#object lesson

[faithfulsheepdog]

So God showed up while I was walking with my 3 year old niece last week.

She and I, along with her parents and older brother, were walking back to our “home away from home” at the beach. Her parents and brother were faster and walking ahead of us, and I stayed behind to walk with her.

She’s living in her own world, and I’m just in it, you know? She’s walking at her own pace and just exploring and enjoying as she goes. I had to pull her away from some things, and I had to tell her not to bother some things that weren’t meant for her. But mostly it was just the two of us walking and enjoying each other’s company.

At one point, she looked ahead and saw her loved ones were way ahead of her, and she started to panic and get nervous. But I was quick to soothe her. I said, “It’s okay, it’s okay, sweetheart. We’re going where they’re going, it’s okay. I’m right here with you, and we’ll be over there with your mama and daddy soon.” And she was fine.

That’s when God arrived.

I mean, He was always there, but that’s when He decided to speak.

He said, “Sweetheart, you keep looking at the pace I have given others and mistakenly think you’re being left behind because your life is not going at the same pace as theirs. It makes you fretful and discouraged. But you are walking the pace I have given you, and I am right here beside you. Like you are with your niece. And you will get where I have designated you to go. Period. It’s only a matter of time. So trust Me and walk with Me.”

So today, if you find yourself like me looking around at the lives of others and feeling like the pace you’re on is wrong or not fast enough or not good enough or whatever the case, take heart.

You are on the path and pace God has set for you, and God walks right beside you. There’s no need to fear or compare to others. You will get where God wants you to be at the pace He has given you.

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.” - ‭‭Romans‬ ‭8‬:‭28‬ ‭NLT‬‬

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.” - Hebrews‬ ‭12‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬, emphasis mine

[averydrawscomics]

InFallible 33 - Frankly Insulting

[oceanstone]

Kate Bowler, Everything Happens for a Reason: And Other Lies I’ve Loved, Chapter 2: “Object Lesson”

[otherhazards]

Jim Himes on Twitter

“They’ve cleaned up the chamber after the failed Trump insurrection. But not completely. I’m going to ask that this window not be repaired to remind posterity of the consequences of misrule and demagoguery.”

“They’ve cleaned up the chamber after the failed Trump insurrection. But not completely. I’m going to ask that this window not be repaired to remind posterity of the consequences of misrule and demagoguery.”    -Congressman Jim Himes, (D)Connecticut

That’s a really good idea.

[jokeanddaggerdept]

[kimartist]

Sooo...

I made this 2-pic collage to make a point...

The top bee was drawn August 2018.

The bottom bee was drawn 6 months later.

The bottom bee was what I was going for in August, but the top bee was what I got.

It took me 6 months to learn how to draw a bee!

Granted, I worked on many other projects in between bees, but point being that:

The "talented artwork" you see is the result of many hours of practice, practice, practice - even now, even today, when I've been doing art on a regular basis for 10+ years.

Whenever I attempt new subject matter, I'm back at square one & have to "learn it" anew, like a raw beginner.

[comicdiaries]

perfect rock

(It’s supposed to be cautionary, not something you look forward to, which some people in the audience pretended to not understand!)

[faithfulsheepdog]

Let It Snow

I can’t help but think about references to snow in the Bible for what I wanted to share today because I look out my window and see lots of snow on the ground still, and I asked God what to discuss, hoping He would give me something from that beautiful, poetic section in Job. But He gave me something different.

We all love talking about spiritual rain. We love talking about the showers of blessings and how green and lush the world becomes from them. And why not? The sustenance in these scenarios is more noticeable, sometimes instantaneous. But rain is not the only way God says He sustains the world.

“The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry.” - Isaiah 55:10 NLT

Have you ever heard of places in drought after winter? The first time I heard that, I was like, “What? How? What do you mean?” To me, drought comes after weeks and weeks of no rain in 90° weather. But in reading this scripture, it’s pretty obvious that God uses snow in winter and early springtime to do the same job rain does in the other seasons.

God goes on to say that His word is like the rain and snow.

“It is the same with My word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.” - Isaiah 55:11 NLT

Meaning what? Meaning sometimes we experience God’s word in loud abundance like the rain, and our souls are instantly watered and replenished. We bud and flourish, and we immediately remember how good God is.

Sometimes God’s word is like the soft, silent snow that we may mistakenly call total silence from God. We can’t hear the accumulation of snow, and it seems to happen without us being aware of it sometimes. But our lack of perception doesn’t mean it’s not happening at all. God’s word sometimes falls on our souls like gentle snowflakes. Just like how every raindrop is intentionally placed by God to nourish and fulfill His purpose, snow is the exact same way, intentionally placed to land in a specific spot to nourish.

When God’s word lands like snowflakes, it’s when He knows instant nourishment would not yield what He wants to accomplish. Silent landing and slow-coming flourishing doesn’t negate purpose.

So if you’re in a season where you think God is totally silent, He’s not. His word is just landing a little differently in this season. Wait until you see how your soul flourishes because of the gentle word He’s given your soul, and you will see even snow in winter seasons has a beautiful purpose.