i love You better than

the gray of the autumn air; better than spring and its blooming against the sky ~ i love You more.
{from the song Ought To Be, by Audrey Assad}



I love those things so very very much... autumn and spring. They're so so beautiful, and they've done nothing but good to me. But I love God more ~ more than anything in existence. Because He is so so beautiful and has done nothing but good to me, and there's a million other reasons for me to love Him better than anything else.

It's been really easy to love God lately, because I'm experiencing a very blessed, contended season of life. I've been so so grateful for the life God has given me at the moment. I'm so very thankful for my amazing family... I've been growing to love them and appreciate them a lot lately; I'm so blessed to have the relationship that I have with each one of them. I'm thankful that my school isn't too difficult. I'm thankful to be part of three choirs, and the opportunity to take & teach piano lessons. I'm thankful for my church, and what it teaches, and the blessing of growing up with a solid foundation of Truth. I'm really thankful for all of my relationships... especially the friendships that are newer and growing and wonderful. I'm thankful for the breathtaking fall season... the sights and feelings leave me speechless, in awe of my glorious Savior, who is forever worthy of my praise.

I also love God because He's never left my side. My life hasn't always been this wonderful. I faced some really really difficult times over the past year. I had a lot of hard, unanswered questions and I was struggling to see how God was using my circumstances to accomplish His good & perfect will... nothing about what I was going through seemed good or perfect. It was just confusing and frustrating. But He never let me wander too far from Him... He was always faithful to remind me that He has promised never to leave more or forsake me, and that His Truth is unshakable and is something that I can firmly stand on. As I'm writing about this and looking at the title of my blog, I'm reminded of the song Even If (by ZOEgirl :) ), which is where "Never Shaken" comes from... it says "even if the sun left the sky, even if these tears never dry, even if the mountains fall and crumble, nothing's gonna stand in my way... if what's left of me is taken, I will not be shaken." There were times over the past year where it felt like what was left of me was being taken, and my faith did begin to quiver. But the reason that I will never really be shaken from what I believe and all that my life is built on is that my only hope is in Jesus Christ, who's grace is holds me and sustains me. And in those short moments when I questioned if my faith was real, God was quick to pour His strength and grace down on me and reassure me of all I've been forgiven of, and how very much I've been loved.

God is so good to me ~ I cannot wait until the day that I can see Him face-to-face and worship Him like He deserves to be worshiped. I'm so very grateful for the amazing work that He is doing in my heart and life. ♥