Encouraging Deep Roots

Every now and then I will take a passage of scripture and re-write it in own words. This morning as I was reading in Psalms I felt the need to do this with Psalm 73. It helped my anxious thoughts. Psalm 73 God Alone When all is falling down around me - God alone. When the world is in chaos - God alone. When injustice reigns - God alone. When innocent people are accused and enslaved by bad ones - God alone. When it seems as if evil is winning - God alone. When I am in despair - God alone. When wicked people mock & gloat - God alone. When I have to be strong for others and it seems too much - God alone. When I stumble and fall - God alone. When I fall prey to envy and discouragement - God alone. When others fall away - God alone. When I feel helpless - God alone. When I'm hurt - God alone. 💓💓💓💓💓 God alone because He is all I have.  God alone because El Roi sees. God alone because He is my strength. God alone because He is all I need. God alone because He is righteous and jus...

I recently went for a walk and took this photo. The funny thing was I really couldn't see well nor look directly at the tree while snapping the picture because the sun was so bright. Since having cataract surgery I notice that being outside is difficult because the brightness does hurt my eye. I know that will change as my eye heals. But when I got home I thought this was a neat shot with the tree standing alone, the sun shining through the branches and the shadows on the ground. There was beauty in the stark branches against the backdrop of the snow. I love taking nature pictures. I love getting out and hiking. I enjoy being creative. God has wired me to be able to do many different things, to be able to do them quickly and do them fairly well. And yet, so often, I keep trying to stick to one thing. I think, "I have to stop doing multiple things and only do this thing." And every single time I attempt that I find myself sinking into feelings of being down and depressed. ...

I had a follow-up appointment at the eye doctor this week and it was busy in the office. When I came out of the exam room there was a crowd of people around the receptionist desk. There was an Amish family, a few older and younger people and the waiting area was full of people too. It was noisy and kind of chaotic. As I waited my turn to check out, I heard the nurse call a man's name and then heard a rattle of chains. I looked to see a prisoner, dressed in a black and white striped prison outfit and shackled at the hands and feet being led by two police officers to the exam room I had just come out of. It was a bit of a shock as he was out of place. I do know the Amish family is front of me looked extremely uncomfortable! And I didn't feel much more at ease either as he was paraded right in next to me. I certainly wasn't expecting that to happen. I commented to my husband on the way home that he must have commited some sort of major crime as I couldn't imagine someone w...

I had my first cataract procedure on Thursday and it went well. I'm in that weird in-between place as I await my second surgery on the 22nd. So while I can see distances out of the new eye, I can't out of the old one. I can't see up close with the new eye but can with the old one. I'm handling it well enough, but the thing that is the biggest struggle is using the laptop since the distance is not right for either eye. This week is going to be kind of a challenge as I have multiple Zoom meetings all week! But overall, I am pleased and trying to be patient as I wait. Mondays are my day to look back over the past week and remember to be thankful. And I do have so many things to be thankful for in my life. 💓First of all, I'm thankful that the weather was decent enough this past week to melt the snow and ice on the streets so I could get out and walk. The week before I fell twice and because I don't want to end up with yet another torn meniscus or broken leg as I ha...

A friend gave me a book for Christmas called, The Red Sea Rules, by Robert J. Morgan. It's a meaty little book that I've been enjoying. It has also landed me in the book of Exodus and the story of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt.  They come to the edge of the Red Sea only to find their way blocked by the water and with Pharoah and his army in hot pursuit. And in typical fashion, the Israelites begin to freak out! They are frightened. In verses 13-14 of chapter 14 we read the following: But Moses said to the people, “Don’t be afraid. Stand firm and see the Lord’s salvation He will provide for you today; for the Egyptians you see today, you will never see again. The Lord will fight for you; you must be quiet.” Those two phrases stand firm  and be quiet  jumped out at me because when I'm anxious and worried about something those are the two things that I don't do! Instead I'm full of internal chaos and keep mulling the situation over and over in my mind. Mose...

Epiphany is the manifestation of God in human flesh; God with us. And it is God's manifestation not just to the Jewish people, but to the Gentiles. Today is Epiphany Day and Orthodox Christians around the world celebrate it.  The message that was communicated to me when I was growing up was, "Make something of yourself." "Don't settle." "You are better than this." and "Be somebody." That same message is prevalent in our society. It's as if there is a collective fear of being mediocre or insignificant. And yet, the God of the universe, humbled himself and made himself less, and willingly took on this frail human form. He allowed himself to experience emotions, pain and exhaustion. He came under the care of two human parents. He was betrayed by friends who were fickle. And ultimately he was tortured by arrogant men and died on a wooden cross which was a symbol of humiliation. Why would He do that? We go out of our way to avoid those neg...