Mascara streamed down my face. I was an emotional wreck. Sitting at the gate I watched my plane pull off the tarmac. Earbuds in, I sobbed, fearful.

Clearly, my emotions had gotten the best of me. I was stranded overnight in the airport. My connecting flight had taken off right as my current flight landed.

I sat in the food court to eat dinner just as panic seized me. What if I wouldn’t be safe? Prayers spiraled up to heaven. I needed to see God in that moment, especially since I was afraid of being in an unknown place.

A pilot settled into the booth next to me. As he enjoyed his dinner he struck up a conversation. I shared about my circumstances of staying overnight in the airport and he told me tales about the friendly skies. In the midst of our conversation it happened: a God moment.

The pilot assured me I was safe in the airport. He pointed out the security team and told me where I could sleep to remain safe. This man gave answers to exactly what I had prayed about! He touched on things I had sent up to God in prayer, out of fear. It was like this man could see my heart.

After he encouraged me, he told me he’d been a pastor for ten years. As he got up to leave he smiled, “I never sit in the food court. In all my years of flying I’ve always eaten at the gate. We must have had a divine appointment. Rest tonight in the reality that you are safe with Him.”

Jeremiah 29:13-14 says, “Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart.”

God listens to and answers prayers, sometimes in ways we least expect. In a moment when I felt abandoned and alone, He was there.

Have you had a moment when you clearly saw God’s faithfulness? Can you recall a “God moment” that sustained you? If not, pray and ask Him to reveal Himself to you. He’s waiting to hear and answer. If so, will you please share with us?

Erin Taylor loves to see God’s faithfulness and thinks Starbucks’ white mochas solve everything. Click here to check out her blog.

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© 2012 by Erin Taylor. All rights reserved.

Nicki asks some {twenty-somethings} to share about Annie’s {inspirational entry} on hating yourself.

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The worst day of my life was the day I said I hate you. To myself.

I remember it clearly. It was a first: saying out loud what my mind had been screaming to my body for years. But it wasn’t a last. I didn’t like my body as a teenager and it seemed the best way to handle that was to say it. I cannot count how many days I looked in the mirror and spit venom.

“You look disgusting.”

“That outfit is gross.”

“Take it off. It’s too small. Of course.”

Counselors call this self-talk. It can be healthy and good. As a teen and 20-something, it rarely was for me. I used self-talk as punishment. My twisted wounded brain believed that saying mean stuff to myself would change my behavior. Maybe lose some weight. Maybe pick better outfits. But I never did. I just broke my own heart over and over.

Years later, it is something I still work on. Daily. I have to ingest God’s Word like it’s a meal. I have to cling to what the Bible says is true about me, not what I hear in my head.

And I have changed. I am changing. I’m being nicer to myself.

Just last week, I couldn’t believe the kindness in my voice. I looked in the mirror and something just didn’t seem right. I couldn’t identify the issue—was it the fit of the jeans? The shape of the shirt? The fact I was seeing my crush in approximately 42 minutes and whatever I wore would be the deciding factor if we fell madly in love forever? {I’m a bit dramatic.}

Whatever it was, I hated my outfit.

I looked in the mirror and said, “You’ve got plenty of time, Annie. Why don’t you try something else?”

Like I was talking to a friend.

“It’s no big deal,” I thought, “if you want to change into something different. Sometimes things look weird one day and fine the next.”

So I changed. I put on a green shirt with a grey cardigan. It looked significantly better and I was at peace.

I’m learning that if I’m going to love my neighbor as I love myself {Matthew 22:39}, I have to love myself. And you don’t say rude things to people that you love.

So I’m learning to speak kindly to those that I love… meaning me.

Something Else…

All beautiful you are, my darling; there is no flaw in you. ~Song of Solomon 4:7

Francesca Battistelli Free to be Me

Annie Downs is an author living in Nashville, Tennessee. Her first book, From Head To Foot, explores this topic more deeply… as well as provides some great recipes. Read more at annieblogs.com.

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Julianna checks in this week’s vlog about shame.

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I remember choking on these lyrics the first time I heard them, “I’ll never know how much it cost to see my sin upon the cross.” Cue the ugly cry as I stared at my circumstances, broken-hearted. I had compromised biiiiig time in some areas and was so ashamed. And till the warm truth of that song, I turned a cold shoulder to the hope of forgiveness. Shame convinced me I didn’t deserve another chance.

This summer I met a girl who needed a second chance too. On a 75 degree, gorgeous-in-every-way-L.A. day, I served food on Skid Row. There I was, navigating cardboard boxes and hypodermic needles. There she was, fidgeting outside the women’s shelter in this concrete jungle.

If people were a color, she’d match her gray sweatpants. Washed out and muted; buried under a cold world for far too long. She inched over to me to ask for help, but y’all, she couldn’t look me in the eye. The shame from past deeds cloaked her face. It made her doubt she was worthy of anything, much less another chance for a hot meal and cold drink.

You see, she’d stood in the food line, but some guys pushed her out. I mean, you’d have to be cold to bully this woman. She couldn’t defend herself and needed someone to make a way. So together, we walked to the front of the food truck line {not gonna lie, it was fun breezing past those bullies}. But I felt ridiculous handing her scrambled eggs and water. Cause surely, she needed so much more. We all do at some point {don’t we?}.

She needed to know this place didn’t have to be her last stop. That the things she’d done to land on Skid Row could be forgiven… forgotten, even. This cold season could turn into a warmer one. I wanted to give her this truth…

Look, the winter is past, and the rains are over and gone. ~Song of Solomon 2:11

Winter’s that gloomy season that should pass. But what if it hangs heavy over us?

What if one bad-for-us choice turns into 100 that beat us to our own frigid Skid Row? What if mistakes made convince us that we don’t deserve another shot? Been there? Me too.

That’s when we gotta rely on truth to help lift the shame and shift the seasons. Those lyrics I choked up over? They reminded me that Jesus is our ultimate second chance.

Shame bullies us out of line. But Jesus has the right to bypass it. His death on the cross guarantees that when we ask, He’ll forgive and forget {so we don’t live ashamed}. He’s the only way our winter of doubt turns into a spring of hope. And He’ll always lead us to the front of the line for so much more than eggs and water.

Something Else…
Another Chance by Roger Sanchez

Samantha Reed so enjoys a warm spring day, especially with friends. Join her at www.samanthareed.org.

Check in with Samantha over at She Seeks.

Ali shares about overcoming fears.

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When I was a junior in college, I found myself homeless. The apartment I’d reserved before I left for a missions trip wasn’t ready when I returned. They mailed a notice, but since I couldn’t check it from Europe, I came home with one month to find a place to live.

My campus minister and his wife opened their home. I thought I’d only share their daughter’s room, but I became part of their family. They lived out their faith, loved each other and resolved conflict. It was new for me to see a family flourish. For the first time, God ignited in me a hope and desire for marriage and family.

Maybe you grew up with this desire. I didn’t. My family experience left me skeptical, doubting that a marriage could last; three marriages {per parent}, single parent years, and sexual and emotional abuse. Why should I expect marriage to be filled with anything but disappointment and failure?

Determined to make life feel ‘normal,’ I took on extra responsibilities at home and tried to be the optimal student. Performance and perfection hid my insecurity and provided verbal affirmation… from family and God. If I performed well, God liked me. If not, shame and good works made up for my failure.

I avoided dating, afraid God would be disappointed if I messed up in a relationship. Although I desired to love and be loved, marriage didn’t seem worth the risk of ruining my righteousness I’d worked so hard to ‘earn.’

Do you see the missing link? The one that holds truth and love together? We don’t have to perform to earn God’s love. It’s not something that comes and goes, like my stepparents. Or my feelings of security. The fear I had that all love was fleeting was a lie.

In this confusion, God worked on my heart. Living with this family gave me faith for new hopes and dreams. After two years of healing {and growing in knowledge of God’s love}, I met my husband, Clayton. I was still guarded, but his kindness and love for who I was {not what I had to offer} broke down my walls.

God’s allowed this girl {from dysfunction} and her husband {illegitimate and adopted} to love each other for 13 years in a committed, thriving marriage. Only His unconditional love could help us defy statistics. So we wrote a book together, 12 Questions to Ask Before You Marry, because we believe if He could do it for us, He can do it for you!

Something Else…

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear expects punishment. The person who is afraid has not been made perfect in love. We love because God first loved us.” 1 John 4:18-19 {CEB}

This week you have a chance to enter a giveaway for Charie and Clayton’s book, 12 Questions To Ask Before You Marry. Leave a comment with your email below and we will contact the winner on Friday!

Jack Johnson’s Angel

Charie King loves quaint downtown galleries, honest friendships and veggie flatbread sandwiches. Keep up with her through 12 Questions to Ask Before You Marry, and www.charieking.com. To have Charie speak at your event check out www.crossroadsworldwide.com.

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Nicki shares about tears in this week’s {vlog}.

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I used to be a hoarder. For years I stored tears far from the eyes of anyone else. I simply refused to cry. Stock piling my tears started with one little tooth.

“Just tilt your head back, close your eyes and I’ll yank it out on the count of three…ready? 1…2…3!”

I was only six. Too little for that sharp surge of pain that rushed through my mouth. So of course it was only natural I burst into tears.

“You big cry baby!” That’s my dad for you. The big heroic tooth extractor laughed.

All I could do was whimper amid muffled sobs, “But it hurts!” I nursed the gaping hole in my gums with a soggy paper towel. My historic moment of bravery turned into one pathetic flop. I had proved myself an official wimp.

That sealed the deal. Crying became a strictly private and pretty much non-existent affair… even into my adult years. Any time I felt tears, like a dam about to burst, I forced them to stay where I thought they belonged: hidden deep within my soul for no one else to see.

When I stumbled across these two treasured lines my perspective on crying changed:

You [LORD] have collected all my tears in your bottle
You have recorded each one in your book. {Psalm 56:8}

I couldn’t believe it. Someone else wanted to store my tears! In a far better place than the corners of my heart. Isn’t it cool to think each droplet we’ve shed over our twenty-some years of experiences {including losing our first tooth} has been collected in a precious bottle? Held near and dear to our Father’s heart?

You see, God doesn’t laugh when we cry. He doesn’t tell us to toughen up or turn the page on our tears like they don’t exist. Instead, He picks us up on His lap and wraps us in His loving arms as we pour out our hearts to Him. Our Lord loves for us to let Him in on our deepest felt emotions.

Whatever your tears are about right now–unanswered prayers… unmet promises… uncertainties of life–they are seen and saved by the One who comforts and cares for our every need. If you’re a tear hoarder, may I encourage you? Open the floodgate of your heart and release your tears, sit quietly with the Lord and… listen. Journal. Or take a walk and give your tears to Him. His bottle is open and ready to catch every single one.

Something Else…

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ…who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” {2 Corinthians 1:3-4}

Nothing lifts Ali’s mood in the winter months like getting cozy in her favorite coffee shop with a good book and grande skinny latte…extra hot. Hang out with Ali at www.alismithonline.com.

Check in with Ali over at She Seeks.

Julianna checks in this week about Nicki’s {inspirational entry}.

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