When someone pays you a compliment do you shudder or respond with a confident thank-you? It felt a little awkward to hear what came out of the mouth of my physical therapist–Conner. He had worked with me for twelve sessions to help alleviate back and chest pain attributed to some mysterious tear of unknown origin. “You are in great shape to be 62.”
We never really know what we mirror back to others, or the world when they plant their eyes on us. It’s like we are afraid they will look into our soul at the drab shoots of regret, pain and screw-ups and then look away. We see, feel, and know the insides, the journey we’ve been on, the ones edged with perennial memories that wanna keep popping up to stunt our personal growth.
That is why it’s encouraging when someone makes a positive comment. Those words have the power to cause a breeze of fresh air to blow our way causing us to breathe, smile, and yes–move forward.
So when I listened to the powerful new ballad, “Home” (Lyana’s song) it also cheered me on. The song, written by R.J. Halbert, and sung by Amy Grant, accompanies the audio book for the novel titled Caretaker, also written by the husband-and-wife team, Rhonda and Jason Halbert. It’s a supernatural tale about breaking generational curses to forge new bonds of hope.
As I listened to the song and eventually found the lyrical video on YouTube, it reminded me of the five-decade journey with my earthly father and the painful path I chose to break the chain of family dysfunction, as I detailed in my memoir, No Hugs Allowed (My Search for Unconditional Love), found on Amazon.
The chorus from “Home” struck me, “It’s getting heavy, carrying our pasts on our back, in our heads and in our hearts.” Thankfully, after years of persistent and desperate prayers, God began to heal me as I emotionally and physically backed away from my father in 2017, and when I also spent four years writing my memoir that was released in 2023.
So when Abba (my spiritual Daddy) sees me I don’t worry. He knows all about my journey, because He was with me every step of the way. And He doesn’t look away from me or you, but calls us Beloved, as Paul referenced in his book Romans. “Hosea put it well: I’ll call nobodies and make them somebodies; I’ll call the unloved and make them beloved.” (9:25, The Message Bible)
Author Ann Voskamp brings this deep spiritual concept home:
“In His eyes, you won’t find one who disowns you, only One who delights in you. In His eyes, you won’t find any rejection, only unending passion, to love you into the realest life. He is holy and He is wholly Love. Do not fear His gaze, but hold His gaze and feel His pure love burn away all the dross, purifying and holding you. Opening your eyes to Him is opening your deepest self to Him-and being open to receive the acceptance that your whole life has been looking for and the transformation you have always hoped for. No one looks into the eyes of Love and stays the same.” (Loved to Life, pg.22)
pictures courtesy of pexels.com
