• About
  • Contact Tanara

Tanara McCauley

~ Love Knows Color

Tanara McCauley

Tag Archives: encouragement

Beautiful

24 Saturday Sep 2016

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

accountability, beautiful children, Bible, Christ, Christian, destiny, encouragement, faith, flowers, God, holiness, inspiration, Jesus, lilac, obedience, parenting, perseverance, psalms, purpose, relationships, son, sun

flowers

A woman had a dream.

She walked for miles through fields and deserts, grasslands and marshes, following the sun. It warmed her face and shined in her eyes, making her squint as she journeyed.

She pushed aside tall stalks of wheat, trudged through wet sand. Her thighs strained up steep mountainsides. In every place the sun led her past countless people. At the river they fished and washed. On the plains they shepherded. In the cities they bustled. Each of them backs turned and busy.

All but the deformed ones.

Every face she saw was contorted in some way. Young and old, from snow-white skin to complexions of polished sable.

They looked at her as she approached, then beyond her as she passed.

Hope. Relief. Joy. These emotions changed their dull expressions at sight of the invisible presence behind her, but each time she turned for a glimpse of who or what moved them so, she saw nothing.

Then she reached the end of her journey.

She stood at the edge of a cliff overhanging the ocean. The waves danced and bellowed beneath her. She could feel the spray dust her face and settle in her hair, smell the water tinged with the scent of marine life.

She breathed deep, and the cool air coursed through her like a live thing. She gasped and fell to her knees, her body radiating inside as the sun beamed overhead. It rose higher, calming the waves as its rays stretched across the sea. The same stillness settled over her.

She turned. The deformed ones had followed. They gathered around a young man dressed in white, their excited chatter floating through the air like feather-light laughter. Something about the man struck her as familiar. His hands glowed. Beautiful. He reached out to each face, his touch healing and drying heavy tears.

Then on they went, one by one, faces lifted like blooming flowers, into the brilliance of the sun.

The man faced the woman, and she woke with a start.

Her husband sat next to her in bed, mouth gaped, eyes on her. “You won’t believe the dream I just had,” he said.

Their son rushed in, his five-year-old legs pumping, and landed between them. “Jesus touched my hands, Mommy. So I could touch the people.”

Heat spread across her chest, as if the sun from her dream hovered over her heart. She wrote these things on lilac-scented stationery and tucked it in her Bible.

Her son grew and finished his schooling. His mother came to the graduation, her husband with her in spirit. She had fished out the stationery for the occasion, held it gently between her fingers, the faint scent of lilac still present on the worn paper.

He laughed when he saw it. Surely she didn’t expect him to follow through on a dream nearly two decades old. His name was already renowned in circles, his future wealth guaranteed, the likes of which he couldn’t achieve if he didn’t choose his own path.

Stunned, she opened her mouth, but the accusing stares of his colleagues silenced her. She tried to remember the dream, how vivid it had been, how real. She wanted to convince her son of the urgency of his purpose. But like the scent on the paper, the dream had faded. The faces had wilted to a silvery blur in her memory. “But Jesus…”

He shook his head. She looked at her boy, into those bright brown eyes that shined with defiance yet yearned for her approval. Not wanting to push him away, she shunned instead the unsettling stir in her heart. She crumpled the paper. “Do what makes you happy, son.”

After he hugged her, he and his colleagues stood among throngs of people that had appeared from nowhere. A deafening rip sounded from the ground and a great chasm opened the earth. The woman stumbled toward the edge but someone caught her from behind. She looked and saw her husband there, his face grave as he gazed past her to where their son stood on the other side.

The young face that had just beamed with triumph and promise now twisted in fear. Her boy.

A bitter cold knifed through the woman’s heart, even as the light of the sun fell so that particles in the air glittered like diamonds.

A voice cried out, “Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth.”

The woman fell to her knees. The light increased around her like the touch of a soft blanket. He said her name, and she knew His voice. She lifted her head, but could not bring herself to look past the feet of bronze.

His hand touched her face, and she woke with a start.

Her husband sat next to her in bed, his eyes red and watery. “You dreamt it too,” he said.

Their son rushed in, his five-year-old legs pumping, and landed between them. “Jesus touched my hands, Mommy. So I could touch the people.” His little nose wrinkled. “He said I had to become beautiful first, so I don’t forget. But boys can’t be beautiful!”

Oh, worship the LORD in the beauty of holiness! Tremble before Him, all the earth.

The words filled the woman’s chest, like a whisper sparking a flame. Her husband pulled her close, and moved their son so that he sat on both of their laps. “Yes they can, son,” he said. “In their hearts and before God they can. We’ll teach you, both of us.”

Her husband looked at her. His eyes a letter of deep love, of memories and laughter and tears and forgiveness. Of peace. Of resolve.

He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it.

“We’ll both teach you,” he repeated. “And when you forget, Mommy will never let you be okay with it. We love you too much.”

The boy mimicked his father. He grabbed her hand with his small one and planted his soft, wet lips on her skin. His fingers thin and nimble. His bright brown eyes shining. His heart soft and open, like soil for blooming flowers.

Beautiful.

 

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Unashamed

27 Saturday Jun 2015

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics

≈ 8 Comments

Tags

Christ, Christian, Christianity, encouragement, faith, gospel, inspiration, love, relationships, truth, unashamed

Man with arms raised towards the sky

“For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

I am not ashamed of the Gospel.

Nor am I ashamed to love. But neither love nor encouragement equals unlimited concession or acquiescence. Love is truthful and patient. Sometimes encouragement is to encourage away from the bad and toward the good. Sometimes love is the courage to say “I’ll never leave you, but I won’t lie and tell you this is good.”

Love doesn’t support or congratulate self-destruction. It doesn’t sell the eternal for the temporal. I don’t correct those who aren’t in my close circle because that’s not my thing. But I wonder about Christians who say, “Do what makes you happy” instead of “Do what God created you to do.” Anything that leads away from Him and more towards self is a lie.

We weren’t created to glorify ourselves. We weren’t even created to be happy. We were created for His glory. Everything above that is a blessing and a gift. And if we put happiness before His glory, before obedience, before truth in love, before dying to self, then we’ve sold the Creator for the creation. It’s a cheap trade of tragic proportions.

All have sinned and fall short of His glory. That doesn’t mean we languish in sin because we’ll never measure up. It’s meant to turn our eyes toward His grace, His goodness, His love, so much so that we find ourselves lavishing in His glory. It’s about Him, not us. So when I feel tempted, by popular opinion or law or fear of being misunderstood, to conform to the world and not God, I remember. And I remain…

Unashamed.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Let It Burn!

01 Friday May 2015

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Christ, Christian, death crawl, determination, encouragement, exercise, Facing the Giants, friends, Hebrews, inspiration, kinect, motivation, New Year resolution, persevere, persist, physical fitness, relationships, Scripture, second chances, workout, xbox

“And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works…exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.”
~Hebrews 10:24-25

The year’s almost half gone. Of all my goals for 2015, the one I’ve shirked the most is my resolution to exercise regularly. I could try to justify my busy nature as a form of physical fitness. I’m always on the go. Moving things. Hefting others, little people included.

But in all honesty, what I’d initially intended came with recognizable titles in the world of fitness: lunges, jumping jacks, and–God help us all–burpees.

Then one day (quite early in the year), somebody moved the Xbox Kinect system I normally use for workouts. The change in location wrought a change in my goals.

  • exercise 3 to 4 days a week 

The death of that resolution finally cried up from the ground where I buried it, enough so that I resolved, again, to make exercise a priority.

I also resolved to start slow. Too rusty for Zumba, and too irritable for Jillian, I popped in a workout DVD my sister sent. I made up my mind before the opening credits to do fifteen minutes. No more, maybe less, depending on how things were going.

At about twelve minutes, panting like a dog and grunting in a most unattractive fashion, I zeroed in on the clock. Three more minutes. I can quit in three more minutes. So focused on escape, I repeated the thought aloud.

“No, Mom. Push through the burn. Go to the end. You can do it.” This from my son, who sat at the table behind me doing homework.

Push through the burn? “Where’d you hear that? Your P.E. teacher?” I could barely find air to voice the question. Two minutes to go.

“No. That movie. The one where the guy is on the football field wearing a blindfold, carrying another player on his back, and the coach is next to him screaming for him to keep going even though it burned. Remember?”

Facing the Giants. I did remember. We had used that scene to encourage our kids not to limit themselves. So much for bailing out early.

My son took a lesson he’d learned and used it to encourage me in turn. Without that motivation, I most certainly would have called it at 14:59.

The desire to give up when things get hard is something we all face. Sadly, the act of following through with that desire has become more common, since many of us are too hesitant to risk offending one another to encourage otherwise.

Marriage. Education. Parenting. Dreams. Work. Faith. Fill in the blank. It all burns at one time or another.

Not only should we give it everything we’ve got, but we should also be brave enough to encourage one another to persevere, keep going, stick with it.

Save your marriage. Pray your kids through. Keep the faith. Finish what you started. Don’t quit. And don’t let those around you quit either.

Let it burn.

God will be with you. And the refined product He reveals on that Day will be worth every singe.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

A Wrecked Perspective

27 Tuesday Jan 2015

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics, Writing and Pursuing Publication

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

amediting, amwriting, car accident, car wreck, Chevy Suburban, Christ, collision, comfort, encouragement, faith, fear, inspiration, joy, kindness, love, parenting, perspective, thankfulness, Thanksgiving, Trials, writer, writing

thanks

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
~ 1 Thessalonians 5:18

Recently, on a day like any other, my three kids and I set out for an evening of gymnastics and Kenpo practice, with a potential coffee stop squeezed in. The smell of mint wafted from my older daughter’s tea mug. The youngest girl crunched on a carrot as if it were her last meal, and my boy pretended to finish homework (I saw him tuck a toy in the jacket of his Gi before leaving the house).

We sat in the left turning lane behind a line of cars, underneath a partly cloudy sky. Tires screeched. Metal crunched. We lunged forward. Slammed backward. I screamed.

My pulse pounded in my ears, and I couldn’t hear anything else for a moment. The surge of adrenaline made me dizzy. I couldn’t believe I’d been hit, or that my kids were in the car.

I turned to them. “Is everybody okay?” They were shocked, but otherwise unharmed. Praise God.

I got out, shaking, and walked to the car responsible, its front end demolished. Behind the deployed airbag sat a young man wearing a dazed look of dread.

“Are you all right?” I asked.

He looked himself over and nodded, though he didn’t seem entirely sure. “Can I drive?” He pointed at a parking lot. Smoke drifted up from the remains of his hood, fluid poured beneath it.

“No. You should probably get out.”

By the time the ordeal ended, the police, a fire truck, and the boy’s parents and sister had arrived on the scene, and a tow truck was on its way to haul off the totaled car. I pulled my Chevy Suburban (a vehicle I shamelessly endorse) onto the road with minor rear-end damage.

Before leaving, I’d assured the boy and his family, “We’re fine. No one is hurt. It’s not the end of the world.” But for that eighteen year old, I could tell his world was crashing fast. He looked distraught, despite his parents and sister loving on him and stressing how much they cared about him and not the car.

I wanted to comfort him myself, pull him in a hug, wipe his tears and make certain he understood that the wreck, as horrible as it seemed now, would be just a memory someday. But he’d had enough trauma. The last thing he needed was some stranger bear-hugging and petting him.

He saw the totaled car and cried over what that meant for his family. What it would cost them. How they would replace it. He didn’t consider their joy over the fact that their son had walked away from a thousand pounds of crumpled metal unscathed.

But I did. And it made me look at my own kids, my own life, my own set of problems, my own trove of joys. And it made me thankful.

Thankful that even though my son and I have a homework showdown every afternoon, he’s come home safe every afternoon. Thankful that although my daughter’s already showing signs of adolescent attitude, I get to kiss her sleeping face every night when she looks most like an angel.

Thankful because, while my edits are taking much longer than I intended, they’re getting done, and I’ve got somewhere to send them. Thankful that no matter what the day brings–good or bad–I’m loved from on high by One who suffered and died for me.

Sometimes it takes a crisis to wreck our negative perspectives; to take our eyes off all that’s wrong with the world and refocus them to see the joy, the love, the good.

I regretted not saying all I wanted to comfort the young driver before I left. I’m thankful his driver information comes with an address where I can send a card of encouragement. I can only hope I don’t look like a stalker when it arrives.

Your turn: What are you thankful for?

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Have You Leapt Yet?

29 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Bible study, Christian, encouragement, faith, hope, inspiration, trust

Nothing is more disastrous than to study faith, analyze faith, make noble reservations of faith, but never actually to make the leap of faith.

-Vance Havner

So the question is: have you leapt yet?

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

O Death, Where is Your Sting!

20 Tuesday Aug 2013

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics

≈ 6 Comments

Tags

aortic dissection, Bible, Christ, Death, encouragement, eternal perspective, faith, friendship, heart disease, heaven, loss, relationships, spirituality

Louise

These past twelve months have seen their share of trouble.

In the circles of my family and nearest my family we’ve endured several trials and losses, from serious illness diagnoses to organ transplants to multiple unexpected deaths. Tomorrow we bury another loved one, a beautiful soul who was like a fourth sister in our close family.

Wife, mother of three, daughter, sister, teacher, and aunt to my nephew and two other precious little ones, Louise Austin Towey died suddenly on August 10 after suffering an aortic dissection a week prior.

Oddly, of all the verses that are so appropriate for loss, grief, and hope during difficult times, what speaks to me instead is Luke 12:4 “And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.”

While in the immediate and most practical context “those” refers to people, it struck me that the verse is also appropriate for those other things harmful, hateful, and fatal to the body: disease, injury, accidents, etc.

During loss, especially an unexpected loss, it’s tempting to be afraid of that which robbed us of a loved one. It’s also tempting to fear the unknown, and to grieve as those who have no hope.

But I’m reminded that no matter what is done to our temporary, fragile bodies, once it’s done it cannot be done again. The temporal has no power over the eternal, and our eternal souls–when we have put our hope in Jesus–cry out indeed “O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory?” (1 Corinthians 15:55)

In my fourteen years as a believer, I can count on one hand (and have fingers left over) of women I’ve known personally who have a “gentle and quiet spirit, which is very precious in the sight of God.” Louise was one of those people. And she will be greatly missed.

A memorial fund Love For Louise has been established to help with the medical costs and ongoing care for her family.

“And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.'” (Revelation 21:3-4)

To my God and Father be glory forever and ever.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

The Value of Grace

01 Thursday Aug 2013

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics, Short Stories, Songs, and Poetry

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

brotherly love, cheap grace, Christianity, covenant, encouragement, exhortation, freedom in Christ, grace, holiness, Jesus Christ, judgment, legalism, rebuke, relationships, riches of grace, spirituality, walking in obedience, wisdom

ID-10051379

Value A:
I know I’m not perfect
So why even try?
Don’t want too much Jesus
Just some of his pie
And you there, don’t judge me
Hold onto that stone
Who made you my keeper?
My life is my own
I’m free now, He said it
I’ll live as I choose
Your talk about walk
Don’t apply to these shoes
My sins have been paid
My failure erased
Try daily for holy????
Ain’t you heard of grace?

Value B:
I know I’m not perfect
But sin breaks my heart
Today I may stumble
The next’s a new start
To live it for Jesus
This life He redeemed
And walk so that in me
His name is esteemed
If I get distracted
Or wander astray
Encourage, correct me
And more ’til that Day
Though you may not know me
Our Father’s the same
And we have a duty
To GLORY that name!
Christ suffered my judgment
Then died in my place
I’ll not dare forget that
Nor cheapen His grace

Which is yours?

Image courtesy of digital art / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Two Are Better…

31 Thursday Jan 2013

Posted by tanaramccauley in Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Bible verses, children, Christian, collage, comfort, Ecclesiastes, encouragement, family, friends, frown, hugs, inspirational, love, mending, parenting, photos, pictures, quality time, relationships, restoration, siblings, sisters, smile, support, wipe away the tears

Tears are never as bleak when there is someone to wipe them away…

two_are_better

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Remember (A Song)

18 Friday May 2012

Posted by tanaramccauley in Short Stories, Songs, and Poetry

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Christian music, encouragement, faith, Holy Spirit, hope, Jesus, love, remember, salvation, songwriting, spirituality

Let Me Clarify:

I’ve never considered myself a songwriter. Not officially anyway. Sure I sing songs – louder and more ambitiously than I’ll ever be capable of doing well – in the safety of my home’s four walls. And if I particularly like one, or seven, or thirty, I’ll write them down. It’s a form of worship, one that’s spontaneous and rich with the immediate needs, feelings, or joys contained in the heart. And no matter how bad it sounds, the Lord loves it. It’s His Word and His love that inspire me to sing Him new songs.

What He doesn’t require is for me to do it publicly. But this song was born under special circumstances, and as such required a special response. It was inspired by something very personal; but grew into something I could not claim as mine alone. Somewhere there’s someone, or many, who need to be reminded of who God is, what He does, and how He has given us the greatest gift He could ever give. Of all the things worth remembering on this difficult adventure of life, He’s the most worthy.

The Story of Remember:

As I mentioned Remember was inspired by a very personal and difficult trial so unexpected and with the potential for such destruction that I despaired. I had to admit to the Lord that although He is trustworthy, my heart did not feel trusting. I prayed for a supernatural ability to trust with everything in me, even if my feelings weren’t on board. He and I had an emotional, very transparent conversation that day. And while I prayed, He began to bring to mind all the things – great and small, practical and miraculous – He has done for me.

His Voice spoke to my heart: Remember this? Remember this? And what about this?

And I remembered verses that proclaim who He is: “I am your shield. Your exceedingly great reward.” (Genesis 15:1)

The walls of doubt and the lack of faith began to crumble around me. And emboldened by His nearness – not testing Him but rather feeling very encouraged by His presence – I asked Him specifically, “Today, Father. Take it today.” And in a way that blew my mind, that very same day, He took it.

Writing it Down:

Shortly after, my husband responded to a request from our pastor to give the message that coming Sunday. The message God put on his heart? Remembering what God has done for us. If that didn’t raise one of my eyebrows slightly higher than the other. Knowing my husband (who’s a people person if you ever met one) can come undone when required to speak in an official capacity before a crowd of more than two, I asked jokingly if he wanted me to sing a song to go along with his sermon. I thought it a fitting quip since he’d already confessed his plan to, “Get up there, do a couple cartwheels, stutter, and walk off the stage.”

But he soon put the jokes aside and put me on the program. If he had to cling tight to God and internally pray his way through nerves for two services, what better tangible support than to have his helpmate do the same?

I wrote the song based on that prayer time I had with God. Though I’d resolved to sing a shorter version of it a cappella (since I know zero about writing music or playing instruments) my dear friend Carissa (the violinist) volunteered her husband Chris (the pianist) to come up with the music for it. To wind this story up, I sang it for Chris twice, he came up with that awesome arrangement, and here we are practicing it before church starts. It’s certainly not a perfect rendition. But we encourage you all to look beyond the flaws and imperfections, and remember Him who is flawless and perfect in every way.

God bless you.

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Recent Posts

  • AWOL Writer Captured!
  • Reclaimed
  • Unseen

Categories

  • Writing and Pursuing Publication
  • Short Stories, Songs, and Poetry
  • Book Reviews
  • Faith, Relationships, and Other Topics
  • Website

Facebook

Facebook

Twitter

  • Marked as to-read: Sisters of the Resistance by Christine Wells goodreads.com/review/show/37… 3 months ago
Follow @tanaramccauley

What I’m Reading

Instagram

No Instagram images were found.

Subscribe in a reader

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

American Christian Fiction Writers Association

Blog at WordPress.com.

Cancel

 
Loading Comments...
Comment
    ×
    <span>%d</span> bloggers like this: