What this picture said to me when I captured it {like I do ALL “hidden crosses” I come across} :
Jesus can be found even in the icky places too.
Yes, he’s in the beautiful sky-cross places.
And the shadow crosses, where light spills through the window and leaves the perfect casting of a cross on my floor or on my wall.
But the other day as I was cleaning with my mom, and it was cold and shivery outside, and I went to take the trash out I saw this. And immediately saw the cross, yet thought “that’s not photo worthy” – and yet- it is. Maybe even moreso.
Because Jesus came particularly for the messes didn’t He?
He came for those of us who feel like messes.
For those of us who have messy moments where we wonder if we belong here, tossed out with the trash.
Yet He meets us right where we are. He scoops us up and calls us treasure.
So many Christmas seasons I filled with hopes and dreams for feelings.
I had seasonal bucket lists of all the “Christmassy” things. Hot cocoa. Caroling. Cutting down our own tree. Light-drives. New pajamas. Christmas cookies. Christmas books. Homemade or carefully -selected presents for all the people we know. Angel-tree gifts.
On the years where we weren’t able to do all the things, I felt myself struggling to be content. I see those same sentiments reflected on Facebook lately. People sharing how they’re having a hard time getting in the holiday spirit. And I know that feeling exactly. It especially can be present when we are missing a loved one, or a tradition has been forced to be changed.
This season has been so different for me.
I don’t know if I’d say I’ve necessarily been in a “holiday spirit”, because I feel the same that I feel most of the time now…
I feel the hope and joy and peace that all the Christian carols sing about.
I feel a stillness in my soul, that could take or leave all the regular traditions and be just as content.
I find myself surprised at how full I feel, despite this being the first year we didn’t cut our own tree down.
Or the fact that our gift budget is much smaller.
Or the reality that I just have had too many other things to do and haven’t gotten the outside lights up.
It’s like a “sorry, not sorry feeling”… like maybe I should feel sad and apologetic that I’ve interrupted the way we’ve always done it, but NOT at all sorry, because that old holiday spirit feeling I used to chase…well it was just a glimpse of HIM, and now He is with me ALWAYS! Holy Spirit chased me down and He is with me all year long.
Holy Spirit beats the world’s versions of holiday spirit, all day every day! ❤️
Trying to be content- Trying to muster up the holiday spirit feelings… Sometimes that can be one of the most difficult feelings there is. Almost a grief of sorts. When we cannot control things and traditions, we grieve our inability to make ourselves feel the way those things made us feel.
But if we have Jesus we don’t have to grieve as the world does.
And giving is good, but giving with the main intention of making us feel better, well He can still use that, and others will still be blessed … but the motivation for that is off.
Holy Spirit has shown me so many times this year that when we chase the feels, we may catch glimpses of them but often they’ll flit a way like a butterfly, disappear as quickly as a desert-mirage.
But when we sit still in the quiet place with Him, we find that HE- the God of the universe- has been chasing US all along! Holy Spirit’s fullness can override all the other icky feelings that we struggle with, including discontent.
We don’t have to get ourself out of anything. Not grief. Not a sense of lack. Not disappointment. Not doubt. Not unforgiveness. Not a lack of motivation.
We don’t have to muster up the good feels.
All we have to do is invite him into them with us! He can and will override the “icky” supernaturally if we ask Him.
He will comfort us, help us feel complete, help us hope, help us believe, erase the emotions off painful memories so that we can forgive, and help give us momentum which is better than motivation!
He does all of this by filling us up with the very best PRESENCE- which is better than any present- His!
(Not as if what I’m gaining out of the quiet place won’t grow me, because he knows that I know better than to believe that.
But more like an accusation that I’m not stewarding my time well when I have days or seasons where I extra-need God’s guidance and encouragement or where I just c•r•a•v•e that time with Him.)
“What a waste! Your time could have been spent handing food out to the poor. Or working, so that you have more money to give to charities or to the church.” – he (the enemy) adds.
And God knows that my heart is for helping in any way He asks me to,
but something still compels me to not only give Him my ALL (as in, “Lord, you are the boss of every part of my life – I’ll go where you tell me to go, stay where you tell me to stay, serve where you tell me to serve, and walk away when you say it’s time to walk away…”)
but to also give HIM my BEST.
The first chunk of my day as often as I’m able. Before the housework gets me. Before the kids require help with school. Before the list of work tasks comes out. Before I begin responding to others’ messages.
Not because I have to but because I want to. Because it doesn’t even feel like giving him anything, it feels like receiving the gift of a moment with Him.
And yet, since the enemy wasn’t coming at me with a worldly point of view, but rather a religious one, I was confused and I had to take this to Jesus also.
“You’re like the woman with the perfume,” is what I heard Him whisper to my soul. 💕
“Don’t feel guilty. It’s precious! I have all I could ever need, and yet the one thing I desire has to be given as a gift. And that is hearts!
Hearts that love me more than ANYTHING else.
Hearts that long to spend time with me first and as often as they can.
Not because they feel some religious duty to, but because they LONG to.
They LOVE me.
They SAVOR our together time.
I love all my children, but the ones who experience my favor are the ones who savor time with me. (He knows I love a good rhyme!) 😉 “
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So I looked up the story of the woman with the perfume:
“Jesus was at Bethany, a guest of Simon the Leper. While he was eating dinner, a woman came up carrying a bottle of very expensive perfume. Opening the bottle, she poured it on his head.
Some of the guests became furious among themselves. “That’s criminal! A sheer waste! This perfume could have been sold for well over a year’s wages and handed out to the poor.” They swelled up in anger, nearly bursting with indignation over her.
But Jesus said, “Let her alone. Why are you giving her a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me.
You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your lives. Whenever you feel like it, you can do something for them. Not so with me. She did what she could when she could—she pre-anointed my body for burial. And you can be sure that wherever in the whole world the Message is preached, what she just did is going to be talked about admiringly.”
(Then)Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the cabal of high priests, determined to betray him. They couldn’t believe their ears, and promised to pay him well. He started looking for just the right moment to hand him over.”
Mark 14:3-11 MSG
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There are so many pieces of wisdom hidden in this story. They point to what Jesus treasures. Each time I read stories in my Bible I see something new. And I’m sure I won’t even begin to touch on all of the gems hidden in this one. One blog post is not enough for that!
In a world that works very opposite of the way His Kingdom does, we NEED His Word to help recalibrate us to His heart. His Truth.
I can be really confident when I set out in the direction He calls me, because when I am flowing in His spirit, He is moving me I am not the one doing the moving. I am not trying to desire more time with Him, I simply do.
But when I go into the rest of my day, “into the (“real”) world”, His isn’t the only voice I’m hearing. The voice of hustle tries to chime in as well. And the voice of guilt.
And then I intentionally have to go back to Him so He can show me how to proceed. Assure me that I’m on the right track, or correct me if I’m off. And here is what he showed me this time:
What is the most valuable thing we can give anyone?
The thing that we cannot buy more of, control our supply of, or get back once it is given?
TIME.
There are always going to be people who look at others living a God-led instead of goal-led life, and think “How wasteful! How wasteful that you’re spending so much time just enjoying His presence. Your time could have been put to work instead, for a year’s wages and handed out to the poor.”
In other words, these voices say “You could be more valuable to Him, make more of an impact for His Kingdom, if you would just spend your time the world’s way, and if you spend your money the religious way…”
But God goes to great lengths to show us that His ways are higher than ours.
Sometimes His ways are beyond what our fleshy, (worldly or religious, either way) minds can wrap themselves around.
We can learn the most from the red letters in His Book. (The ones Jesus said.) ❤️
And what did Jesus say to these accusers?
***”But Jesus said, “Let her alone. Why are you giving her a hard time? She has just done something wonderfully significant for me.“ ***
And what did Jesus say when I came to him about the voices of guilt accusing me (having come from being a workaholic) of being lazy?
He made those thoughts leave by speaking Truth over me. “By giving me your time, your most limited commodity, lavishly- lovingly- you have done something wonderfully significant for me…”
And then he reminds the grind-stirrer in me, “You will have the poor with you every day for the rest of your life. Whenever you feel like it, you can do something for them.” (And He helps us to desire and do that too!)
There will be plenty of other moments in the day where I can serve, and plenty of opportunities to do so. But just like He shows us in the story of Mary and Martha, when HE is our joy, our delight, and we spend our time delighting in Him lavishly, it’s not a waste. It’s the BEST. Even though it doesn’t feel like a sacrifice because we are so in love with Him that it feels like all joy…And even though everything we have came from Him to begin with…He perceives it as a gift!
Jesus didn’t say don’t help the poor. Jesus didn’t say don’t work. Jesus didn’t say don’t spend time serving.
What He said was- lavishly loving moments with Him come FIRST!
& What He said to anyone trying to guilt us over taking that time (even just the other voices that try to whisper lies to our minds), as if we are taking away from His Kingdom, or even our own kids, by taking that time- is… you’re wrong.
He didn’t come JUST for service to the poor.
He didn’t come JUST to feed the hungry food.
He came to teach us how to live by more than bread alone! (Matthew 4:4)
And until we allow Him to teach us how to live that way in the quiet place (which takes time that seems so foolish to the world to set aside)… how could we ever hope to share this “better bread?” with the world, which deep down is what they REALLY need anyway. It’s the BEST stuff!
You know, the thing is, I call this my encouragement blog, but really? It’s more like an encouragement LOG, where I simply share all the wonderful ways that He encourages me. 💕
If God were speaking directly to you this morning, what word would He place in there?
The text was originally written, God, not your marital status, defines your life. (So whether single or married or who we are married to- whether the most difficult or the most magnificent of mates, we can be defined by our partnership with God which is ETERNAL.)
For me, though, marriage isn’t the issue on my heart at this moment. So Holy Spirit chimed in this morning with “or career status.”
“God, not your career status, defines you, Daylene. ❤️” {And anyone else reading this who needed to hear that.}
Perhaps we are in different seasons right now which are causing us to both need that encouragement.
Maybe someone reading this is facing the possibility of unemployment due to the vaccine mandate (I’ve had several people come across my path who need prayers about that.)
Maybe you’re a mom, like me, who wants to be home with her kids and yet there’s also this other, personal creative drive that you sometimes struggle to contain within the time that you have and you feel guilty. At times it feels like you’re shortchanging your kids by taking some time for this calling, and at other times it feels like you’re falling short of what God wants from you because you’re limited in time due to having so many duties at home.
The enemy- he likes to put up fences and box us in.
He does this by presenting choices. So many of them. TOO many.
And then he gets us to sit around and question where we are at, if we made the right choice.
And some of us climb to the other side of the particular fence he is making us focus on, and we think that the grass will be greener, and maybe it does seem to be so at first- but after awhile when the newness wears off we are disillusioned because we find that the landscape isn’t perfect there either.
Not all of the world’s encouragement quotes are good but there is something to “The grass is greener wherever you water it.” 🌱 💦 ☀️
However I’d go a step further and say that we can learn to be most content by looking up (at Jesus) instead of down and around.
〰️〰️〰️ I didn’t even intend at all to write about marriage today since that’s not what I’m struggling with at the moment, but I know that many are. And since that’s the original context of the verse He brought me to today, I will go ahead and exhort anyone who needs it while I have the opportunity.
The grass isn’t greener on the other side of the marriage fence, whether that means singleness or searching for someone else.
Both being in a committed partnership (no matter who it is that is our spouse) and being single have blessings and challenges.
And sometimes watering the grass where you’re at does make it greener! It really does.
I’ve seen my marriage improve alot as my husband and I have made a point to invest in learning about each other more and doing our best to love the way they need it and not just the way we receive it.
But the ONE thing that’s helped our marriage become better than it ever has been before is having God in the center as our mediator, comforter, guide, and number one common ground.
We each became happier people, easier for one another to please, when we started looking UP at Him, more than at our “grass” to see if it was green or brown, or at others’ marriages or single lives “on the other side of the fence.”
〰️〰️〰️ Going back to what was originally on my heart to write about- career status- or personal callings and passions and using creative talents versus serving in ways that feel more general whether at a job or at home…
The grass isn’t greener on the other side of the career fence, either… no matter what the enemy might say.
Whether that means finding a career where you can feel secure by a set salary and benefits, either doing something you enjoy, or something you can tolerate enough to make the work worth it….
Whether that means having ALL the time to work on a job or personal project that with the creative skills that make you feel alive…or serving at home 24/7.
Career defined means “an occupation undertaken for a significant period of a person’s life and with opportunities for progress” – so even if serving at home replaces a traditional career, we can still think of it as such.
Any service whether paid or unpaid, outside of home or in the home, comes with blessings and challenges.
And sometimes watering the grass where you’re at does make it greener! It really does. Investing in our work and in our family with prayer and a good attitude and effort makes a difference.
But just like He’s already shown me in my marriage, the ONE thing that I think God is trying to show me that can help me find the contentment I’m looking for in the work/life tug of war that the enemy keeps trying to set up in my soul…
is tearing down that fence, and turning my eyes up!
Work and life are not separate.
The work outside the home which I do not naturally enjoy does not need to compete against family, so that I’m resenting it and looking over to my family-side-of-the-fence longingly, wishing I was home all the time. (Which is what happened just before I made my first jump from working full time outside the home to working from home.)
Work inside the home which I do not naturally enjoy (the things we don’t think of when we wish to be home full time, like the fact that when we are all home all day, the house needs cleaned more than once, and we have to cook 3 meals instead of 1)…does not have to compete against passion, so that I’m resenting it and wishing I was able to do what I love always. (Which is writing and encouraging, and this particularly is the encouragement He is giving me right now.)
He’s making it clear that the real battle isn’t about where I am or what I’m doing, it’s a war between my flesh that wants to feel pleased and be about me always and my soul that wants to serve and be about others always. And I can’t be all about me and all about others all at once. So the only way to reconcile this is to give it ALL to Him.
So that when I’m in the block of time where I can passionately do what I love, I do it for His glory and to draw others to Him. I can see it as not even just a joy that I get to do, but a job that is purposeful and can have impact (even if it’s unpaid.)
And when I’m in the blocks of time where I am called to serve in other ways, that I don’t naturally flow in as much, I can see it not just as a “job” which makes me feel a flesh resistance to it, but I can see it all as a joy because I get to do it with Him.
I used to want nothing more than to be my own boss and not have a boss over me. That’s actually more heavy than I could have ever imagined. Now, I understand nothing is better than having Jesus in the boss-seat of every part of my life. He’s not only my boss, He is also my best friend, comforter, guide, and the connector that helps me in relationships.
My marriage transformed so much when I allowed Him to teach me that the number one goal is not necessarily to be made more happy, but to be made more holy— more like Jesus. He also showed me that I can find joy in doing things I don’t naturally, as an individual, love to do (like anything athletic really 😆) – with my husband, because I love my time with Brett, not because I love the activity itself. And you know, I’ve come to enjoy cornhole more now than ever because of this new mindset.
This morning, He brought a new sense of peace to my mind, calming the chaos that was there between “all the things” and my flesh and soul tugging me back and forth between the ones I enjoy and the ones I don’t, so that I felt constantly pulled apart.
“With me”, He said, “it can ALL be a joy! Because you enjoy spending time with me and learning from me!”
“And- it’s also ALL counted as service unto me. The parts you love that don’t feel like work, count just as much as the parts that FEEL like you’re doing a job, because you’re doing them all for me. For my glory. To grow my kingdom, not your own or anyone else’s. It all matters.❤️”
As I dwell on that this season, I am confident I will become an even more joy-full person, more content in all areas of life, as I look up at Him more, in the “doing” (both creative work I enjoy and cultivating work that feels more like work), instead of letting the enemy make me wish I was someplace else or doing something else. ☀️
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Romans 5:1-5 MSG
“By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us—set us right with him, make us fit for him—we have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus.
And that’s not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us.
We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand— out in the wide open spaces of God’s grace and glory standing tall and shouting our praise.
There’s more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we’re hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next.
In alert expectancy such as this, we’re never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary—we can’t round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!” God is so good! He brings out the good in ALL! Amen! 🙌🏻 ✝️ 🙌🏻
Last weekend and early this week, we were all down with colds. The older kids, of course, just like my hubby and I, can take care of their own noses. But since the little guy hasn’t figured out how to blow his own nose just yet, every morning we had a new routine.
Just like normal, I’d get him up. Sing him a song. Change his diaper. Get him a drink.
Except on these mornings I would also grab out the nose frienda and a bottle of saline nose spray.
I’d take a warm, soft baby washcloth and wipe the crusties out his eyes. He didn’t mind that so much. I’m sure it felt pretty good.
But then came the part he hates. And the part that I GET that he hates, and hate that he hates, but I have to do it anyway because it’s important to get all that gunk and snot out, so he can breathe deeply again and feel better. And because did you know that if you let all that snot sit, it can cause a secondary sinus infection? And of course I don’t want that for my kid.
So the first two mornings he pitched a fit, kicking and screaming, but we still got it done.
By morning 3, he fussed a bit but willingly let me do it. {I think he remembered that bonus snuggles come after nose sucking.}
And by the next day, he knew what was coming and didn’t bother protesting. “Mommy’s helping you” I reminded him. “Okayyyy Mommy,” he echoed back. And afterwards, “Thank you for cleaning me.” {He’s so sweet that one, he always thanks me for cleaning him, like every time I change his diaper too. It’s adorable.}
God speaks to me so much through my mothering experiences, and every morning as this would happen, I felt in my heart that this is what it’s like to sit with the Father- when we are “sick”. Meaning-when there’s something icky in us that he has to help us address.
He doesn’t bother to ask if it was our fault or not, {Did you insist on going outside in the cold without your hat on??}
He doesn’t tell us to take care of it ourselves. Even if we are old enough and know how to “blow our nose” spiritually speaking. The truth is we are all spiritual infants compared to Him, and we could never adequately get all the “snot” out without His help.
He isn’t harsh or unloving about it. He simply pulls us onto His lap. Gets us into His presence. Gets out his spiritual “snot sucking kit”- which is the Bible – and lets it do its work on us, exposing and clearing out all the junk in our hearts.
Fear. Envy. Pride. Anger. Whatever it is.
Keeping it from settling and causing secondary spiritual infections.
Helping us heal faster so we have less of a chance of spreading it to others.
And if we trust He is a good Father, we let Him do this in us.
Is it pleasant? No.
I much prefer our regular “snuggle time” where I cuddle up with a coffee and my Bible and everything is good and I feel like I’m reading a love letter from my Heavenly Dad.
But sometimes it’s not like that, though the snuggles always follow if we stay for them.
Sometimes it “sucks”.
Have you ever used a nose Frieda on your kid?
It’s really icky. Super effective, but looks gross. Nothing gets in your mouth, but the snot chamber is clear and you can see everything that’s coming out. It’s how you know when you’re done. 🤢 And toddlers really don’t like seeing that. Or feeling the suction. It’s definitely not their favorite, but they do like deeply breathing when you’re done!
Sometimes reading the Bible when we have that “snot” in us sucks.
The Spirit reveals. Highlights things you need to let God work on. It brings everything out. And we don’t like seeing that! We don’t like feeling that “suction.”
But we can learn to love the next part- the breathing deeply that follows!
{Is it a coincidence that the “nose Frieda” He used to illustrate this for me sounds like FREEDOM? I think not.}
Also, the snuggle time with our Savior after, that follows, is simply the BEST.
And it’s loving that, that helps us tolerate what needs to be done in us. Keeps us coming back to be cared for. When we feel good about it, and even when we don’t.
Everything He does in us and reveals to us is for our good. And He takes the time to do it because He loves us. Because He’s our Father. ❤️
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“For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.”
I wrote this post last year, when I was in the deepest part of the pain that comes when you lose a parent right before the holidays and you’re dreading all the firsts without them.
Today I just want to share that if you’re struggling with grief, on this National day of gratitude (Thanksgiving) that’s ok.
It doesn’t make you ungrateful for what remains.
Grief is a very real emotion and it’s a hard one to go through.
Give yourself some time and space.
And reach out to someone if you need to.
Above all, pray. (Talk to Jesus.)
It’s the only thing that really helps us get through.
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Anyone else find themselves scrolling to fill, scrolling to feel today?
Yeah. I have been too.
Truth is, it never works.
And yet, I keep searching anyway.
Until my scrolling leads me to a friend’s reminder of what I’m really after. Comfort. And the good kind only comes from one place. Christ.
Truth is- this year, this season is weird.
Hard.
Actually, I think life just is.
And the holidays seem to accentuate all the “feels”.
Chaos, mixed with moments of peace;
eager anticipation, mixed with moments of agony;
a desire for things to remain forever, mixed with reminders that they change too fast…
As I deal with grief this holiday season, and a deep sense of loss, I realize now, more than ever, how important God’s people, {His hands and His feet} are for those of us who remain on Earth…
Hands that hug. That hold. That give a reassuring grip on your shoulder.
Feet that come over, spend time with you, force you to get up out of your seat and interact.
Eyes that see past the scrolling, and the sullenness, and KNOW you’re not trying to be antisocial. You are just feeling a deep sense of loss, and your flesh is trying to fill it…
Fingers that type, mouths that speak… and remind us of the truth.
It’s OK.
It’s ok to not be ok.
It’s ok to have those holes.
Nobody needs you to be whole, for them.
Sometimes we are just going to FEEL more hole-y than holy.
And that, my friend, is ok. We don’t have to fix it. In fact we can’t.
No amount of scrolling is going to give us the substance our souls are searching for.
Tonight, I needed a friend’s post to snap me back into reality… that when all else fails {to satisfy that deep, deep longing, the void in our souls}, God does not…
Maybe you needed that reminder too. If so, I pray my ability to relate is a comfort to your heart. 💗
And now… I think I’ll log off for just a few days, so God can help me get filled with the comfort only He can give, in the quiet place we enter when we shut the virtual world off…
Wishing you comfort and joy this Thanksgiving, friends, & praying for His peace in you, that fills all the holes. I’m so thankful for all the people, near and far, virtual and in-person, who God has given me to do life with.
To the woman that needs this reminder today, (just like I did) here you go:
Leave the mess.
The sink full of last night’s dishes.
The unvacuumed floors.
The crumb-covered tables.
The toys and the socks and the shoes strewn about.
Leave it all.
Not forever, but just for a moment.
Sit down.
Yes, I know it’s hard to feel peaceful in the “messy”, but I assure you- you can.
And it’s good for us to learn,
because sometimes life throws bigger “messes” at us- that we can’t control- that aren’t fixable with a quick clean up.
And so we need to practice by finding peace, in the midst of little messes first.
I want you to close your eyes.
Listen to your breaths going in and out.
Place your hand to your to neck and feel the constant thump of your pulse.
HEAR and FEEL these very real reminders, of two things you can’t control- and yet God has had them all along.
He’s never failed to make your lungs breathe or your heart to beat, your whole life.
That’s how you are reading this right now.
And yes- there will come a day for all of us, when those two things will cease. And we will be face to face with Him.
Let’s not get wrapped up in any fear about that, though. It won’t be a scary thing, for those of us who know Him. It will be a coming home.
But it’s also a good reminder- that there’s something that comes BEFORE the house, and all the things…
It’s the family.
The relationships.
And He’s at the top of that relationship list!
It’s the lingering in moments together and soaking them up, filling up in them!
Letting the dishes soak in the sink, for just a little bit longer. (As a bonus, just know the longer they soak, the easier the gunk comes off. 😉)
Take a moment, and just be still with Him. Greet him with a “Good morning!” ☀️ Give him a “cheers” ☕️ 💕 to another day, of doing life and loving others together!
Thank Him- that no matter who else you get to do life with- or even if you live alone, or feel lonely, you AREN’T alone.
He’s right there with you.
Keeping you company.
Cleaning up the messes, beside you.
Occupying your mind with His goodness so that you CAN keep cleaning, keep serving, keep working, keep loving, keep living, keep doing all the other things that He’s called you to do.
Breathe all that truth in.
And linger in it for an extra moment this morning.
And you’ll find yourself able to do it all from a renewed fullness.
Time with Him is SO good. Like basking in the Son. ☀️
You know what I love about God? Nothing is too big or too little to bring to Him. Literally nothing. He cares about it all.
So here is my little “isn’t He amazing?!” story of the day.
This is my coffee maker. I’ve had it for a few years now and I love it!
(I’m sure you can tell how well-used it is by the fingerprints on it that I was tempted to clean off for the photo but then thought 🤷🏼♀️ “Let’s just be real!”)
I love how it has a frother, to give me that little bit of foam on the top of my cup. ☕️
I love how I can make just a cup if I want, because that’s all I drink each day…
or a travel mug of hot tea every morning for my hubby before he goes to work…
or a whole pot when I have guests and we chat with coffees around my kitchen table. ❤️
I even pack up this baby and take it camping with us when we go, even though our camper is small and this takes up an unreasonable amount of space on the counter.
So anyway- and I know this sounds silly- but the last time we went camping a few weeks ago, I packed up this coffee maker as well as the trusty toaster we have had since we got married, and I got them out to make breakfast with and NEITHER OF THEM would work!
I tried multiple plug ins, I tried connecting them directly to the electric box. I literally tried everything.
Got them home, and the same. Googled it, You tube’d it, to see if there was a solution and there was nothing I could find.
The toaster I shrugged off because- well, it was a cheap toaster to begin with, and it had lasted 16 years. I figured it had gotten its use. And replacing it wasn’t going to cost us much.
But the coffee maker? Well it may be cheap to some but $100 wasn’t cheap to me, and it had only been a few years, and we did not have money for another because a lot of expenses have been coming up. And I was feeling super pouty.
And then God prompted me to pray.
((Me))- Pray over my coffee maker?? Like for real?
((God))- Yes. Just do it.
((Me))- Ok, God. You’re God. I’ll do it if you say so. Can’t hurt.
So I pray over my coffee maker and I kid you not- I did NOTHING else to it. And the error message went away, and it started working again and hasn’t missed a beat since! 😯
So then of course I pray over the toaster. Because replacing it would only be like 25 bucks but 25 bucks is 25 bucks. And more so really- because miracles are AMAZING! It’s so cool watching God do what he does.
And I know it’s a “little miracle” –
it’s not like when he gave me baby C after 5 losses,
or like when he made ends meet for us month after month after month when it looked impossible,
or like when he parted the waters in Egypt…
But I truly relish EVERY MIRACLE he performs!
And He did it again!!!
The toaster that I had declared “toast” at the campsite, that still wouldn’t work when we got home, that I just hadn’t taken the time to throw away yet, suddenly WORKED. With no explanation. When it hadn’t worked 20 seconds or 20 minutes or 20 hours or the 20 other times I tried it before.
Y’all. I don’t always get answers the moment I pray. And sometimes I don’t get a yes either. But when God prompts you to pray for something, or someone, JUST DO IT. You never know. And what do we have to lose anyway? A whole lot less than we have to gain- which is a REALLY cool story, of how personal God is, and how much he cares- about the big things, the little things, and everything in between. ❤️
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God is able to make ALL grace abound to you, so that in ALL things at ALL times having ALL that you need, you will abound In every good work. ~ 2 Cor. 9:8
I wrote this last year but I know a lot of people who have lost loved ones this year and so I’m sharing it again. Because during the holiday season especially, people are fighting battles we know nothing about. And they- more than ever- need grace. ❤️
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This morning started out so wonderfully. Big snow flakes falling gracefully from the sky. Toddler eyes, full of wonder, squealing with joy. Husband and kids around the table, enjoying Sunday biscuits & gravy and sparkling juice just for a treat. Balsam candle burning, wafting tones of the coming holidays into the air. Music flowing through a speaker, the instruments stroking chords of joy in my soul.
I looked around and felt nothing but gratitude. Even as I reflected upon how different this Thanksgiving was going to look. As I prepared my heart to receive and live in the days gratefully, focused more on what remains than what has gone away this year.
So much has gone… 2020 has left holes in me like a Jenga game. For each block that’s been pulled out, God has stacked them. Built me up. Closer to Him. But the truth remains that the holes are real. And they leave an emptiness that we seek to fill. Loved ones missing. Some by force, some by choice. Some sitting at the table with Jesus this Thanksgiving, and some just distanced like never before. Traditions broken. Places closed. Situations changed. Feelings raw.
Yet here we are, still standing. Because that’s all we can do. Trying not to totally fall apart, we must choose moment by moment to carefully steady our spirits by securing ourselves in gratitude and God’s grace instead of allowing ourselves to be knocked down.
Sometimes you can- steady yourself, that is.
Sometimes you can see the change, the feeling, the loss coming and you can prepare yourself for it.
But sometimes life, emotions, the tiniest hiccup they catch you by surprise.
Sometimes you think you’ve come to a place where you’ve settled into your new “configuration.” Knowing there’s a void that’s not meant to be filled- the loss of a parent, a spouse, a friend. Whomever it is that is gone, for you. {For me, my dad.} And it’s NOT ok. But we are, because we have to be. So here we are…full of holes, aware of them, but resecured.
But life, especially this year, feels like Jenga, doesn’t it?
The repositioning and pulling out of just one more block makes the weight shift again.
And you feel like you might topple over.
And just the slightest, unintentional bump… just one more little block being pulled out- a misunderstanding, a disapproving or even misread look, a minor disappointment, an unexpected change in plans, another absence around the table, an illness that saps you of energy for the activities you had been looking forward to, an unaccounted-for expense that requires a scaling back of grand intentions- completely sideswipes you and you find yourself in tears again.
And then moreso because this freshest “bump” that sent you over, probably wasn’t even something big. Not something you’d normally fall apart over, if it weren’t for all the other holes. And the fact that you’re crying makes you madder!
2020, y’all. It’s been rough. The enemy has really been doing some pulling. Sometimes it’s not been felt as mightily. (Like in Jenga when you pull a loose piece out.) But sometimes it’s been really difficult. Impossible-feeling, even.
But still, the enemy is not in charge. God is. Still God is using even what is being taken from us, strengthening us to stand taller, to grow, with Him, around those holes. Because of them even. (Just like the Jenga stack can’t get taller without pieces being pulled out.)
Still, he’s there, constantly restacking, Re-securing. Re-connecting us with others (Like the top layers, the fresh layers, of Jenga where we are placed next to other blocks again.)
Still he’s there, making beauty from ashes. Watering His seeds in us with our tears. Preparing a harvest of His righteousness in us and through us. Exchanging our messes for his redeeming grace.
In this season I’d venture to say there’s not a person who isn’t feeling some “holes”.
So- if I, if they, topple in front of you. If you are tempted to feel offended because we react “dramatically” to the slightest of bumps… please pause and try not to take it personally. It’s probably not you. It’s a lot of things. We may not even be able to identify what all it is. We just feel vulnerable. Like the clay jars that we are. Full of holes and cracks, but doing our best to let His light shine through. Yet fragile, just the same.
We know that he always puts us back together, but it’s a process. It doesn’t happen automatically. It’s an intentional work. It takes time. And we need grace. His, and yours too.
If I fall apart around you this holiday season, please know it isn’t you. Please don’t run or judge. Just remind me that this moment, too, shall pass. And sit with me, for a moment, encourage me to get back into God’s presence where he builds me back up. Help me see myself as whole, through Him, until I feel it once again.
🎵 “Turn your eyes upon Jesus (the Son, the Light ☀️) Look full in His wonderful face. And the things of Earth will grow strangely dim- in the light of His glory and grace.” 🎶
The last week I had gotten so deep into details of things- even things He had led me to do- that I got completely overwhelmed. The stress ended up weakening my immune system, and I ended the week with a really bad cold.
Yesterday I spent some time recharging. By doing not much of anything actually, which is rare but was much needed. And then today I took some time to recharge spiritually with Him.
I had just set down and entered the quiet place with Him, came out with the material for my next podcast that I can’t wait to record and share, and then walked upstairs to use my bathroom.
When I came out, in perfect timing, the light of the sun-set was spilling through my bedroom window, casting a perfect, illuminated shadow cross on my closet door!
The luminescence was breathtaking! You know those moments- where the setting of the sun makes an orange-ish pink glow, and EVERYTHING it shines upon is more beautiful?!
This was that moment. And this is what He spoke to my heart. (It related to what He had just brought to mind for my podcast.)
That is what I do, for the soul. The Son. Settling upon you, and your heart.
I make everything more beautiful. More luminescent. More warm.
More peaceful.
Bask in me. Ask me to set my glow upon your soul. Whether evening, or morning, I will. 🌅
From Full 