Rest

Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)

REST! What a promise that is "come unto me...and I will give you rest."

There are days I just want to curl up and sleep forever - to lie down with my favorite pillow, cover up with my favorite blanket, and have my kitty snuggling close by me, no alarm set, phone turned off, and just hours of uninterrupted sleep - almost sounds like heaven on earth. Problem is that there are days when no matter how much rest I get - I still awaken physically exhausted. No matter how many days off I have from work - I still feel like I am physically drained.

Then there is the spiritual battle that wages - the spiritual war we fight each and every day. Oh to have rest from the trials of life, the mental fatigue, the battle with self, the battle between good and evil, and all the other battles that wage within us. The promise is "ye shall find rest unto your souls."

The problem is finding the peace that allows us to rest and to awaken refreshed. How is this accomplished? by trusting God the same way a child trusts his parents, by turning over any problems to God and allowing him to handle them, to lead, and guide us; by trusting him in everything - both great and small, claiming and standing on each promise in the scripture.

The scripture promises rest, but the condition of that is to go to him. As it says "come unto me and I will give you rest"

Mother's Day

How true this is. As a child and young adult, I remember thinking that my mom was lacking in so many ways - she was not hip, not modern, very old-fashioned, not up on the latest trends. Now I look back and see how much she knew. She taught me so much and I did not even realize it. She showed me how to can and store things up for the future. She made sure that there was a large garden put out, so that she could can anything and everything there was - what was not canned was put into the freezer. She showed me how to stock up for lean times and to stretch the food available to make it feed a growing family.

I remember all the crafts she did - saving the scraps of material, making quilts, crocheting, making soap bottle dolls, and so much more. She showed me how to make things for others from what she had and she did so with so much love.

She showed me the power of prayer, of reading the Word, listening to gospel music, and most of all trusting God. So many times I saw her reading her Bible or sitting with her eyes closed praying softly.

I am now divorced so it may not seem like much of this is needed now, but I still find that I am using a lot of her tips. Her frugality - her stocking up - her having things available during lean times - her using what she had to make do and provide for what was needed. All things I am doing now, especially depending and trusting God.

So on this Mother's Day - I want to wish my mom a Happy Mother's Day. How I wish I could see you and give you a hug. However, my mom has been with the Lord since 1984. That is a lot of Mother's Days without her, but that does not mean I have ever forgotten her. So once again - thanks and Happy Mother's Day MOM.

The Lights are Out

Do you ever feel like the lights are out? that you are wandering around in the darkness? that the map has suddenly been tore off and the way is no longer visible? you have no plan, no course of action, no idea what is around the bend.

Like the ship on a course to collide with the lighthouse because the light is no longer visible - how my life feels like that so often. I feel like I am on a dusty country road, really just a foot path, surrounded by total darkness, except for a small section right in front of me - a section that is just a few feet in length - a section that is illuminated by a light shining up ahead - the light does not put out much light, but glows brightly through the darkness just enough for me to see the few feet in front of me. As long as I continue going forward, then the light continues to shine upon the path so I can see what is directly ahead of me. I have enough light to avoid the pitfalls, the potholes, the roadblocks that are in the path. If I veer towards the right or the left or turn around, then there is nothing but total darkness.
For me the only way to be sure of a safe passage and not have the darkness envelope me is for me to continue my journey focusing on the path and light in front of me. Just taking one step at a time.

What do I think this means?
the path = my life, my choices, my decisions
the darkness = sin, the world, the wrong decisions, the traps, anything that blocks my way
the light = my Lord and Savior, my guide, my friend

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. (Psalm 119:105)

Is the path easy? absolutely not.
Do I wish more was exposed? sometimes yes and sometimes no. I often wish more of the future would be shown so I would have a clue of what I am suppose to do, where I am suppose to go, etc. However, sometimes I think what is in the darkness that I can not see should remain hidden because I really might not want to know what is out there.
Will I continue on this path? yes, even though it is hard, even though so many things try to entice me off the path, I know that without following the light - I would be totally lost.

The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun. (Psalm 74:16)

For thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness. (Psalm 18:28)

O send out thy light, and thy truth: let them lead me; let them bring me unto thy holy hill, and to thy tabernacles. (Psalm 43:3)

Miss Cleo

In December I gained a new friend - Miss Cleo. She is not really what I imagined having in my life. As for animals - dogs have always been my favorite animal. However, with my life and work schedule - having a cat in my life makes things much easier. A cat is more independent in many ways. When the thought of getting a cat crossed my mind - I would always think of a solid colored cat - a pure snowy white cat or a coal black cat or a smoky gray cat. When I went looking for a cat - I was planning on getting a solid black cat or none at all, but it did not turn out that way. I brought home this little tortoise colored kitten - black with browns and oranges and all different hues blended together to make a beautiful cat.

Is it what I wanted? Is it what I needed? Is it what is best for me?

I have grown to love the companionship of the little kitten. I am enjoying watching her grow, seeing her play, having her snuggle up beside me, hearing her purring. She is not what I imagined, but I know that she is what I need. It amazes me how God knows just what we need and if we listen and follow his leading then he supplies our needs and even some of our wants.

It amazes me how God knows what we like, but also knows what we need. He supplies our needs, not necessarily our wants. He allows us to choose, but sometimes what we choose is not necessarily what is best for us.

Philipians 4:19
But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus.

Romans 8:28

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.