Catch a Wave This Instant!!

Catch a Wave

If you’re a surfer, you undoubtedly know the name Kelly Slater. He’s a seven-time world champion. He’s the pro of all pros. If you aspire to be a surfer, you want to be Kelly Slater.

Unfortunately, when it comes to surfing, I'm essentially Keanu Reeves in Point Break. I’m just a wannabe. I’m an actor who desperately needs a stuntman to do the actual work for me (while I get the credit, of course).

That’s certainly the case when we’re talking about liquid waves. LIFE’s waves, on the other hand, I know well. One thing after another, break after break, crash after roaring crash—circumstances collide to tempt, test, and try me. If life is a body of water, mine is NOT a still Minnesota lake. It is a turbulent ocean shore, crowded with monstrous waves, beautiful but devastating whitewater, and an undertow that could drown even Kelly Slater.

The bizarre thing is…I haven’t drowned. And I’m not even just doggy-paddling my way through survival. I even would dare to say…I’m surfing. I’m riding these life waves, and I’m securely navigating them. How? Practice (age) has something to do with it. But what can explain the exhilaration I experience when these circumstances, changes, and events should technically be crushing me? I certainly don't boast in my surfing prowess (I have none). It can only be one thing. It's my surfboard. It's made of nothing but the finest material--God’s grace. And His grace is more than enough to see me through.

How are you handling the breaking waves in your life? Are they tossing, turning, or pounding you? Deep down, do you doubt that God really cares about what you’re going through? Do you fear that He might be a great God of the entire universe, but a poor PFD (personal flotation device)? Or are you standing tall on His promises, un-intimidated by the waves because your surfboard is a brand-name Grace Glider?

“But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.”
James 1:6

“Therefore, …we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”
Romans 5: 1-5

Paper Thin This Instant!

Paper Thin

“The word is not the thing.”

Huh?

It’s a concept I learned in a college communications class. Basically, it works like this: When I say “dog,” I picture an adorable, happy, go-lucky golden retriever. But when my friend hears “dog,” she pictures a 140-pound growling beast bearing its teeth, breath reeking from its latest kill. “Dog” makes her shudder while it makes me light up.

Unfortunately, the word “dog” is a poor representation of the actual lazy, chunky basset hound it was intended to describe.

Okay. Now, when I say “fear,” join me in visualizing an old, ugly, steel chain. Fear is heavy. Burdensome and uncomfortable, it prides itself on its tight grip, its power to hinder, its ability to weigh one down and make life miserable.

Fear is a close cousin of anxiety, something I think is just as much a part of my DNA as red and white blood cells are a part of what pumps through my veins. Fear and anxiety have the same mission: Forbid inner peace and contentment at all costs. Keep the victim from experiencing the thrill of life. Chain her up, tie him down, keep them living small.

Now, leave those chains in the dungeon. Come with me to the sunny boutique on the corner downtown. Observe the sales lady as she prepares to wrap the precious gift you just bought for Grandma in tissue paper. Clean and crisp, white and light, the wrapping material is thin. Held by its top two corners, light shines right through it. It flutters in the breeze. A scale wouldn’t even notice it.

What if fear is but a sheet of gift wrapping tissue paper? What if you can see through it? What if fear is fragile…destructible…paper thin? What if it can be destroyed in an instant? What if it’s wrapped all around you, but you were the fool for thinking it held you captive? What if I said “fear” and you just shrugged and smiled?

If fear is tissue paper—not a heavy chain—then all it takes is a spark of the Holy Spirit’s fire to land on it, ignite it, burn it to destruction, and free you completely.

“For you did not receive a spirit that makes you a slave again to fear, but you received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, 'Abba, Father.'"
Romans 8:15
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.” Isaiah 41:10

“For our God is a consuming fire.”
Hebrews 12:29
(Emphasis: Jodi’s. Consuming meaning: Nothing left. Nada. No evidence remains. As in: “Fear? What fear?”)

My Head a Piñata This Instant!

My Head a Piñata

Camping is at its best when you've got a roaring campfire, your best buds sitting around it in some cheap folding chairs, twinkling stars overhead, and a toasted marshmallow squished between a couple of graham crackers and chocolate. Oh, and the remains of a busted piñata scattered at your feet.

It was the weekend of my seventeenth birthday. My high school buddies and I had packed up and headed out for a rambunctious weekend at the beach. On my actual birthday, they unveiled a gift that has yet to be topped: a piñata. Of my head.

Yes.

They hand-crafted a piñata (thoughtful) of my head (weird) thinking it would be fun to wail on this thing (with my face painted on it, remember), bust it open, and eat the candy that would burst out. I felt oddly honored...somehow. I mean, how often can one boast, “I bet you never had anyone make a piñata for you before! Oh, you have? Well, was it of your HEAD?!”

Every one of those friends on that camping trip remains in contact with me today. In fact, they’re all on this email list, so I hope they enjoy the memory. My point being – these friends are tried and true. They’re the real deal. After high school, they didn’t just make like a piñata and bust.

When it comes to showing my love and affection for another, I tend to think that the way I do it is NORMAL. That everyone should show me their love in the same way I do for them. But, oh, how wrong I am! And how heartbroken I would be if I didn’t recognize these different methods for what they are. What if I had thought the piñata was a cruel, mean joke and missed the point entirely? But the piñata said, “You’re weird, Jodi, and we GET your sense of humor. (And we're weird, too, because we made this thing!)” Friends like that are hard to come by.

How do you show your love for your spouse/significant other/family/friends? How do you receive theirs? Are you waiting for them to say "I love you" in the exact same way that you do? Or can you accept their gifts or words or actions or touch or time as gestures of their love for you? (And no, men, this concept does not mean that you're off the hook simply because you put down the toilet seat.)

”Live a life filled with love for others, following the example of Christ, who loved you and gave himself as a sacrifice to take away your sins.”
Ephesians 5:2

“Love means doing what God has commanded us, and he has commanded us to love one another, just as you heard from the beginning.”
2 John 1:6