"CLOTHE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF"....Bumper Stickers that WALK

Does your bumper sticker WALK? Can I get a witness? Are you walking out the words you drive? Bumper stickers are written for an audience, and oh that some would be reminded that the world IS watching. YOU know exactly what I mean. Sometimes that audience is of ONE on an early morning drive, or to the lucky guy or girl who is stuck in its presence in the middle of rush hour. Other times, it can be viewed by a multitude in a day's work. When you leave your house as early as I do, you are quite aware that bumper stickers TALK...but the question remains, "Does your bumper sticker WALK?" CLOTHE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF..."I hear you LORD!" I drive a blue R with an open invitation, and as an advocate for Compassion International, I drive another that reads, "Sponsor a Child." Revolution Church is a part of me, just as much as the kids I sponsor living oceans away. That R leaves me open to criticism, accountability, persecution, truth in love etc...and I welcome it FOR THE JOY SET BEFORE ME. It carries with it stories of restoration, many harvests, difficult seasons of planting with little growth visible to the eye, waiting rooms, answered prayers, mission work that can only be described as both wonderful and disturbing, community groups, outreach opportunities, acts of faith, making memories one cup at a time, standing in awe, serving as a spiritual mother to little loves, investing in women of all ages, and serving a Numbers Don't Add Up God. We don't pray small prayers and we make big asks of ourselves and of YOU when you sign on to be a part of what God is doing at Revolution. As for Compassion, I choose to be a voice for the littlest and the least...for theirs is the Kingdom. If you don't see it in my WALK, in how I love, and what I choose to speak about or speak up for... I'm already dead to you. There's no life in me if my light doesn't go for a WALK. "Send Me!" Isaiah 6:8 I've recently committed to walking 7 times daily around the back part of my community no matter morning, day, or night. In sunshine, rain...and dare I say snow? It's biblical, it saves money, reserves space in my gym for others, and it's like a second wind in my day. Right now my heart REQUIRES this walk. No details necessary, but I don't want to come home at night and I've contemplated moving, tearing up before I even arrive...but the Spirit says "Trust Me" when I even speak those words, never allowing me to finish the sentence... so I know in due time He will restore what is broken. Just a REALLY hard storm...and it's still raining. Don't ask me why. I truly don't know why. I'm also preparing to sign one last teaching contract and head off on mission with the World Race..11 different countries, on new soils for 11 months. I pray about dating and adoption, my sister's future in Georgia, the needs of my friends and their families etc. My word to you should carry weight when I tell you I will pray. I'm not gonna lie, when I tell you just how much prayer warriors often stand out, but personally, I prefer my IN to stand OUT. For me it is the IN that stands out in every relationship. Laugh if you want, but Christian's can appear Schizophrenic (hello just read one of my journals...nuff said), at times emotional, not as fools because a fool is God-less, but let's just say it can be like someone turned on a light and those who don't have the eyes to recognize it as such are in the background clapping. Listen carefully and you will hear them. No, not as an act of applause, but like the Clapper I had in college. Yes, I Brooke Renee Leffelman had colorful florescent lights on/above my futon...that would obey my every clap. My roommates can attest to this sad yet comical truth. Christians can be seen with hands raised in surrender, palms open in, "Bless me, fill me, empty me" position, prostrate in front of an altar, or even a rug in their own one bedroom apartment. Their love isn't supposed to make sense TO the world...but it should be active nonetheless. So what does that look like to you? CLOTHE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF...a bumper sticker that TALKED to me on my walk tonight. Are you WALKING this message? An added blessing, if I'm not mistaken as to it's owner. I believe it belongs to my best friend's husband. ...and if so, I am a witness to his walk, a proud friend seeing him use his gifts to glorify his portion. CYNY is an amazing organization that donates clothing to those in need with every purchase, much like Toms. Just a bunch of words huddled together, that lie dormant on paper, but bring life to many when you take them for a WALK. James Barnett reminds us that, "Neighbors can be further than just next door." ...and I couldn't agree more. Never met a stranger! Why THAT bumper sticker? I mean really, an entire blog post out of THAT? Yup! CLOTHE...ready for the definition? It's a difficult concept, and I'm not sure it is clear enough...but here it goes! 1. to dress; attire. 2. to provide with clothing. 3. to cover with or as with clothing. I know what this looks like in MY life...but what about yours? It is clothed differently with every new season, and often redefined. Tonight as I drove into my community I was sorely disappointed to find that ALL garage parking was taken, so I parked on the street. After my walk I noticed spots had opened up, but finding the appointment in the disappointment I was reminded that in choosing not to move my car, another neighbor could or would park there instead. Who knows? Maybe even my best friend would find her way to a cozy morning without iced over windows. Part of me hopes God doesn't ask this of me every day as it is getting stinkin cold out there...but blessed I will obey. Apparently Georgia doesn't need De-icer and windshield scrapers because it took me not one but four shopping trips to find them. Not even every Walmart carried them. I'm sorry, but below 30 still results in frozen no matter where you are on the map. So...I chose to clothe and face the cold. Venting...and done! It is my BOTTOM love language and yet I am gifted in clothing my neighbor in the tangible. Sometimes a love not understood. I love to bless others with the happenings from my kitchen, and because my TOP love language is quality time that will sometimes show up in the absence of a friend, resulting in an "I thought of you" gift just because. While most would wait for a milestone moment or holiday to bless, I celebrate those in my life year-round and love ON PURPOSE, with the realization that tomorrow isn't promised..at times a love misunderstood. But in this season of my life, God asks that I not clothe my neighbor in the tangible but in what doesn't carry an expiration date....trusting Him with that as my only sword against the one after my heart. Prayer WALKS. So I WALK and clothe. ...still blessing a few with something from the kitchen from time to time. In the Bible when it came to clothing, the BEST was always given away. What if you chose to do the same? What if instead of donating the tattered and torn, you chose the tagged and adored? In Matthew 6:26 we are reminded that the birds don't worry about how they will be clothed. You can clothe your neighbor by listening beneath the "Fine" from the lips of a coworker or friend, respecting boundaries in distance and praying for restoration, giving what you have, sharing what you've lived and learned, singing for your portion, capturing special moments on camera by playing a behind the scenes role in another's story, and even writing a blog to speak truth. The TRUTH is that I have failed and will fail again to WALK the bumper sticker of CLOTHE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF. ...and you have too. BUT God... Why, "But God?" I was clothed with the blood of Jesus and made clean. There is no greater clothing. So every attempt outside of that... incomparable. A love so untouchable that I will miss the mark even at reflecting His love. I could walk my neighbor's dog, bring them dinner every Wednesday, watch their kids for date night every Friday...and still my clothing would be found as filthy rags. So with eyes wide and heart open, I listen to how I can best clothe my neighbor. Are you? Sometimes clothing your neighbor is MORE OF YOU just being there, and at others it can be found in honoring space and their desire for LESS OF YOU. Not easy to live but worth it. I miss her more than I have words for and I'm praying for a Christmas Miracle having God restore us. Praying she finds me worth it and praying I hear from her before Christmas...but I will pray no less after. Nobody wants to hear the unspoken, "I want less of you in my life" from someone they love, but if a season of less of me is needed for God to do MORE of a work in their life having them turn inward...then blessed I will obey. I am FOR growth no matter the cost to myself. I'm right here and I don't walk out when it starts to rain. True friends ride out the storms never losing sight of what matters most. "The Struggle IS Part Of The Story." LOVE listens...and always extends grace,believing in growth and restoration. I do. Those who WANT to be a part of what God is doing in you, who WANT you to be a part of their story, milestones and memory making, getting in their pictures, praying through their storms, and glorifying God in friendship...always will be, whether returning from a season away, regaining their trust, or sticking it out when it starts to rain. If you hear nothing, hear this. At 31 I can say that with full confidence enveloped by those who do. You needn't pray for the WANT to be born...it just is. Those who are ALREADY clothed can WALK this bumper sticker...stumble of course, but get up again and again. Clothed in His BEST, suited up with the armor of Ephesians 6...I clothe. Allow Hebrews 4:12 to be your reminder that you are already EXPOSED...so take this bumper sticker for a WALK and clothe. Are you afraid of how it might speak to you? Of being ill-equipped? LOVE ANYWAY! And Proverbs 27:2 your clothing... writing it in a journal instead, revisiting it as a witness to God's story in YOU. THAT is who you are...A WITNESS. Own it! CLOTHE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF..."I hear you LORD!"

TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED...May I have this dance? Another chance, perhaps?

Sweaty palms and anxious hearts, for $5,000,000 I ask you, "What is the day following today?" Some of you rapidly respond without hesitation in full confidence, "Monday!" The overachievers are doing their calculations and have arrived presenting their findings with, "December 9th." Still others, have begun to 'google it' (as that is now a commonly accepted verb) and would like to phone a friend just to be sure. Allow me to jog your memory a bit. "The sun will come up _____." If you could call up Annie she'd tell you that the day following today is TOMORROW. Why the lesson? Well, when that plane lands in your life, you too will realize that tomorrow isn't promised. My advice, live out this truth so that your joy may be complete and you will not be found lacking. Live it out in your family, with your friends, your husband, kids, co-workers, people you meet on the street etc. Live it or choose to survive it...when it hits you square in the face. It truly is a choice someone in the world is making with every breath. I pray that when I exhale it is with greater wisdom than the last time I successfully performed that task. An occurrence so natural that it is overlooked with gratitude at INHALE squandered elsewhere....until you learn what wheezing is, emphysema, intubation etc. As I write, a friend of mine has a sister learning this lesson the hard way. And with my every breath I am praying that she gets the chance to live this lesson out loud one day breathing on her own, but never again unaware of the Author and Perfecter of her faith. Praying sweet sister, praying still. TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED! Exclamation not without purpose. A few months back I attended a family wedding. I was told that everyone was going to be there and it was important not only to celebrate my cousin, but also because it was uncertain how much longer my grandpa would be around. When it comes to grandparents I honestly got the shaft when I try to recall memories of them and with them. My grandma was my best friend and we called each other, "Dolly." Her husband was selectively interested in me. On the other side, my grandma always seemed angry about something, and her husband giving "the look" but laughing often...bringing a sense of balance to the home. Always closer to him than her, but wondering why I still felt something missing. I NEVER felt known. I loved/love all four. The only person who ever knew me was my my Mom's mom. Simply Tom's daughter to the others. Some would say there were just too many grandkids, but I think what my pastor says applies, "Your past does not excuse you but it explains you." Numbers are not an excuse for not investing well, but an explanation. In fact, it is numbers in the form of money that can divide a family effortlessly. A will can take precious people out of your wedding photos in a heartbeat without explanation. Something neither I, nor my family will ever fully understand. Dirty laundry? Nope, just telling YOUR story and happen to live a few details myself. Looking at my grandpa I knew my name would soon be forgotten and tomorrow wasn't promised. So the music began to play and I asked him to dance. At the close of the song I kissed him on the cheek and said, "I love you Grandpa," taking him back to his seat. He didn't know who I was that night. Not because of the dementia but distance in numbers of miles and kids. Is it time for you to dance? TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED! Exclamation not without purpose. I rarely forget to say, "I love you," and there's a story behind that. In seventh grade, Cancer had turned my grandma, my Dolly into a skeleton. Emaciated, veins protruding, and black and blue all over. I will never forget that night as I headed off to dance class. "Bye Dolly" was all I could muster up in the moment...and "I love you" never again spoken. Cancer took my grandma while I danced. What I didn't know then, and later learned was that not all had this same bond. I remember climbing onto my mom's lap saying, "I don't want them to put her in the ground." I knew nothing of Heaven back then...too young I suppose. You never know who won't be at the table tomorrow. Lavish "I love you" in the present. Does your "I love you" carry the weight of regret? TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED! Exclamation not without purpose. I used to go on prayer drives late at night, and at times I still do...but I've recently learned the beauty of walking in expectation and face planted praying in my own home. What is it in your life that you need to Jericho? What is it that you are asking God to claim victory over? What is it that calls you to walk in obedience? What is it that you need to give thanks for in advance before having eyes to see? I know mine. I spend a portion of my day on her. Often times saying out loud, "Daddy remind me who's praying too?" When you're exhausted in your own prayers and swimming in your own tears, you need that reminder. Tomorrow isn't promised so I ask God to fight my battles for me..and we just talk. Only God can wake up a loved one to truth, but you can plant it in prayer. Only God can move mountains, but prayer can move God. How are you spending your today? Is it time to take a walk? TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED! Exclamation not without purpose. Have you learned the art and joy of celebration? I'm not talking about birthdays or Christmas, Valentine's Day, or milestone moments. I'm talking about celebrating people in your life daily. Are you celebrating the victories in the lives of those you love? Victories over addiction, debt, unhealthy relationships etc. Can you be sincerely happy for the accomplishments of others even on your off days? Are you empowering their day exhaling wisdom absorbed in moments on empty? It doesn't have to involve monetary means, ya know. Do you send a quick message to encourage, pray for, challenge, and inspire? Do YOU have people in your life who do? The ones who ask about the things that weigh on your heart when others conclude that you're fine. I don't do fine. If I ask you how you are I'm genuinely interested in your heart-level response and I don't ask if I haven't the time to listen. Who do you need to celebrate? TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED! Exclamation not without purpose. I don't ever want to have too many dollars that I forget from where they came. So far it's looking like I'm safe on that one. After blessing a sweet sister of mine, I wrote, "LOVE does this..so thank LOVE and forget our names, those who step in at the chance to fail once again at reflecting LOVE unmatched." I meant it. Consider it an honor to have that chance to strive and fail, not even coming close to His reflection in the way you love. Love anyway! Are you living for retirement or with the knowledge that your return is not on this soil? Are you front-end loaded or back-end loaded in the way you live your todays? TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED! Exclamation not without purpose. Christmas is around the corner as I write. Who do you need to forgive? It matters to hear those words spoken. Matthew 5:23-24 reminds you to GO. I'm not gonna lie, when I became a Christian (a follower of Christ) I also became a sponge. There was Christmas and Easter, Jesus and God...but the connections between I knew not. I can't dish out what I don't carry, having that be a decision made on the cross...so I forgive instantly. 1 John 4:7-21 is a great reminder of what LOVE should look like. Do you need a lesson in love, or will you allow LOVE to teach you? As many often hear me say, you are a steward of time, money, and even people in your path FOR A SEASON. Don't wait for the lesson. Live instead, with, "May I have this dance" on your lips." Another chance, perhaps?" Give hilariously, love extravagantly, and live to inhale gratitude and exhale wisdom. TOMORROW ISN'T PROMISED. Don't fall asleep till you WAKE UP.

MILEAGE THAT MATTERS...***CHECK ENGINE***

How long is YOUR commute? What percentage of YOUR day has you mobile? Do YOUR feet carry YOU, or do you carry YOUR feet? Rolling chair or stationary? ...and your wheels 2,4,10,or 18? When are YOU spent and on what did YOU spend? Who gets the best part of YOUR day, YOU at YOUR best? Tell me about your mileage, does it work YOU or do YOU work it? Is that pesky little light on again? The one that reads, "CHECK ENGINE." ...and your odometer is it set with numbers in view or percent? Do you even know how long you have till EMPTY? Texting again? Maybe your brain doesn't function like mine, that being all over the place and random, but let me ask you this, do YOU make your mileage count? Does it work for YOU? ONE can make a difference...ONE can leave a mark. I can choose to go into work anywhere from 5:30 to 7:30. After 7:30, my contract kind of makes the choice for me. Some days I drive in complete silence but 98% of the time I drive with one song playing on REPEAT in the background as I pray...as I talk to my Daddy in Heaven, my Father, the creator of the Universe. I have His full attention..wrap your mind around that one. Ever picture how small you are on a globe with winding roads, oceans, mountains, and slums? I do. "Fly" plays as I tithe...the first of my day to Him. My best friend wrote it, and it has empowered my every day. I know the story behind it, but not my story to tell. I know how she was feeling because I ask those things and listen to her heart. My circumstances determine how I listen and how I pray...whether I do all the talking as it plays or in silence, "Spirit have your way in me" is the cry of my heart. ...and sometimes on days like today when I put my car in park synchronized breathing happens and it gives me chills at the close of the song. Some people are all talk, looking for reward or acknowledgment of some sort...not this girl. My favorite artist hands down..beautiful inside and out. Always the IN that stands out. My day empowered like grace. The lyrics within, my every desire found...MY story, yet not one word did I write. Talented an understatement. Just listen as I type out the blueprint of a daughter's heart..not word for word but in part. Hebrews 12:1-3...He alone is life! "Father let me gaze on you, when my heart has not the words. When a burden falls on me, you're the one I want to see." "Father let me cling to you, when worry rears it's ugly head." "Let your peace within me DWELL." "Father let me cry to you, when my sin entangles me" "I find mercy when I'm at your feet." "Father let me rest in you. EVERY MORNING seek your face!" "Like a brilliant beaming light. Burn in me your holy flame. Ignite in me your holy flame Oh, burn in me your holy flame." "Father let me sing to you, a song that echos through the storm. Like incense may it rise above, an offering before your throne." "Father let me fly to you, when my breath on Earth is done. Wrap me in your loving arms. The fight is fought, the race is won." So we talk, my God and I. I ask Him to fix my eyes on Him..and leave me speechless. Every worry laid out before Him, acknowledging who goes before me. His peace it takes up residence in me, like manna to return for every tomorrow. Resting in who I seek...a brilliant beaming light desiring to radiate my giddy in Him to all who cross my path, He burns... a passionate flame, a jealous fire none can snuff out. Mercy found in purposeful posture...raised hands, bowed head cannot touch THIS rawness. Pain in your knees as you bend does not carry the same surrender of "Envelop me" face flat swimming in murky waters fallen from flesh. Facing every storm no matter how the gage may read, I offer my life like a decision made long ago...and ask that God help me TO FINISH STRONG. Depressing? Nope, refreshing! I walk into my classroom and I play "Beautiful Feet" (Isaiah 52:7) looking out at the fields (each desk playing a vital role in the design of 3 wings) and sometimes I work in silence and sometimes I pray for each life before warm bodies arrive. My mileage...now on foot. The song empowers my day as I am reminded once again why I must live ON PURPOSE and FINISH STRONG. I turn on my CD player and the birds play reminding me not to worry (Matthew 6:26) AND now looking ahead to the places I will be carried my plane on foot, and who knows how many homemade vehicles on the World Race...I smile at the mileage. 11 months 11 countries...leaving all behind. Wondering if I will serve in community or also with my husband by my side. Eager to arrive but fully present. And when I return without contract, will I dive head first, hands like a steeple into writing, photography, work for Compassion International, or find my way back to a soil known...one thing for sure, always a teacher of someone and a student in unison. At the end of the day, I'm thankful for my commute, the songs that empower, and for the receiving end of my tithe. Destination determined...I drive for the journey and make my mileage count. A few months back, a favorite book of poetry placed in my treasure chest, and haven't stopped writing since...GRATEFUL to the GIVER living in my heart and home. Correction, HOME. ***CHECK ENGINE***

JOY STEALER....FOR THE JOY SET BEFORE ME I WILL....

What would you DO? What would you endure for the joy set before you? What storm would you face? How far would you go? ...and would you say, "Pick me" if the ugly outweighed the beauty, at first sight? Hebrews 12:2 says, " Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who FOR THE JOY SET BEFORE HIM endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Jesus would have no other STEAL HIS JOY. Who am I? No, who are we to settle for less? The AUTHOR and PERFECTER of our faith is asking you to ponder this question not just today but every tomorrow to come. Tomorrow isn't promised. If you take nothing with you take that truth, because I strive to live it's weight. Are you living ON PURPOSE or surviving as if it were by mere accident? If the doctor had to diagnose one in your family tomorrow, would you say, "Pick me!" If your best friend needed a kidney tomorrow, would you say, "It's yours TODAY!" I would. Live by example. Not mine, but His alone. If a co-worker, family member, stranger, or friend were going to attempt to shred your character right down to your faith verbally, would you welcome it? Many who know me to the core know that because of ONE movie (Beyond Borders) and the things I've seen on mission it is extremely rare that I take any medicine to numb myself from FEELING. Think about how far we will go not to have to FEEL. I can tell you this much is true of me. He IS the AUTHOR and I get to be reminded day in and day out that He is also the PERFECTER. Think about it. He knows you can't get there by yourself, so in His kindness He drives you and He will use the ugliest vehicles of pain and suffering to get you there. I'm suffering even as I write, but willingly for the joy set before me...restoration of an irreplaceable friendship to a new level of beauty. He will use EVERYTHING to get you to the sweet spot of HOME in Him. To get you to the place in your faith where you say, "If I perish, I perish," like your sister Esther. In August of 2014 I was planning on starting the paperwork for adopting a baby girl but God knew there were TWO things that would place that in another season of prayer and thus returning later to the paperwork part of the journey. MARRIAGE AND MISSIONS. You see, years ago I was working as an advocate for Compassion International at the Gwinnett Arena for a Catalyst event when a young woman walked up to my table, told me she was leaving on the World Race and that I should go with her. I listened to a few details and decided to pray about it. Years later I met an incredible man of God who inspired me and motivated me in so many ways. Paul Iwanaga was my second confirmation that I was to one day go, as he had already gone before me...returning to tell the stories of his travels. While doing life with a young woman in my small group the other night she told me she was considering doing the World Race. You don't make the mistake of telling me about what God has in mind unless you want to see your TRY turn into DO. So now I remind her that she is leaving in September. She (not named so as to not steal her joy) was my third confirmation. While doing dishes with my brother-in-law yesterday out of the blue he said, "So you're about due for another big trip aren't you?" an added bonus from God with Kevin Hakes just for laughs :) Then God got me up at 2am this morning with World Race heavy on my heart and my excuses in full throttle, while I thought I was only up to have my face planted on my prayer rug fighting for restoration for my best friend and I. He wanted BOTH for me. If you aren't wearing a prayer path in your carpet, on a rug, around a space you believe He has claimed for you, or in the woods somewhere etc...you are missing out on joy only found in those places. My place of prayer often my car on long drives, short drives, and purposeful prayer drives with no destination but empty to overflowing. When I decided to move to Cherokee County the first confirmation came while I was sitting in church the day before my birthday listening to a message, the second was having my friend Jodi Lynch stop mid-sentence with a friend and say, "So when are you thinking you might look for a job up here and move here?" The third was when I ran into a neighbor I hadn't seen in like 9 months (judging from her belly) and she said, "Weren't you going to take a new job?" Her husband looked at her after looking at my bewildered expression saying, "Wow, that's 5 times this week that the Lord has told you something before the person He's going to bless. He said move...so I did. So in 2015 I will head off for 11 months in 11 countries traveling on mission with brothers and sisters from all over the world. You would say of me that I never meet a stranger. MY JOY, HIS GLORY. For the joy set before me I will say "YES," worry not, fear not, treasure every tomorrow, endure___. My house will go on the market, my car will be paid off and for sale, all unnecessary furniture sold, school loan deferred, and the craziest thing I am at peace with is that I will not sign another contract with my employer that May. I will carry whatever defines manna, sleep in whatever space is provided, travel to whatever country is on the map, speak whatever words the Spirit asks of me, dance whatever ways elicit smiles, teach whatever the Lord lays on my heart or is handed me...and live 11 months of WHAT EVER comes, "YES." As it reads on the WR website, "There is more to life than empty traditions, routines, and working 9-5." IF God were to suddenly say no to this experience, then I would bless another on their travels and welcome my new circumstances. I could be dating, getting married, pregnant, or even sick when the time comes...but I don't know a better way to live than "Yes____." No matter my soil I am ON MAP ON MISSION...but sometimes you just know it's not an accident that God is able to snuff out every excuse before you even breathe it into place, I have done nothing to disqualify me from marriage, and while waiting to steward my own kids, God calls me to steward yours and theirs marking them for life. I was wired to be others focused and some understand that to a greater depth than others. I was called to teach God's kids about God, but never confined to a classroom...I just strive to live out His Word. How am I doing? Failing and falling every single day..but trusting a better tomorrow to come. If you haven't learned already, one of the most powerful prayers you can pray is FAVOR period. One of the most dangerous ways to live is with "YES" on your lips. BUT if you knew right now that if your circumstances were absent you would lose a blessing, your joy would be stolen, and the more God had in mind for you would go to another...would you welcome your circumstances with joy? Good news! What I just said is 100% true. There is a joy that can only be known if we'll travel these roads. Yes, THIS one you're on right NOW. Jesus would have it no other way. No other could steal His joy. FOR THE JOY SET BEFORE ME I WILL... I challenge you to make a list, exhaust yourself, and finally arrive at the fact that nothing needs to follow those ellipses because it is I WILL that matters most with the promise of JOY that will not be found empty. "Pick ME!"