No Such Thing as Ordinary: Suzie Eller

Here’s a little something I’ve learned.

When you birth something, whether that be a dream or a project or a business or a non-profit or a book or a baby, for that matter, those people who show up, stand up, celebrate up, give you a hand up, you appreciate them all the more. You’re vulnerable when you birth. You’re a little scared, a little uncertain, going into all that unknown. And so those who come alongside, who rejoice with you, mean so much.

That beauty up there? She’s one of those for me. We have the same literary and speaking agent, and she just happened to be in town when we had my book launch party last year.

So she came.

And she celebrated.

Of course I had heard of Suzie Eller before, Proverbs 31 speaker and beloved best-selling author. And I’m pretty sure she’d had no reason to have ever heard of me. But, heavens, you would have thought she’d been a dear friend all along, with her gorgeous smile and enthusiasm and blessing.

It didn’t just stop there. 

She became a champion for Raising an Original, featuring me in an interview on her blog, sending encouragement and love, hosting a book giveaway.

Suzie knows what it means to love well and mentor well and what it means to help elevate others. I’m just a little bit crazy about her.

Or a lot.

So when I had the opportunity to let you know about her latest book, Come With Me Devotional: A Yearlong Adventure in Following Jesus, I was all, “Absolutely!” and “Heck, yes!!!!”.

Because this precious woman, this Suzie?

She’s the real deal. Because she exemplifies a Real Savior. And I can’t wait to take this journey with her in following Jesus.

So please enjoy this guest post from Suzie today, and leave a comment below to win a free copy of her new book!

 

No Such Thing As Ordinary

“There is no such thing as an ordinary life if I’m at the center. ~Jesus”

For a long time, I believed I was ordinary.

And I still do, except for the fact that Jesus lives in me. Which means that His presence spills out over every part of my life. Everything that I am. Everything that I do.

Really, Suzie? 

I know. Faith has been diminished – even by believers – to something we do, or don’t do. We’ve forgotten that faith is life changing. That we have been given power from on high, for the purpose of loving a broken world.

When I look in the mirror, I see a middle-aged woman (if I live to 114) with a smattering of freckles and hazel eyes. I see a mom. A wife. A wrinkle that has crept under my nose, just like my mom’s.

Jesus sees a warrior. Anointed. Called. Equipped.

There’s no such thing as an ordinary life if Jesus is at the center.

In Luke 9, Jesus calls together a group of ordinary men. He speaks over them, telling them that they’ll walk in power and authority as they follow Him.

But Suzie, that’s the disciples. That’s not me.

I don’t know about you, but I’m a disciple too. As the early disciples walked with Jesus, their circle grew. They shared the Gospel. They mentored. They believed. They lived their faith. Other ordinary men and women joined in – all of them disciples.

Just like me. Just like you.

We are modern-day disciples and there’s an invitation as we follow Jesus. Every single day. We are invited to move beyond loving our faith – all the good things that come with it – to live our faith.

What happens when we listen for His invitation in the everyday, ordinary aspects of our life?

We overcome hard things, with His help. We forgive our enemies, even when everything within us wants to punish them for a life time (or at least for a day or two). We acknowledge when we are the difficult ones, and seek His forgiveness. We believe in the face of the impossible. We reach for Heaven’s wisdom, when ours is in short supply. We fill ourselves with the power of His word and presence, instead of all the other things that don’t come close to that gift.

We dare to believe that we are anointed, simply because Jesus offers it.

We aren’t perfect.

We don’t have all the answers.

We won’t fix the world, though Jesus will help us influence a portion of it.

We still look in the mirror, and see those same old features staring back at us. I’ll still be holding on to my middle-aged status, even though it means I’ll have to live to 114.

Yet what is on the inside becomes just as visible.

We live as disciples, following Jesus in our ordinary lives, making a dent a broken world with His love. Becoming more like Him as we walk with Him. And that’s an extraordinary life, because He’s at the center of it all.

 

Suzie has a free gift for you: “13 Prayers for Come With Me”, a free PDF to encourage you to accept the invitation to follow Jesus wherever He goes. Click here to subscribe and receive the PDF in your inbox.

And be sure and leave a comment below for your chance to win Suzie’s new book! We’ll be announcing our winner next week!