In 2001, while I was stationed in Hawaii, two of my childhood besties came to visit. While at the famous stadium flea market or some other souvenir hot spot, we bought aloha heart charms painted with our names and flowers and committed to keeping the baubles hung around our car rear view mirrors. Since 2001, I have probably owned 8 different cars and the charm hung around every one. For most of those years my name charm hung in front of a wooden cross, until one day the necklace holding the cross broke. The name heart remained.
While driving north to Pennsylvania yesterday I was listened to an audio book titled, Girls With Swords, by Lisa Bevere. She spoke in depth, and seemingly effortlessly, about how women need to rise up and fight for what's right. She talked about changing the spacing of the letters of God's word and getting the words God Sword. The imagery was much better than I could give justice to, if you want to know more about that, definitely read her book. Actually, just read her book.
Anyway, this morning when I got in my car to head to the Fearless conference in which Lisa Bevere would be speaking, I saw a nail I had forged at a blacksmithing class I attended with Clara last month. To me, it looked a bit like a sword, but more specifically, it was forged in exactly the same manner in which a sword is forged just like Lisa explained in the book. If that wasn't enough of a sign; I had no idea the nail was still in my car. I had put over 3,000 miles on my car in the past three weeks and the nail was sitting right next to me in my cup holder. I hadn't noticed it once.
I looked up from the nail, looked at the name charm and was immediately convicted. I used to look at my name with the cross behind it as a symbol that I was not alone. Once the cross broke, I was left alone. I never replaced Jesus, I just continued without him.
Without thinking twice, I took the nail and decided I would drive it through the clasp of the charm, over top of my name, symbolizing that He is greater than I so that I would no longer forget Whose I am.
When I poked the nail through my charm clasp broke open and the charm dropped to the floor. The only thing left hanging was the nail - the sword. I was gone. The only thing left was Him.
