Anointed With Grace

Posted by: Allison | December 18, 2009

Friday Flair 12.18.09

No, your eyes are not deceiving you. It’s actually a new blog post at Anointed With Grace. Well, it’s a Friday Flair post . . . I am easing back into this, okay? Actually, I’m not sure I remember how to use WordPress.

I can’t really explain the season of no blogging. Lately, it has not been something that energizes me. Or rather, I haven’t had the energy or desire to sit down and make it happen. Maybe 2010 will be the year of renewed blogging.

The good news is that I didn’t totally abandon my writing. I sold another short article last week! Yippee

Okay, so here are some funny and serious things that I want you to check out:

Please read this post by Sarah Markley. It got me all choked up before my first cup of coffee this morning. And made me say in my head, “That’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown!” (Also, if you haven’t read Sarah’s story—which I linked up a few months ago—please do that too).

I feel like people in Nashville have gone crazy. I really want to hear from you on this one. Does every 20th car in your town seem to have turned into a reindeer for the holidays?? Everywhere I drive around here, there are cars that have a red nose and antlers in the window like the picture below. This is the first year I noticed this particular trend. Is this just a Nashville thing or is this the new way to be festive? (I think I liked the old-school wreath on the front bumper a little better). Regardless, if you just have to apply this trendy new look to your poor car, apparently you can buy a reindeer car kit on Amazon.

Now, for a fun holiday recipe. Y’all, my mom made these when I was little and I had completely forgotten about them until Kelly posted the recipe on her blog! These are so easy to make and a great thing to take to parties (or to sit and eat by yourself without sharing).

Finally, I have to pat myself on the back and let you know that I ran my first race, the Boulevard Bolt, here in Nashville on Thanksgiving Day. I finished in 62 minutes (which arguably means I was jogging and not running). But it was a great moment crossing the finish line. And the song playing on my iPod when I crossed that finish line—Third Day’s Sing A Song. I love, love, love this song and wanted to share this in closing:

And I sing about Your mercy
And I sing about Your love
Your goodness, Lord
Your righteousness
I want to sing…

A song of Your faithfulness
A song of Your grace
And of Your loving kindness
To the glory of Your name
With everything that’s in me, Lord
Listen to me say
I want to sing a song for You
I want to sing a song

Merry Christmas, y’all. Sing a song to our Savior on his birthday next Friday!

1 Comment

Posted in Friday Flair, Fun Friday | Tags: Friday Flair

Posted by: Allison | November 8, 2009

The Month That Was October

October has always been “my” month. It’s my birthday month and my favorite time of the year because of the gorgeous weather, autumn leaves, and excitement about the upcoming holiday season.

Thus, I always get a little selfish during October. I only do the things I really want to do. This year, that did not involve writing. At all. Not a single blog post or article or devotional. Looking back, I think I needed a break from the pressure I often put on myself. I love to write–until it becomes something on my task list instead of something that flows natural from experiencing life.

So, what did I do during October?

* Turned 34 years old; how is that possible? Most days, I feel younger/better now that I did when I was 25.

* Finished my consulting project and gained some much needed downtime.

* Went on a relaxing vacation with my family to Gulf Shores; it was my niece’s first trip to the beach!

* Chaired an event for Preston Taylor Ministries that turned out beautifully (if I do say so myself!); it was the annual fall dinner banquet to honor PTM volunteers and celebrate joy-filled friendships.

* Spent time repenting and extracting myself from some commitments that I placed on myself but that God wasn’t calling me to do/continue. There are so many good things that I can do, but I find myself filling up my schedule with these things and ignoring God nudging me in another direction.

* Starting jogging/running. I will pause here to let that sink in (for those of you who know me and wonder who just hijacked this blog post). I have always wanted to run, but never really believed I could do it. I would start a program and give up every time it became difficult (which was always in the first half mile). But someone special in my life convinced me that I could do it. And for some reason, his unwavering belief in me carried me through the tough start. I am now up to 4 miles (and loving it) and I plan to run the Boulevard Bolt on Thanksgiving morning!

Now you are caught up on me, for the most part. How was your October?

Hoping that November brings with it a renewed zeal for writing in my life and lots of time to reflect on our sovereign God.

allisonsign

2 Comments

Posted in Family, My Crazy Life, Photos, Travel | Tags: My musings, Travel

Posted by: Allison | September 30, 2009

Extending Grace Part 3 – When I Need It Myself

[For earlier posts in the Extending Grace series, see Intro, Part 1, and Part 2]

In his sermon a couple of weeks ago, Pete Wilson said, “everybody wants to talk about justice until they’ve done something wrong and when they’ve done something wrong . . . then they want to talk about grace.”

(Crosspoint is teaching an amazing series right now called Religion Lies. Click the link to check out the audio/video.)

I think that Pete’s statements above (and his current sermon series) are right on target. It goes along with what I’ve been talking about in this Extending Grace series. I struggle with trying to impose justice on others while I am the benefactor of boatloads of grace from God for all of the sin in my life.

However, I think there is another component to this. I strongly believe there is a subset of us that grew up in legalist environments, in guilt-ridden households, in condemning churches that makes it really hard for us to show grace to ourselves. I am talking about those of us who struggle to believe the nature of Jesus is restoration and not condemnation.

My justice-oriented heart is not subjective. When I mess up, fall short, hurt someone (and so on), I don’t use the “grace card” for myself. I start condemning myself; the dialogue in my head haunts me:

telling me I am worthless,
telling me I don’t deserve mercy,
telling me that I can never share Jesus with others when I cannot get it right myself,
telling me that this sin is too big for God’s forgiveness,
or that I have already used up my share of grace.

I know that Jesus forgives. I know that his sacrifice was (and is) perfect. But I sometimes struggle to release myself from the debt of my sin. I hold onto the guilt. I keep myself from fully receiving and understanding God’s grace.

A wise woman in my Bible Study pointed out this verse in Psalms last week:

Then I acknowledged my sin to you
and did not cover up my iniquity.
I said, “I will confess
my transgressions to the LORD “—
and you forgave
the guilt of my sin.
Psalm 32:5

God forgives our sins—and he also forgives the guilt of our sins. I think this is so important to understand, especially for someone like me who struggles with guilt and condemnation.

Because fully comprehending and accepting the immeasurable amount of grace I receive from Christ will hopefully get me one step closer to extending grace to others (instead of demanding justice).

Dear Jesus,
Remind me each day how far the east is from the west. (Psalm 103:11-12)

Forgive my sins and also forgive the guilt of my sins. (Psalm 32:5)

Help me understand that I’m the indebted servant who was forgiven by the merciful king. But let me rewrite the ending and extend that same grace and mercy to those I encounter each day. (Matthew 18)
Amen

allisonsign

2 Comments

Posted in Extending Grace, Faith, God | Tags: Grace

Posted by: Allison | September 23, 2009

Extending Grace Part 2 – When I Have Been Wronged

[For earlier posts in the Extending Grace series, see Intro and Part 1]

Black and white. Right versus wrong.
If only it were that easy. Truthfully, we are broken people living in a broken world.

I mentioned early in the series that I am a justice-oriented person. This is positive in some ways. Social justice is important; God instructs us to care for the “least of these” in society. Isaiah 1:17 says:

Seek justice,
encourage the oppressed.
Defend the cause of the fatherless,
plead the case of the widow.

The Bible mentions in Psalms that the Lord loves justice (Psalm 33:5). He is a just God. And I am made in his image.

The problem arises when my sense for justice turns into a belief that I deserve to live a nice, orderly life. I start putting my faith in order and justice instead of Jesus. I believe the things I have accumulated are mine. I get comfortable. I believe that I have a right to be treated fairly in all circumstances.

But we do live in a broken world. People hurt people. I hurt others. Others hurt me. When I am wronged by someone, I have a tendency to cry out like Job:

Though I cry, ‘I’ve been wronged!’ I get no response; though I call for help, there is no justice. Job 19:7

When I am wronged, I start to look around for justice. Compassion deserts me as I cry, “foul!” I immediately forget all of the times that I hurt others, intentionally or unintentionally. I forget that broken people hurt others out of their own pain, as I have done so many times. I forget that I am only one step away from what my justice-oriented heart considers a “really big sin”.

Lately, I have pondered the relationship between Jesus and Judas, the disciple who betrayed Jesus for thirty silver coins. Judas wrongs Jesus in an obvious way. Yet, we don’t see Jesus crying, “foul” or “I have been wronged”. Judas’ action was probably not just an isolated slip-up. Most likely, there was a pattern of sinful behavior that emerged during the weeks and months leading up to Jesus’ death. Jesus knew the sin in the heart of Judas. He knew what Judas was doing and that he would ultimately betray him. Yet Jesus allowed him to stay among his closest followers. He let the situation play out. He didn’t intercede.

I have a lot of thoughts about this intriguing relationship. Obviously, I wasn’t there. We don’t know everything that occurred. (I also know that regardless of Judas’ decision, Jesus was going to that cross to save us.) But it just makes me think about how quickly I point out that I have been wronged instead of letting the situation play out. Instead of being patient and trying to figure out how I can minister to a broken person, I push the offender far away from me because my rights have been trampled.

How would my relationships change if I pulled those people close instead of pushing them away? If I chose mercy over justice? To use another quote from The Shack by William Paul Young:

“He chose the way of the cross where mercy triumphs over justice because of love. Would you instead prefer he’d chosen justice for everyone?”

Extending grace means understanding that my version of justice is warped and one-sided. If I impose justice, then I should be subjected to that same justice.

Who am I to demand justice when Jesus chose mercy?

allisonsign

1 Comment

Posted in Extending Grace, Faith, God | Tags: Grace

Posted by: Allison | September 16, 2009

Commercial Break

So, in case you’re wondering whether I actually understand the definition of a blog SERIES, I do plan to provide some additional Extending Grace posts soon (ish).

BUT …

in the meantime …

Go read THIS POST by Jon over at Stuff Christians Like.

Because he explains grace so well that it makes me want to say:

Extending Grace Part 2 — What He Said

allisonsign

Extending Grace Part 1 – When I Am Falsely Accused

After a hectic day at work, I go outside to take my dog for a walk. Ambling around the neighborhood in our usual circle, an irritated voice pulls me out of my thoughts. Although the voice is not very loud at first, I have a sense that it’s meant for me. I locate the source—a lady yelling down at me from the third story of our neighboring condo building.

I slowly realize what is going on. She is reprimanding me and telling me to pick up after my dog if I’m going to walk on “their lawn”. Surprised and speechless, I simply hold up the bag full of doggie-poo that I had scooped up just moments before. She barely yells “thanks” before slamming the window and closing the drapes.

I immediately start to feel violated. I was too shocked to even defend myself. My mind races with all of the things I want to run and tell this lady. From “of course I clean up after my dog” to “I always follow the rules at our condo” to “how dare you yell from your window and accuse an innocent person of something like that?” I get all worked up in about 45 seconds flat.

It’s just a silly little neighborhood misunderstanding. But in my mind, I have the right to walk my dog without being falsely accused. I start condemning her attitude and her actions.

In instances such as this, I still act like the unmerciful servant that Jesus introduces in Matthew 18. You know the guy. He owes the king a crazy amount of money, an amount that he could not work off in a lifetime. He falls on his knees and begs the king for more time, for an opportunity to pay back what he owes. The king takes pity on him and cancels his debt entirely. The king shows mercy even though the servant doesn’t deserve it. And then the servant struts out of the palace and grabs the first guy he sees—one who owes him a small amount of money. This debtor also begs for mercy yet the servant has him thrown into prison.

I read this story and initially think the servant is such an idiot. The guy’s debt was just cancelled by a merciful king and he immediately turns around and sends a fellow servant to jail for a tiny amount of money. How could he be so hard-hearted? And then I realize the truth. I am that idiot.

I am the one who has been forgiven much, but I still turn around and condemn others. I think that I have a right to be treated fairly. I don’t deserve to be falsely accused. But . . .

Jesus wasn’t treated fairly.

He was falsely accused.

He willingly sacrificed his life to pay my debt.

And he whispers in my ear, “Show her grace because I have shown you grace”.

allisonsign

4 Comments

Posted in Extending Grace, Faith, God | Tags: Grace, My musings

Posted by: Allison | September 9, 2009

Extending Grace

As a very justice-oriented person, I often struggle with the concept of extending grace.

When something happens to me that I consider unjust, I get angry.

When I am wrongly accused
When I am not rightly acknowledged
When another driver believes he is entitled to cut in front of me
When someone at the end of the line gets chosen before me

Why does it bother me so? It feels like someone is taking something that is rightfully mine.

In one of my favorite books, The Shack, William Paul Young says,

“Rights are where survivors go, so that they won’t have to work out relationships.”

and

“Jesus didn’t hold on to any rights; he willingly became a servant . . . He gave up everything, so that by his dependent life he opened a door that would allow you to live free enough to give up your rights.”

Through the sacrifice that Jesus made on the cross, I am forgiven for so much. God’s grace covers every last bit of my ugly sin. Not just once but over and over again. He extends infinite grace to me, yet I go about daily life clinging to my rights and demanding justice.

God is teaching me to live freely through him. I am slowly learning to let go of my rights. As life occurs, he whispers “show grace”. Show grace to your friends, show grace to your neighbors, show grace to your co-workers, show grace to complete strangers, show grace to yourself.

He is changing me. And I want to share my stories with you.

The fine print: Since there is a lot more that I want to share about this topic, I am making my first attempt at writing a blog series. I will be writing about how God is teaching me to extend grace in various areas of my life. I can’t promise a post per day, but there will be at least 3 future posts on this topic in the next couple of weeks. Check back on Friday for Part 1. If you want to subscribe via email or RSS feed so that you won’t miss a post, there are now buttons on the right sidebar. Thanks for joining in the fun!

allisonsign

4 Comments

Posted in Extending Grace, Faith, God | Tags: Grace, My musings

Posted by: Allison | September 4, 2009

Friday Flair: Boomama’s DipTacular

I’m getting ready to leave in just a few hours for Ft. Lauderdale for the long weekend (yay!), but I couldn’t miss out on Boomama’s 2009 DipTacular. Especially since this weekend marks the beginning of college football season (yay SEC, Go Vandy!)

So, I wanted to share a dip recipe that is so easy to make and gets rave reviews. It’s a cold dip–and one of those that you can easily make when it’s late the night before your event and you have totally forgotten that you were supposed to bring anything (not that anything like that ever happens to me). Let’s just say that I keep the ingredients on hand . . .

Spinach Onion Dip

1 pouch dry onion soup mix (I usually use Campbell’s but the generic works just fine)
1 container (16 ounces) sour cream
1 package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well-drained
1/3 cup chopped toasted almonds (optional, as in I don’t use them because I don’t like my dip to crunch)

Combine soup mix, sour cream, spinach (and almonds). Stir until ingredients are distributed through the mix. Refrigerate at least 2 hours. I serve with wheat thins and tortilla chips, but you can also use veggies, pita chips, etc.

Easy and very good! And leftovers keep well in the refrigerator. I now sound like my mom (keep well?)

Since my dip doesn’t include cream cheese, click over to Sophie’s blog for ALL the wonderful DipTacular links (or you can click on the button at the top of this post). The last time I checked, there were links to 155 dips!

Happy Labor Day weekend,

allisonsign

P.S. Check back next week because I’m going to start a series called Extending Grace about what God is teaching me in different areas of my life. Happy Friday!

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Posted in Friday Flair, Fun Friday | Tags: Friday Flair

Posted by: Allison | August 31, 2009

Do You Trust Me?

I feel myself descending into the pre-birthday funk. Since my 30th birthday a few years ago, I no longer get excited about my birthdays. Instead, I realize that I’m about to be another year older. I take stock of things and recognize that, in many areas of life, I am not where I always thought I would be at this age. Another year has passed and many dreams remain unmet. It weighs on me, and it just seems too late for a lot of things.

As I contemplate all of this while getting ready for church on Sunday, God enters the previously one-sided conversation:

God: Do you trust me?

Me: Well God, of course I trust you. I have believed in you for my entire life. I have entrusted my salvation to you. Duh.

(I know— it’s probably not a great idea to say “duh” to God. Thankfully, he puts up with me.)

Here is the point that God impressed on me in that moment:

Even though I know who God is . . . one who is big enough to forgive all of my sins;

Even though I know what God does . . . that he accepts me with open arms, extends his grace and mercy to me over and over;

Even though I trust God with my eternal salvation . . .

I still have a hard time trusting him with tomorrow.

Sure, I trust him with my salvation. I absolutely believe that he is sovereign, all-powerful, all-knowing, and the one who doesn’t make mistakes. So if I truly believe that, why can’t I rest in the knowledge that all of my tomorrows are safe in his hands?

Years ago, I gave a speech at my high school graduation. I recently found a copy of that speech at my parents’ house. I had not thought about it in a long time, but I used the following well-known quote in my address to our graduating class:

“I don’t know what tomorrow holds, but I know who holds tomorrow.”

There is no nice bow to wrap around this post and tie it all together. I just know that God is still teaching me something about faith. Something I thought I had figured out a long time ago.

allisonsign

3 Comments

Posted in Faith, God, My Crazy Life, Random | Tags: My musings

Posted by: Allison | August 28, 2009

Friday Flair 08.28.09

Welcome back Friday Flair! I have missed posting links, so I am catching up on some older stuff and some amazing new stuff:

I’m not sure how I missed it in July, but this post over at Stuff Christians Like is so powerful–and may be my favorite one that Jon has written.

Big Mama, our favorite fashion consultant, posted a link to this fabulous invention called Chickies. I totally wish I had thought of this idea and I definitely have to have one (or three)!

Annie’s tribute to her grandmother is beautiful.

I love it when God moves people to be courageous and tell their tough stories. Sarah’s current series over at her blog is so honest, so life-changing. Sometimes, God has to chase us down and bring us back to him. I know this from experience. Sarah is so brave and God has done amazing things in her life; please don’t miss her story. Link here to the Intro and Parts 1, 2, 3, and 4. Part 5 will be posted today.

Bible verse of the day: Lamentations 3:24. I will wait for him.

My favorite new song these days is Lay ‘Em Down by NeedToBreathe. Seriously, I cannot get enough of this song.

Happy Friday!

P.S. Are y’all as excited as me about all the TV premiers coming up in late September? I have so missed my Grey’s, Private Practice, and Castle. Between that and the beginning of football season, I am quite giddy.

allisonsign