An invitation to sit down

“I know it goes against all the words the world says are admirable:

self-reliant, capable, strong, and resilient.

 But I am in desperate need of a source outside of myself 
all the time. 

And so are you.”

Grace for the Good Girl, p 14 

I know this, but I need to hear it again, and again and again.

I need God's help. I need his help not just to deal with the big things that flatten me, but the little things, too. I need His help with my attitude, with my heart as it cleans this house and breaks up fights and tries not to eat yet another cookie. I need more than coffee to give me patience. I need God's grace, His forgiveness, and His help every single day.

And He is here, right in the middle of the mess of things, to walk with me and love me through this normal day.  We do not serve a God who stands far off.  We do not serve a God who waits for us to get our acts together before He helps. We are, in fact, served by God, right in the midst of our brokenness and need.

What does it mean to "sit down on the inside?"  What does that even look like?

It doesn't look like following that one magic formula that will finally make life "work." It doesn't look like being in control of schedules and children and emotions at all times. It doesn't look like faking happy or manufacturing holy feelings in tough circumstances. It doesn't look like completing the daily checklist and receiving a gold star.

It doesn't look like the little boy FLIPPING OUT because his brother got a cupcake for dessert and he hasn't gotten his yet and MOM MIGHT RUN OUT OF CUPCAKES, and he just might really shrivel up and die! Dear child, has mommy ever once let you leave the table hungry? I know what you need, what is good for you. I'm working on it. 

Sit down. Wait.

It looks like something we can't quantify or copy, but we can see glimpses, and we should savor them when we see them.  It looks like the preemie resting on her daddy's chest, receiving love from her parents, and IV pokes, too, and meanwhile her heart keeps beating even though she doesn't tell it to beat, and she sleeps. It looks like going to work and receiving whatever mess God sends you to handle that day, and when it gets tough, leaning on Him for strength instead of trying to manufacture it.  It looks like  pastor, pouring his gifts into his sermon, praying for the congregations he loves, and then trusting God alone with the growth.

Sitting down on the inside means sitting down in the pew and opening ears and heart to the Word God sends for that day. It means sitting down in prayer before the huge task. It means sitting down at the end of the day, with the jobs left undone, the messes still tangled, and the questions unanswered, and laying it all at His feet, and receiving back from Him the gift of sleep.

Today, for me, it looks like being interrupted ten times while writing this post. And dinner is late, and the kids spent too much time in front of screens, but God sent us time with friends, and a fire in the fireplace, too.

Sitting down, right here, means not worrying about what grade I got for this day, because nobody is keeping score.  The mix of ugly and beautiful in me and around me, it is all covered, all covered by the grace of God in Christ.

The main thing is settled. The main need of our souls has been met. The main problem has been solved.  The sin that had separated us from God has been atoned for by Jesus.

Will He not also give us all things?
We need only to trust, and wait.
He will not let us leave His table hungry.
He knows what we need.

Sit down.
Rest.
Wait.
Our God knows what He is doing.

Our soul waits for the Lord;

    he is our help and our shield.

21 

For our heart is glad in him,

    because we trust in his holy name.

22 

Let your steadfast love, O Lord, be upon us,

    even as we hope in you.

(Psalm 33:20-22)

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What does it look like to "sit down" where you are, today?

updated from original post 9/3/12

Noticing

Springtime is a wonderful time to notice,
with a camera in my hands.

I will never tire of springtime noticing.  Every year, I am surprised by the fragrance and the joys.

Is there anything more precious than a flower picked by a little boy for his mama?
I usually shove it behind my ear, or "accidentally" drop it when he's not looking.

This time, I noticed- see those tiny curls? Amazing.



The art around me moves by so quickly, it is impossible to take it all in.

The children grow and the moments blow away in the wind.

Father, don't let me miss it!  Help me to see!

When my son saw the first fluffy dandelion of the season, he picked it for me, and ran to me with an excited voice: "Mama, remember these!?  We LOVE these!"

He knows I will appreciate the dandelion fluff with him. I smile.

Yes, I am doing something right.

Appreciating the art that surrounds us, the works of His hands, with the children of His grace...

we give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.

Motivation.

photo credit: lose weight safe

few words

Well, they don't make t-shirts, but I needed some sort of acknowledgement, so I made myself one.

We made it, we are upheld, and now, I try to catch my breath.

Weak and Lovely series continues.... someday.

Not today.

Why? Because...

good news

Good read for Good Friday:
It is finished
Good Friday?

Listen:
Good friday
The Passion of Christ

photo credit: flickr

Sweat reflections

photo credit

”

Sweat runs down my forehead, and little boys run around my basement. I am exercising with heart, soul, and body.  I am angry, determined, resolved to win this battle with my flesh.

A little boy runs past me with a sword, and another boy screams. “Marcus, behave yourself!” I half yell, half pant.

“Oh, don’t worry, mom, I’m a good guy now."

“Oh, you are?” I smile through sweat.
“Yeah. I just changed myself into a good guy, and so now I’m a good guy."

I punch, kick, squat, and jump with the perky lady on my video. And his words echo in my ears, “I’m a good guy now.”

How cute, that he thinks it is so easy. How sweet and childlike, that he thinks sin is something you can just slough off, just drop like a dirty sock on the floor, walk away, and be free of it.

He doesn’t know the extent of the sickness yet, does he? He doesn’t know how deep the selfishness runs, like poison in our veins.  He doesn’t know how it clings, oh how it clings, dragging a soul down to earth by weight of the flesh and the heart.

And I work. And I sweat. 

And when the workout is over, even still, I have not changed myself into a good, self-controlled girl. Not a choice, not effort, not even vigorous effort, can make such a change.

And I find myself exhausted, humbled, and sitting quietly with open hands.

And again, I am comforted by the basics, by the Solidness of Christ, of God’s love for me, and of the certainty of the Holy Spirit’s work in me.

 (From the Small Catechism by Martin Luther)

The Third Article.

Of Sanctification.

I believe in the Holy Ghost; one holy Christian Church, the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen.

What does this mean?--Answer.

I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Ghost has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith; even as He calls, gathers, enlightens, and sanctifies the whole Christian Church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith; in which Christian Church He forgives daily and richly all sins to me and all believers, and at the last day will raise up me and all the dead, and will give to me and to all believers in Christ everlasting life. 

This is most certainly true.

Father, thank you for the certain hope we have in Christ. You are a God who seeks and saves the lost, who helps the weak, who forgives the sinners.  As we struggle on our way, broken people traveling through a broken place, we look to You- Call, Gather, Enlighten, and Sanctify us, Father.  Keep our heads up, and our eyes fixed  on You, as we look forward to our certain eternal rest in You.  Amen.

Are you trying, by healthy living or any other way, to make yourself into a good person before God?

We can't bear this burden, nor do we have to, thanks be to Jesus.

Evening Prayer

Snow in my backyard, 

on my grass, 

and my cemetery.

I remember my God, and His promises.

Yours is the day, O God, yours also the night; you established 

the moon and the sun. You fixed all the boundaries of the 

earth; you made both summer and winter.    Psalm 74:15,16 

Jesus Christ is the Light of the World. 

The Light no darkness can overcome.

(Evening Prayer, Lutheran Service Book, p243, based on John 8:12; 1:5)

He will provide a way of escape

Hold your hands open

The busier life gets,

the more I am tempted to put my head down and barrel through life like a goat.

I must remember: 

Look up!

Receive the grace that God is sending you today!

Don't miss it!

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at least he's happy

Can you relate? :)

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