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Look and Consider

Look and Consider

Matthew 6:25-29 ESV

“Therefore, I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you, by being anxious, can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.…”

Wow! Do we ever really take the time out of our day to look at something anymore? And I mean actually, look at it for more than 45 seconds…What about time to consider something? Really sit in awe and think? Oftentimes I DON’T ever take that time, frankly, because somehow I think I don’t have the time. I’m so busy rushing to work, to dinner, to do this, finish that… but do I miss it?

Do I miss this kind instruction from my God that loves me more than I could ever begin to understand…like a Dad showing his baby girl beautiful new things in a garden that He just knows she will especially love…Look, Gracie, look at this, come consider this over here, come closer!

We see the beauty in the birds of the air, in the lilies of the field; we see they have all that they need. God’s creation takes our breath away almost daily and to think… it’s nothing compared to how He loves us!

Now I can’t help you physically look at any of these things, but I can help you consider, so just for a moment, let’s try to really think about these things…

1- There are two million million galaxies in the universe. Yes, TWO MILLION MILLION.

2- There are 400,000 different types of flowers.

3- There are 8.7 million species of animals on earth.

4- There are more than 12,000 species of ants all over the world. AND an ant can lift 20 times its own body weight.

5- Oh yeah, the light just so happens to casually travel at 670,616,629 miles per hour. WHAT.

 My mind is blown over 5 facts… And to think these are just 5 things I pulled to share that we have been able to discover, there is so much more and so much more that no one has ever discovered!

My point in all this is that God is SO good, and God is SO creative, and God really really loves us!

We don’t have to worry! Look and consider…We can literally see it! He cares! And He cares for us beyond measure!

Gracie Tucker is the owner of Gracie’s Milkshake Bar in Nashville, TN! She loves spending time outdoors, traveling, hanging out with her friends and family, and is also known to make a mean milkshake.

Follow Gracie on Instagram @shakeitgracie

And check out all the fun at the milkshake bar @graciesmilkshakebar

I Do Not Have To, But I MUST!

I Do Not Have To, But I MUST!

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

― A.W. Tozer

As I sit here writing this blog, which I always have the most fun doing, by the way, I put out a story on my Instagram asking people what they wanted me to try to dig into… And as I read through the responses I honestly resonated with every answer. Jealousy, fear, singleness, friendships, purity, surrender, joy, repentance, confidence, rest, forgiveness, purpose. All subjects I would love to write about but I wanted to try to address the root of these issues. Why are we jealous, insecure, fearful? Why do we lack purpose and meaning in our lives? Because at some point, we have believed a lie about God. The truth has been twisted and I have taken it and ran. And when we run with any almost truth about God, we see the fruit. The jealousy, the anger, the worry, they all pop up and our spiritual lives can look like a game of whack-a-mole. But how is it that we fight the lies? How do we step into freedom in these areas of our lives…

We absolutely MUST decide to be a generation that not only remembers who God is but gets to know him for ourselves.

Have you ever had something you MUST do? We never really use that word anymore, do we? I mean really, think about it, when is the last time someone said I must go to the bathroom – I must go do my laundry? I can’t name a single time… I don’t even say it myself! Instead, we say, “I have to..” Like if we have to do something – it is some huge chore. How about on a real note, what is your attitude towards seeking God? Do you feel like you have to read your Bible, you have to go to church, you have to pray?? OR MUST YOU?

 In regards to doing an activity “have” is defined as being obliged to do (something), while “must” is defined by expressing insistence.

    Must does not entail feeling like it. Must does not entail perfection. Must is a decision.

Have you ever wondered why “I HAVE DECIDED” is often printed on the t-shirts we wear when we get baptized? I did… and as I found myself asking the Holy Spirit, why does it say I have decided? Of all the words, why those? This is what I heard… You have decided because I DECIDED.

There would have been no decision to be made on my end if Jesus had not decided. Decided to get on the cross for me. Decided to carry my sin, decided to die for me, decided to rise for my new life found only in the freedom of His blood! He did not have to, He decided that he MUST. And because He decided, I got to decide.

Matthew 16:21 

“From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.”

Luke 13:31-33

“At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, “Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you.” He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will keep on driving out demons and healing people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal.’ 33 In any case, I must press on today and tomorrow and the next day—for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem!”

What a gift! Thank you, Jesus! So why MUST I change my “have to’s” into MUST’S? Because His “MUST” saved my life – Quite literally! And when I really realize that, my relationship with God goes from a have to, to a GET to, from a “chore” to an HONOR!

So, where does knowing the truth and must cross paths? When we take a serious look at Jesus and decide this is the man that we MUST really get to know when we decide that we can no longer be indifferent to the things of God. When our very hearts and minds change from “have to’s” with God to MUST’S. So that we might really know our Father, so that the truth might sink deep into us, that we might live free from sin in the abundance of who God is, by His grace and His mercy. There is nothing to earn here, Jesus has already paid the price in full, the inheritance is ready, but we must walk into it.

I picture it like this, imagine the first explorer the day they discovered America. They didn’t know it existed, but it was always there. Regardless of what they did, they couldn’t change how much of America there was. It existed and was exactly what it was whether they explored it or not. Let’s imagine God like this for a moment. We crash into the shores of who He is, we believe Him, we accept Him, we are saved from the roaring oceans in this scenario that represent sin and death and hell. You’re safe, but there’s so much more. He is exactly who He is whether we ever know Him truly or not. You do not have to move forward in this journey that is promised to be uncomfortable, but you can decide if you must. Must is absolutely a choice, God would never force us to discover who He really is any more than he would force us to believe in Him.

But I believe this is the time, we are the generation that MUST MUST MUST, decide to discover Jesus. We must know the truth, we must read our Bibles, we must go to church, we must pray. Not out of works, but out of God’s grace… We must decide that half-truths and half-committed hearts are not good enough for us. We want to be secure, confident, passionate, fully alive? We want all of who God is. Then we must let Jesus show us who He really is. How He feels about us. How he sees us. We must be washed in the Father’s love for us. Not at all because we have to, but simply because we must.

Gracie Tucker is the owner of Gracie’s Milkshake Bar in Nashville, TN! She loves spending time outdoors, traveling, hanging out with her friends and family, and is also known to make a mean milkshake.

Follow Gracie on Instagram @shakeitgracie

And check out all the fun at the milkshake bar @graciesmilkshakebar

Who Are You Following?

Who Are You Following?

I recently did a poll on my Instagram asking people what initially came to their mind when I said the word “Following,” the results really weren’t shocking as most people answered with either; following Jesus or following someone on Instagram. Both of these come to my mind as well – but throughout all of the answers, there were more than a few people who said the childhood game follow the leader is what popped into their heads. And man, did I love that… because wow, how simple!

Sometimes I wonder if we make following Jesus more complicated than it ought to be. Not harder, because we all know this thing of dying to self was never intended to be easy… but just more complicated. Why does following Jesus feel so confusing at times – this career or that career, this school or that school, this guy or that guy… our heads can spin, and we can freak out just thinking about these examples. But as I really think about it, freaking out over trying to follow Jesus is not following him at all.

Earlier this week, my friend followed me to a gas station, and the picture of what it looked like to follow was just so kindly clear to me at that moment. I was leading her, she was following me, and this is what the process looked like. I turned left, she turned left, I merged three lanes, she merged three lanes, I stopped, she stopped, I went, she went. No questions asked, no calls asking if I was sure I knew where I was going, no frustration in the process and never did she question if where we were going really did have what she needed, she wasn’t worried, she didn’t need a map drawn out to our final destination, she trusted me to lead her there.

What if our following Jesus looked a more like FOLLOWING JESUS? What if just for a moment we set aside our five-year plans, our expectations of where we should have been by now or where we will be by then, what if we paused for a moment to realize that not all choices are the end of the world, but actually opportunities from our loving Dad to pick what we like… sometimes there’s not a bad choice; there is just a choice.

What if every day I woke up and said, I TRUST YOU, GOD! I trust you! I follow you!

Let’s simplify it back down to the child’s game we mentioned earlier – follow the leader! This way, that way, over here, over there… It’s unpredictable, but when you stop trying to predict everything, it is actually a pretty fun game! And let be the first to say following Jesus CAN be fun too! Nonetheless, hear me here, not easy, NOT EASY, but most definitely fun! I truly cannot think of a more exciting adventure of a life than step by step following Jesus!!!

But here’s the kicker, here’s THE question, here’s your BIGGEST choice… who is your leader, who are you following? Is it you, is it your desires, your ambitions, your feelings? Or is it God… that’s the decision that dictates your forever – and dictates your “for now.” Because you can’t follow two things!

As I write this, my eyes are filled with tears because man do I remember when I was my own leader how lost, how desperate – how dark my life and my heart and my mind were. But my God rescued me! He saved me from me! To know the light of the world literally is LIFE!

I don’t say this as a line or a catching saying but with fire in my heart knowing for sure that someone reading this is who I used to be; there’s no shame here – there’s nothing God can’t redeem, there’s no too far gone, there is no unforgivable when you are washed in the blood of Jesus! Oh son, Oh, daughter, if you only knew how loved you are! Jesus, the perfect son of God, came on a rescue mission just for you beloved, for YOU. He died for you, He rose for you! He wants your heart – for it was made just for Him. Today is THE day to decide to follow Jesus! Today is the day to let Jesus make it right between you and God, I say it again today is the day to let Jesus make it right between you and God! We cannot lead ourselves, we cannot save ourselves! How could we?! We did not even make ourselves!

 

Gracie Tucker is the owner of Gracie’s Milkshake Bar in Nashville, TN! She loves spending time outdoors, traveling, hanging out with her friends and family, and is also known to make a mean milkshake.

Follow Gracie on Instagram @shakeitgracie

And check out all the fun at the milkshake bar @graciesmilkshakebar

Who Are You Following?

UNPLUG

Happy Tuesday! Yes, it is Tuesday – and yes I did have to double check that. I always love getting to write for LO, because I know that this shows up in the inbox of people who love God. Friends, I’ll never really know, but you in the grand scheme of forever are being used by God in individual ways to bring the Kingdom. I pray that God blesses you in crazy ways!

There is nothing good for me outside of God. 

If I am to be settled on anything, I want to be settled on this.

What comes to your mind when you hear the word unplugged? For me I think of pulling a charger out of the wall or unplugging a kitchen appliance, which doesn’t really sound like a good thing. But when I stopped overthinking it, it made so much more sense to me. Yes, things work best when they are plugged in – but what if it’s broken? There is no point in plugging in a broken phone, it simply won’t work – that phone needs to be fixed not charged.

The word fix can sound so harsh, but it’s not. Man, it is the kindest thing. The word literally means to restore order or tidiness to. I can’t get over that Jesus does that for us. And I don’t mean boom, it’s fixed, all better, no problems. I mean God’s overall restoration. Everything broken Jesus came to fix. He came to restore order – Eden to Eden. Right relationship with God, to right relationship with God.

Perhaps we have been given an opportunity to let God go there with us. Time not to just scratch the surface, but time to heal. Time to take inventory and really ask ourselves: Is this breaking me? Does this thing, or person, or activity bring me closer to God’s heart or not?

And if not, let it go. It’s not worth it.

James puts it like this – 1:16-17 “Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.”

Don’t be deceived! Y’all, I think that when we get this – when we let every good and perfect gift from God sink in, the things that leave us broken don’t deceive us anymore.

We don’t have to chase the things that once made us feel connected when God really is all that we need. I mean unplugged in the very best way… with the intention of plugging back into our true source of life.

He is the only source.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5

You will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing… This is the Kingdom come life. This is restored order. This is being plugged in.

Gracie Tucker is the owner of Gracie’s Milkshake Bar in Nashville, TN! She loves spending time outdoors, traveling, hanging out with her friends and family, and is also known to make a mean milkshake.

Follow Gracie on Instagram @shakeitgracie

And check out all the fun at the milkshake bar @graciesmilkshakebar

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas y’all & happy almost new year! One thing I love about this specific time of the year is the hope that seems to come with a new year. Yes, there is only a one day difference in 2019 and 2020, but on this specific 31st to 1st calendar change, something changes in us. A hope bubbles up that makes us believe that this year could be the year. The year we learn spanish, or the year we finally start going to the gym, you name it, we all have those certain things we hope we’ll do in the new year… my prayer for 2020 is that we would be a generation that starts to believe God again!

My prayer is that this Christmas and 2020 would be a year marked by faith and expectancy. That we would have a fresh remembrance of the faithfulness of God!

Today we celebrate the birth of Jesus. John 1:14 says, “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth”, wow, would we never get numb to this! Jesus, his birth, his life, his death, and his resurrection, all the kindness, love, grace, mercy, and glory of God. The life of Jesus is the ultimate proof that God is good and the ultimate proof that He is faithful.

You see, God was faithful in Isaiah 7:14 when it was said, “Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel,” and God was faithful 700 years later in Matthew 1:25,  “but he knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus.” Faithful in the past, faithful in the present, faithful in the future.

It’s so easy to get anxious and worried in the world we live in, it’s no secret that the devil is on a tear, but it’s also no secret that the devil is defeated. He is a liar and he hates your guts, to think he doesn’t would be a deception… but do not fret, because the virgin bore a son and His name is Immanuel! God is with us!

So whatever the lies may be, today let’s believe God instead! Take Him at his word starting today and heading into 2020. Even if you’re not sure you really believe it yet, run to the word of God, and let the Holy Spirit, God with us, move on your behalf. When darkness whispers fear run to Psalm 32:7, “You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance.”

When the lie is God is holding out on you,  remember Psalm 27:13, “I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord;  be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord,” and Psalm 16:11, “You make known to me the path of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence, with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”

What about when it feels like God left? Psalm 34:18, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit,” Psalm 46:3, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way  though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.”

The word of God is the truth, it is our sword, and it is perfect… these are not empty words! Promise keeper, means promise keeper. He is who he says he is. Take heart, the same God who has always been faithful, still remains faithful to this day… He is with us. We can believe God again.

Gracie Tucker is the owner of Gracie’s Milkshake Bar in Nashville, TN! She loves spending time outdoors, traveling, hanging out with her friends and family, and is also known to make a mean milkshake.

Follow Gracie on Instagram @hannahgracetucker

And check out all the fun at the milkshake bar @graciesmilkshakebar

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