I\u2019m totally distracted in church.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Levi (who recently learned to walk) is out of his seat. Attempting to hold his attention and keep him from storming the stage, his Mother breaks the seal of a small shiny bag. It\u2019s crackers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I\u2019m jealous.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m hungry. But not for food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I hunger to experience the world through the eyes of a beloved child. Thirsty for the day when climbing the ladder of our backyard raft was the hardest thing. I remember it like yesterday. Curling toes over a raw edge platform. Hands holding on for dear life. Swarming minnows below warning me off like sharks. I\u2019d never felt the earth move so violently. All the brave country boys leaping off the sides, waves pushing sideways and forward like a bitty bobber on high seas. Up there so long, I became a target of attention. All I wanted was to climb down the rungs, but more than that, I feared a future of having never jumped. It felt safer feeding myself to the sharks. The height plunged me deeper than I\u2019d ever gone. Thick, slurping mud sucked me under. Kicking wildly for the surface, I came up a little bit boulder.<\/p>\n\n\n\n But today\u2019s climb is harder to make. Our hearts weary of holding fast. We wrestle the powers and rulers of a darkness impossible to see. And the whole earth is shaking violently. The mud feels too heavy today and we\u2019re kicking wildly to breathe again. Starving for a world healed of disease\u2014the sickness of hatred, the fever of greed, the pain of oppression, the cancer of lies for which death and resurrection be our only cure.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n All around us the bombs of innuendo, suspicion, and propaganda are dropping. Dissension spreads like west coast fires. Despite fear and anxiety burning in our streets\u2014faith rings softly underneath. And this is our moment.<\/em> While all the world is watching; we are the ones.<\/em> The very ones God pulled out of the grave to pull others up to the surface of courage and confidence and hope\u2014<\/strong>because we don\u2019t sink in fear\u2014we walk by faith!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Blessed is your hunger and thirst for righteousness, your filling is assured.<\/em> In the midst of your darkest mourning, your comfort is confirmed.<\/em> The merciful\u2014gain mercy still.<\/em> Peacemakers, you never march alone.<\/em> Bullied for trusting and believing\u2014heaven is built for you.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n Stomping his foot to an upbeat band, Levi tries to jump but still lacks the strength in his legs to leave the ground. Swinging hips, running in a circle\u2014his little hand holds tight to the last bite. Smiling at the scene, our inspiration turns to one another, and back at Levi, and the bounce of unrestrained praise is rocking the place. And I can\u2019t stop feeling like we all<\/em> want out of our seats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We need to whirl like Levi. Roar pure joy with drums, guitars, and keys. Storm the presence of the Lord like a jubilant child. For He is yours and you are His and our hearts drink no greater joy than this!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n The bible says danger and loss should come as no shock to the children of God. In fact, threat is foreseeable.<\/em> In the sludge of hardship, we know<\/em> Salvation. On the waves of uncertainty, we rest<\/em> on Eternity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Safety won\u2019t be found in stepping down or running away, but bravely, boldly we obey. Jesus<\/em>\u2014our resurrection refuge and legions-of-angels strength. The unbreakable sealing of the Spirit in our hearts\u2014an<\/em> unaffordable guarantee.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" I\u2019m totally distracted in church. Levi (who recently learned to walk) is out of his seat. Attempting to hold his attention and keep him from storming the stage, his Mother breaks the seal of a small shiny bag. It\u2019s crackers. I\u2019m jealous. I\u2019m hungry. But not for food. I hunger to experience the world through […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":143625079,"featured_media":2441,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_seo_schema_type":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[401],"tags":[773157855,154317,20276,773157835,773157870,773157850],"class_list":["post-2439","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faith","tag-bible","tag-bravery","tag-courage","tag-faith","tag-holy-spirit","tag-joy"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pacmrQ-Dl","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":4320,"url":"https:\/\/joalo.org\/?p=4320","url_meta":{"origin":2439,"position":0},"title":"What God Wants From Us","author":"Jo Alo","date":"December 13, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019ve little interest in Christmas. I\u2019m excited about Christ. If it were up to me, we wouldn\u2019t have a tree. But I love the man who carries this stuff up. Meticulously picking each piece out. Humming and singing as he goes. Gathering and printing addresses. Stamping and mailing cheer wishes.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Christmas"","block_context":{"text":"Christmas","link":"https:\/\/joalo.org\/?cat=723213696"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_7049.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_7049.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_7049.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/img_7049.jpg?fit=900%2C1200&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1666,"url":"https:\/\/joalo.org\/?p=1666","url_meta":{"origin":2439,"position":1},"title":"You Take Brave Steps Toward Loving Others When You Count Yourself Worth His Love","author":"Jo Alo","date":"August 3, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"My Mama is not to be trifled with. She and Dad left suburban life broke, but determined to give their kids what they never had. Owning land, breeding animals, and growing fields in wide open spaces was the backdrop for\u00a0a family that sticks together. Before my sister and I arrived\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "identity"","block_context":{"text":"identity","link":"https:\/\/joalo.org\/?cat=10679"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/me-and-martin-nose-to-nose.jpeg?fit=1125%2C753&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/me-and-martin-nose-to-nose.jpeg?fit=1125%2C753&ssl=1&resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/me-and-martin-nose-to-nose.jpeg?fit=1125%2C753&ssl=1&resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/me-and-martin-nose-to-nose.jpeg?fit=1125%2C753&ssl=1&resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/joalo.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/08\/me-and-martin-nose-to-nose.jpeg?fit=1125%2C753&ssl=1&resize=1050%2C600 3x"},"classes":[]},{"id":1880,"url":"https:\/\/joalo.org\/?p=1880","url_meta":{"origin":2439,"position":2},"title":"The One Book That’s Always New","author":"Jo Alo","date":"November 19, 2020","format":false,"excerpt":"I\u2019m so excited. 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Bringing a boatload of baggage into my born-again life. Married six years with two littles, I had a heap of bad behavior to reorganize. Cigarettes and swearing had to go. Movies, TV shows, music\u2014all required revamping. 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