The Question Queen

My Uncle Calvin always said to "follow peace." I was thinking of that this morning when I got up and my mind was a whirlwind of questions, planning and just getting ready to face another very busy day. (Ha - like that's something new, right?)

My first thought was of the scripture when Jesus was in the boat with His disciples and He stood up and said to the storm, "Peace, be still." I was longing for Him to speak those words to my heart this morning.

On my way to finding that passage, I found myself in Matthew 19. In verse 16 the story of the rich, young ruler begins. I found it interesting so I camped there for a bit. Now, those who know me, know I am the Question Queen. I have a question for just about everything. It can be rewarding sometimes - and a burden other times.

I hadn't realized how many questions were in this passage. The young ruler starts by asking Jesus what he needed to do to obtain eternal life. Jesus answered him with a question - Why are you asking me about what is good? And then answered the initial question by telling the young ruler to keep the commandments.

Now as I recall, there are only 10 commandments Jesus was referencing, but the young man bravely asked which ones? Jesus was patient. I would have smacked the guy and asked him which ones he really didn't want to keep. I found it interesting that Jesus only quoted the ones which dealt with how we treat others. He didn't mention the Sabbath or idols. And of course the (somewhat cocky in my opinion) ruler said he had already kept those and then he asked another question - What am I lacking?

Jesus answered that question too - He told the ruler to sell all you have, give to the poor and follow Me. I'm guessing the young man didn't like that answer any better than the other ones he got. It said he was saddened because he was very rich. Jesus says to this that it is difficult for the rich to enter the Kingdom of God.

Now the disciples have a question - Then who can be saved? Jesus says that all things are possible with God. This tells me that peace is possible!

With this, I've come back around to my original search - peace. My only question is how do I get it? And the answer is that God gives it freely. Jesus said in John 14:27 that He gives us peace. And it's not a worldly peace that fluctuates like the stock market! It's an ever-abiding peace that stills the storms in our hearts. Now the interesting thing is that Jesus keeps giving us things to do. After He says He has given us peace, He says Do not let your heart be troubled.

Now on one hand, I want to walk away scratching my head like the ruler asking how can this be? But on the other hand - I want to let this peace reign in my heart. So even if Jesus speaks peace to the storm like He did in the boat - it's up to me to learn how to walk in it. And that will be my task for today.

Today I will meditate on the peace he gives. I'll take my eyes off the tumultuous storms and focus back on Him. I'll quiet my soul and listen for His peace. And I'll choose to rest right there. My meditation will be on how to walk in His peace when everything is topsy turvy. I'll work on keeping my heart from being troubled.. and rest in Him for one more day.... will you join me?

Ups and Downs

Maybe it's just "that time of year" for me, but I've struggled a lot the last few weeks. I still affectionately call it the caregiver's fog. Lol. Okay, maybe it's not-so-affectionately. I know I can share my true feelings with you guys because you get it. You understand the day-to-day grind of caregiving. The military has a saying about there being no easy day. I think we live in that reality. It's just not easy caring for another whole person, is it? Caregiving presents many difficulties. We can find ourselves alone, so very alone on this journey. It doesn't just go away. We don't just work through it. It seems to go on and on. There are lots of ups and downs - and that can be about every 90 seconds some days. Right? (smile!) As I've been working through this emotional maze the last few days, I turned my thoughts to Daniel. Let's take a realistic look at his circumstances because as we read his story in the Bible, we tend to glamorize i

Seasons Are Temporary

This morning, I found myself reading in Isaiah 28. I ended up there because I was looking for something in particular, and even though I didn't find what I was looking for, I found what I needed. God's so cool like that, isn't He? My eyes first fell on verse 29, which says in the NKJ: This also comes from the Lord of hosts, Who is wonderful in counsel and excellent in guidance. I rolled that over in my mind and heart a few times and spent a few minutes thinking about how I'd seen His counsel in action in my own life. We've all had those times when we weren't sure what to do or where to go, and suddenly, an idea drops into our thoughts. There are many ways He provides direction for us. He may direct our steps through a passage of scripture, a trusted spiritual leader such as a pastor, a YouTube teacher, and maybe even a lowly blog writer. Lol. No matter how He chooses to deliver His counsel, it comes - but we must listen. After I had rolled these thoughts and t

Seek and Ye Shall Find

Over the last few weeks, I've been trying to strategize ways of dealing with stress. It's something we all deal with, especially caregivers. I'm walking and exercising more, which helps the body get rid of stress and it helps improve sleep to some degree. But I've also been working on training my thoughts. I've been working on purposefully finding things to be thankful for. At first, it was a bit difficult because let's face it, caregiving is hard work. This morning, I was plugging Chris into a nebulizer for a breathing treatment as he had an asthma attack yesterday afternoon after we'd been out for a little bit. As I was doing his treatment and his tube feeding, I didn't even really think about it; this "thought" just rolled up out of me. I thought, thank you, Lord, for carrying us through the long night. My own thankfulness surprised me! Lol. I realized at that moment that it's getting easier and easier to be thankful, even for the litt

Daily Devotions for Caregivers

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