Three More Things God Appreciates about You

Okay, the truth is, I’m on a bit of a roll.

Because I know self-criticalness can plague us all too often, I think it is wise to spend some more time on what God does appreciate about us. As we get better at remembering what He does like in us, and as we get better at focusing on His grace, we are less likely to get stuck in draining mental eddies. So, to help you enjoy your ride more and bear richer fruit, read on!

This week’s focus will be a bit on the lighter side in some ways, and I hope that as you read it, you will find your heart lightened and encouraged to move further into God’s good dreams for your life.

When You Love Well

This one is actually really big.  Loving well is so close to God’s heart.  If there is anything that God loves, my goodness, it has to be when we love well. I mean, you know, He is love. So, building on last week, when you are patient, when you are generous, those are genuine forms of love. And, when you are thoughtful, when you take time to listen, and ask a good question that shows a bona fide care for the person, I believe those things also bring a smile to God’s face. Any kind of love…in thought, word or deed, that works to show someone that they matter, that endeavors to help someone mature, is a good and right thing to do that God delights in. So, good reader, know that God really appreciates it when you love well, and is even somehow more excited, as you get better and better at it.

The next two may surprise you.

When You Play Well

Play, Man, I love play.  Tennis.  Golf, Throwing a football. Playing Spoons with my kids and nephews. (I happen to be the Reigning World Champion, self-declared.) Pillow fights with my beloved. Playful banter. I’m really confident I’m not alone in loving play. Kids love play.  Chipmunks, puppies, kittens, little tikes of all sorts love play. When we play, we are connecting.  When we play, we are not taking ourselves too seriously…if we are truly playing. When we play, we are embracing being created and not falling into presumption about being the Creator.  When we play, we are at some level celebrating the goodness of creation, and by extension, the goodness of our Creator…the author of play.  I really believe that when you embrace play, when you are able to let yourself delight in childlike play, it brings a real smile to God’s face.

So, I encourage you to either continue to honor play in your life, or consider taking some small risks to rediscover play in your life.  Your soul will be blessed, and God will be pleased.

This last one may be shocking.

When You Rest Well

Rest.  Just writing the word helps me exhale.  Phew.  Taking a deep breath and resting. Resting well is such a gift for our bodies and our souls. When we honor our limits, when we embrace the Sabbath, when we take time to reconnect with our thoughts and feelings, we are giving our lives a much better chance at running smoothly, and running better. It gives us a chance to grow, to renew, to re-engage from a place of greater fullness.  When we don’t rest well, things just start to run amuck over time. We lose track of stuff (okay, that happens sometimes regardless). Well, we lose track of more stuff. We get frazzled. We tend to be more impulsive and irritable. I know all those things are true for me.  So, when we rest well, I really believe God delights in it. I believe He sees our willingness to trust Him with things when we rest, and I believe that makes Him smile too.  Why?  Because He truly is The One who is always capable, and I think He appreciates it when we truly acknowledge His capabilities.

Wrapping Up. 

So, consider this week how you are doing on the loving well front, the play front, and the rest front. If you are doing well, consider the smile it brings to God’s face.  And consider His longing for you to enjoy more of those truly good things. If you struggle with any of these, ask Him for the grace to grow in those areas.

As mentioned last time, if you struggle with things like the above, I’m offering a course designed to help you grow in these things as well.  More details will be coming, but for now, just know the first class starts on October 10th, at 11 am est.

Blessings to you, good readers!