"I have learned to kiss the wave..."

A gift FAITH, FAMILY, & FREEDOM...


"I have learned to kiss the wave that throws me against the Rock of Ages" - Spurgeon

My attention grabbed, this thought has played over in my mind as I've gone about the day's activities. At first, my soul cries out "Yes!"
Then I chew it some more and wonder "Do I really kiss the wave?" "Do I embrace it with affection? This hard thing that tosses me about?"
Some hard waves have taught me truths about Him. I have embraced those truths. Is embracing the truth kissing the wave?

I meet my darling for lunch. I share this thought I've been savouring. In the busy food court tears run down. We share food... physically and spiritually.

Why did I embrace the truth? I ponder motives... Was it to make my life better? Was I trying to eliminate the hard thing? Moving away from pain rather than towards reward?

Continuing to move through the list of jobs, I pick up working son. We share about our days and then share spiritual. We savour together.

The Rock of Ages...the safe place...the solid place in times of difficulty. Do I go there to meet my need or because I am so overwhelmed with the love of God? "God loves everybody, therefore God loves me"...is this my belief? Or is it "As a person who finds their treasure in God I am overcome with the depth and richness of His love for me. A love that involves every part of my life and who I am"? More chewing...

Family together at day's end...laughter, talking, eating, enjoying. The food being digested all day is shared and broken down some more. Each taking what they need. Physical rest and spiritual growth as night comes.

A clear night ...cool wind. I enjoy the bejeweled sky. Such brilliance...sparkling at me. I am awed. A moment just Him and I. I feel His invitation to abandon myself to His love...to throw myself willingly against the Rock of Ages. He has my heart.

~~~~~

"1000 GIFTS"...

#117  The love of an awesome God - FAITH

#118  A family that shares openly - FAMILY

#119  The freedom to share - FREEDOM

#120  Birds singing all kinds of songs this morning

#121  Warmth of the sun

#122  Physical exertion in the garden

#123  Phone calls to loved ones

#124  Beautiful colours in flowers

HE Loves me, HE loves me more,...

3 GIFTS LOVED...

My darling is the first gift loved that comes to mind.
Second is definitely my children.
Third?...
I hear Him say gently, "You."
"Me?"
"Absolutely! I love you." 
"OK, but this is a list of things I am thankful to YOU for...gifts that YOU have given me."
"Who gave you life?  ... Are you thankful that I created you? ...I sent My Son so that you & I could have a relationship."
I've already had hard lessons here. I am now thankful that He created me. "Yes, Lord. You love me and I am thankful."
"Does your darling love you?" 
More hard lessons are brought to mind. "Yes, Father. He loves me and I am thankful."
"Do the children I gave you love you?"
"Yes, those children love me."
"So, are you not a gift I have given that is loved? 
I smile... "Yes, Father. I am a gift loved."

I am grateful.

Do you see yourself as a gift loved?

with grateful thanks Loma Photography©

3 GIFTS: SMALL, BIG, JUST RIGHT

A dear friend is struggling with depression...a struggle I know all too well! She's worried with all the advice she is receiving. Some of it leaves her feeling more depressed, hopeless, more aware than ever of the big black hole she is in. Some of it makes her insides flare up... "I'm not like that!" "If I'm not like that then what am I like... weird?" lost and confused...like she's groping in the dark for the light switch.

I remember well the day I was told I was clinically depressed and needed to get help IMMEDIATELY. It felt like playing monopoly..."Do not pass 'go', do not collect $200, go straight to jail!" There was nothing nice in it, and I did not know where to turn for help. Yet, help was the very thing I knew that I did need. I did not feel I could turn to the church we were then attending... was afraid to go and get help from outside the church (what kind of new-age 'stuff' would they try to make me swallow)... didn't have any money to be able to pay them, anyway. I turned to the best source of all. I got step #1 right and He's led the journey from there just one step at a time.

It would be a book given to us, a TV documentary, a sermon at church. A conversation with someone who had no idea of what gift they were giving me, or a series of seemingly inconsequential events that triggered something for me. It was the patience of Job displayed in my darling as he tried desperately to understand the tangled mess of beliefs inside my head, then help me see things from a different perspective. Sometimes he succeeded... other times he failed miserably, or rather, I failed to get it. But he loved me anyway, and God helped me get it some other way.

God knows exactly the right tools to use...not too small, not too big, but just right for this moment on your journey. He's the master gardener. If you plant yourself in Him, ask Him to feed and water you. Let Him be your guide. After all, He knows you even better than you do! With that kind of knowledge, you are bound to flourish!

~~~~~

"1000 Gifts"...

#88 Being woken in the morning for a great photo opportunity
#89 Friends online
#90 A cloudy day
#91 Shade under the tamarillo tree as I weed
#92 Peace
#93 A son voluntarily taking out the trash

3 GIFTS FRAMED BY A FRAME

Dusting... not always my favourite job :( But in today's 3 gifts I realised it could become a whole lot more positive if I change my focus.
What means a lot to me? RELATIONSHIPS! And I have photo frames everywhere to prove it... of parents, grand parents and great... of my precious babies, into cute toddlers, into fun-loving mischief and beyond... As I dust I can savour these relationships, name my gratitude for them, pray for them.

On my walls are lots of art works... oils by friends... watercolour... graphite sketches of my kids. CREATIVITY in a frame. As I dust I can name my gratitude... thank the God that I am inspired by... ponder new creations.

But it is my darling's 'framed by a frame' gift that I have been most inspired by today. He has often said over the years that "he is the frame supporting me-the picture"... He is my gift.  I have always loved it, but, today I am dusting it off...unpacking it some more...

His explanation...
 "He supports. He is her cover. He creates the environment for her to flourish. He works with her for her direction and purpose. He totally gives himself for her. He is her frame."

And what about my friends who do not have a husband-frame?

"God's heart is totally for the widows and the fatherless...those without a husband or father.  Jesus, in being the ultimate bridegroom, does all these things for everyone of us. Right now we are all being prepared to partner Him, to the glory of God the Father. The Holy Spirit, brush stroke by brush stroke, is completing the work. And the Father looks on and smiles with pride."

I like that.

Done and dusted!

3 GIFTS YOU BECAME TODAY IN SERVING

Labels...


'servant' is not really on my list :( It's not that I don't do things for others, but rather the attitude I see when I look into my heart.

It's on my darling's list. I've watched his example for many close-up married years...felt threatened and in awe all at the same time. Keep putting it back in the 'not today' box.
But today's '3 Gifts You Became Today In Serving' makes me bring it out and begin to unpack this unusual gift.
What is serving? What do I become? And there's the problem!...
I see fear in my heart of becoming a doormat... of loosing significance... It's the 'What about me?!' Syndrome.
But Jesus calls me to be a servant to everyone...to be the lowest... the last. It's that whole 'upside-down' Kingdom thing.
It's in loosing myself that He is found
It's in becoming insignificant that He is seen
It's either Him or me.

It's in my humbleness that He is made bigger
It's in showing His love to others that He is exalted.
It's in time absorbing His love that I have the capacity to love.
It's in being grateful for the opportunity to serve that I find joy

Now to begin putting it into practice...

3 GIFTS FROM MY HEAVENLY FATHER

"... for GOD is LOVE!" 1 John 4:8

To experience love has been a continual need that I have had throughout my life. I don't think I am that unusual in this need. In fact, I think it's pretty common to everyone. We are not islands created for solitude, but rather designed in His image for relationship. We crave it, seek it, go to all kinds of lengths to get it, yet fail miserably in the finding. That's because we go everywhere but to love itself. This has definitely been my experience.

Throughout my journey, I have found that LOVE was graciously calling to me. I have answered, ... sometimes tentatively, sometimes more openly. At times it has been a struggle to even see/hear/feel Love. The call seemed to have been drowned out by the pain and hurt ringing loudly in my ears. The concrete bunker erected around my heart impenetrable.

But God...

But God in all His patient never-ending love, has thrown my struggling soul some lifelines.

#1 In the Bible, He has given me a Word picture of LOVE
#2 In Jesus, He has shown me a Perfect demonstration of LOVE
#3 In my Darling, He has given me a physical demonstration of LOVE



All are reflections of Himself...LOVE...the one I crave!

Joy Dare

JOY...I want it! I've yearned for it, struggled for it, felt it's elusiveness...

As I've exhausted each place I think it might be, I find I've been on a journey back to His feet.
Joy is found in Him!!!

He gives me so many gifts...My Daddy has made me a special, 'just-for-me' treasure hunt each and every day.

 A wagtail making the most of the garden sprinkler













with grateful thanks to Loma Photography ©

A fun game of volleyball over the passionfruit vine with friends

with grateful thanks to Loma Photography ©

 The joy of giving and receiving gifts









with grateful thanks to Loma Photography ©