Robin Jones Gunn - Take Flight!: A Sisterchicks Devotional

TAKE FLIGHT!

published by Multnomah Publishers, Inc.
2006 by Robins Ink, LLC

Sisterchicks is a trademark of Multnomah Publishers, Inc.

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from:

The Message by Eugene H. Peterson
1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002
Used by permission of Navpress Publishing Group

All rights reserved.
Other Scripture quotations are from:
The Holy Bible, New International Version ( NIV ) 1973, 1984 by International Bible Society.
Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House
Holy Bible, New Living Translation ( NLT ) 1996.
Used by permission of Tyndale Charitable Trust. All rights reserved.
The Living Bible ( TLB ) 1971.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc. All rights reserved.
Ill Fly Away by Albert E. Brumley
1932 in Wonderful Message by Hartford Music Co. Renewed 1960 by Albert E. Brumley & Sons/SESAC (admin. By ICG). All rights reserved. Used by permission.
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LIBRARY OF CONGRESSS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Gunn, Robin Jones, 1955
Take flight!: a Sisterchicks devotional/Robin Jones Gunn and Cindy Hannan.
p. cm.
eISBN: 978-0-307-56216-6
1. Christian women-Religious life. I. Hannan, Cindy. II. Title.
BV4527.G87 2006
242.643-dc22

2006020276For information:
MULTNOMAH PUBLISHERS, INC.

601 N. Larch Street SISTERS,
OREGON 97759

rh_3.1_c0_r2

Do this and live, the law commands But gives me neither feet nor hands. A better thing this grace now brings It bids me fly and gives me wings!

ADAPTED FROM A QUOTE ATTRIBUTED TO JOHN BUNYAN ENTITLED RUN, JOHN, RUN

P REFLIGHT P REP

A h, grace. Grace that would bid us fly and give us wings! What a welcoming imagebeing set free to become all God intended and to soar through life.

Why is it, then, that such freedom often feels like an elusive dream? We hold back. We hesitate. He lifts the cages latch and invites us to take flight. We step to the edge and

Sometimes we soar. Sometimes we tumble. Yet heres a secret: Every soar, every tumble, every frantic flapping about, is covered by Gods grace, His grace upon grace. Every escapade with Him becomes a story.

In Take Flight! we want to explore those storiesthe grace-stories of life. Whether you flit through these pages alone or with a fine feathered Sisterchick or two, we think youll see your own grace-stories between the lines. Youll be reminded that even in moments that seemed graceless, Gods hand kept you from tumbling into oblivion. And His grace will keep you from future free falls regardless of what awaits you.

Id like to start off by telling you a grace-story about my friend Cindy and how the two of us came to write this book. For more than a decade, Cindy and I have met with our friend Carrie every Tuesday morning to pray. This journey has knit our hearts together in rich and abiding ways.

About the time I was considering writing a devotional book, Cindy returned from a trip to Indonesia where she had met with a group of women involved in mission work. Cindys time with the women included interacting around a series of discussion questions and reflections on Scripture that she had prepared ahead of time. The women opened their hearts to each other, and the results were sweetly eternal.

Cindy told me about her Indonesian experience while we were driving to Central Oregon. I slowed the car and pulled into an empty campsite under a canopy of ancient towering evergreens.

Cindy, we could do this together!

Do what?

We could write a devotional book together. A nouveau devo! You could do what you do so wellask gentle questions. And Ill do what I dotell God-stories. What do you think?

Neither of us knew quite what to think, but we exited the car, stood with our arms and faces raised toward the heavens, and sang. It was pretty amazing, especially for a couple of conservative Sisterchicks like us. I dont even remember what we sang. What I do remember is that something in our spirits took flight that August morning in the moss-scented forest. We were willing to take a risk. Try something new. Trust God in a new way.

In the months following our collective chirp of a yes to the Lord, the format took shape. I would use a quote from a character in a Sisterchicks novel as a launching pad to tell a real-life story of grace, dubbing the tale From Robins Nest. Cindy would take to her perch with her laptop and write questions based on the story, adding flourishes of wisdom, wit, and whimsy.

With our plan settled on, we hunkered down and did what all writers do. We wroteand rewrote and rewrote.

Now, from our Kindred spirits, Cindy and I present to you this nouveau devo with a few Sisterchicky flourishes. And dont worry one flutter if youve never heard of a Sisterchick until this moment. By definition, a Sisterchick is a friend who shares the deepest wonders of your heart, loves you like a sister, and gives you a reality check when youre being a brat. Whether you meet regularly with a gaggle of Sisterchicks or dont have a Sisterchick in your life at the moment, this book is for you. If youve read every Sisterchicks novel or never peered at a single one, you belong right here. We are oh so eager for you to dive into the birdbath with us.

May the words weve lined up in this book spark in you and your Sisterchicks a deeper love for our heavenly Father and for His unending grace. He has lifted the latch on your cage. Come closer to Him. No, closer. Lean over the edge of endless freedom and possibilities, and see what happens when your spirit takes flight.

All atwitter,
Robin

Gods Spirit beckons. There are things to do and places to go! (Romans 8:14)

S ECTION O NE

Birds-Eye View

From heaven the L ORD looks down
and sees all mankind;
from his dwelling place he watches
all who live on earth
he who forms the hearts of all,
who considers everything they do.
PSALM 33:13-15, NIV

To look at everything always as though you were seeing it either for the first or last time: Thus is your time on earth filled with glory.
BETTY SMITH, A TREE GROWS IN BROOKLYN

Sunset Worship

F ROM R OBINS N EST

I want to live each day with a full,
open heart to the Lord and always be thankful for what He does.

Now, exactly how do I do that?

S HARON , SISTERCHICKS ON THE LOOSE !

L ast summer my husband and I hosted a small party for a few friends. We gathered in the backyard, where we ate, talked, and laughed. As evening approached, the sky changed colors. A cloud blanket spun of rich pink satin hues came rolling over the violet sky. Conversations stopped. Everyone looked up.