Mom's Chauffeur and Courier Service (A Little Encouragement)

My day "off" started off not with a bang, but my teenager's gentle voice around 6:30 in the morning: "Mom, I missed the bus.  I tried to let you sleep as late as I could, but I need a ride to school."  Huh?  What?  Oh.  Up I go. Change into day clothes, keys in hand, we can do this.  Let's enjoy the beautiful sunrise and a little time spent with a very sweet son.  I'm a mom of 10 with seven still living at home, so one-on-one time is precious.

I got home in time to make sure my youngest daughter's hair was combed and that my youngest son was out of bed.  Keys in hand, off to the elementary school several blocks away.   Then home again in time to eat some breakfast and take another daughter and a neighbor to their middle school bus top several blocks away.  Done yet with driving?  I thought so...

But no.  Within minutes, I got a text from my daughter that she had left the Cheetos for a class party in the van.  Could I bring them to school for her at lunch time?  Sure, why not.  Not so far away, eh?

And then, and then, I got a call from one of my adult daughters asking for a "big favor, Mom."   Could I bring the set of her paint brushes she had left on her bed? As soon as possible, please?  I had to laugh.  Yep, got it.  I took a shower, threw some laundry in the washer, printed out my To Do list for the next few days.  Keys in hand, off to the college to bring my amazing artist her tools.  (I can't wait to go see the college's juried art show opening night next week.  She had six pieces accepted for display, out of the 60 total. Did I say she is an amazing artist?)

On the way back from from the college, I decided to take advantage of being in that end of town and stopped by an antique store I spotted.  The owner was just unlocking the door, a half hour past the regular opening time.  Chatting with her in the store, I discovered her morning had been much like mine, running around town taking care of stuff for her adult son's family since he was sick.  We both smiled and agreed: "We do for family."  Yes we do.

After sorting a huge laundry pile into baskets for the kids to fold, and then doing a little prep work for school (I teach three days a week), I crashed for a much needed nap in the afternoon.  My husband kindly offered to pick up two kids from school, and another from a bus stop.  But I still needed to take one son to work at Chick-Fil-A.  The two youngest each had a coupon for a free small pizza from Dominoes. Yes, we could stop by on the way home, couldn't we?  Sure, why not?  At least I didn't have to make dinner, right?  Except that when we got there, we found out they didn't take those "Student Reward" coupons, which were issued by a store several miles north.  Just as well, that would give me time to order ahead by phone so we wouldn't have to wait long.  Off we go again. Serendipitously, this Dominoes was right next to a used book store I had been wanting to visit since I had seen it on the way home from the college in the morning.  And even better, they take trades, and I just happened to have a bag of books in the van that I had intended to sell at a different bookstore closer to home.  I was able to find three very encouraging and timely books to apply my store credit from what they wanted from me.  Yes!  My son was also enthralled with their amazing manga collection.  And eating pizza in the van.  His very own pizza.  All for him, and all gone now!

    

So yeah, today I've been "Mom's Chauffeur and Courier Service."  Lest you think my kids are taking advantage of me, it's rare that one of them needs to be bailed out, and truth be told, they bail me out just as often by driving a sibling to work, picking up something at the store, making dinner when I'm rushed, baby sitting, helping the younger ones with homework...  It's all good.

It's been a day.  A good day. A Mom day.  But now, my keys are in my purse!

Oh yes, those books!  Here is such a relevant snippet from one of them, starting on the very first page.

"And it's not uncommon to find ourselves wondering, How does this whole crazy puzzle fit together?  Anne Morrow Lindbergh observed somewhere in her timeless little book, Gift from the Sea, that most of us don't really mind pouring our lives out for a reason.  What we do resent is the feeling that it is being dribbled away in small, meaningless drips for no good reason."  For me, one of the greatest frustrations of walking through the "dailiness" of my life is that I don't always get to see how the bits and pieces of who I am fit into the big picture of God's plan.  It's tempting to see my life as a meal here, a meeting there, a carpool, a phone call, a sack of groceries -- all disjointed fragments of nothing in particular.  Yet I know I am called, as God's child, to believe that they do add up.  That in some way every scrap of my life, every step and every struggle, is in the process of being fitted together into God's huge and perfect pattern for good (Romans 8:28).  As difficult as that is to "live into" daily, it had become for me a transforming truth, adding meaning to the mundane and purpose to the plodding."  (Kaleidscope: God's Pattern in the Bits & Pieces of a Woman's Life by Claire Cloninger)

(I picked up the book because the concept of the kaleidoscope is one I've been pondering lately.  You can see more here: Kaleidoscope.)

Grace and peace,

Virginia Knowles
www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com

Good Words from Colossians 4

Good Words from Colossians 4

DEVOTE:

commit effort and affection

PRAYER:

communion with God and intercession for others

WATCHFUL:

attentive to God’s voice and 

to what’s going on in the world around us ~

ready to respond appropriately

THANKFUL:

gratefully aware of blessings (even in disguise) 

and acknowledging their source

DOOR FOR OUR MESSAGE:

a divine opportunity to move into

a fruitful communication of grace

PROCLAIM:

call attention amid the distractions of the world 

and then share the details of the gospel

MYSTERY:

a story unfolding to open hearts,

not immediately clear but progressively revealed

WISE:

prudent choices, 

carefully thought through

and then carried out

EVERY OPPORTUNITY:

the chances and choices are there ~

what will we do with them?

CONVERSATION:

out there interacting, not in isolation,

not a lecture but a dialogue

SEASONED WITH GRACE:

attractive ~ inviting ~ savory ~ intriguing

 

KNOW HOW TO ANSWER:

intelligent ~ informed ~ listening

appreciating nuances ~ responsive

FAITHFUL MINISTER:

constant ~ diligent ~ active

on behalf of real people with real needs

ENCOURAGE HEARTS:

spur others to faith, love, and courage

in the inner core ~ it flows from there

GREETINGS:

friendliness sent forth ~

“I am thinking of you and I care”

WELCOME:

“well come” ~ make it a good and gracious arrival ~ 

not awkward but accepting with open arms and hearts

KINGDOM OF GOD:

where our citizenship belongs and our loyalty is due ~

what are our responsibilities?

COMFORT: 

we all need this, from the timid to the zealous ~

a place for soul to rest ~ embrace grace ~

be filled with peace

SERVANT: 

“in the Lord” and “of Christ” ~

action with humility

STAND FIRM: 

 “in all the will of God” ~ 

time to sink down roots ~

grounded in truth learned through study

MATURE: 

not presumptuous or hasty or naive,

but confident and patient ~ seasoned

 

FULLY ASSURED: 

letting faith seep in and

fill up the crevices of doubt ~

convinced through testing

WORKING HARD: 

going the extra mile ~ above and beyond ~ pressing onward

COMPLETE THE WORK:  

follow through ~ get it done ~ persevere

REMEMBER MY CHAINS: 

know the injustice which exists in the world

so you can intercede and intervene

When I went to the Refresh Retreat a few weeks ago, we were each encouraged to take most of our time there to read through the book of Colossians and journal our responses.  I finished up through chapter 3, jotting down key "Good Words" on one part of each page, a “Jesus Is…” list in another area, and tucking in “Exhortations to Me” and other notes wherever they fit.  It’s a good thing my newest journal has big pages!  I used some of my good words on my Kaleidoscope picture.

I’ve been meaning to get back into Colossians to journal through chapter 4.  Yesterday, while I was waiting for my children to get out of youth group, I took out my journal and my iPod Bible app and worked away.  This time, at least so far, I only did the “Good Words” section, and didn't even finish that much until today.  I decided to expand this section, and write a brief impression of each key word or phrase.  That’s what you see above.  Obviously there is much more to Colossians 4.  You'll have to read it yourself.

I also thought about what I would write in an “Exhortations to Me” section for this chapter.  I think the main gist of it is to be fully engaged with my Christian life, to be immersed in fruit-bearing spirituality and ministry, not as a hobbyist but as a disciple of Jesus.  It means living authentically and on purpose, looking for opportunities to serve and share.  It means not letting myself drift into apathy or empty busyness. It means doing my part, with my unique gifts and sphere of influence, to extend the Kingdom of God through the good news of truth and grace.  It means multiplying these efforts by equipping and encouraging others to do these same things in their own way with their own gifts.  In my life, so many of those “doors for the message” are right in my own home with my own children.  So much of that depends on living with Christ at the center of my life, which can be the most powerful example in word and deed.  I’m certainly not there yet, so this is a lot of meat to chew.

I have more to say, perhaps in another post, but for now, a few extra encouragements for you: 

• Read all the way through Colossians.  It’s a wonderful book, full of both inspiration and practical instruction.  Take it a little section at a time.  Meditate on it.  No need to hurry. When you are done with that, work through the Gospel of John.
• Jot down your impressions.  It doesn't have to be formal or fancy or even terribly profound.
• How do the words speak to you right where you are at in life? 
• While the words in this chapter were written in the context of a larger ministry setting, how can you, as a mother, apply them as you seek to disciple your children?

More posts!

Nurturing your own spiritual life:

• Busy, Dizzy and In a Tizzy: Christian Contemplation for Moms

• Wisdom from Letters of Direction by Abbé de Tourville

• Words of Promise, Comfort and Encouragement
• Sanctuary (Big Words)

Teaching children spiritual truth:

• Teaching Our Children to Walk With God
• The Thessalonians Prescription
• Bella Sophia (Lady Wisdom Sets Her Table)
• Trust and Obey

Virginia Knowles

www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com

P.S.  The photos are from the EPCOT Italy pavilion.  I thought I had lost them, so I didn't use them in my other photo post here:  Impressions of EPCOT

"The Freedom to Make Mistakes" (Grace Based Parenting by Tim Kimmel)

Dear friends,

So yeah, it's been well over two years since I started this Reflections on Grace Based Parenting series based on Tim Kimmel's book, and a year and a half since the last post on it. Now it's finally time to finish up so I can pass along the book to one of my daughters who is expecting her first baby this spring.  I already gave a copy to her older sister, who has two little boys already.  It’s funny to be well into the grandparenting years while still parenting young ones of my own at home.

The final two chapters are “The Freedom to Make Mistakes” and “Evening Grace.”   Trust me, in 26 years of mothering, I’ve made a boatload of mistakes!  So glad for grace to change and move on! Here are some of the quotes from these chapters which are most helpful to me:

“Parents who embrace grace make their homes a safe place for average kids to develop into extraordinary people.  In these types of homes, weaknesses and inadequacies aren’t a big deal.  These families are overseen by shrewd mothers and fathers who see their children’s fragile features as opportunities for God’s power to shine through them.  They also know that giving their children a safe place to work through their vulnerabilities keeps these shortomcings from getting in the way of their true greatness.”

“If anything, grace should motivate you to a higher holiness.  Grace-based homes aren’t places where family members assume they can say whatever they want, see whatever they want, hear whatever they want, taste or drink whatever they want, or touch whatever they want.  That’s not grace.  That’s someone wanting to live his or her own life with no regard for what God has said or what He thinks.  But when grace is in place, there is clearly a different attitude toward sin in homes without grace…. People who walk by faith are far more capable of developing a godly and righteous lifestyle because they are finding their power for living in their personal relationship with the Lord.”

“It’s not that grace-based homes don’t take their children’s sin seriously.  Nor is it that grace-based homes circumvent consequenceds.  It isn’t even that grace-based homes do nothing to protect their children from attacks and temptations that threaten them from outside.  They do all these things, but not for the same reasons.  Grace-based homes aren’t trusting in the moral safety of their home or the spiritual environment they’ve created to empower their children to resist sin…. Bottom line: Grace-based families realize that their children will struggle with sin.  They consider it an honor to be used by God to show their children how to find true forgiveness in Christ.  They are not intimidated by the dialogue that brings the discussion of sin to light.  In fact, they are grateful to be able to come alongside their children with an unconditional love during some of their toughest hours.”

“A grace response to your children’s sin is to avoid condemnation.  You can evaluate their wrong actions, discuss their negative effects, and even voice the pain and disappointment that you have experienced as a result of it.  But you don’t want to condemn.  Condemnation corners them and doesn’t offer much hope.  Condemnation attacks their character rather than addresses their behavior.  When you condemn, it causes a reflex within them to defend themselves.  Often your condemnation oes little more than to make a bad situation far worse.”

“Providing consequences for sin is a loving form of grace.  It says, “I love you too much to let you continue in this pattern and grow up to be bad.” Meting out fair and consistent consequences for their negative actions tells children there is a mature and decent parent overseeing their lives.  Letting them get away with sin says just the opposite.  It tells them they have an immature parent who is more concerned about their comfort than with their children’s dignity.”

“You have been singled out to do a favor for God.  He is asking you to be His representative to a small but vital part of the next generation.  He needs someone to be His voice, His arms, and His heart. He chose you.”

I’m glad I read these chapters tonight.  They are good reminders for me.  A lot has happened in our family since I started the series.  There have been some really tough circumstances and hard decisions, as well as some positive progress and sweet memories.  Looking back and looking forward, I know that I need to be more consistently proactive in my mothering to help my kids deal with the complexities of life.  I have swung the pendulum from severe to lax, and need to find my middle rhythm in grace.

I sat down with my five younger kids for about 15 minutes this evening – nothing long and drawn out. I read to them Ephesians 2:1-10 (grace of course!) and then chatted for a little bit about asking God to help us grow spiritually so that we want to do the right thing from the heart.  We also talked about some of the ways we need to pull it together as a family in the areas of responsibility around the house.  I tried to keep our family meeting light and sweet, and I think I got through to them at least a little bit!   We need to do this more often.  I’ll also give them a detailed list of reasonable expectations about chores, meals, use of electronics, etc.  I’ll tweak it based on this evening’s discussion and give it to them soon.  They did get to choose the days they wanted to do dishes.  A little choice goes a long way toward cooperation.

How about you?  How do you embrace grace in your home? I’d love to see your comments.  If you’re a blogger or you’ve found something good about parenting on the Internet, feel free to link related posts!

My previous posts in this Reflections on Grace Based Parenting series are:

• Chapter 1: "Why Well-Meaning Parenting Falls Short" 
• Chapter 2: "The Truth Behind Grace"
• Chapter 3: “A Secure Love” 
• Chapter 4: "A Significant Purpose"
• Chapter 5: "A Strong Hope"
• Chapters 6-8: "A Delivery System for Grace and The Freedom to Be Different and Vulnerable"
• Chapter 9: “The Freedom to Be Candid”

You might also like these related posts:

• Hypothetical
• Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us
• Mothering by Faith and Grace
• Amazing Grace for Home School Moms

Grace, 

Virginia Knowles

www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com

The Proper Pressure

My friend Patty called yesterday.  "Do you want some bagels and flat bread?  I just got a whole bunch on clearance at the bakery outlet!"  Ever thoughtful, this old friend of mine!  She's been on Cru ministry staff, along with her husband, for most of her adult life. I've known her for nearly 20 years, and she's always been so full of grace and generosity.  I hadn't seen her in a while, but we keep in touch by e-mail and Facebook.

So Patty stopped by, and knowing she didn't come just to drop off some bread, I suggested we take a long stroll around my neighborhood and catch up in person.  Unfortunately, while we were gone, her tire went flat in my driveway. Completely unruffled, she opened her trunk, pulled out her little electric air pump, and plugged it into the car's lighter.  PSSSSH!   Little by little the tire regained its roundness.  Slow going, but "Slow and steady wins the race!" as the tortoise well knew. I thought that pump was really nifty and told her I'd have to get one since they're only about $25.  

As we continued to talk, Patty hit the off button and pulled out the pump nozzle.  But the tire was still pretty flat! She smiled.  She'd had a bright idea that I didn't know about.  Yep, that's right.  She wanted me to learn how to pump up a tire from start to finish. Not just watch her, but DO it myself!  So I did.  Check the PSI number on the tire to find the proper air pressure so I wouldn't over-inflate it.  Put the nozzle on the tire and flip the clamp lever.  Plug it in to the car.  Flip the on switch. Watch the dial until it reaches the PSI.  Turn it off and take the nozzle off the tire.  The whole works.  I am now an empowered woman.  

Patty explained to me that since her husband is very often out of the country on mission trips, she's had to learn to do a lot of things for herself.  It keeps her from getting too frazzled.  Because we're both philosophical chicks, we started musing about the metaphor of the tire pump and the PSI number.  How do we find the proper pressure in our lives?  Without air in our tires, we can't roll, but when does the pressure get too much and threaten a blow out?  When are we taking on more than we can handle?  When do we need to learn to back off and let it go?  Or conversely, when do we need more air, more pressure?  When do we need to step it up and take charge and make it happen?  Good questions!  

For Patty, this means there are certain ministry settings where she does not thrive.  She knows what she can do and what she can't.  It means finding emotional support from others when things get a bit much.  It means accepting herself for who she is, rather than comparing to others who seem to have it all together. It means being resourceful, and finding ways to do practical things by herself and for herself. 

In my own life, I find myself stressing about things I can't control while overlooking other problems that I should at least try to solve.  I have to know when to walk by and when to dig in.  I have to set boundaries and form reasonable expectations for myself and others. And I've had to learn to do a lot of things for myself rather than expecting others to do them for me.  I visit a Christian counselor.  I have a wonderful, supportive church and friends and family who check in on me and pray for me.  I read a variety of blogs that help me both think and do things that will improve life at home and at work.  I write in my journal or call a friend.  I tackle a mess or close a door.  I set goals and make a To Do list to motivate myself to action.  At age 50, I don't have all the pep I did when I first met Patty, but slow and steady wins the race, right?

How about you?  How do you find the proper pressure in your life?  What is your part to play, and what is not?

You might also like to read these related posts: 

• Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh
• Beating the Holiday Blues and Stress

Grace and peace,
Virginia Knowles
www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com


This post may be linked at these blogs:

Still Saturday

The Sunday Community

Raising Homemakers on Wednesday

Whole-Hearted Home on Wednesday

Wise Woman Link Up on Wednesday

Walking Redeemed on Wednesday

  

Gift from the Sea by Anne Morrow Lindbergh - Selected Quotes

Dear friends,

It's the day after Thanksgiving, and maybe, like me, you're feeling tired and scattered and a wee bit overwhelmed.  Or maybe not.

It's been that year of loss and transition for me and sometimes that all scrunches up in one spot.  I've been trying to clean house, get out my warmer clothes, run my errands (yes, a teeny bit of Black Friday shopping at the craft store with my younger kids), do paperwork, take a long nap, ride my hormone swings, and still process my emotions about a bazillion different things while surrounded by the daily chaos of lots of kids who do not value solitude as much as I do.  So honestly, I am no where near being "in the holiday spirit" at the moment. I was thinking today that I needed to sit quietly and ponder about what I want out of life for myself and my family, especially in this next month of what could become Christmas Craziness.  When I pulled in to the driveway after a last minute trip to the post office, I decided to sit for a few moments in the solitude of my van.  I found one of my journals wedged down between the seat and my supply box.  It's usually one I use just for sermon notes, but at a doctor's appointment last year I jotted down some quotes from a classic book.  It's a bit of a scrawl, but I'm amazed I was able to write as legibly as I did, because I had a broken hand at the time.

The book is Gift from the Sea, written in 1955 by Anne Morrow Lindbergh. The gifted author of over 10 books, she had gone through so much transition and loss herself.  She was the wife of famed aviator Charles Lindbergh, and the mother of five who had suffered the tragic kidnapping and death of her toddler son.  In this book, probably her most well-known, she draws lessons from different kinds of sea shells she finds on the beach.

From her chapter on the channeled whelk, she writes of living "in grace" with an inner harmony... "For to be a woman is to have interests and duties, raying out in all directions from the central mother-core, like spokes from the hub of a wheel.  The pattern of our lives is essentially circular.  We must be open to all points of the compass; husband, children, friends, home, community; stretched out, exposed, sensitive like a spider's web to each breeze that blows, to each call that comes.  How difficult for us, then, to achieve a balance in the midst of these contradictory tensions, and yet how necessary for the proper functioning of our lives.  How much we need, and how arduous of attainment is that steadiness preached in all rules for holy living.  How desirable and how distant is the ideal of the contemplative, artist, or saint - the inner inviolable core, the single eye."

In her chapter on the moon shell, she writes of the need for regular solitude: "The artist knows he must be alone to create; the writer to work out his thoughts; the musician, to compose; the saint, to pray.  But women need solitude in order to find again the true essence of themselves: that firm strand which will be the indispensable center of the whole web of human relationships... And woman today is still searching. We are aware of our hunger and needs, but still ignorant of what will satisfy them.  With our garnered free time, we  are more apt to drain our creative springs than to refill them.  With our pitchers, we attempt sometimes to water a field, not a garden.  We throw ourselves indiscriminately into committees and causes.  Not knowing how to feed the spirit, we try to muffle its demands in distractions... Arranging a bowl of flowers in the morning can give a sense of quiet in a crowded day -like writing a poem, or saying a prayer.  What matters is that one be for a time inwardly attentive."

And so I am in my bedroom, behind a locked and re-locked door, trying to find a small wedge of solitude and refill my soul with peace and inspired creative focus. Before I emerge again, I'm going to sit in my soft chair, eat a protein bar, read a chapter of A Million Little Ways: Uncover the Art You Were Meant to Live by Emily Freeman (which I saw mentioned on so many blogs that I like that I finally drove to the nearest bookstore to get my hands on my own copy), and putter around artfully arranging something or other in a continuation of what I shared last week in One Day: A Little Beauty and Order in My Home.  I am feeling a little better now, but I think I'll go to bed early tonight.

There is much more in the book, but that is enough for now.  You will find another quote from Gift from the Sea here: On Clouds, Hands, Oysters and Messy Humanity.

If the idea of solitude and quietness and focus intrigues you, you may also like these posts:

• Sanctuary (Big Words)
• Invitation to Stillness
• Busy, Dizzy and In a Tizzy: Christian Contemplation for Moms and Other Frazzled Folks 
• Wisdom from Letters of Direction by Abbé de Tourville
• A Woman of Beauty
• Beating the Holiday Blues and Stress
• "Sonnet, Trinity 18" by Madeleine L'Engle, in Honor of My Sister Barb
• Truth and Grace in the Stories of Our Lives
• Read, Reflect & Respond (The Real 3R's of Literature!)
• Gems from the Past for Parents

Grace and peace,
Virginia Knowles
www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com


This post may be linked at these blogs:

Still Saturday

The Sunday Community

Raising Homemakers on Wednesday

Whole-Hearted Home on Wednesday

Wise Woman Link Up on Wednesday

Walking Redeemed on Wednesday

  

Hypothetical (Big Words)

Dear fellow mommies,

Did you ever have one of Those Shopping Trips?

Your kids bicker in the van and then decide to continue their Simmering Spat on into the produce aisle with subtle pinches and scowling looks when your back is turned.

You haven't been in the store for five minutes, and they are quietly yet subversively plotting the Overthrow of Your Sanity.

So you do the only Peaceable Yet Powerful thing you know to do.  You leave the bag of peaches in the cart, and walk out with one child by the hand, trusting the others to follow closely behind.  They do.  They know you mean business.

You drive them home and leave them in the care of Another Adult, an older sister, say.  It's for their own good.  You know that.  They don't.  You are suddenly the Worst Mommy Ever.  

Then you drive back to Walmart, pick up the bag of peaches, and shop the aisles in peace, trying not to feel Guilty for Enjoying Yourself.  You even buy yourself an impromptu present, a fuzzy soft blanket with a big bear on it.  You are Mama Bear, after all, wanting the best for your cubs, ready to protect them, yet sometimes feeling a little growly yourself and trying not to roar.

You drive home, cranking up the music.  You are tired, and not looking forward to Dealing with Cranky Children when you get home.  You pray for grace.

When you pull into your driveway, the Most Offending Child comes bounding out to the van, apologizes for being an idiot at the store, and grabs two bags of groceries to bring inside.  The Other Offending Child is already fast asleep in bed.  You now believe in miracles.

So has this ever happened to you?

No?

Me neither!

This was hypothetical, of course!  Hypothetical.  Really.

Sweet peace and sweet peaches,
Virginia Knowles
www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com



P.S. #1: The sliced peach photo was edited with Picasa using the Ortonish feature.

P.S. #2: If you like the idea of gentle parenting, please check out my post, Savior, Like a Shepherd Lead Us, which has a lot of links on the topic. 

P.S. #3: This post is the third in my rather random Big Words series, the most recent of which, the sentimental Sacramental, was only posted a few hours ago.  This post will also be linked at these blog parties this week:

Sanctuary (Big Words)

"The circumstances of my life can be so troubling.  

The outward look is not always promising.

What counts is the inward reality, 

the inner focus and perspective and gaze.

It will not happen if I do not purposefully cultivate it --

tend to it, water it, nurture it.

Here the joy, pleasure and delight are revealed.

Here is the sanctuary.

This is not necessarily a place, 

but a space I carve out 

for myself to be in God's presence.

It's a space in my heart and in my time ~ ~ 

a pause, an embrace, a calm rest.

I can carry it with me back into the fray.

Sanctuary is awareness of God's presence...

   sacred
    set apart
      serene
        sacramental
          simple
            shalom
              shield
                salvation
                  safety.

One of my daughters gave me this Psalms journal for my birthday two years ago.  It has short passages from Psalms with room on the facing page to write my own reflections.  I started using it during a particularly frazzled season of life.  Then I stopped.  I picked it up the other day and was struck by a verse with the word sanctuary in the day's passages:  

"Lift up your hands 

in the sanctuary 

and bless the Lord." 

Psalm 134:2

Sanctuary is what I wrote about, and that's what you see in this blog post.   It's another frazzled season of life with the kids starting school and me starting a new teaching job, and lots of other stuff going on, not all of it pleasant.  (Like grieving the loss of my mother.) I need sanctuary.  And that means investing the time that I don't think I have, with the God who turns a meager pile loaves and fishes into an abundant feast.  I come weary and leave refreshed. I think I'll go back and read something I wrote a while back:  Busy, Dizzy and In a Tizzy: Christian Contemplation for Moms and Other Frazzled Folks. 

You may also like the more recent entries in my Strength in Hymn series:

• His Eye is on the Sparrow
• Let There Be Peace on Earth
• Be Thou My Vision
• Sweet Hour of Prayer
• For All the Faithful Women
• Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
• Love Divine, All Loves Excelling

This is the first post in my new Big Words series!  More on that later...

Grace and peace,
Virginia Knowles
www.ComeWearyMoms.blogspot.com