This am, early I got up
and made my morning coffee. While it was brewing, I gave Winnie, the gray
calico cat her bowl of milk and let the dogs outside for a run. Mornings are
for me the time to read my Bible and regroup, drink my coffee and get new
direction for my day. First of the year, I gathered my devotional books and put
them away. I was determined to forge a new path of study without my old
friends. One day, missing my old companions I searched them out and took them
from their spot on the shelf putting them back on the bedside table where
they’ve resided for many years. I missed reading their thoughts on God’s
workings, which have become part and parcel of my morning routine.
There is something to
be said about hearing the thoughts of other people who have lived and searched
for the best ways to know God. I realize that each of us must find out own way,
but for me, it helps to hear how others have understood and tested the promises
of God in their own lives. This morning, bits and pieces of the words of Jesus
came into my own mind and I searched out the reference for the verse,
“Come
to me all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you
rest.” Mathew 11:29
Well, I like this verse
because it gives me hope that not always will I be struggling and tired; that
at some point, I will experience a rest of soul, mind and body. I don’t want to
become lazy, or slothful, lounging on the couch eating boxes of chocolate, but
I would like to have a break from the pressures of life. The must do’s, the
have tos, the deadlines, the must pays, these I find tedious and stressful.
I watch HGTV in the
evenings after my twelve hour work day and often enjoy watching House Hunters
International. So often young families
are shown relocating to other counties
to slow their pace down, to rediscover the value of together time in cultures
not so rush, rush, rush oriented.
Well, I might have the
money to move to one of these countries, but I’d never have the money to come
back. Yes the food, rent and utilities are so low I could afford to retire, but
would I yearn for the faces of my children and grandchildren while I was
enjoying the sunshine? I think I might, in fact I know I would and so I stay
connected to where I’m at, wondering why water should cost me almost $100 a
month, and how on earth I’m ever going to fix the roof, or the front porch. I
also wonder quietly to myself, “Does Jesus care about my water bill? “ That
might sound like a sacrilegious question to some people reading this but does
He?
Another verse
that comes to my mind says,
“Cast all your
care upon Him, for He cares for you.” I Peter 5:7
Doesn’t this include
water bills? And leaking roofs? Am I foolish to limit God and think that well
those verses are philosophical and there not really talking about literal,
actual, everyday things? Hmmm…… when
Jesus fed the five thousand because they were hungry and weary, that was pretty
literal. When he healed the Centurion’s child, that was pretty literal. In this world of
computers, and jets, and internet, it seems that the tendency is to put Jesus
in a religion box we take out on Sunday’s and sing about and to. No longer is
He the God of the impossible, He has become the God of the obligatory Sunday
service. Where did this philosophy come
from and why is it so pervasive that even I, a Christian for many years is
noticing the creeping doubts that come, wondering if Jesus cares about my water
bill?
One devotional I read
today emphasized the need to be alone with God until His thoughts, will and
plans become enmeshed into our spirits. To quiet our hearts and minds to listen
to that still, small voice that will teach us wisdom and knowledge for our
lives. Well, I realize the way I described that process almost sounds as if I’m
lighting incense and staring into the dark. That’s not what I’m advocating. I don’t think the trappings of religious
fervor are necessary but a willing heart and spirit are.
This one thing I know,
I am tired, weary and worn out from the pressures of facing my life with its
financial and job pressures. I need a new direction where things are not so
chaotic or if they are the rewards spiritually offset the pain and suffering.
A chorus I often sang as a youth was,
My Lord knows the way
through the wilderness,
All I have to do is
follow
My Lord knows the way through the wilderness,
All I have to do is
follow.
Strength for today, is
mine all the way,
And all that I need for
tomorrow
My Lord knows the way
through the wilderness.
All I have to do is
follow.
Well, much like a GPS
system thrown out of whack by multiple streets with the same name, my own GPS,
my God Programming System is out of kilter. Materialism has crept in and is
jamming my homing signal. I am trying to find God with a spirit cluttered by
love of things clinging stubbornly on to my soul.
Today, with God’s help
I will deep-clean my own spirit and try again to find His way for my life, to
find His rest for my life, and perhaps in the process rediscover my own joy in
the morning.
To those of you on a
similar trek, take heart. May your todays be blessed with an awareness of His
presence and your nights be comforted with the knowledge of his love.
Promise:
“Don’t worry about anything, instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you
need and thank Him for all he has done. If you do this, you will experience
God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His
peace will guard your heart and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
Philippians
4: 6-7
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