ELLIE, what do you LIKE to do?
a)     Love on God and on people.DSCF0131
b)    Write stories.
c)     Garden.
What do you HAVE to do?
a)     Maintain a nutritious devotional life.
b)    Write a LOT of stuff, very little of it having to do with story. Church things, email and website things, bookselling things………..
c)     Weed, both garden AND house.
What might God think about all of this? 
unknown_3 a)    I invented love and then demonstrated it—I gave, I served, I died. Ellie, you’ll never measure up to my standards, but you’re made in my image, which means you CAN love this same way, even though imperfectly. Just don’t make love—or devotions—one more item to be checked off your list.
b)    What do you think of that surprise package I handed you? You figured music would be your life focus, but my plan included all that writing stuff—call it lyrics, if you will. Unwrap the whole gift, and use it for my glory. And since you made a request of me years ago, I have in mind a splendid choir for you to direct, as well. And never mind the book-selling part. In the long run it doesn’t matter, and I’ll take care of it.
c)     Weeds you’ll always have with you in this world. Just wait, though, to see the garden I’m laying out around your mansion! No weeding—just design and plant and smell heavenly fragrances. And housework? Don’t obsess. “Decently and in order” covers a multitude of dust bunnies.
lilac_4