by Alaina | Aug 31, 2020 | Sunday Scripture
His mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
Lamentations 3:22b-23 ESV
It had been one of those Saturdays. The kind that you look forward to all week only for it to arrive in a flurry of activity which leaves you finishing up odds and ends late into the evening when you wanted to be reading your book in bed. At least that’s what I would have rather been doing Saturday night rather than folding laundry. I ended up crawling into bed later than I wanted, feeling depleted rather than filled, and stressed about the few last things I hadn’t been able to cram into my day. I made the last minute decision though to get up a little early the next morning and squeeze in a hike with my dog before church.
My alarm went off the next morning and I thought about hitting snooze but I could already see the bright sunlight of a gorgeous day just beginning streaming through the window. I got up, pulled on my hiking clothes, and made a cup of coffee before hitting the trail.
The August weather was already warm and a little steamy as I pulled into the trailhead with my dog at 7:00am, but still comfortably so. We started hiking. The path was empty and the woods still, except for the songs of the birds above our heads. The foliage was lush and green with the dew still dripping lightly from the leaves. The sun was peeking through the branches overhead and the water droplets, falling from the trees, sparkled as they fell to the ground. The earth smelled fresh and clean and, as we walked along, I felt myself renewing as well.
It’s so easy after a long day to start fussing and despairing over all the leftover chores that still need to be done. However, just as the earth emerges in the morning; shining and refreshed, having been washed clean the previous evening’s dew; so I find it with my spirit. I find myself refreshed, renewed, calmer. I think this is why in His word God reminds us that His mercies are new every morning. Nothing lasts forever, though there may be long seasons of darkness, many of our everyday concerns will diminish overnight reminding us that there is always grace for a new day.
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by Alaina | Aug 25, 2020 | Sunday Scripture
Just as lotions and fragrance give sensual delight, a sweet friendship refreshes the soul. Proverbs 27:9 MSG
We had a picnic with four of our friends yesterday. It was lovely. It wasn’t even a traditional picnic in a field or park, but rather a picnic out of the back door and in a tiny patch of yard behind the one couple’s house. We had so much food; meats, cheeses, bread, crackers, fruit and pickles, all spread out across the outdoor table. We had so much food infact that we spread blankets on the ground and sat on them to eat because the food took up the whole table! The early June weather was a balmy and the sky so blue it could have been plucked from a post card. We were in no hurry. We ate, we talked, we laughed, and then ate some more.
The other couple has a new baby and there was lots of time spent in baby snuggles. Nothing says rest without worries quite like a plump baby snoozing in your arms in the afternoon shade. It felt so good to just relax. To be like the baby and shrug off our cares for a while in order to just be wholly present in the moment- drinking every bit of sun dappled glory that the afternoon had to offer.
The Bible tells us a good friend refreshes the soul, but how often do we overlook this simple truth? I think about how many times I’ve considered spending time with friends to be superfluous, and have not made plans in order to “get more done”. But people are more important than things or my to do list. Yes there are still responsiblities to be upheld but how many other tasks that are not critical get put on the “Must Do” list?
I love checking things off my to do list! I love the feeling of accomplishment that comes with a totally x-ed off list. But I do notice these things don’t feed my soul like sharing a good, slow meal with a close friend does. I don’t feel my energy renew after finishing a project as it renews after a rich conversation with a loved one. We need people. Take time to pour into someone else, and feel yourself simultaneously getting filled back up! Be a friend, refresh and be refreshed!
by Alaina | Aug 2, 2020 | Sunday Scripture
Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
Ephesians 4:31, NIV
It was a beautiful Sunday morning I thought to myself as I popped into my kitchen before church and began mixing up some blueberry muffin batter. I was in my element as I pulled a carton of eggs from the fridge and opened it up. There were 6 white eggs and one brown egg remaining in the carton. I didn’t think twice about this-we were often gifted with brown eggs from friends and family. I probably had just consolidated the last of a carton of brown eggs in with the store bought eggs. Grabbing a white egg I cracked it into my measuring cup. Yay, no shells! I grabbed the brown egg and gently touched it to the edge of the measuring cup. There was a pop, like when you open those scary pop open biscuits, and the next thing I know a terrible stench is permeating the room and I’m looking down at my hand covered in yellow and black egg rot. Disgusting. So gross! Like extremely gross!! On further examination I realized that little egg hadn’t been brown at all. It was a white egg that must have had a slight crack in it and then had slowly started to rot from the inside out. First infecting all of the egg’s inside, then starting to eat away from the inside to the outside turning the outside from white to brown. On the surface it looked okay- for a brown egg! But as soon as a little tension was put on it, the egg broke. Not only broke but exploded!
It dawned on me that bitterness eats away at us in much the same manner. We think we are fine. We don’t notice that we wear a frown more and more often. That we snap at friends and family for little, or no reason. We stress about minor things that normally wouldn’t bother us at all. Then the wrong thing happens at the wrong time and we crack. Exploding and letting all that filth out for the world to see, infecting everything close to us.
How much better to give our hurt to God before it can fester into bitterness! We can serve others so much better when we are not preoccupied recounting every past hurt. Instead of spewing rot into the lives of others when pressed, we can deliver fresh goodness from a whole and healthy heart. I don’t want to be the egg that cracks under the slightest pressure, I want to be the one that can withstand being jostled about in life’s storms. And when the pressure does become too great and cracks appear and we are broke open, I want ooze of only goodness. Father, please fill us with Your goodness, so that when broken we show only You and Your graciousness.
