Lauren Gaskill

Encouraging women to live in faith and joy

 

lauren gaskill

encouraging women to
go deeper in faith and live in joy

Purchase Lauren's New Book

Into the Deep
Diving Into a Life
of Courageous Faith

a note from lauren

Welcome, dear friend! Whether we’ve known each other for years or are just meeting today, I am so glad you are here. Here’s one thing you need to know about me: I have a heart and passion for encouraging women to fight for faith and keep the hope of Christ alive in their hearts. Together we can push back the dark and shine bright as we rely on the joy of the Lord to be our strength for every day He blesses us with.

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Oven Roasted Turkey, Brie + Blackberry Panini

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I almost did a backflip at Meijer this morning. However, considering the gymnastic phase of my life only lasted for a short, three months, I decided to hold my excitement inside.

You know you’re a foodie when you freak out about Brie being on sale. To be exact, it was $2 off.

Brie Cheese

It’s not too often I buy gourmet cheeses. Havarti, Gouda, goat, Brie: I love them all. But I am a college student, and typically, my budget only allows Cheddar, provolone and Mozzarella purchases … the usuals. Not that there is anything wrong with those kind of cheeses. All cheese is delightful! Some cheeses are just better.

Oven Roasted Turkey, Brie + Blackberry Panini

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Tuning In to a Tuned Out World

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The Gathering, the church I attend in Muncie, began its first series of the year yesterday. As I walked into the sanctuary, I immediately noticed something was different about the room. Chalk boards lined the whole length and width of the left wall.

“Before I die, I want to …,” the black slates read, over and over again in rows.

One person had taken chalk to the board and wrote in “… change the world,” after the repeated phrase.

Waiting on the World to Change

Starting in Nehemiah 1, our pastor, Joshua, started to paint a picture of the character and faith of Nehemiah, cupbearer to the king. After hearing that the people of Israel have been scattered, and the walls of Jerusalem have been broken down and burned with fire, Nehemiah weeps.

But he doesn’t just stop there. He prays with devotion for those who are hurting or have turned away; he then confesses on behalf of all of Israel (v. 6-7).

Then, starting in verse 8, he prays for grace and restoration. “Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, 9 but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name’” (NIV).

Nehemiah saw what was happening in his world and did something about it. Although he lived in a much different time, when news could take as much as 45 days to get from one city to the next, he didn’t turn away from the information. He ran toward it.

I wonder how a man like Nehemiah would feel in today’s world of infinite information. Would he pay attention, or would he, like so many of us do, turn away?

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Thoughts From the Bahamas

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Greetings from the Governor’s Harbor Airport in Eleuthera, Bahamas! For the last week and a half, I have been vacationing here, spending time with loved ones and relaxing in the sun. This is why there have been no blog posts. I wanted to leave a post the first day we arrived on the island, but there was no internet in our house, so I had no way of posting anything that I wrote.

One of the mornings here on the island, I stumbled across a book which inspired me to write today’s post. Aside from journal entries, this is the only thing I wrote during my time in the Bahamas. I hope you enjoy it.

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The sunrises on Eleuthera are absolutely breathtaking! Combined with the pink sand, it's more than a taste of paradise.
The sunrises on Eleuthera are absolutely breathtaking! Combined with the pink sand, it’s more than a taste of paradise.

Thin. Curvy. Book smart. Dumb. Loyal. Quiet. Strong. Weak. Short. Rich. Poor. Beautiful. Plain. Athletic. Lazy. Optimistic. Indifferent. Alone. Afraid. Angry. Loving. Kind.

When you look in the mirror, what do you see? A list of “somethings,” like those listed above, or an individual — someone who is uniquely, wonderfully and fearfully made?

Maybe your reflection has become clouded by these “somethings.” And then somehow, over time, maybe these descriptors have become the only thing you see splashed across the mirror.

Maybe there are words you want to change, or words you wish could be erased. For whatever reason, maybe you think that changing those words would uncover what’s been lost beneath the black scribbled haze of words that coat the plexiglass in front of you.

Here’s the thing about mirrors: they are one-sided.

There’s no depth. What you see is what you get, and what you see is all a matter of perspective.

When we strive to be something rather than someone, we risk becoming consumed with the superficial self. Rather than appreciating ourselves for who we really are, we sell ourselves short and settle for only a glimpse, a fragment of what lies within.

TIME TO BE SOMEBODY.

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