tidal wave of joys and sorrows... but something has happened. The dust has settled, and I'm realizing how long it's been since I've enacted the mores of Melody.

Saturday marked promises fulfilled and new beginnings for me. I realized that it had been almost 8 years since I'd led a worship service. When I actually took the time to count the years, I was dumbfounded. Where have I been? Locked away in my fears? Riding the waves of life? I think it has been all of the above. The blessing in it all is that God is a redeemer of the time, and no precious moment was lost. It's just time to step back into that part of my passion again, and it can only get better.

How about you? What promises or dreams have you left behind? I encourage you to revisit something you may have been staring at longingly as it sits on the shelf collecting dust. Don't be afraid to try. Don't be afraid to make mistakes. You fail? So what. Try again. The next time will be  better. Just don't give up.

There can sometimes be a certain pain to trying again or doing a new thing. Consider these to be growing pains. The stretching and bending of the belief that you are more than what you thought you were. The cracking of broken views and the birth of new ones. The shifting of incomplete ideas as they become melded into a more complete picture of what God intended. In this light, change is a good thing.

My pastor Rachelle was speaking of change at a women's event on Saturday. I can not recall the exact wording, but it went something like this: if you are not changing, you are complacent or stagnant. Could you imagine where you would be in 5 years if you did not conquer fear and move forward in your life? Exactly. You would be in the exact same place that you are today. How disheartening for most to realize such a reality! Maybe some of you already have. If so, then it's time for change.

Ebbs and flows are good. We are made in the image of a loving God who moves with us. He loves the seasons of life. It is evident in how the trees cast their leaves in the fall, or how the sun shines brighter in the spring time. Sometimes we stay in one season of our lives for far too long. We live for years in the winter because of our fears. We may be longing for the springtime but we just sit back and watch while the world passes us by.

My pastor Zack made a beautiful point yesterday in his Sunday message. He said " Sometimes we forget we're alive." Seriously! We do! We can get used to the monotony and frigid cold of winter, We feel the life fleeting from our bones. What we often fail to realize is that winter is not merely death. Winter is the beauty that sets the stage for new life to begin! Old things fall away so that everything can become new! Winter occurs so expansion, abundance and blessing can occur.

Just like the rosebush buds and blooms, it needs the tender care of a gardener to make it come fully alive and release its fragrance to the world. If we are not being pruned, watered, blessed and loved...if we are not living in healthy community and cultivating all of the good things that make us some alive, we will not bud and bloom. Find your place. Come alive. Springtime is here!

Love,

-Mel

A Change of Perspective

Such a beautiful dance of life we live,

An intricate tapestry we roam. 

In the midst of days plummeting on,

and shadows cast of home. 

Dream with me friend, 

in this moment find ,

the one thing you can give.

A cherished belief 

in life and love,

and inaccurate perspective. 

God has been opening my eyes lately to how limited my perspective has been. I was driving around last week, after dropping my mother off at the airport and stumbled across a park. I've driven by this park a few times and had never taken the time to enjoy its beauty. Today, I would.

 

It was frigid for Las Vegas this particular day, but I decided to seek a place to write beneath the trees. I pulled my sweater close to my face as the cool wind swirled around me. My eyes began to water and I felt like I would find no resting place for myself or for my pen. I walked toward one spot as a young man decided to find his place a few feet away- too close. I turned in the opposite direction to find that the only places left were in the parking lot. Feeling a little saddened by the lack of shelter, I decided to walk in another direction. I almost retreated to the car when I saw something. Geese. Huge, fuzzy, fat, honking, orange beaked geese! I hadn't recalled seeing white geese before, so I went to take a closer look. Further into the park were all kinds of birds. Songbirds, pigeons, seagulls, mallards, larks and horned geese all waddling before me. A frigid landscape suddenly turned into a bustling habitat for birds! 

I looked even further to see something shooting into the sky. I assumed it to be a broken sprinkler. Wrong again. It was the fountain to a lake! A man-made lake equipped with a ramp for boating and a drop off for fishing. This outing was just getting better and better.

As I sat by the water, I felt compelled to get out a pen and paper and begin to compose a line drawing of what I could see. I scribbled a flurry of shrubs and conifers...gazebos, mountains and clouds. I smiled at my drawing and felt compelled to look again. My, had I been wrong! The mountains were in the wrong place. The sidewalk didn't extend as far. I'm pretty sure I had missed a gazebo altogether. Although the rendering was beautiful to me, it was all wrong. This was when God began to speak.

He reminded me that although the drawing was lovely, and that there was much truth in my depiction of the scene, my perspective was limited. My limited perspective prevented me from seeing all of the beauty that could be seen in my surroundings. How many more things in my life was I not "seeing" completely? How many more experiences were I not engaging in fully because I came with expectations that prevented me from seeing the beauty of all that there was? 

In the middle of my "aha" moment, I glanced behind me as more perspective shifts unfolded. A nicely dressed man approached a seemingly transient woman who was fishing on the jetty. I had greeted her earlier, not knowing her story. The man proceeded to join her, crouching next to her poles and inspecting the spoils.  They engaged in intimate conversation. It seemed that they knew each other well. 

After this, I heard a voice. A small group with clipboards approached the couple and asked them how their day was. I thought the group worked for the city or the park system. As they came closer, I saw them ask two women walking their dogs if they were interested in taking a faith-based survey. The women declined- one didn't believe in organized religion. The other said she was "spiritual" but not interested. I think this was the first time I had actually heard someone say those words outside of the television. 

I took a breath as the group came near to where I was resting. I looked a little closer to see two men, a young girl and a teenage boy. As they began to speak, my heart told me the truth- we were family in Christ. I answered their questions and they began to smile. They shared with me how difficult it was to find someone who believed in Jesus- they were war torn. They intended to continue to keep at it until "their bodies gave out." My heart ached for them, but I understood. 

I asked if I could pray with them and they obliged. I prayed for physical strength, divine appointments and great joy. I prayed for the young girl who was also an artist- that God would expand her gift. I prayed for the teenage boy- that God would increase his gifts as he showed diligence in pursuing the heart of God. It was a treasured moment, and I would have missed it all if I hadn't turned around to face another direction. 

Sometimes we live our lives without ever turning around. How much do we miss? How much do we leave untouched or unblessed by our influence? 

Changing perspective for me means leaving my past behind. It means being brave enough to move ahead, even when I can't see what is in front of me. The truth is that I am led by the hand of the One who loves me- a Savior who will never lead me astray.

Today I choose to let Him expand my perspective. To wash away the muck from my eyes painted on by past hurts and failures. To choose new lenses. To see as if for the first time. You can too. Try it. The view is so much better this way:-)

Love you dearly,

-Melody

The Aftermath

Take a little bit of life, throw in some tornadoes, an earthquake for good measure. Shake it up and light it all on fire. That's been life for the past couple of weeks... OK maybe not that dramatic, but things have been pretty intense. The most challenging test was to keep my faith strong and to remember that God is truly who He says He is.

What a crazy thing to hold onto when the lights are turned off, or 3 friends discover they have cancer. It's a tough promise to hold onto when the bank account is negative and you have mouths to feed. I  will never leave my children begging for bread...(Psalm 37:25 paraphrased) the whisper of the promise. I will never leave you or forsake you...(Deuteronomy 31:6) I have to believe it, even when I feel abandoned in my circumstances. Though a mother may forget you, I will never forget you. Behold, I have inscribed you on the palms of my hands (Isaiah 49:16)...Yes daddy. You see me.

Those truths are what cause me to rise up within myself, close the door on what I can see and believe what He says. Healing WILL come. Life will be found. Cancer will die...all of these curses have been broken for cursed is the one who hangs on a tree (Galatians 3:13). He carried and broke all curses once and for all so that we could be free.

When trauma occurs, one of the tale tale signs for me is forgetfulness and a lack of creativity. When the dust settled, I forgot what I usually feed my kids. Poor things. Their meals have been oatmeal, fruit smoothies, crackers and popcorn for the last week. I don't even know what I've been feeding myself. Thankfully, things are coming back to me now- hence the fact that I am inscribing these words now.

Although my life goes on, I still see from the outside the battles loved ones are facing. All I can do is pray and help where I can. I have moments of great rejoicing when sweet victory is held in our arms.
I've stopped holding my breath and have begun holding on to the promise that God will do what He said He would do and that everything will work out just fine.  This is not only a stance of peace, but one of strength. There is no need to strive in within the arms of promise and steadfast love. You simply dwell, set your heart and mind on Christ-breathed truths and wait...seek, steady yourself and watch as the promises unfold.

If you find yourself in the throes of great testing remember this:

My friends, consider yourselves fortunate when all kinds of trials come your way, for you know that when your faith succeeds in facing such trials, the result is the ability to endure. Make sure that your endurance carries you all the way without failing, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. (James 1:2-4)

So, wind waves be still for you must bow to the promise and command of the King.  Let us all find our place in rest as we wait for complete victories that are already on their way.

Love,

-Mel

SUPERSTRONG.

For as long as I could remember, I thought something was wrong with me. I've been known to binge on food. I've have a huge amount of aggression. I can lift very heavy amounts of weight...I've always been able to. I eat as much as my husband. I don't need a lot of sleep to survive. When I don't feel physically strong, I feel emotionally weak.

 Most of these things are concerns that I have been trying to change for the majority of my life. I wanted to have a "thin" body...but when I did, it didn't look right on me. I "needed" to have a bigger butt- whatever that means. I obviously have my grandfather's genes... on both sides. I'm a strong girl, and I like it. There is little that is dainty about me... unless I'm wearing a dress. I often try to hide the fact that I'm extremely loud and pretty boisterous. I throw my boys around in the air and we growl like wild animals as we crawl across the living room floor. That's what I do.

I used to equate this reality to being more of a "tomboy." Back in the day, there was no other definition. The reality is that you can be extremely strong, yet completely feminine. You can be breathtakingly beautiful and still have some big guns. (In that, I am referring to your arms.) You can be a hard worker, have dirt under your nails, feet that look like you've been climbing trees and still be so very lovely. You can be the complete opposite and still be very lovely. 

I don't know how the idea ever came to my mind that strength was bad. I freaked out one day when my husband and I measured our arms together. Mine was just about an inch smaller than his. I was terrified. In reality, I was just strong. I know if I really tried, I could probably be as physically strong as he is...but I'm sure he'd never let me get that close. He's too competitive.

We had a lovely moment the other night when I was feeling overwhelmed and wanted to run away to the library. As I approached the car, he looked at me with this huge handsome smile and dared me to jump in and join him as he was skipping rope. I almost felt like a kid again. My heart began to race and I found myself letting go and trying. It was the first time in a long time that I had actually tried something new. I'd never jumped rope with my husband like that before. As he twirled the rope, I felt my soul light up. I was connecting to him and to myself. It felt like perfection as we jumped beneath the stars... the kids staring at us from the car wondering what the heck was going on.  I realized then that I needed to stop running from me. I needed to step away from the norm, no matter how many judgments or awkward stares I get. I need to be me.

I happened to stumble across a website today that confirmed that there are so many other women just like me. Looking at the pages, I immediately felt at home in my skin. I felt joyful in my epiphany that I wasn't broken and that God had simply made me strong. Awesome.

Voicing these truths are new to me, so here it is: I am an aggressive, loud, very strong woman who is often messy, loves to paint and sing her heart out before God. I enjoy the burning sensation in my chest after an intense workout and I love to lift heavy weights off of the floor...sometimes to my detriment. I have a tendency to feel I have something to prove. I enjoy needlework, being outdoors and I don't particularly like washing the dishes. I have a tendency to avoid difficult things, drive too fast on city streets, blast my music extremely loud when I am by myself and watch ridiculously cheesy wholesome movies. I have high- sometimes perfectionist personal standards and I often have a really hard time fitting my thighs in my jeans. I love to make the souls of others shine and I can't walk by someone who is in tears without asking them if they are alright.  I have a hard time parting with sentimental papers but I love getting rid of clothes. That's me. That's who I am.

Don't be surprised if I write about joining a boxing gym to train for the next Olympics or enter into a strength competition. It's probably gonna happen this year.

I love the way God made me. I love the way He perfectly knit you together as well. Let's start seeing ourselves as we were truly made to be- Perfectly crafted in the image of a beloved God. Nothing broken. Nothing missing. Nothing to be desired. Just beautiful you.

Have a great weekend.

-Mel

The Anatomy of Love

When you walk into the room, 

Love's heart skips a beat.

He sees your beauty, 

And sweeps you off your feet.

You feel a deep sigh leave your chest,

As worries fade away,

In the embrace of love 

That takes your breath away.

Unadulterated and untainted,

This love is pure.

Birthed in the heart of God, 

Forever yours.

Take heed to this love,

For it will never leave.

Let it overtake your soul.

The only love you need. 

What does love look like? It comes in many forms. In the embrace of a lover. In the precious kiss of a child. In the bending of a loved one who brings fresh water to the lips of those who are parched and thirsty. 

One thing that I know for sure- everyone needs love. I feel we'd die without it. We were meant to be loved- meant to be held in deep regard. Whether this regard is begotten from someone we know cares deeply for us or from the hand of a stranger, we all feel it. 

Warmth floods the soul as something inside whispers "I'm valuable. I'm worth something." I hope you feel this feeling everyday. May your days be painted in dear moments of the purest regard, for you are dearly loved my friend. 

In the winter of your soul, you are loved. When you are deeply broken, you are seen. When you've failed again and again, love promises to be by your side, without judgement because your intrinsic value can never be diluted or removed. Remember this. Write it upon your heart. You are loved. 

This relentless, crazy love is and will always be for you. Love is what you were made for. This is the anatomy of love, and it's as mysterious as an iceberg:-) We've only just tapped the surface. 

Let your heart come alive in this truth today. You. Are. Loved. 

-Mel