Where to begin? I guess I'll begin where I started... this morning at the Minneapolis/St. Paul Airport while waiting for my flight to leave. This past week was spent moving my parents from Oklahoma into their new apartment in a Retirement Community in Minnesota and it's been an AWESOME week! Who would've thought that unpacking 190 boxes in 5 days would make for an awesome week? But just being with my parents, my brother Ken, his wife Lisa and their two grown daughters, Sara and Stephie has truly been a blessing for me. It's been a week full of work, laughter, decision-making, difficult conversations but mostly, love.
As most of you know, the past three years have been challenging for me, beginning with my trip to Bosnia, then Christopher's Brain Injury, my Pulmonary Embolism, 17 months of sleeplessness, all culminating in Major Severe Depression. But I've come so far in the past year and for that, I am most grateful! As I was saying to my mom one day last week, a year ago, I wouldn't have had it in me to travel to Minnesota and spend a week working like a dog. But I did it! And now that I am on the other side of that challenging journey, I am beginning to find myself standing back and looking at all that I have learned through the trauma and trials I experienced. What a wonderful thing that is to be able to do!
It's amazing what can be learned from pain. It's not as though that's a new concept... we all know that good things don't come easy, but WOW... things are beginning to fall into place and I find myself opening up and sharing my journey with others more and more these days. And guess what? It's not just me! We all have our struggles, challenges, ghosts in the closet and elephants in the room. Yet it's so easy to feel as though we are alone in our journey. I know that's how I felt many times. But it's simply not true!
Amy Grant teamed up with James Taylor and recently released the first single from Amy's upcoming album, How Mercy Looks From Here. As I listened to it for the first time this morning with tears streaming down my face (yes, at the airport, while sitting at the gate), I just couldn't believe how the lyric to this beautiful song resonated with me. I know that is what Amy's goal was in writing this song, and boy, did she ever succeed! This particular line is the one that really got to me... "You're lovely even with your scars; lovely the way you are; so open up your lovely heart and don't try so hard." And isn't that exactly what we do? We try and try and try to find love, to be loved and accepted, to be who we think everyone wants us to be. But the reality is that we are lovely just the way we are; scars and all.
Here is the link to the video of the song and below the link is the lyric. Try to wrap your arms around this concept and embrace it; make it your daily mantra and live your life to the fullest, knowing that you are lovely as you are and that you don't need to try so hard!
Amy Grant w/James Taylor
Don't Try So Hard from the album, How Mercy Looks From Here
"Another Monday comes and I just wanna breathe, 'cause it's a long, long week for someone wired to please. I keep taking my aim, pushing it higher; wanna shine bright, even brighter now. Wish I could tell myself...
Don't try so hard, God gives you grace and you can't earn it. Don't think that you're not worth it because you are. He gave you His love and He's not leaving. Gave you His Son so you'd believe it. You're lovely even with your scars; don't try so hard.
Do you remember how the summers felt when we were kids? Ah, we didn't think much about it, we just lived; taking our time, beautiful leisure. When did we start, trying to measure up when all of this time, love has been trying to tell us...
Don't try so hard, God gives you grace, you can't earn it; stop thinking you're not worth it, because you are, He gave you His love and He's not leaving. Gave you His Son so you'd believe it. YOU'RE LOVELY EVEN WITH YOUR SCARS; LOVELY THE WAY YOU ARE; SO OPEN UP YOUR LOVELY HEART AND DON'T TRY SO HARD."
