I recently spent a glorious day on an island with my family. It was too cold and windy to swim or sunbathe but we enjoyed the scenery, good food and of course, the shopping. One of my favorite stores is full of wood plaques of all sizes painted with lovely, and sometimes funny, little sayings. As I was leaving the shop I looked up on the wall behind the counter and read a saying that I had never seen before. “A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.” Honestly, as much as I like that saying, if there were a switch I could flip at the beginning of each day that would determine whether the day would be smooth sailing or rough seas, I can assure you, I would flick that switch to smooth sailing every single time. Who would choose a day of trials and accidents and defeat if the choice were theirs to make? Yet, “a smooth sea never made a skilled sailor” speaks to me. I do want to be a skilled sailor as I journey this uncertain sea that is life. When a storm comes my way, I want to be … [Read more...]
In Need of Grace
I made a mistake. By the time I realized that I had made the mistake, it was already too late. It was unintentional, a mistake pure and simple, but once the course of events was set in motion the situation was out of my hands. There is nothing much worse than messing up. Except messing up when the consequences of your actions affect others and you are powerless to stop it. That’s worse. In Need of Grace At the hour that I am writing this, I should be fast asleep in my bed. It is late. I am tired. Yet, sleep is elusive tonight. Situations like these will never be any fun; but as I lay in bed, trying desperately to sleep, I prayed. I asked for mercy upon me and the situation. I prayed for a solution to the situation details specifically. But it wasn't too long before I was praying for grace. I am a woman who has been the recipient of much grace in her lifetime. Grace, receiving something you most definitely do not deserve, is one of the most wonderful things in the world; yet … [Read more...]
Dependent on God
Lord, I need you. How often do we say, (or sing) those words in a given day? In fact, I’m known speak out loud and say, “Lord, I need your grace, right now in this moment” on a fairly regular basis (usually in the presence of my children). Dependent on God But no matter how much I recognize my need for God and His presence in my life, I find I have a tendency to pursue a lifestyle independent of Him. My mind can get consumed with thoughts of, "if only I made enough money so that I wouldn't have to struggle financially anymore", "if only my health allowed me to pursue my goals and dreams", "if only my marriage were like hers, or his, or theirs"… If only everything were exactly the way I want it, I would no longer need to be fully dependent on God. The fault in this logic is that God would never lead us into independence. He did not create us to be independent of Him. We were created to live, walk, mourn, struggle, rejoice, and everything else in a place of full dependence on … [Read more...]
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