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Look Up!

12/18/2016

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​Joy in the Morning
I will lift up my eyes . . .  from whence cometh my help,
                                                              Psalm 121:1
Hello Friend,
            Seven days till Christmas.  May I guess how you feel?  Exhausted?  In despair?  Frantic?  Stressed?  Worried about climbing credit card debt?  Remembering holidays past with a mixture of nostalgia or regret?  Sometimes I feel sadness that my children are grown and Jim and I no longer have little ones infusing us with the magic of Christmas— wonder in their little eyes at every glittering tree, and anticipating of the coming of Santa on Christmas morn.  Very few of us manage the holidays with serenity. 
            May I suggest you take a refreshing break.  Take a walk outside your front door and look up.  You don’t have to travel to the mountains.  The grandeur of God is all around.  I love to sit on my screen porch and just put everything on hold.  I love the oak tree, the faded blue potting bench with my growing herbs lavishly sprawling across each shelf-- the fragrance of rosemary and basil.    I love to feel the slight chill and a soft breeze on my cheeks. Oh, and rocking in my old wicker chair. Calming me as nothing else.    If only we will take the time, nature will heal us, sustain us, and renew us, for at least an hour.  Slow down.  Become aware of beauty and love and the rhythm of life.  Storms blow, but tomorrow will bring warmth and sunshine.  That’s how life happens.  That’s how I gain courage and strength.  This frantic pace is momentary in the span of time.  I can choose to slow down.   I will slow down.  I will remember.  The Grace of God.  The wonder of nature which reminds us to look up. 
            Practice self-care. Pause.  Look up. God will take care of you if you allow him. 
                                                                                    Linda
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Contentment!

12/4/2016

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In all things, give thanks.                
​                               1 Thessalonians 5:18                  

Hello friend,
                Okay, I understand that Thanksgiving has passed, and that now your thoughts are centered on Christmas.  So why, you ask, am I writing about giving thanks again?  Because giving thanks is an attitude, and there is a direct connection between gratitude and joy.  And you know I am all about finding joy in our everyday, sometimes mundane lives. 
Gratitude TURNS WHAT WE HAVE INTO enough!
     Having the latest and greatest cell phone is not going to give you joy. Oh, for a brief moment, maybe.   But when the next model appears on the market, that “I must have it urge” kicks in.
Contentment IS NOT THE FULLFILLMENT OF WHAT YOU want BUT THE REALIZATION OF HOW MUCH YOU ALREADY have.
            Instead of frantically racing through the mall, try being grateful for what you already have, and spend your time volunteering at Metropolitan Ministries bringing joy to the truly needy.  And the byproduct, you will feel deep, satisfying, and long-lasting joy down deep in your heart. 
                                                                                                                                   Thanks for giving,                                                                                                                                                                      
  Linda

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