Athens, GA...
a cherished place where I became so much of who I am today, where God provided my soul mate, where I met friends who became as close as sisters.
The phrase is simple, yet rings so true~ I just LOVE athens.
Falling down is hard. Getting up can be harder...
yet, it IS the defining mark where we CAN come up better than we went down.
We went to Athens this weekend specifically for a gym meet for Ailee. It was in the Ramsey Center where I spent so many days as a college student working out, endless hours practicing my ballet pointe routines, danceline practices and evolving into the adult version of me.
I have told the girls many times of the day I fell off the back of a treadmill my freshman year. Dressed in my cutest workout clothes (I am certain), yet laying face down in front of quite a few of the most handsome fraternity boys on campus and some sorority girls who I am sure enjoyed seeing another one of their kind "falling off the radar."
HUMILITY at its finest!!!
And, God was laying that foundation out early in my college career. My "sisters" and I laughed till we cried. We giggled about it for months, even years, after it happened. But, the truth is, falling is a lesson. What you learn from it is so very crucial. God, as our loving Father, never wants us to fall. However, the Lord as our Savior, is after our fallen hearts. Sometimes, an earthly tumble is what leaves us at his feet to accept the grace, love and gentle instructions we need as His children.
My graceful gymnast had yet another fall on the beam this weekend at her meet. From the stands, I felt her heart break as she was landing her skill and trying with all her might to stick her feet to that narrow line that stretched out a few feet above the ground.
BUT, instead, her feet touched the padded floor and she, in an instant, popped right back up on that "brutal" piece of equipment and flashed this gorgeous smile straight at the judges and audience...
She continued on to complete a flawless routine on the beam with this smile never leaving her face.
She was not defeated by her mistake, by her weakness. Neither did she ignore it. Once hitting her final presentation and walking away from the beam, her smile faded, her coach rushed in and smothered her inside his arms. I know without a doubt he spoke direct encouragement to her. When the embrace was over, she came out of his grasp holding a gentle grin on her face. She looked up and over at me as if to say "mom, I'm okay."
One thing I admire about this young girl who strives with such determination and passion to master a sport that is way beyond demanding, is she never loses her joy in doing it. No matter her momentary failures, she never takes herself so seriously that she doesn't want to jump back in there and give it another stronger attempt.
When I read the beautiful words of a recent devotion, this weekend's meet for Ailee immediately flooded my mind.
"I think our greatest defeat comes when we allow failures, sins, and broken relationships to convince us that we might as well give up.
But look at what God tell us in Psalm 37:23-24, and as you read it insert your name in the blanks:
“The steps of ____________ are established by the Lord, and He delights in ____________’s way. When ____________ falls, __________ will not be hurled headlong, because the Lord is the One who holds ________’s hand.” (NASB)
Instead of giving in, Jesus wants to empower us to get up again."
by Renee Swope
Reading scripture with my name inserted is something a dear sister of my heart taught me to do. I distinctly remember a "fall" of my own a few years ago and a note in my mailbox with simply a scripture with my name inserted. It was taped to my bathroom mirror for months.
Sometimes, we simply need the reminder that the Word of God was written with our very names in mind~~
Overwhelming Grace...I am so very thankful!
now, for these silly pictures (she focuses best with her tongue out, I love the irony of it) from the meet because it was just a fun evening that led into a very fun weekend...the outcome for my athlete was not her personal greatest, but the victory in her little heart was HUGE!
When you can radiate JOY like this even in the FALLS of life, that's nothing short of the Holy Spirit nestled inside you. What a beautiful example this girl was of that for me this weekend, thank you, Ailee for letting God use you to remind me.
...and, I can't say enough for having a coach who knows when we just need our noses wiggled when we are told that it just isn't our best day, but it simply means that tomorrow will be better.
One weekend highlight for all the girls was making ESPN and squeezing the neck of their favorite college gymnast, Mary Beth Box, while congratulating her on one heck of a evening lighting up the arena with her amazing talent and smile.
If you have never watched a college gym meet, please do. Even my sweet daddy never took a breathe while those girls swung over bars and flipped over beams. And, I think He and Jon both were consumed with the height and number of flips on the floor, all while these girls beamed such pretty, bright smiles.
Not sure I even know where to start on this...
I accepted peer pressure from some pretty awesome folks and as shocking as this may sound~
I LOVED it! (more after the fact than during it, I will admit.)
It was so very hard. Describing it here wouldn't even do it justice. We laughed at things that deserved not even a smile. Cause the bottom line is, once you're in, you're in. Kind of like that old bear hunt song~
can't go over it, can't go under it, must go through it.
However, we went over it, through it, under it, around it and every other adjective there is to describe the yuck, hard, painful 27 obstacles we completed that day along with the 4.5 miles included. (in less than 2 hours I must boast, oh but wait, I was just describing humility...see, it's a constant battle between the two.)
We even came out smiling (shaking, freezing, nasty) but smiling just the same.
Bible study this morning was interesting to me in regards to a couple of the things we did this weekend---the race and geocaching.
Both required a call to obedience, commitment to completion and trust from someone leading the way.
God holds me to obedience constantly. I don't always answer the call with the willingness I did this weekend. Well, maybe I didn't actually have the best of attitude going into the race. But, I did very much trust the individuals who signed me up for it and promised to see me through it till the end.
Makes me wonder...why oh why don't I trust my ever-loving Father this way? Why do I ever question that He could be leading me off the beaten path for ANYTHING other than my ultimate good?
A sweet friend posted this earlier this week and we touched on it this morning again
"only a dead fish goes with the flow"
I should be rejoicing in resisting the current and swimming along at the call of my Savior. Every single day I fail at this. At best, I am a mess of bobbing and floating. And, let's face it. I don't even like swimming. I prefer a lounge chair on the bank of the river soaking up the warm sun.
Dear Lord, please help me give you the greatest gift of love imaginable like you instruct us in the book of 1 John. Help me to show my love for you my obeying your call. No matter how crazy, hard, alone it may feel. Let me rest assured that the resistance needed to stop floating and start swimming will be richly rewarded in creating a heart in me that is more like you. My love for you grows daily. You know how much I long for your constant companionship. I am so thankful to not only be your daughter, but to be your friend. I love you
Geocaching is fun! We searched for the green lizard who guards the river outside of downtown Athens. It maybe wasn't the best day to tackle another strenuous activity after only completing the race the day before but we enjoyed it completely. And, we found that silly lizard!!
and, we left our mark:-)
I love that some of my precious family calls Athens home. This beautiful baby girl is the newest addition to the family and ever is she adored!!!
The girls giggled when I (yet again) explained the legend of NEVER walking through Arches until you graduate. Maybe one of them tried to stretch the word "through' as close as they possibly could cause doesn't God give everyone a child who is going to walk the thin line and test the waters. Aren't we ALL that way to a certain extent. Well, that's a topic for another day~
I'll just wrap it up now with Go DAWGS and we are almost to the weekend!
Enjoy the springtime~It's rushing in :-)
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