photo courtesy of ©Depositphotos.com / Andrey_Kuzmin
It’s been awhile since I’ve been this glad to see a Friday night roll around, but goodness, I am so glad it is finally Friday. I feel like I’ve lived about three weeks worth of life in the past seven days, and I’m exhausted. This weekend will have about three days worth of activities crammed into two days, as well – so while I’m thankful for a bit of a breather and a little time to write this evening, in truth, I really can’t wait for 2:00pm on Sunday. I will be turning off my phone, logging out of all my internet everythings, and doing whatever I feel like doing for eight whole hours. Text me on Sunday if you want to, world – I’m not answering til Monday. This introvert needs a break!
Also: Once Upon A Time‘s season finale will most definitely be a part of those eight hours.
I had the privilege of having coffee with a good friend I haven’t seen in ages this week, and at one point our conversation wandered to blogging and content creation, and running out of things to say. I mentioned that I’ve thought several times about ditching these 7QT posts, because sometimes I just never know what to say. They’re “supposed” to be seven quick snapshots of a week in my life – but I feel like sometimes it’s just boring. There are things I can’t write about, and no one really wants to hear about how I dislike washing dishes, or how I wish I had a car that didn’t require passengers to sign a waiver and have up-to-date tetanus shots, or how much I miss going to the chiropractor. That’s the real stuff of life right there, but it’s not very interesting literature. So I share stuff I’ve read and been thinking about because once I’m done working, that’s usually most of what I’m doing – reading and thinking. Which is not very exciting all the time, either. “But I love those posts,” he said. “You just went and curated the internet for me. Thanks!”
Well, then. Here’s this week’s internet gold: Goddamage. Kathy Escobar defines “God damage” as “the pain that comes from dysfunctional families, abusive leaders, unhealthy church or ministry systems, and/or jacked-up theology that affects our ability to feel free and loved by God.”
Even in the healthiest of environments, damage to our souls is almost inevitable, because we’re flawed human beings and we screw up. We say ridiculous things, we make stupid decisions, and people get hurt, and maybe sometimes even begin to believe something untrue because of what we’ve said or done… and that damage needs to be healed. Thank goodness for heaven and the safe harbor of health it will be – but in the meantime, we all have some hard work to do, learning to listen for God’s voice so we can be better at representing Him, and healing from the hurt that we’ve experienced. If you’ve ever experienced “church hurt” on any level, this post is for you.
Here’s another: I Don’t Want To Scare The Girls… It’s lengthy, but such good stuff from Jonalyn Fincher over at Soulation, on some of the unhealthy ways we hide behind gender stereotypes, how it hurts us, and some thoughts on better ways to be. (Be sure to follow the back-links to her post about Harry and Sally – which is still one of the best talks I’ve ever heard.)
My happy discovery of the day: #monkeymonkeyunderpants is a bonafide hashtag. I went to use it in a social media post today and thought, wait – is that even a thing? So I looked it up, and sure enough – exactly 1 other person has used it on Facebook. (Tho I’m betting there are a whole lot more who know exactly what it means! At least, looking it up on Twitter would suggest that…)
When not curating the internet, this week I’m re-reading A House Like A Lotus. What are you reading? Any recommendations for the summer? Be sure to let me know in the comments below. I’m always looking for another good book to read!
For more Quick Takes, visit This Ain’t The Lyceum!
Have a great weekend!
Brad
May 8, 2015its true! I love these posts!