The Tender Moments

Every night when my son goes to bed, I go into his room to say goodnight. As soon as he sees me, he takes a dive under his covers, we begin the nightly game of me trying to give a kiss.  I have to wrestle him for a kiss, as he is completely covered up under his blankets. He is getting really big now, and strong, so wrestling him for  a kiss is a lot of work. Sometimes my husband stays around to help me out!  As soon as I manage to get the blankets off of him, and I smack a wet one right on his cheek, he says, "Ouch, that hurt, kiss it better!!" And, we start all over again!
I love tender moments like these. This is what God offers me, tender moments. When I am hiding, He comes and finds me. He wants to be with me in relationship. I am His.
Say That Again, my God, tender moments.

The Mother's Day Jaunt

While in Portland for my son's graduation, it was strongly suggested by my oldest son that rather than drive straight home we drive to Seattle first! He pled his case for a good 30 minutes before my husband decided it would be a fun adventure. He just had to mention Seattle to me, and I was ready to go.
We left Mother's Day morning bright and early. Our first destination was the Mars Hill church downtown Seattle.  The sermon was about Philippians 4:6,7:

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And  the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

I've put a lot of thought into the command,  "be anxious for nothing". Hmm, is that actually possible? It must be, and not only that but peace is being offered beyond my comprehension! The only thing I have to do is PRAY.

So, church on Mother's Day, was very nice, and I'm still thinking about it....
After church, we walked to the market.

 We looked at the fish.

 And, I admired the vegetables.

 The flowers were exceptional.

 And, we ate lunch on the pier.

It was a delightful day, one of the best! I was able to enjoy worship, time with my husband, time with my children, a lovely city, a road trip, the market, and coffee!  The Mother's Day Jaunt was fantastic. And, because of the jaunt, I am asking God to Say That Again to me "be anxious for nothing, Bethany, just pray!"

The Graduate, The Market, and The Dead Body

My son graduated with his Masters degree in pastoral studies.

It was a good evening for all of us, although I think my grandson, his one year old son was not nearly as interested in all the festivities as the rest of us.

The next day, my son flew off on a mission trip. My daughter in law and grandson went on other adventures, and we went with our oldest son and daughter in law to the market.

On the way to the market there was an accident. We slowed with the traffic, and as I looked over to the side, I saw a body laying on the sidewalk. The body was completely covered up with the silver blanket, only legs were showing. I gasped, and my husband turned, to look. We both began to wonder who the person was and my husband speculated about her morning.
Once again, the realization of how quickly the gift of life can be taken was right in front of me, and I praised God for my life and my family. I praised Him for graduations, and market days, and sweet moments with my grandson and treasured time with God. Life is unpredictable, but God is not.
Jesus, Say That Again to me, You are with me all the time, I can count on that. In life and in death. 

The Sweet Moments

 We are on a trip to visit our son and his family. Our son is graduating, and we are very excited and happy for him. He is moving forward with many opportunities, and best of all, a beautiful family. We had the honor of spending the day with him and our grandson yesterday, and the afternoon with our daughter in-law. We went to the park to play, and had dinner. The moments, every one of them together, were sweet.

 We played on the big teeter totter. I watched my grandson slide down the slide. And swing in the swing.

 My grandson discovered the water, and wished he could go for a swim.

And, he gathered lovely flowers, then tried to eat them for a snack!

Life is full of sweet moments, and I have been blessed with many of them. Sometimes I still forget them! I can get caught up in the daily routine and stress of life, and before I know it the big sweetness of life can feel small. So, today, I am thankful for parks, and teeter-totters, swings, and flowers in the grass. I am thankful for the sun, and toddlers learning to walk. I am thankful for children that teach me about the sweet moments, the silliness, the celebrations, the sobering realities, and family. I am blessed to be loved and wanted.
As Jesus walks each Sweet Moment with me, and brings more of them into my life I ask Him to Say That Again to me. "You are loved and wanted."

The Path of Uncertainty

This morning I read in Isaiah 50, verses 10 and 11. It was the chapter that went along with the book I'm reading, and today the title of the devotional was "God's Ministry of Darkness" it is not referring to the darkness of sin, but rather to the darkness of uncertainty.

Who is among you that fears the Lord, that obeys the voice of His servant.
That walks in darkness, and has no light?
Let him trust in the name of the Lord, and rely on his God.

When there is light, it's easy to know who is on my side. But, in the dark, the obstacles are hidden and I must rely on Christ to lead me through. My natural instincts tell me to sit down and quit. Or to be afraid.  To trust in Jesus, when there is uncertainty about the path ahead, takes faith.
My devotional went on to explain how Abraham had a path of darkness for many years, he tried to light the path himself by sleeping with Hagar, and to this day we are paying the consequences.
As I think about my own life and the promises that I know God has given me, and the path of uncertainty and darkness that I so often have walked, I can see that I too have tried to light my own path. Or, many times in my fear, I have just sat down and stopped. Other times, I think I've turned around, simply telling God I wanted a different path, consequently, adding to my own uncertainty.
Walking the path is not easy, and today I am praying for continued faith, trust, truth and joy in the Light Giver.  His promise to me is that He will never leave me alone, He will always be there to show me the way, because He is the Way, and in Him there is no darkness!
Say That Again, Sweet Jesus, You give promises, You keep them, You bring light to darkness.

The New Dog Food

My husband purchased a new dog food for Fur Ball. This has been a very exciting event in Fur Balls life, he loves his new food! He wants to eat all the time now. Every morning, he runs to his bowl eagerly awaiting his scoop of food. As soon as we get home, he starts pawing the floor and barking, in a desperate effort to tell me that it's time for a little snack. In the evening, he runs to his bowl and prances around barking, in hopes that we will graciously give him an evening snack to hold him over til morning. I've noticed that his encounters with the butter on our counter has lessened, because he is now totally taken with his own food!
Just as Fur Ball is constantly thinking about his food and wanting to take it in, I too want to feed on the Word of God. Jesus, the Bread of Life, feeds my soul. What a wonderful, glorious thing!
Jesus, Say That Again to me, today, You will feed my soul, and I will breath You in.

The Changes

This month has been the month of changes for me. I've needed to make some adjustments to my life, my schedule, and some internal changes to the way I approach my daily routine. I've also had to look at some of the challenges God has been calling me to and step out in obedience to Him. Some of the changes have required boundaries that have been painful and uncomfortable, requiring me to wait on God and be patient.  Most of the changes have been good, some of them have been the process of accepting hard news, or taking a stand that I think may create tension.
Yesterday was a mixed up day for me. It was an example of the changes I'm working to make all come together. My son stayed home from school, he gets to do that every now and then, we spent the morning being together. It was very nice. We played several games. He drove my truck around the driveway. And, I pushed him in the swing for a long time as we talked, then he pushed me. I loved our time together, and I'm looking forward to spending time like that with him again. It was nice, because I want to intentionally spend time alone with each of my children.
I then reconnected with a friend, and once again, recognized that God was directing my steps in amazing ways. It was His timing, not mine.
The afternoon was spent playing with my daughter, one on one with her. She found a game she especially enjoyed and it was exciting to me to see God work in her life through a game!
My daughter in-law had a party in the evening, and I went to that. It was very nice. I'm always so impressed by everything my daughter in-law does!  She had the party at her mother's house. A lovely group of women showed up. I noticed that even though we didn't all know each other, there was a connection between the women, and the conversation was good. It wasn't just surface talk the entire time, but heart to heart talk at times. I noticed that there was grace in the circle of women she invited, and I was not surprised!
So, many wonderful things about my day. I also had some news that left my heart feeling ripped apart, consequently, a mixed up day. It brings me back to the changes of life. Life can seem one way today, but tomorrow it can all change, the only thing that really stays the same is Jesus. I will change, the world will change, the people around me will change, but Jesus will stay the same. Say That Again, Jesus, You will stay the same!