Good morning, Mini-Women! How fun was our live blog party Friday night? We missed those of you who couldn't join us -- although you were totally with us in spirit, right, everybody?
At the very end, my computer froze up, probably because of the bajillion comments in my inbox, so I didn't get to officially bring the party to a close, but you did a great job on your own. That's because you're maturing right before my eyes!
I did want to say that all the things we talked about in that very-packed two hours are things that make growing up EASIER than it would be without our Lord Christ. Just to recap, we talked about five different "easy buttons."
(1) Jesus' rules are way easier than the not-written-down ones that other kids put on ya, like you have to be boy-crazy to be "in" and you're a reject if you don't play at least two sports. All Jesus says is: love God with everything you have and love other people the way you want to be loved. THAT WAS EASY!
(2) You don't have to know everything. If you're paying attention to God by having quiet time and praying and getting into the stories in the Bible, God is going to fill you in on a need-to-know basis. So when everybody else is going on about stuff you're clueless about, not to worry. Having the 411 (do poeple still say that?) doesn't make you cool. THAT WAS EASY!
(3) Other people may hold a grudge, like, forever, but God doesn't. Jesus tells us God not only forgives but turns us around so we're headed in the right direction. It's definitely hard when your friend ditches you for some teeny tiny infraction of the friendship rules, but knowing you're forgiven where it counts makes it so much easier to learn and go on. THAT WAS EASY!
(4) Even though it seems like everything would be so much better if people would listen to what you know about how they ought to be behaving, you don't have to "fix" everybody, and you can't anyway. Jesus says we have to love people and forgive them and pray for them; he doesn't guarantee that's going to change them. So why do it? Because it changes YOU. And you just never know how THAT is going to affect somebody else. THAT WAS EASY!
(5) The entire rest of the world might say you aren't smart enough or skinny enough or talented enough or blonde enough, or that you don't have enough of the right stuff. They just don't know. You ARE enough, because God MADE you enough. Sure, you're going to keep growing and maturing and becoming more and more and more your real self. But right now, this very minute, you are enough. THAT WAS EASY.
The rules themselves ARE easy. Like Jesus says, when you let him be in charge, the yoke is easy and the burden is light. The part that's HARD (as I think it was Dancing Kw!n pointed out) is that we still have to live in a world where a lot of people are saying we're lame and uncool for doing the Jesus thing instead of the so-called "cool" thing.
We're going to work on that, starting Thursday. For right now, will you do two things?
#1 PARTY CLEAN-UP
If you were at the party at all, even for a few minutes, you were a winner. Each one of you has won THAT IS SO ME, the one-year devotional book. If you already have that one, please email me privately at nnrue@att.net and we'll talk about what you would like to have me send you. By the way, if I still owe you a prize from a past contest, I will be mailing those out, too, in this batch. (Trying to finish a novel for grown-ups makes it hard to get everything else done!)
#2 HELPING ME WITH GIRL POLITICS
As I said in one of my posts last week, I'm revising the GIRL POLITICS book and would love to have some stories from you about friends, cliques, and really mean chicks. I'm making that a little simpler, so . . .
If you would like to tell me in a couple of sentences what a TRUE FRIEND is like, you can post it here as a comment or email it to me at nnrue@att.net. Here are some examples:
A true friend is happy for you when something good happens to you, instead of wishing it had happened to her.
A true friend sticks up for you when other people are putting you down.
A true friend listens to you even when you go on and on and on (and on)
There will be more questions, but let's just go with this one for now. Everyone who helps will receive a copy of the new GIRL POLITICS book when it comes out.
Thanks, mini-women! You are the BEST and it is EASY to be your friend!
Blessings,
Nancy Rue
