Earth Shattering

Chris and I at Red Rock Canyon

 This morning, my mind was racing with all sorts of stuff. We all live in a very hectic world. There's a lot going on, even if we weren't caregivers. Add caregiving responsibilities, choices, and tasks to this hectic lifestyle, and it's easy to become completely overwhelmed. Just taking care of another whole person is overwhelming most of the time, right?

As I realized my mind was racing so much around so many things I need to do and choices I need to make, I grabbed for a scripture. It's familiar, and we mention it a lot on this blog. Psalm 46:10 reminds us to be still and, at the same time for us to know He is God. Those two things helped me calm my heart and mind. I had to first be still. That takes a lot of work for me! Lol. I'm not sure I can fully acknowledge Him as God until I can get my mind out of hyperdrive, though. 

Once I thought of the scripture, I opened up my Bible to take another look at the entire psalm. The first verse is another anchor for my soul and has been for years. It covers so many things. 

  • God is our refuge.
  • God is my strength.
  • God is present in trouble - He doesn't disappear when things get tough.
My heart and mind began to settle down as I reminded myself that God has me. He is in my "today." Right here and right now - God is present. 

Then, I began reading the next couple of verses. There are some real serious things mentioned here like the earth "being removed" - the mental image of that is massive! Mountains are being "carried" into the sea and wiped off the planet. That's dramatic, right? At least things are quite that bad yet.

But then I thought about our caregiving journeys. In many ways, it's been an earth-shattering experience for us. For many of us, our whole worlds were put on hold, shifted around, and don't even bear a resemblance to life BC. (Before caregiving.) Yet, even in the middle of it all, no matter how hectic, how hurtful, how traumatic, we can hold onto these three things.

  • God is still our refuge.
  • God is still our strength.
  • God is still present in all our troubles.
Since God is still God - I can be still and acknowledge Him even in the middle of the frayed nerves, silent tears, and disrupted routines. He still has my heart in His. He still has my hand in His. I feel a gentle calm as I thank Him for still being here. I hope you do too.


                                                                                                                                           


Would You Like to Help Dove's Fire Ministries?

Maybe you've wondered about helping support all that goes on at DFM. One way is to shop my personal bookstore, which has devotionals, Bible study guides, and more that I have written. Dove's Fire Ministries Bookstore.

You can also donate via PayPal at paypal.me/dovesfireministries 
Or you can donate via CashApp: $JeanieOlinger
Or if you have Venmo my ID is:@Mary-Olinger-6




Comments

Post a Comment

Our Most Popular Posts

Find a New Hobby for These Surprising Benefits

Image
   Hobbies can help us connect to our creative side, spend quality time with our loved ones , and boost confidence, and, as EverydayPower.com notes, they can also promote mental and physical wellness . Whether you’re learning something new from a class or taking the initiative to tackle a project at home, practicing a hobby can improve your quality of life enormously. Looking for something fun to do with a friend or loved one?   Here are a few suggestions when you’re ready to find a fun new hobby to try:   Choose something that boosts your health   It can be challenging to take care of your overall wellness at times, especially when you’re busy taking care of family obligations. Learning to focus on your physical and mental health needs is much easier when it’s fun, however, and that’s where a hobby comes in. Look for one that helps you get active , such as a yoga class, or consider starting a walking group or joining a local organization that allow...
Read more

But I Have Today

Image
Do you ever have days that are just heavier than others? Of course, you do - who am I talking to? Saturday was Chris' 37th birthday. For some reason, it was unusually hard as I thought of where all his friends are today. You know, married, having kids, and enjoying their careers. I cried more than once that day. I grieved over what should have been, what could have been.  I hugged him a little tighter and thought about the progress he's made recently. The other night, I am certain he "sang" to me after I got him in bed. It was the sweetest thing and I posted it in his Facebook group where I share things I don't feel I can share as "publicly." He's moving more and initiating more of his movement on his own. There are many things to rejoice about. At the same time, I am getting older. My joints hurt and I wonder how much longer I can take care of him. I fear the day that I won't be able to. This is the way the rest of my life looks, and I am okay w...
Read more

No Get Out of Jail Free Cards?

Image
  Do you ever feel like life just doesn't let up? Sometimes it seems like caregivers should get some sort of exempt card. You know? Something that lets us stay in the cave without having to deal with all the craziness that's going on in the world. Well, it was just a thought. I guess there are no "get out of jail free cards" in life. A pandemic rages on and we didn't get an exempt card, did we? Political and civil unrest didn't qualify us for one either. We have to deal with all the craziness in the world plus our caregiving responsibilities. Isn't caregiving enough? Dealing with aids who don't show, people and family who do not know how to help so they avoid us, and the traffic of health care professionals of all sorts is enough for any given day. Yet it happens over and over again. How do we stay sane?  Caregivers are resilient - we just keep going. Every night I go to bed feeling like I failed. I didn't get enough done. It's easy to focus on...
Read more