Currently there is a Facebook tag going around, "8 Days of Scripture." I was tagged in one of the posts to join in by a friend; as every day you post scripture you are to tag a friend to join in on the publication of the biblical texts.

I thought I would take a spin on the tag and add my translation; why I choose to share these quotes. I often forget about the verses written in the Bible amongst the cutely decorated quotes found on Pinterest; the Bible too is full of artistic revelations that can be interpreted and prayed to in various manners for everyone alike and not.

Reading my interpretations you may nod your head in a "of course I knew how great He is" kind-of-way or maybe it will make you want to read other verses and make time to meditate over what they make you feel and think or maybe you have never looked past the fact that they are bible verses and doubted the poetic brilliance in a religious book. I truly believe you do not have to be Catholic or Christian or religious at all to appreciate a well-written and intentioned message of hope.

Below are the passages and what I think when I read them.

Jeremiah 29:11

"For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

Even the worst days were planned by the One who created us and loves us unconditionally. He's giving, not making, us difficult days to learn from; to show us our own resilience. We were made with intention for fulfillment; we were made to grow with Christ. Everything will be okay, be calm and have faith.

Ephesians 3:17

"so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."

We were brought into this world by love, to love. The presence of love is visible in everything, everywhere, the grandness of mountain ranges and the grandness of people and everything in between. We were made by love, to love. If you allow yourself to be compassionate and faithful, you will be full.

Psalm 23:3

"He restores my soul."

I am alive and I am grateful and I am nurtured. Even just thinking about God I feel overwhelmed, a holy-nuts-this-is-my-life kind of overwhelmed. With every sunset and fluffy cloud and clear sky and nice person and room full of people who believe, I am restored.

Ephesians 4:1-2

"I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received. Be completely humble and gentle; be patient, bearing with one another in love."

I am given this one life here on earth to feel all the different things, to share those things, to be inspired, to inspire, alongside everyone else who was given the same blessing of life. Each one of those people deserves the love that I was given from Him by me. I should aim do great things with my life and achieve them with humility, patience and love for God, myself, and others.

Daniel 3:18

"And if not, He is still good."

This to shall pass. And if not, the world is still full of beauty. And if not, there is still music. And if not, the ocean still goes on beyond the eyes sight. And if not, there are people praying... And if not, God is still good.

Psalm 93:4

"Mightier than the waves of the sea is His love for you."

That endless, terrifying, beautiful place you sit in or across from, mesmerized, He made. The ocean is strong and chaotic and serene somehow all at once. The same hands that made the immensity that is the ocean, made me, made you, made us all. His love for us is stronger. There is love stronger than the waves we watch crashing again, again and again.

Esther 4:14

"Perhaps this is the moment for which you have been Created."

Here it is, your chance. Your chance to choose good, choose kindness, choose compassion, to make a difference. Perhaps this is what I was created for. Perhaps I will find this feeling everyday for the rest of my life.

"Joshua 1:9

"Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

Be fearless. God is with you. The fear of not living is incomparably more frightening than the fear of anything else. God is with you, always, so adventure past the border of familiarity or normality.