4.8.2012...

life is full of magical little moments...moments we often take for granted, or miss entirely.  the past week and a half i've seen them, felt them...moments spent with people i've grown to care very much about...simple things that have meant so much to me. 

i live a blessed life.  of this i'm certain.  sure i complain sometimes, want more, dream about the life i "want"...but, when it's all said and done, when i truly look around...i have so very much.  today is Easter...i will spend it in the church i grew up in, the church i was baptized in, surrounded by my family.  this day means something different to all of us, but ultimately - to me - it is a reminder, a re-awakening of sorts that life is so much bigger than me; that Christ lived and died, suffered immeasurable torture, hung selflessly on a cross that bears every single one of my sins...MY sins...my doubts...my failures...my shortcomings...and my insecurities.  it may as well been my hands placing the crown of thorns on His head, nailing His hands and feet, piercing His side...He died mercilessly so i could live...absolute selflessness in its most pure form.  so, today, i am looking for each blessing; each moment of goodness and grace...searching my heart for His will. 

i'm kinda hoping this is what He might tell me...

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends. To appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson