How to Use "The Lust Dare"
Day #25: Whatever is
Lovely
"Every good
gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of
lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning." -James
1:17
I used that above verse before,
but I find it very helpful to today’s dare. In the passage in Philippians,
after thinking about that which is true, noble, just, and pure, we are called
to think on that which is lovely. Well, there is an interesting concept. One
you may have heard of before in the musical Sound
of Music, where Julia Andrews sings:
“When the dog bites, when the bee stings, when I’m feeling bad; I
simply remember my favorite things, and then I don’t feel so bad.”
Who knew that concept was
biblical? Well, it is. The Greek word used for ‘lovely’ is only used once in
the entire Bible, and it means something that is acceptable and pleasing. I
love that it signifies that which is pleasing. A couple nights ago, I was
thinking on some things that I find very pleasing. Things that just
always make me smile or have some special meaning or make my heart beat a
little faster because it is just that wonderful. So I decided to make a
list....
1. Rose Petals
I love roses, and have multiple bushes in my yard that I
have been tending for a few years now and love to see more and more blooms on
every spring and summer. I especially love the petals. When the wild rose bush
gets so full that I have to prune multiple of the flowers, I will take the
petals, and throw them up in the air. The wind will grab them, and they will
fall in graceful handfuls down to the ground, be scattered across the grass, or
land on my hair and shoulders. When I have played with them for a while, I will
pick them up and press them between pages of a thick book to dry. A couple
weeks later I will flutter the pages upside down so the petals once again
flutter gracefully to the floor before I put them away in a container to enjoy
later or use for making cards.
2. Stars
Many
times we will arrive home from a long drive at night and I will hop out of the
van only to look up and see that is a clear night and that there are stars
everywhere. The whole family will have gone inside, removed their warm
garments, and have headed to bed, and I will still be outside held captive by
the beauties of the skies. On a night like that, I go and lay in the grass on
my back and just stare up with my heart so full I can hardly breathe. My soul
cries out "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above
proclaims his handiwork!" (Psalm 19:1) and I naturally break into
song. Usually it is the song by Rich Mullins that starts with the lines "Sometimes
the night is beautiful, sometimes the sky seems so far away. Sometimes it seems
to stoop so close, you could touch it but your heart would break." On
a night where it is clear, it is like pulling teeth to get me to come
inside.3. Endearments Some people find endearments corny or sappy. And I can understand that. I mean, I was never for all that "sweetie-pie" or "munchkin-cakes" thing. But from the time I was little, my father only really used my middle name when he was being sweet, and thus it was an endearment to me. I always loved endearments that seemed, real. There are some people who call everyone darling, or dear, or sweetheart, and say it in a rather flippant way, so that it loses its meaning. But there are also those who use endearments frequently, but it is as real the 7th time they use it as it was the first. The latter are wonderful people. I loved it in films not when married couples had pet names for each other, but when they used endearments with a softening of the voice that indicated affection and made the hearer smile.
4. Songs before Bed When I was a tiny child, my parents would sing to me for hours to try to get me to go to sleep. (I was a demanding young child) When I got older, my parents had a special song just for me that they would sing to me before bed. And a little older than that, my Dad had this fun little song thing he did where he would make up these rhymes in song, and I loved them so much I didn't realize till I was much older how poor he was at rhyming. When I am caring for an infant that is tired, I naturally start singing to them. When I lay little ones down at night, I always want to sing to them. It seems as natural as breathing to me to sing to a small child before they go to bed. Not put on music as they go to sleep, but sing to them.
5. Zoombinis. For those of you who know what this is, don't laugh. Zoombinis is such a nostalgic and wonderful computer game for me. I played it with some friends of mine when I was no more than 5 years old, and it really is a very good fit for me in games. I always loved creating the little creatures with different attributes, taking them on adventures, feeling like I was their protector and care giver, and using my brain quite a bit in some of the puzzles to try to win without losing any little Zoombinis. In the original game, there was this adorable and pathetic little story about how the little creatures had been enslaved and mistreated, and for many small children with younger siblings, it appealed strongly to naturally engrained protective instincts.
6. Brown Eyes I have received a lot of flack for this one over the years. On my "bonus" list for a guy, I hoped that he would have brown eyes. My Mom would say "Hannah, you are going to meet the perfect guy and he is going to love and cherish you and your family and agree with every single one of your deepest set values and desires, but he is going to have blue eyes. Then what will you do? Are you just not going to marry him because he has blue eyes?" That is why it was on my "bonus" list and not my "non-negotiable" list. But I really, absolutely, love brown eyes. I wrote a story once where the protagonist was fashioned after me, and these were her thoughts on brown eyes.
"Let me explain something right now. Brown eyes are amazing. I mean, simply beautiful. The first man must have had brown eyes; thus God’s statement “And it was good.” And Eve probably had brown eyes too. When Adam saw those deep brown eyes set behind dark lashes, not to mention other parts of her body, it’s no wonder he said “Whoa, man!” Of course that is now translated as “Woman,” but I think my point is clear. You may think I’m crazy, but I am totally serious. I grew up in a family of 16 children, and every single one of them has blue eyes. Both of my parents have blue eyes, my grandparents have blue eyes, all my aunts and uncles, and even cousins all had blue eyes. So whenever I saw brown eyes it was like I was looking into another world. And I loved it! If someone had brown eyes, they automatically won a couple points in my book."
Oh, and on a final note, I was very blessed by God in that the wonderful man he gave me has amazing brown eyes.
7. Hershey's Chocolate Sure, there are many different kinds of Hershey's chocolate, but I really love the plain original bar. Especially if it has been in the freezer for a little bit. When eating S'mores, I would rather skip the marshmallow most of the them and just have a nice amount of Hershey snuggled between two graham crackers. When there were leftover S'more ingredients, I would smuggle away the chocolate and eat it little piece by piece when I wanted a pick me up. I mean, how awesome is a chocolate bar that is already split into tiny delightful pieces so you can(if you choose to) exercise self-control?!
8. God's Word Last, but not least. I realized the other day how big the Bible was, and it made me really happy! It is just so chock full, that you could read it a million times and never get bored of it or run out of information. It is like a dictionary in that it is so full and big and relevant to everything, like a novel in that there are amazing plot twists and humor scattered throughout, like a book of poems because of its eloquence and its Psalms, and like a love letter in that the whole thing is the story of Him who loves and desires after us. You could place it in any section of a bookstore from adventure, to reference, to paranormal romance. (what else would you call the Nephilim or the fact that an immortal being is the bridegroom of the people of the church?) It covers all subjects, and is way more relevant to current day life than many would want you to believe. I mean Job even talked about his chiropractor! "I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: he hath also taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces." -Job 16:12 No, just kidding. But truly, the Bible does have something to say about everything. And we are also given the Holy Spirit to help us interpret it to our every day experience. I am so blessed to have such an incredible gift at my immediate disposal, and it definitely is amongst my list of favorite things.
God had more in mind than a command when He said to think on that which is lovely. In His wisdom, He knew that in obeying Him we would have joyful spirits and be able to better see the blessings that He has so richly given.
“O
taste and see that the Lord is good!” –Psalm 34:8a
Today’s Dare
Today’s Dare is very
simple: make a list of your favorite things. Have fun on this one and just
enjoy thinking on that which is lovely and pleasing!
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The Lust Dare: Day #29
The Lust Dare: Day #30
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