joy

Postively Postive

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 4 Comments

Positively Positive

This week, I have to confess I got kind of annoyed with a sign. Yep. A Sign.

And all this offending sign said was, “Smile!”

I was taking out two of the boys to McDonald’s just to hang out when I was confronted by said sign at the register. Maybe I was just a little tired, but it seemed funny being told just to randomly smile by a sign that clearly had no self-awareness. I suppose that the management wanted to reinforce that McDonald’s was a happy place to be, but it’s symptomatic of an interesting trend.

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The Pursuit of Happiness

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 12 Comments

UG Bridge and Sun

There’s been a lot of conversation floating around about happiness lately. Much of it is due to Victoria Osteen’s comments about God being happy when we are happy (more on this later!), but the truth is that our culture has been chasing happiness since this nation’s inception. Even our Constitution includes the phrase about man’s inalienable rights: “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Our culture has pervaded the church and somehow we bought into the lie happiness is one of the best things we can attain. We can’t detach it from the concept of the American dream. If we are completely honest with ourselves, we are probably all chasing some semblance of this.

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Thoughtful Reads: The Weight of Glory

/ Sara Lynn Payne / 14 Comments

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UG The Weight of Glory

I’m so excited to announce a new series! The first Monday of every month I’m going to post about one of my favorite books that has been impactful for me. These aren’t really book reviews per se because I simply want to share things that have been instrumental in shaping my thinking and walk with Christ. What I love about some of my favorite books is that it isn’t just what the book says, it is the way that it gets me thinking which is what I want to share with you. The very best books are inspiring and challenging and I find myself returning to them like old friends.

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