I'm blogged daily in April. and it ends today! Learn more about the series here
This is it, friends! April comes to a close and so does another interrupted by grace series. My prayer this morning is that my offering of words has pointed you to the Grace-full Interrupter, our God who loves us, rescues us, and works in our lives for His glory. I don't want to miss Him because I am too busy, to distracted, or too self-absorbed. I don't want you to miss Him either! May God continue to prick us by His Spirit with reminders to love Him and love one another deeply from the heart.
Yesterday was the day I planned to put Sally's advice into practice by spending some unstructured, unscheduled time in nature with the kids. The weather forecast earlier in the week indicated that Wednesday would be perfect for it and our calendar was blank, a match made in heaven! With a little planning ahead, I had some special snacks for the trail in case we got hungry. We were ready for our souls to be filled.
After wrapping up the three R's and a little science and history, we laced up our shoes, filled up the water bottles, buckled our seat belts, and headed for a local state park. Online I had learned about a trail that sounded perfect for our group: short, flat, and near a stream. I'm so grateful to the fellow who had taken the time to write about his experience there; the trail was perfect for us!
We stopped at a bench to eat our snacks and I was overwhelmed by the pleasure of being there, with my kids. I was interrupted by grace when I thought, I love my job! Then I said it out loud for them to hear, so they would know I am thankful I get to spend my days with them.
Friends, what you need to know is that I haven't always and I don't always love my work. When my kids talk, they seem to all want to talk at once! When it's time to do any kind of work, at least one child complains! When we put them to bed, they don't always stay there! When I think about how daily I have to keep on repeating the same tasks, chores, and responsibilities, I don't always (or ever) squeal with delight! But sitting there yesterday, having my soul filled by views God's beautiful woodsy creation, warmed by the bright sunshine, and touched by my kids' contentment, it hit me how much He has done in my heart over my mommy years to move me from thinking of caring for my children as a drain to a delight!
Later on our stroll we stopped at a small "beach" and the kids spent quite a while being themselves with the sand, rocks, and water: skipping stones, making small dam, throwing rocks into the water, creating paint from colored stones, digging holes, etc. We talked, laughed, and enjoyed. WE ENJOYED!
It is not always easy to enjoy, is it? We get snared by the to-do lists, the responsibilities, the difficulties and challenges, the exhaustion, and the burdens. How quickly we can forget that God calls us to rest and to fill up our souls on Him and what He has created for our pleasure! I tell ya, that excursion energized me for the cooking, laundry, and other work I had to do the rest of the day.
If you are feeling depleted, take a few minutes today to think about what recharges you and what areas of life you need God to show up and transform your attitude. Then make a plan to do one soul-filling thing before the week is out. Also be on your toes looking for times that God is interrupting you by grace. April may be over, but not God's work in our lives!
GIVEAWAY WINNER!
I suppose now you'd like to know who won the coffee and chocolate, don't you?
You're the winner!
I will be in touch about getting your treats to you.
Yay!
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