rebelling against low expectations
I always had friends when I was younger. But I’ve never had a best friend. Often, I wasn’t someone people wanted to hang out with. I wasn’t the prettiest, the smartest, or allowed to do all the things other kids could—simply put, I wasn’t the “cool kid” on the block. I spent a couple years wishing for a best friend, above anything else. As I grew older, I finally started to find my people. People...
Do you have a list? You know, a list of the qualities you want in a future spouse. Some people have general lists that may or may not be written down. Others get a little more specific and put down preferred hair and eye color or even what musical instruments or sports they want their significant other to play. I once heard of a girl who had a list nine pages long, detailing everything from birth...
The word “love” appears 684 times in the Bible, therefore, it must be an important topic! God apparently had much to say about love—from how much He loves us, to how we can love Him in return, to how we can love other people. While we can’t explore every passage on love, I have picked just a few to observe from the Old and New Testaments. These passages teach us what it means to truly love in...
When we were younger, my sister would copy various poems and quotes and pin them on a cork board in our room. I remember one quote in particular that read, “love is a choice, not a feeling”. Those words stuck with me and left me wondering if love really could be a choice. At the time I didn’t think so. The love I knew was very emotional and very conditional. It was always, “I love you if__.” In...
One of the most motivating verses within the Rebelution community is 1 Timothy 4:12, “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.” The part most focused on is the first part where we are encouraged not to let people’s low expectations surrounding our age hinder us from setting an example, but to instead, do hard...
My child, there is a gift beyond worth. A gift that is given and renewed each day. It’s a gift to mend heart and heal hurt. A gift far deeper than the mere word we say. My child, there is a gift that helps us bare Anything that brings weeping and grief. It’s a gift to bind people and hold off despair, A gift far deeper than the mere word we speak. Like a healing balm and a bonding rope, Causing...
When asked what my favorite book was, I usually had no answer. That is, until I read The Hiding Place. God changed my life in many ways through the course of this book. I’ve read The Hiding Place multiple times, and each time I learned something new. What most affected me were the people. Throughout all the evil and pain, the ten Boom family continued to be wholly devoted to God, relying on Him...
Once upon a time, an awkward, homeschooled sixth grader walked into a room that would change her life. That room was the Brightmoor Youth Center. That sixth grader was me. My youth group has changed me as a person. I say this not as an exaggerated, cliched statement. I say this as an unadulterated truth—I am a different person now than I was four years ago because of my youth group. When eleven...
We’re currently in the thick of LGBT Pride month. Even before the first day of June, rainbow flags have fluttered over streets and in store windows. “Love is love” is plastered on shirts and signs everywhere we turn. There is an air of confusion in the world we live in. A world where genders and pronouns are constantly changing. A world where definitions are fluid. A world where you and I...
“We need to just make up a word.” I agreed. We both paused. I had no ideas. I vetoed “friends+”, but when he suggested “situationship” it seemed to fit. It doesn’t roll off my tongue well, but then again, where Peter and I are at is not something that fits neatly into a box. We aren’t ‘just friends’ anymore, and we decided it wouldn’t help to pretend that’s all we are. But we’re also...
rebelling against low expectations
