I read Nothing to Prove by Jennie Allen

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"It starts with us. If we are not moved by the Spirit of God, why on earth would anyone else be moved? If we don't experience His forgiveness and His grace on a regular basis, then how could we give away his forgiveness and grace to anybody else?"
—Jennie Allen, Nothing to Prove

What do you do? It's the question we are asked when we meet people? Sometimes that can feel like our worth is being sized up by our occupation. What if we don't have one? What if we are quietly serving people the world deems unimportant? Will we ever be enough to impress them? No, but we can make peace with that. It seems that we have all taken up the occupation of trying to create light when we are not meant to create light. We are meant to reflect it and wield it. The pressure is off when we remember who Christ is and go to him to accomplish his desires.

That's why Jennie brought a breath a sweet, fresh air into my life. She reminded me over and over to just ask Jesus, to trust him, to anticipate him. In her simple, girl next door style, she spoke kind, affectionate words about God. The book fanned a spark in my spirit to just be near to him. Thank you, Jennie, for reminding me of the goodness of God and my inner desire to be close. Time to clean out the clutter and enjoy the relationship.

"When I looked up the word joy, I was surprised by all of its synonyms: wonder, delight, elation, satisfaction, fun, happiness. I hate to say it, but these are not words I would use to describe you and me most of the time. Here is my fear: we have somehow come to believe that it is wrong to be happy. Maybe it's because we're too aware of the suffering all over the world. Maybe it's because we're carrying the pressures of work and life. Maybe it seems that fun is an escape from responsibility rather than an attribute of people who know God." 
—Jennie Allen, Nothing to Prove


I crave the beauty and joy and freedom that come from receiving our lives rather than consuming them.
—Jennie Allen, Nothing to Prove


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