I am the One who carries you through moments when you feel you can no longer stand. I have desired you, loved you, from the beginning. I would not leave you. You are where I want to be. So, I remain close.

Cling to Me, morning and night. Step towards Me throughout the day. I am not silent towards you. But step towards Me. Relax against Me. Slow to hear Me. Desire Me. I give you rest here, so adventure and faith will come.

I love beginnings. I love surprises. I love hope. I love family. I love children. I love my children. I love the stories of my family, all my children, and how each moment is another day of beginning. It is another birth, another white page. 

You, my daughter, are precious to Me. You, my daughter, are right in your longing. I love how you long. I love how you long for more of Me. There is so much more for you. There is so much more I have for you—and you discover the desires of your heart when you listen to your longing.

Remember the rhythm of being with Me. Remember the rhythm of rest as well as work. I’ve said this before: I am with you now, but living this life purely, resolutely, does take effort. It takes commitment and focus and resolve to stand fast with Me.

If I am the only one who can bring you joy, if joy is the space I inhabit, if I am with you and my presence is with you always, then joy is with you, too.

I never tire of being with you. I never wish I were somewhere else. I am here to lead you. I am here to shepherd you. You are in my care. 

Oh, restless one, I bring you peace now. These years go by, and I stay. These images in your memory, pages you flip through from the past, I make them beautiful.

There are whispers you hear that aren’t from Me. There are whispers to lure you away, that want to pull you far from the place I have for you, the place I am with you, right now.

My daughter, how could I not have a plan for this world? How could I not have a plan for you? Do you wonder now, what does it mean for Me to have a plan?

In everything you do, you can listen for Me. It’s not that I speak to you constantly, in words; but I am with you constantly. And my presence is the language of your heart you’re created to hear. 

Throw down this lie you chase that makes you strive toward imaginary perfection. You will not receive my joy, my peace, my life in you that sustains if you continue to chase what is not meant for you to attain.

My daughter, listening to Me is a practice I want to teach you. So, first, take a deep breath. And again. Slow down now. Wait a bit, for Me. For I am here. Trust that I am here.

No excuses now. You are designed for relationship, for relationship with Me. You are designed for community, for your heart to crave connection, people who know you and love you.

You let Me take you deeper in, this place where the two of us can be together. And you follow Me, each move a response to my movement. You only lean when I lean. You only pivot when I turn. Your eyes are on Me and the whole world is here, right here, us two.

You can work hard to find Me, search pages in your Bible, soak up my truth, study Scripture and memorize passages until you know them by heart. But I want you to know Me by heart, my love.

I am moving. I am moving in you and I won’t ever stop. You can’t stop Me, and that’s a promise for you, my girl. I pursue you and I never tire and I fight on behalf of your heart—your complete self—the full you I created and have always designed you to be. I’m not done with you yet, my darling.

There will be a day when you behold me, full on. There will be no temptations to separate us. There will be no distractions by this world. But I will help you turn towards Me now, so you don’t have to wait. It is best for you, for your heart, to not wait. I don’t want you to miss what I have for you now. Not tomorrow, not a week or a year ahead. I want to give you the gift of my love right now. Right now. 

If you want Me, if you want more of Me in your life, I will come. I will not hold back. If you want my love, if you desire more freedom and joy in your life, ask Me to come. Let Me come to the deep places, the dark places, the unknown places. 

You cannot change yourself, although I give you the mind and the will and the motivations to take actions necessary for a person to be changed. Your will and your mind and your determination are just a piece of what it means to be changed, for good.