1 John 3:1a

"How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!" (NIV)

This is another one of my favorite Bible verses, and through it, I have found a new favorite word: lavish. What a delicious sounding word! God doesn't just give us what we need; He gives in overabundance! God's love doesn't just cover you, it covers the entire world! And for what purpose? For us to have right relationship with Him! Oh, to be called His daughter! To be cherished, to be held in His arms, to be lavished upon with all the goodness and greatness a father can bestow on his child. Wow!

Whether one looks at the stars or an exquisite shade of blue in the sky, feels a child's hands in their own or the silky fur of their beloved pet, hears birdsong in the morning or the voice of their best friend over the phone, smells their mother's perfume or a fresh breeze, tastes comfort food when one is down or savors a Thanksgiving feast amidst loved ones, God is there; love is there, being lavished upon you!

I sincerely hope that you have felt such lavishness in your life. I certainly have in mine, especially recently! :D The biggest blessing lately has been my new casting which went into effect at the beginning of this month and continues until April or May of next year. I have Sundays and Mondays off, and the rest of the week, I am helping Mickey Mouse in the Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade at the Magic Kingdom! I also will be in the Fantasmic show Tuesdays and Thursday in January, but until then, I will be in the Halloween and Christmas Parades here at Magic Kingdom for the holidays. To help Mickey Mouse is such a humbling honor, and especially to help him so often in parades and shows is simply indescribable. His innocence, sense of fun, and boundless energy are so appealing and something I hope we never lose sight of. :)

With being cast in parades and shows, there forms a bond with one's fellow performers because we all have to join together to put on the best performance; it's a team effort. Everyone hydrating and warming up beforehand, everyone performing with 110% effort, and then everyone helping hand out water, powerade, and towels afterwards and making sure everyone is okay.. that is the beauty of being part of parades and shows. I have made so many new friends this way, which is not hard in a cast of at least a hundred! Each friendship is a new blessing that I treasure. :D

On top of all this excitement, my mom is coming in to town with a couple of her friends! We will all be staying at one of the resorts on property, and they will be able to see my townhome as well as my performances in the Celebrate a Dream Come True Parade, the Halloween Parade, and Fantasmic. Ideally, they will also be able to see the Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It Street Party and the Spectromagic Parade, but there's always stuff to save till the next time too if I am unable to pick up these shifts! :P Every time my mom comes, it is a week of fun, laughter, and lasting memories, so I look forward to her visit in just a couple days! Mom, since you're one in probably three people who read this, I love you! :D

Well, I should be getting ready for bed; I have three parades tomorrow, so I'd best get my rest now! :D May you all rest well, rest in Jesus, and let God's love lavish you today and always!