I wish there were enough pictures and words to accurately portray the beauty of spring in our woods. It's the smell in the air when I get up and go outside. It's still cool enough to need a jacket but I didn't grab one, so I just stand and shiver for a minute while the rooster is growing and the hens are cackling and the dog is barking her crazy head off. The cats come rub against my legs (two of whom have just had litters of kittens 😬)...and I'm reminded that they need to be fed. The laundry on the line and the garden that is starting to produce...and all the unfinished projects of course...all pull at me. But I take a minute to just breathe and look up. And the incredibly blue sky is a stunning backdrop to lush green treetops. Everything is green now, or almost everything. Our new road is revolutionary. Truly. Everything is just a little bit easier to manage having that lovely long expanse of mud free walking, and I rarely walk down it without thanking the Lord. Yes, I'm fighting sand and red dirt now, but that's ok.
I hear the birds singing and twittering, and I soak in the view and think...God made all this and entrusted it to us. Not just our little piece of land, but the world as a whole. What a privilege! And what a responsibility. I can hear Him so much more clearly outside, surrounded by the reality and beauty of His creation. It's peaceful in this moment. The clamor of pressing needs and responsibilities and worries all fade and I hear "Be still and know that I am God". And I also hear ," Be careful for nothing but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known into God, and the peace of God that passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. "
And I know that it's true.
Friday, April 27, 2018
Monday, February 19, 2018
Will there be mud in Heaven?
I'm surrounded by mud most of the time.
There is mud outside. Huge swampy puddles that we have to navigate around and through.
There's mud on the porch. And muddy boots. There's mud on the rug. And in the kitchen.
There's especially mud in my laundry. And in the shower.
Basically, it's everywhere.
Some days, all I see is the mud. When we go to town (aka church), it's a process of wearing mud boots up to where the truck is parked, switching to our church shoes in the middle of the road while juggling the 50 million things that must go with us, and then do ??what?? with the muddy boots....
It's a constant challenge to keep from sinking. Literally and figuratively.
I asked Ed one day last week if he thought there would be mud in heaven.
He said "yes". I say "no".
I think there will only be perfectly moistened soil. And lots of grass. And flowers. Who's with me?
I've been trying all week to get a blog post written. Not just in my head but actually on paper. Or more precisely, on my new Kindle fire. But it's just been one of those weeks. Run out of phone data several days too soon, issues with our solar power, issue with our water system, mud. You know, death by a thousand paper cuts, or something equally dramatic.
And then we come to yesterday. Sunday. Where I was reminded yet again that our enemy's tactics are pretty much always the same. And have been since the beginning. Deception. Distract us from the goal. Discouragement. ( Text taken from 2 Sam. 15:1-6) Why do we find it so easy to forget?
I'm sure many of you have seen the movie War Room. I've been attempting to do something similar with a bulletin board and notebook ( although the privacy and quiet are a little harder to come by) . One of my new years goals was to renew a dedicated quiet time. Not just fit it in wherever I can through the day. It hasn't been a perfect success, but that being said, the reminder for me is this. That this war we engage in, the struggle in the midst of the mundane. Is for our hearts. Our minds. Our thoughts.
I need this reminder daily. Even hourly. It's embarrassing how easy it is to find I've spent all day mentally rehashing a conversation I wish I had gone differently. Or what I'm going to do about _____. Or even complaining to myself. Embarrassing.
I started recording things in my prayer notebook too. Not journaling, but relevant Scripture, some quotes and even thought provoking questions. And they remind me. Of how big my God is. How small my problems are. Who my enemy really is. ( And no it's not the mud.) And what my weapons are to fight with.
My list of "To Do"s , the obstacles that seem to lie in front of us, the weight of responsibility that sometimes threatens to overwhelm...
" Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things...but one thing is needful. "
I only need to have one item on my To Do list.
Sit at Jesus' feet and talk to Him.
You can't even see the mud if your eyes are closed.
There is mud outside. Huge swampy puddles that we have to navigate around and through.
There's mud on the porch. And muddy boots. There's mud on the rug. And in the kitchen.
There's especially mud in my laundry. And in the shower.
Basically, it's everywhere.
Some days, all I see is the mud. When we go to town (aka church), it's a process of wearing mud boots up to where the truck is parked, switching to our church shoes in the middle of the road while juggling the 50 million things that must go with us, and then do ??what?? with the muddy boots....
It's a constant challenge to keep from sinking. Literally and figuratively.
I asked Ed one day last week if he thought there would be mud in heaven.
He said "yes". I say "no".
I think there will only be perfectly moistened soil. And lots of grass. And flowers. Who's with me?
I've been trying all week to get a blog post written. Not just in my head but actually on paper. Or more precisely, on my new Kindle fire. But it's just been one of those weeks. Run out of phone data several days too soon, issues with our solar power, issue with our water system, mud. You know, death by a thousand paper cuts, or something equally dramatic.
And then we come to yesterday. Sunday. Where I was reminded yet again that our enemy's tactics are pretty much always the same. And have been since the beginning. Deception. Distract us from the goal. Discouragement. ( Text taken from 2 Sam. 15:1-6) Why do we find it so easy to forget?
I'm sure many of you have seen the movie War Room. I've been attempting to do something similar with a bulletin board and notebook ( although the privacy and quiet are a little harder to come by) . One of my new years goals was to renew a dedicated quiet time. Not just fit it in wherever I can through the day. It hasn't been a perfect success, but that being said, the reminder for me is this. That this war we engage in, the struggle in the midst of the mundane. Is for our hearts. Our minds. Our thoughts.
I need this reminder daily. Even hourly. It's embarrassing how easy it is to find I've spent all day mentally rehashing a conversation I wish I had gone differently. Or what I'm going to do about _____. Or even complaining to myself. Embarrassing.
I started recording things in my prayer notebook too. Not journaling, but relevant Scripture, some quotes and even thought provoking questions. And they remind me. Of how big my God is. How small my problems are. Who my enemy really is. ( And no it's not the mud.) And what my weapons are to fight with.
My list of "To Do"s , the obstacles that seem to lie in front of us, the weight of responsibility that sometimes threatens to overwhelm...
" Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about many things...but one thing is needful. "
I only need to have one item on my To Do list.
Sit at Jesus' feet and talk to Him.
You can't even see the mud if your eyes are closed.
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