She reads it, paper in hand, with a conviction I can feel in my bones: We don't have to have this life all figured out. We don't have to not mess up. We don't have to know how to get through a day without help. In fact, we can not know a thing about what the next step is and make that darn courageous step anyway. We can do that brave thing. We are made to be brave, you know. I watch my friend, the desire, the reaching for more. It is a good thing, you know - this ache to search for the hidden coin. We know it's there.  Our souls crave to be reminded we are made. I remember a series I wrote a couple of years ago. It was a series about living in the conviction that we are made by God. That's it. That was the point. Just the reality that we are made grants us a surrendering to the Maker. If I think I make myself, then I search for the instruction booklet for how to make a day productive, how to make a life be awesome.

I can fool my own self: If I think my life looks beautiful, I just might be able to convince myself, and everyone around me, that it is.

I look for the worth of my life in how it looks rather than what it is: a creation, a designed miracle by the only one Maker. We are lucky that the heart, if we listen closely enough, is too wise to be fooled. It knows by whom it is made. So it cries out. A whisper. A restless tug. It is the lonesome child wanting to be noticed for what it is. I am created. I am made. I am here. You are made, you know. That's it. We are made. So, if this is true, if there is a Maker who crafted us, then it is to Him we look for instruction for a moment, a day, a life. How to live this life is written within us - the whispers of our Maker saying I have made the path before you. Walk in it. To the right. To the left. So come on now, victorious warriors. Rise and know you are worthy. Rise, and know you do not carry the legacy of past generations - their lies, their wounds, their pride. You are new.

You can break ties with anything that slows you down, prevents you from hearing your Maker's voice.

He gives you armor, his truth, his word, his faith, his righteousness, his Spirit. He gives you a sword to go forward, with him, into the fields of glory where you are small, but you are amazing. You are weak, but you are mighty. You are unsure, but you are confident in the Maker who leads you.

God is strong, and he wants you strong. So take everything the Master has set out for you, well-made weapons of the best materials. And put them to use so you will be able to stand up to everything the Devil throws your way. This is no afternoon athletic contest that we’ll walk away from and forget about in a couple of hours. This is for keeps, a life-or-death fight to the finish against the Devil and all his angels.

Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out (Ephesians 6:10-18).

Let's go Home. Today, let's be Home.

Let's pick up our shields and our armor and our swords and cut ties with the past that distracts us from seeing beauty right now.

Quit believing the generational lies that you are not worthy, you are not beautiful, you are not good enough, you are forgotten or you are too much. Empty yourself of the lies and let your Maker replace them with goodness and light and truth and new things.Yes, there are new things he wants to give you. And it is to him we run and go forth and seek, with full, open hearts.

Shed the old ways now, daughter.

Shun the doubts and questions and restless wondering. You are given a voice. You are given a life to heed the voice of  your King. Cling to that voice. Cling to your Maker's robes. It is the hem of his garment you recognize. It is the sound of his voice you know.Claim this life. Yes? Let's go.

What are the old ties to the past you want to break? How can I join you and pray?