MORE THAN ABLE

I am here to worship, to set my spirit on something far bigger than myself. But the darkness makes me bold, and my voice begins to rise as if I am the center of this moment and this is my concert crowd.

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“You are more than able,” I mouth the words in silence so I can hear how the others sound.

We are worshiping this invisible being, one more felt than the arm of a husband brushing mine, and I am dancing my fingers in front of me as if conducting a choir. Secretly I move my hand to hover over two tiny tumors in the center of my chest. “You are more than able.” 

 Then, amid everyday baritones and sopranos something shifts. My voice still raised, my focus moves from the God who created all of it and I become swallowed up by the lives of those around me who have come here for a weekly dose of His grace.

INSTEAD OF SINGING TO THE HEAVENS I DECREE, “YOU ARE MORE THAN ABLE,”TO THE YOUNG MOTHER IN FRONT OF ME WHO SWAYS HER BABY LEFT AND RIGHT.

THEN I LOCK EYES ON THE BOY IN THE COLLEGE SWEATSHIRT AND SILENTLY PROCLAIM, “YOU ARE MORE THAN ABLE TO MANIFEST THE DREAMS YOU HAVE FOR YOUR LIFE.

“You are more than able.” Can you hear me singing to you now?

Then followed by the question—

What is it that’s holding you back?

Since the cancer and its treatments, my body does strange things in the most inconvenient places now. Remarkably, even though I’ve become more timid about putting myself out there physically, my vulnerability has sharpened itself. My ability to connect deeply and quickly has compensated for my body’s inability to be present for extended periods of time—

IN YOUR WEAKNESS, WHAT EXTRAORDINARY SUPERPOWER IS BEING RAISED UP IN YOU?

Did you ever wonder that the very thing that you believe is holding you back is, on the flip side, your greatest asset? 

WE ARE MORE THAN ABLE TO CARRY THE WEIGHT OF THE HARD THING LIKE A SOFT LANDING FOR THOSE WHO MAY BE SUFFERING TOO.

You may not perceive it, but my weakness is the very thing that draws you near. In my recovery I am slowed, and in that slowing I take the opportunity to look directly in your eyes. I see the truth behind the answer, “I am doing fine.”

My lack is the very thing that makes room for more of you, opening my heart and inviting yours to open back.

Sometimes I am breathless,
Sometimes I can barely climb the stairs,
But when I show up,
Grace meets me in my willingness to simply be there.

You are more than able.
In your weakness,
In your doubt.
Even in your imperfection.

Being too cautious or too comfortable will hold you back—
From trying and failing,
From advancing and transforming.
We do not evolve to become more perfect.

We evolve to be set free,
To embrace all the broken parts and still believe,
We are more than able.

NOTES: 
When did I start to forget all of the great things you did?
Why do I talk myself out of seeing miracles…

That’s how it starts. This song that speaks to who we are as humans—forgetful, even finicky about what we believe.
It starts with knowing what you put your faith in, doesn’t it?

Why do I talk myself out of seeing miracles? I think I can answer that…it starts when we stop looking for them.
They’re everywhere, aren’t they? Not to cheapen what the word, “miracle” means but more to expand our vision of an omnipresent God.

Anything is possible. Do you believe that? Let me tell you, in no uncertain terms, I do.

Here I am, twenty-two months into a dismal diagnosis and I am still very much alive. Maybe even more than ever.
Yes. More than ever. If you need a little belief…a little hope…you can borrow some of mine.
Just ask. I’ll love you through whatever it is. Better than this, He will love you through. 

He’s not done with us yet. 
Who am I to deny what the Lord can do?
JUST LISTEN, THEN AGREE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQ1xxoP7NJk