Tick-Tock, Tickety-Tock

“How much of human life is lost in waiting.”

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

I had to wait for my computer to boot up. 

I had to wait for Firefox to get going.

I had to wait for Word to open, and then to open the document I wanted.

I even had to wait for it to allow me to change the alignment for the above quote.

Some days I find it very hard to wait.  It can be especially frustrating when you see people around you not waiting.  They have deadlines to end current jobs and start new ones . . . they are entering into their God-given purpose in life in a way you have yet to experience . . . families are growing and changing, the world is marching on and yet you feel like you’re just sitting there.  It’s not even that you feel like that in your life as a whole.  It could be an area or two or three.  And you find yourself double-checking your number, wondering if you missed the call of ‘Next!’, asking yourself if you’re waiting in the right place and always wondering ‘when’ and ‘how’.

That is why it is a comfort to see time and again in the Bible, in my life, and in the lives of others the faithfulness of God.  We all may get antsy at one time or another as we wait for His timetable to come to pass.  But just as surely as winter leads to spring, so we can know what God has planned for us will come to pass as we follow Him.  May we all learn to rest in and trust Him as we wait. 

So Long & Farewell (To the Past, Not the Blog)

It’s sort of a funny thing, I suppose, and I’m sure I’m not the only one, but I find it much easier to let go of the mistakes and failures of my ‘pre-Christian’ life than I do of the mistakes and failures I have made since I became a Christian.  It’s like a little voice niggles away in my ear, reminding me of how I really should know better by now.  And while it is true with a good many things that I should be doing better in the areas where I’ve heard better, I have to remember God does not use my past to determine my future.  He didn’t with the children of Israel, as can be seen in the following passage from Isaiah 43:18-19 (The Message):

Forget about what’s happened;

don’t keep going over old history.

Be alert, be present. I’m about to do something brand-new.

Besides which God’s grace and mercy are not any less now that I’m one of His kids – that is just my own messed-up thinking getting in the way when that thought pops out. 

Now I was going to wax eloquently (or try to at any rate) about my muck-ups and the aforementioned grace and the things I do need to let go of, but I’m not going to.  Many eulogies have been given (in one form or another) for my past.  Instead, it is time I simply let some things go and leave the gravesite.  As L. Thomas Holdcroft put it, “The past a guidepost, not a hitching post.”  And grave yards sort of squick me out. 

 In the words of Relient K in their song "Forget and Not Slow Down":  

I'd rather forget and not slow down, 

than gather regret for the things I can't change now . . .

what good do "What ifs?" do?

As many of us know, not much good good at all.  So lets bid them all adieu and move on.  

Happiness

Happy Saturday, everyone!  

" . . . "

As you may have noticed, I like to find (and, obviously, read) quotes from other people.  They can be famous or anonymous, serious or funny.  But I like it when they are in some way thought provoking, when I’m challenged in some way, or when they cause me to have a ‘light bulb’ moment.

I entered the following passage from what is known as The Prayer of St. Patrick into the Notes section of my iPhone after my mom had heart surgery (as found in a devotional reading in my Bible):

I arise today

Through a mighty strength:

God’s power to guide me,

God’s might to uphold me,

God’s wisdom to teach me,

God’s eyes to watch over me,

God’s ear to hear me,

God’s Word to give me speech,

God’s hand to guard me,

God’s way to lie before me,

God’s shield to shelter me,

God’s host to secure me:

Against the snares of devils,

Against the seduction of vices,

Against the lusts of nature,

Against everyone who shall wish me ill,

Whether far or near, many or few.

I find something (and I can’t quite put my finger on it) about reading the words, the thoughts and the prayers of fellow believers who have gone on long before me.  The commonality of our questions and musings, the insights and understandings they gleaned can be as relevant today as they were back then.  As always, such things need to be checked against the standard of God’s Word.  But they shouldn’t be tossed out merely because they are old or because, for some, they’re mindless recitations devoid of life or meaning or power. 

That’s just my two cents on a little something. ツ

No Direction . . . Yet

“He was a dreamer, a thinker, a speculative philosopher . . .

or, as his wife would have it, an idiot.”

~Douglas Adams

I do not know the context of the above quote from author Douglas Adams (of “The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy” fame), but it struck me as amusing along with having a ring of truth to it.  Because who hasn’t, at one time or another, heard from other people or even from your self why a dream you have won’t come to be?  The dissenting voice could be a pessimist believing they’re ‘just being realistic’; it could be your own memories reminding you of all the times you tried and failed (or all the opportunities you missed); or it could be you hearing someone saying something they may not actually mean at all. 

Or you may be in a room full of people sharing dreams about doing all kinds of great, big things for God (missions, helping hurting people, living an impactful life, etc.) and you’re sitting there, avoiding making eye contact with the person leading the meeting, so you won’t (pleaseohplease) be asked to share your dream which sounds small and frivolous in comparison to the dreams of the people around you.  Because really, who cares if you write a silly little fictional story about a high school teacher or a fellow who works with Plot Ninjas or a time traveler?  Really, what does it matter, what sort of an impact can such a thing make in the light of eternity?  And is it merely your dream, the dream of your grandiose self?  Is it a ‘decoy dream’ to keep you from what God really wants you to do?   Or has the dream been given God’s stamp of approval and you think you’ve wasted too much time and too many opportunities, that the ship in question has sailed and it’s not turning around for you?

It’s times like this when I either a) quit thinking about my dreams altogether because I’m giving myself a pretty massive headache, b) take it to God and ask Him to basically spell it out for me because I just want to know, or c) do ‘b’ followed by ‘a’ so I don’t then talk myself out of hearing from God.

Yeah . . . as you may have gathered, none of those options are working out for me.  And I’d like to say I have some ‘magic formula’ or Scripture reference that has plopped into my mind to help me see the first steps out, but instead I am, honestly, going to have to leave it at this for the time being:

Beautiful Day

It’s so very easy to grumble and complain about things.  And I know of what I speak, for last night and this morning in particular, many words that were not edifying or encouraging were rolling off of my tongue with a (sadly) practiced ease.

But if I can find the something good in a day that may not be good overall, something inside me shifts.  No longer am I focused on the things I cannot change – things such as the weather, the decisions of others, things that are long past.  Now I am in the ‘now’, changing what I can in and about me.  And then the day doesn’t seem so bad.

 

In All Things

“In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

~1 Thessalonians 5:18 (NKJ)

It’s 8:30 a.m. as I begin typing this, and I haven’t had the best of starts to my day.  I slept later than what I really should have, will probably not have the time to get done what all needs doing, and am having to fight the urge to fall into old habits of self-recrimination and the like. 

But then I had the pleasure of reading the latest from my cousin Julie’s blog – Finding Beautiful – and was reminded of how we can give thanks in everything even when everything is not currently going in the best direction.  At the end of today’s post, Julie asked what good things her readers are grateful for these days.  So I decided to post mine here: 

  

   1.     I’m grateful for my family – via biology, marriage, and the church I’m a member of.  None of us are perfect, but we do our best to love and support each other.  Not everyone has that, and I’m glad that I do. 

   2.     I’m grateful for the good friends I have.  I’ve never been one to have a really large social circle, but the people I am friends with are, well, good people. 

   3.     I’m grateful to have people who fall under #1 and #2.  It’s like a bonus, a win-win. 

   4.     I’m grateful for fellow travelers on this road called life, some of whom I have never met in person, but their writings and such have encouraged and challenged me.  We may not agree on everything, but what is life if you’re surrounded by a bunch of ‘yes men’? 

5.     I’m grateful for this day.  Sure, the first bit of it wasn’t the greatest, but there are still approximately 14 hours left in it.  Still much that can be done, and still much to be thankful for. 

I hope you, too, have things to be grateful for today.