I bless those who trust me. They will be like trees growing beside a stream--trees with roots that reach down to the water, and with leaves that are always green. They bear fruit every year and are never worried by a lack of rain. Jeremiah 17:7-8CEV May God continue to water my roots and may I continue to be thirsty for His word. Let the droughts in my life not cause me to fret, but to drink more of the Lord in order to be sustained.

COMMUNITY: A group of people held together by one bond. Acts 2:42-47 " They devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts., praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved." That bond should be Christ and our passion for God. In today's world this is not any easy concept to get started. Spending most of your time with one group of people? However, I don't think this means spending time ONLY with these people. "Community is built not on convenience ("we'll get together when I feel like it") but on the conviction that I need it for spiritual growth." from The Purpose Driven Life (p.150) Rob Bell talks about being a Christian and being in a community in his book Velvet Elvis, " So what does it mean for the Christian life? To begin, Christians are people learning who they are in Christ. We are being taught about our new identity. Do you see how deeply this new identity affects the life of a community? I heard a teacher say that if people were taught more about who they are, they wouldn't have to be told what to do. 124 It would come naturally. When we see religious communities spending most of their time trying to convince people not to sin, we are seeing a community that has missed the point. The point isn't sin management. 125 The point is who we are now." (p.144) We know that we are "in" the world, but not a "part" of this world. We should, as a community, go into the world and be the examples of God's grace. When others see us just living our lives, they will be drawn to the light of the Holy Spirit within us. A good friend recently was talking about a living hope. I believe that this living hope is what others notice when they see true Christians that are engaged in true fellowship. Reaching out to the world and loving and caring for one another within that community. We can go to church for instruction and fellowship, but we should also belong to a smaller intimate group of people that are bonded together in Christ. A group that makes a commitment to meet regularly and who is focused on God's will and spreading the message of Christ to the lost.

Each step taken is one towards Truth. In questioning our purpose we find the path. Within the search we find elemental truths that belong to all of us. Not just to those who are intimate with Truth, but to those who are blind to it as well. It has been stitched into our hearts. It is only when we are awakened to the One who is the well spring of life that we are able to see His will for us. God is present in all things. Today is Valentine's Day. A day filled with red and pink hearts, chocolate and roses. Today my day is filled with a God that has overflowed my heart with passion and love for Him. Today my soul is nourished by the sight of my two wonderful children that I am blessed with. Today I am able to read about the past and how, regardless of time or place, God has made himself known through the time and culture. His Truth is timeless. He lives within my heart. There is nothing greater to be given than the light of the Lord. To know that Jesus Christ resides in your heart. What else could I desire today? Flowers would wilt, and words fade. But, His love is everlasting. To think that one day I will be in the Kingdom of my God. There is nothing here that compares. True love lingers in my belief in my Savior. Happy Valentine's Day. May God rise up in your heart and give you the Truth.

That tender voice calls
Unto my soul
Speaking to the hidden
Depths that are
Protected by His grace

Draw me near O ’Lord
Be jealous and want
All that I am
Keep my focus on all
That you are to me

Let me not wander
Far from your word
My heart does not
Answer to the
Call of darkness

Bring me to the path
Set with all I need
Unto you I give my
Passion and devotion
Unswerving and steady

- Angela Lane
February 10, 2006

Silent and unassuming. That is where I want to be right now. In the middle of God's will. Life has so many cycles. Bittersweet. That is what I feel right now. The end of one path mixed with the beginning of another. I try so hard to make sense of things, to put life into little boxes. Life changes and is fluid. We must allow ourselves to evolve. To grow and experience. May God continue to lead my heart and to guide me in His will. I want only to follow Him. To know that I am headed towards my purpose. Walking hand in hand with my Lord. I know this heartache will not last. I know that Christ is enough. In Him I am whole. He will bring to me what I need. I have faith and strength to begin this new path before me.