Love Interlude: He was breath-taking to her.  Moments in his presence often left her limp and longing for more of him.  She day-dreamed him into her life, wished him into her future.  She danced when she thought of him and something on the inside leaped every time.  All she knew was that she wanted him.  He could make her life wonderful, exciting, better than it was. Here’s a thought: “what did she think of before he came?”  Now, all she seemed to think or imagine was this strange kind of love talk.  He made her a little crazy, a little off balance, a little out of control.  Words rattled in her spirit, “I love you. Yes, I believe I do.”

It’s been said that love is a four letter word, yes, a little dirty, a little risky.  In it’s purest form LOVE is God (1 John 4:8).  In the English language, however, it can be a little confusing as we use the word love to describe our favorite movie and our favorite person in the same breath.  All the while meaning two different kinds of love.  In fact, the Greek language has at least 14 different words to exemplify the various forms of love, and English has one.  That is interesting.  Love is interesting.   That’s easy to see as it is the ready topic of every other movie and ready thought of every other single, unmarried individual over the age of 30.  We want love, this captivating all encompassing, us against the world kind of love with another individual. Some of us have spent a life time dreaming of it, hunting for it, being destroyed by misinterpretations of it, devastating others with our confusion about love.  And it’s still an amazing attention getter.  But I was taught that in all my getting to get understanding (PRO 4:7).  And that leads me to Tina Turner.  Remember her song from the 80s, What’s Love Got To Do With It?

It was one of my favorites growing up.  Her big hair, sassy walk and captivating voice had me singing and wondering, “Why is she saying this?”  One of her lyrics always grabbed my attention more than the rest: who needs a heart, when a heart can be broken? “I do“ I used to whisper to myself, ”I need a heart.“  Then, I learned more about her story of  violence in her marriage and I lived a story of my own and today her words make a lot more sense.  That’s where the risk and the dirt comes in – hearts can get broken, BUT I still whisper to myself, ”I need my heart.  Even though she can be broken, I need her.“  To live our best lives, risk will be required, but the cool thing about God is this: He gives us plenty of guidelines to help us avoid a mess again and again, if we simply pay attention (and believe me, I know it’s easier said than done sometimes).

I have learned something though.  People have been mishandled by other four letter words that they have masqueraded as love and people have been mistreated by others who heard the word on love but never finished the book.  In the next post, we’ll talk about these other four letter words and a little secret that makes this whole thing a little easier.

MizJAI…pondering the meaning of real love

You ever noticed how everybody seems to know somebody that “can help you with that.  Let me just give them a call for you.  Don’t worry, I’ll hook you up.”  These days everybody seems to need a hook up, want a hook up, or have a hook up.  Have you ever wondered what all that is? Well, I have and I’ve also noticed a few things:

1. Hook ups aren’t necessarily bad. All of us need one from time to time.  Some people just want to be helpful and they want to be known for helping others.  So they collect information and contacts, and they put the right people together at the right time.  Many times it’s a win-win outcome. BUT
2. Hook ups can be completely self-serving too.  Some people are simply barters, they trade one service or favor for another one.  That’s not bad, necessarily.  In fact bartering can be quite clever when done right.  I hook you up Monday morning with a paying gig.  You hook me up Friday night at the crowded hot spot in the city by becoming my guaranteed way in.  That’s cool, as long as the third person (you know the one coughing up all the money) “gets the hook up” too by receiving excellent service.  But self serving people don’t always think about everyone involved.
3. Bad hook ups can save you money in the beginning and cost you extra work, extra cash, extra stress in the end. This is the case when someone hooks you up with a company that does sloppy work or someone hooks you up with stolen goods. What if you work at a local store and all your friends have the “hook up” because you give them free items out of the store any time they want.  Well, your friends are happy because they get free goods.  And you seem to be pleased because now people fake like they care because you’ve purchased their affection with your “stolen goods.“  And the guy who actually owns the store, the one who paid the price to create the business, is loosing money.  I don’t think he feels hooked up, because it is his property to give or sale, not yours.  Stolen hook-ups always cost you in the end (eventually), especially when you’re trying to live as a man or woman of God because with God integrity is everything.

You know, Proverbs says that ”pureness of heart“ and grace in your communication shall cause the king to befriend you (PRO 22:11).  Now, that’s a real hook up: being connected to powerful people because of your integrity, discretion and conversation is the kind of connection that can stand the test of time.   A man being diligent in his work, puts him in the company of kings (PRO 22:29).   Since we all need a hook up from time to time, let’s be mindful of excellent and honest things.

MizJAI…life-styling for the King’s Company, you are welcomed to join me

I was that girl that just loved the action cartoons from my childhood.  Some of my favorites were Defenders of the Earth, Thunder Cats, and of course The Transformers.  Every time Optimus Prime’s voice came through the television something on the inside of me would leap.  He was the father figure for what was good and right on that show and he was always the voice of wisdom and the glue to their unity and teamwork (and he could kit butt too).  When I saw the modern day Transformers movie with Shia Labeouf as the leading character I was so excited to “hear” Optimus Prime’s voice after all these years that I leaped out of my seat with one hand in the air like i was ready for battle.  After I realized that only me and my youngest sister were standing up, I sat back down and dove into the movie.  But since that time I have been wondering about my own voice.

1. Am I living the kind of life, being the kind of example, speaking the kind of words that will stand the test of time?
2. Do I have a voice that draws a passionate and favorable response out of people?
3. Does what I do reach hearts and is it real and powerful enough to reach across time and still be relevant?  And if not,
4. What am I going to do about it?

Well, after all those questions, it occurred to me that with all that I am and all that I do, I could still do more, be more, and give more.  But it’s not just about me.

There are people who need what God has placed on the inside of us.  They will need us to show up in their lives for different reasons in different seasons.  In the meantime (because God will set up the appointment and not us) we can prepare so that we constantly bring the best of ourselves to the table. For example, we can stop destroying and ripping things apart by becoming better workers.  Besides the Word says, “he who is loose and slack in his work is brother to him who is a destroyer (PRO 18:9).”  And we choose to be builders and developers on purpose, shaping the world around us into something beautiful and powerful, finding problems that need to be solved by us and putting our heart and our best into it.  In fact, that’s how we become timeless, by showing up for other people in small, sincere and consistent ways.

Learn to be a Transformer, changing from the weaker you to the stronger you, moving away from the self-centered you to the giving and considerate you, adjusting from the “me first” you to the “what can I do to help?” you.  By giving, we become more than we ever were in the first place.  By giving more, we become more than we ever imagined we could be.  We are beautiful and there is more to us than meets the eye.

MizJAI…transforming into the rest of me

Do you remember the fair?  It was exciting to hear that “the fair is coming to town!”  I could always see myself walking the grounds with funnel cake in both hands or trying to win a stuffed animal or standing in line for the rides.  The anticipation was an event of its own.   Oh, it was so fun! But as I grew up I noticed, most of the rides take you in circles and you always end back up where you started.  Oh, you laugh and scream and smile, but you are definitely going in circles.  Well, that’s acceptable for a fair, a place that is designed to be a momentary escape from reality, but what about the rest of it?  Is a “merry-go-round” life going to work for us?  Don’t get me wrong, we all want to laugh and scream and smile and go on the ride of our lives, but when it is over, don’t we need to be closer to the dream and further into the journey? Don’t we need to be stronger and better and happier and more of the best of ourselves? Don’t we need to move forward with each stride?  I do.  You do.  We do.  My prayer for us is:

• that we stop rehearsing old habits, and stop being surprised when they produce the same old pain
• that we stop doing old things, living the same old way and expecting a new and different outcome when we haven’t done enough to change
• that we start striding outside of our comfort zone and learn to live and love in ways that we have never seen or imagined before

There is a better way of living with our names on it. Let’s dive in and see just what God has in store for you and me…

MizJAI…waking up to the best of life

Often times life stretches out in front of us like a long winding road that we have yet to travel.  It looks interesting and frightening at the same time.  Going around that corner is unknown, and the unknown excites one person and scares another.

I love driving back country roads with hills and curves and changing scenery.  I think it’s the impact of riding through the Asheville Mountains when I was a little girl “lost” on the open highway with my mother and two sisters.  We stopped to touch waterfalls and to daydream out loud.  For my mother the adventure was a requirement, and she birth that same desire on the inside of me.  Now, I look for the changes in life, even the scary ones.

In fact the need for change feels like a quiet rumble in my chest.  It’s a simple desire to create something new & alive, now; to shape something powerful into existence, now; to make impact, now; to live more than I have been living, right now; to captivate that best of me and change the world around me or at least to just change for the better, now.  Besides, the best version of ourselves, serves others far better than the left overs from over-extending, under-living, and ignoring dreams for new air and adventure.

It’s time to live more, right now!  I want to encourage you to take that curve and enjoy what you discover on the other side.  Find something simple, new and different in your world like a Zumba Aerobics Class, Salsa night on Saturdays, Painting in the Park, Photography Lessons, and/or a long beautiful ride that ends in a lakeside lunch.  Remember, adventure doesn’t have a price tag on it.  Many times the less expensive moments hold the more valuable memories.

MizJAI . . . getting ready for a new bend in the road, hoping you join me!