we are the free and His is the glory.

It's fall now. It really is, and it's stunning, and I love it. I've actually let go of summer with considerably less kicking and screaming this year. But I couldn't put it away until I'd revisited it all.

Summer. I kind of knew it was going to be a big, splashy, life-changing affair. Just had that feeling. But it was way bigger, way splashier, way more life-changing than I'd planned on. 

I feel like last summer wasn't that long ago, but every. single. thing has changed. Things fell apart, things came together, and mostly, Jesus, who has always been a part of my life, sweepingly, incredibly, indescribably became all that really matters.

Everything that a tough and beautiful spring led to just exploded this summer. Life has a way of getting crazy and amazing when Jesus is all over the place. I know I can't actually describe it--the best way to show you what I mean would be to jump up and down and probably cry.


This started it all, with all the promisingly glorious Jesus-ness. There are awesome pieces of life that are good and enjoyable, the end, but then there's seasons where everything changes so hugely, so beautifully, so mind-blowingly, that it can't ever, ever be the same. This was that summer.

This summer there were lots of fires with deep conversations and smoked-out clothes. There was conviction and more learning and thinking than I've ever done. There were moleskines, bought and given and gotten and written in.

This summer there was painfully scrumptious evening light and and perfect, violently hot days.

This summer there was a swirly rainbow lollipop and red velvet cake. And cold cereal and pudding and tacos, continuously.

This summer there was going-out-to-coffee with Jesus-lovers repeatedly and vigorously. There is nothing better, I kid you not.

This summer there was for-reals, hard-core, Jesus-soaked community. I've said before that community is the best-thing-ever, but I had no idea how much more amazing it could get.

This summer I gave in to an affinity for Mumford & Sons and even Bob Dylan, after a long fight against it. 

This summer I ate pie with my hands.

This summer I turned nineteen. Crazy how everything changed in just one year.

This summer I got to photograph lives joining, new lives growing, and brand-spanking-new, crying, worked-for life.

This summer I got to watch my rascally second brother become a daddy. First time I've taken pictures while steadily crying.

This summer I got to see my sister give birth to her third beautiful baby girl.

This summer the nieces & nephews were rampant--giggling and growing scarily fast.

This summer I met a fabulous little boy named Peter Hill. ♥

This summer our basically-family moved away from next-door, ending the raucous saga of working together and driving home together and hanging out whenever we wanted to walk up the hill to their house.

This summer there were basically-brothers who took charge and saved China and got to be straight-up men.

This summer we climbed a mountain under a full moon and watched the sun rise.

This summer I lost some of my bestest people to Bend, but Bend is beautiful and they're there being awesome and changing the world.

This summer I faced one of my worst fears--getting my wisdom teeth out. Took a whole bottle of ibuprofen and watched movies and read some of the best books of all time.

This summer I faced another one of my worst fears--riding a greyhound bus (scarred by creepers as a six-year-old, okay?) Whispered about deep stuff with my sister, reveled in C.S. Lewis' genius, and watched an old guy in a train engineer hat roll cigarettes.

This summer me and my mom talked about Jesus in the car over and over. I love her.

This summer I almost died repeatedly with beholding the rascally brother's firstborn son as he got chubbier and even more ridiculously cute.

This summer I rode in convertible for the first time ever. I'll never forget you, tiny beautiful car-that-Sam-now-sold-cuz-he's-going-to-change-the-world-and-needs-a-bigger-car-to-do-it.

This summer I got to know inspiring people better and met new amazing people. I love my people so, so much. It's out of hand.

This summer some glorious books changed my world. I read them ferociously and discussed the heck out of them with amazing people. 

This summer I had the best conversations I've ever had with the guys who I've had a zillion awesome conversations with. My brothers are awesome, you guys. Increasingly so.

This summer was beautiful and scary and full of changes. The end of a decade and the start of an age. Full of learning to let go, to trust God, to love like Jesus loved.

This summer no one was satisfied with coasting, everyone rose up and owned it. Fears were faced, dragons were fought, Jesus' love exploded everywhere. Everyone in my life--you're amazing.

This summer was wildly, epically, the best summer ever.

Jesus is the best thing that ever happened, the end.

we are forgiven, singing redemptions's song,

there's a fire that burns inside,

a fire that burns inside/nothing can stop us,

we'll be running through the night,

with a fire that burns inside/a fire that burns inside.

we are the free, the freedom generation,

singing of mercy,

You are the one who set us all in motion,

Yours is the glory.

there's a fire in our hearts and it burns for you.

it's never gonna fade away,

we are the free and Yours is the glory. 

we are the risen, living alive in you,

and our passion will not die,

no our passion will not die.

nothing can stop us,

we'll be running through the night,

and our passion will not die,

our passion will not die.

up from the grave You rose again,

up from the grave he rose and we will

rise up, rise up,

into the world that you so love,

into the world we go and we will

rise up,

rise up.

we are the free and 

Yours is the glory.

[from "we are the free"]