He Must Become Greater

I know a boy.

A boy who likes adventure. A boy who likes activity. A boy who likes the outdoors. Rockclimbing, biking, running, music, camping, trees, wilderness, stars, the ocean, surfing, skateboarding, slacklining, people, sharing Jesus Christ boldly.

I know a boy who adores God's creation & immersing himself in that creation.

I know a girl.

A girl who likes the indoors. A girl who likes comfort. A girl who likes familiarity. Coffee, dance, books, journaling, reading, baking, arts & crafts, chitchat, getting dressed up, blogging, cleaning, begin alone, sharing Jesus Christ reticently.

I know a girl who adores God's creativity & immersing herself in that creativity.

It just so happens that that girl is me. And that I like that boy.The last few days while my boy has been out of town, I have spent some quality time in His green pastures, resting beside His quiet waters & trying to figure out how I can die to myself in this love relationship that I am in. How can I die to myself in all relationships that I am in & truly allow Him to become greater?

As I said before, I am all too good at getting comfortable at where I am in my life. Comfortable in my relationship with Christ, in my routine activities, in my 'almost 20 year old, college girl with no financial responsibility, completely taken care of' body. Why would I not be comfortable? Sidenote://Because I am an alien (First Peter 2), & I do not belong in this world (John 15).

That boy I was talking about, well, God so graciously placed him at a coffee table across from me on January 8th & has given me the opportunity to be in his life. Ryan Trevino severely pulls me out of my comfort zone whether that be by bike riding (I know...) or sharing things about myself that vanquish any hopes I have of maintaining a perfect reputation. Ryan Trevino, without knowing, encourages me to elect God as my foothold that's familiar rather than relying on him, my parents, myself, or my circumstances, & I am so grateful. Ryan Trevino makes me die to my comfort. Correction:// God uses Ryan Trevino to make me die to my comfort & my grasp on familiar things.

This rambling, I guess, is a reminder to myself that I must make this upcoming school year about being uncomfortable. In my discomfort, He will become greater. Now, that doesn't mean I must go rockclimbing all the time, because the Lord knows that won't happen, but maybe I can share Jesus more courageously. Maybe I can share Him with more than just my actions or my "good" behavior. I'm pretty sure St. Francis of Assisi was mistaken when he said, "Share the gospel at all times-- when necessary, use words." He would probably apologize for that if he could. John the Bap said it best, "He must become greater; I must become less."

I hope these strings of unconnected thoughts make some sense...

In the meantime, I will go on thinking happy thoughts about sweaters, hot chocolate (which I don't particularly like, fyi), Christmas lights, mistletoe, & the possibility of snow this winter while Sufjan's Christmas albums play in the background...Am I dreaming with temperatures in the triple digits these days? Maybe.

 














(P.C.: Google Images)