“Go out and talk to her.”
My sister knew I would. Without question I did as she asked, thinking I was to encourage a stranger. The reality was anything but! I met a woman from Minnesota, an art major who had been drawn to California for a God given purpose.
For the next thirty minutes I knew I was in the presence of a special blessing. For months I had been given private messages about butterflies. When this young woman shared her drawings of my heart I could barely breathe looking at them.
I used to listen to Van Halen enough to have seen them in concert more than once. After they changed lead singers I figured it was a doomed program but to my surprise they kept chugging out some music I still would listen to. It didn’t hurt they brought in a guitarist I also liked as a replacement.
One of these songs has lit up my heart in areas I couldn’t have imagined years ago. The title of it is called, “The Best Of Both Worlds”. Although the band got the truth wrong, they got the longing for more right. I edit music in my head for what may encourage me and I disregard the rest, kind of fun really. This is how I edited this particular song….
Best of Both Worlds (lyrics…kept the best, dumped the rest)
I don’t know what I’ve been livin’ on, but
It’s not enough to fill me up
I need more than just words can say
‘Cause sometimes it’s not enough.
This can be everything we dreamed
It’s not work that makes it work
‘Cause honey, something reached out and touched me
Now I know all I want
I want the best of both worlds
An’ honey I know what it’s worth
If we could have the best of both worlds
We’d have heaven right here on earth.
We forget where we come from sometimes
John 10:10 (Message) A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.
*underlines added…we should understand what is meant by real and eternal
I once wrote about the figurative mask I used to wear for other people. At the time I used an actual mask without any distinguishing features for a photo mock up. For some reason I kept that mask and now it hangs on a wall in my office as a reminder. I’d love to have some clever words for such reasoning but the bottom line is I need reminders.
When my confidence level is too much on myself or not enough in my heavenly Father; these reminders put me back where I belong…..beneath the feathers where I will find refuge.
Psalm 91:1-4 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart
Like a majority of the population it is necessary for me to work full time to help pay bills. I fantasize now and again about walking away from the daily grind but it’s just not time yet. I imagine it must be rewarding for those who can actually see some progress at the end of their work day. They don’t have to wonder about what it is they’ve accomplished.
My work does not afford me any visual stimuli and I confess to having times of absolute discouragement. In those moments of frustration, when I wonder what it is I am working for? I don’t think about the bills I have to pay. No, I think about the times I’ve been able to be of help to others. Not just with a few bucks here and there but also simple words of encouragement.
When I can’t see any immediate results for my efforts, I recall the bigger plan. This helps me to continue on regardless of what I don’t see.
2 Cor 5:7 We live by faith, not by sight
A recent music cd I picked up has some pretty aggressive worship music and it truly appeals to the fighter in me. A lyric sings out “history belongs to those who pray”. Wow, what a concept! The simple fact we are still all living on this planet and haven’t annihilated each other offers us proof this is truth.
Having walked both sides of the fence, I challenge those who think prayer doesn’t make a difference to check themselves for the times they weren’t praying versus the times they did.
Watching the sprinkler move back and forth I could only imagine the yard getting a much needed drink. My reflection is upon how thirsty I myself can get. Earlier today I felt so weary I thought it might overcome me. Nothing to do in those situations except make the right choice; lay down and quit or put myself before my Father again to let Him refill me with His word.
I can be immature at times so making the right choice isn’t necessarily the first choice on my list. When I am hurting my instinct is to want to pull away from everything and everyone, including Abba Father. He loved me enough to have let me do this once before and I still wear a verse around my neck to remind me of those consequences.
No greater pain have I ever felt in my whole life than to have spent some days devoid of any hope. It made me sick, it made me sad and it made me angry. Despite what my first choice may have been, I made the right choice. I filled myself up in the presence of my Father. I was taking a deep drink again. Soon, I’d be able to offer hope to others once more, the weariness washing off of me like dust.
Gal 6:9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up
Many who have been around me long enough will have heard me grumble much about cheap pens. So much in fact I have often joked semi seriously that my epitaph will be “She hated cheap pens!” Can you imagine those who peruse headstones in the graveyards? They’d either giggle themselves silly in this place most feel sadness or else they will scratch their heads and wonder, “who was this woman?”
When I go up north, my absolute passion is to enjoy open spaces and running waters. I am stimulated sitting next to the river, just taking in the currents moving everything it touches. On a late afternoon I had taken my journal with me to sit upon some rocks immersing myself in my surroundings; enjoying the view and angle of a nearby tree. Never do I feel alone, but rather I’m content to be in the presence of my heavenly Father.
Recent battles for me and my family take my mind back to this spot and I remember who I am and what I must do always.
Jer 17:7-8 “But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream. It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green. It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit.”
