Love Hard: You'll Never Regret It

Everybody has regrets, but it occurs to me that there are a few things for which I have never been sorry…for instance, I have

* Never been sorry for loving hard

* Never wished I had been less committed

* Never wished I’d thought smaller

* Never regretted supporting and protecting my family, in good times and in challenging times

* Never been sorry for laughing so often (though occasionally, it probably shouldn’t have been so loud!  🙂

* Never wished I’d held onto offenses

* Never regretted the good choices I’ve intentionally made even when they’ve come with some cost

* Never wished I’d prayed less or that my faith had been smaller

* Never regretted choosing Jesus

If Do-Overs were an option, I would have certainly chosen that from time to time over the past 40+ years. In fact, in some areas of our lives, God *always gives us a Do-Over till we get it right.   🙂
You’ve probably experienced that…whether you realized it at the time or not…

 Mistakes have been made. Perfection has not been achieved. I’m still in process. My God is always at work in my life and can I just tell you??? I am so grateful. I am continually amazed at how gracious and merciful He is towards me. I am awash in a sea of His forgiveness and love; daily, I need it. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned…

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aoden@churchleaders.com'
Annette Oden is the Dove Award-winning songwriter and creator of kids musicals, including Noelle, The First!, Who Is Like the Lord?, Christmas Starr, Born to Worship, No Wonder!, Get to the Manger, and Just Run, as well as several collections, published by Integrity Music, Inc. (www.integritydirect.com ) Annette is the ChildrenÂ’s Pastor at Deeper Life Fellowship (www.dlfmobile.com) and has created a community-wide, parachurch worship arts organization for elementary aged kids called SPIN!, which she co-directs with Kellie Armstrong, now in its fourth year. She co-created and co-directs S.T.O.M.P. (Serious Time of Massive Praise!), a dance and drama troupe for kids in middle school through college. Annette is also a kids worship leader, childrenÂ’s choir director and adjunct professor. She does consulting & leads conferences, breathing new life and purpose wherever she goes. Her passion is to see kids experience the manifest presence of God as they worship Him; her eyes and heart are always open to giving them opportunities to grow in their own unique gifts & talents.