Do Not Make Eye Contact

       It was brass monkeys outside today, friends. Snow and ice and wind, OH MY.
       Today was my first day in the ABA office! My awesome bosses treated me to lunch and patiently walked me through some intern tasks. They say that the learning curve is a vertical line, which gives me hope. It shouldn't take too long for me to get the hang of things.
       I arrived at Farragut West with time to spare before I had to be at the office. I decided to grab some Starbucks (soy misto, of course). As I walked out into the frigid air- coffee in hand- I made the mistake of smiling at a seemingly homeless man standing on the sidewalk. The very kind man said as I passed by (in a voice very similar to that of Donkey from 'Shrek', "YOU are a sexy mother f@$%#r!"Oddly enough, I wasn't offended or upset. I was kind of flattered. Some guys just know what to say to make a girl feel good.
       Now that I'm sure you're judging me, let me tell you how the Lord spoke powerfully to me this morning. When my environment changes, I have a tendency to forsake the Lord. My distance from him causes me to question his existence. I've been fighting this tendency in vain the last few days. Thoughts of doubt have crept their way into my mind. With the time I had left before going upstairs to the office, I sat in the lower level of Washington Square and read a devotional by SheReadsTruth. I was moved to tears when I read these words:

"It is well beyond simply closing my eyes and almost tangibly feeling the sweet, near and warm breath of the Holy God surround me when I read my Bible… Sure, it's nice to feel warm and intimate. But I imagine there isn't one of us reading this today who hasn't hit the point in their lives where tender just won't cut it. We need something we can cling to. Something solid. Something that cannot be shaken. We need promises- both kept and made. We need to know that the Story we are staking our lives on isn't simply the words of man…" accompanied by 2 Tim. 3:14-17 & 2 Peter 1:16-21.

       Was there any better way for the Lord to say that he's with me? The Holy Spirits groans on my behalf- when my heart can't even articulate its brokenness. I may not know what I need but He does.
       My trek back to Springfield at the end of the day was piteous. I dropped a bunch of loose papers everywhere as I tried to enter the busy Farragut North station. I also got on the wrong train at Central Station. Somehow I ended up in Springfield with a new acquaintance from New Orleans. She owns a bakery in the city! Maybe she could hook me up with a job?