"Wherever You Are, Be All There"

"All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us."
J.R.R. Tolkien

In Ann Voskamp's book "One Thousand Gifts" she quotes from "The Rest of God: Restoring Your Soul by Restoring Your Sabbath" by Mark Buchanan.

He writes, "Being in a hurry. Getting to the next thing without fully entering the thing in front of me. I cannot think of a single advantage I've ever gained from being in a hurry. But a thousand broken and missed things, tens of thousands, lie in the wake of all the rushing. . . Through all that haste I thought I was making up time. It turns out I was throwing it away."

I surely have been guilty of rushing - of trying to finish one thing so I could move on to the next. I've often missed out on fun moments with my kids because I was too busy finishing up. Too often I've been in a hurry to get them into bed so I could rest. I wonder how many moments I've missed because I didn't take the time to read one more story or to lie on the bed for a few minutes. 

Ann quotes Elisabeth Elliot, "Wherever you are, be all there." When we give our full attention, time slows and we can live fully in the moment.

As Jesus was faced with feeding the 5,000 with only 5 loaves and 2 fish, He first gave thanks and then there was enough! (John 6:11) "Thanksgiving creates abundance." (pp. 71-72)

So my list of thanks continues. And the more I choose to live in the moment, the more there is to be thankful for.

26. Receiving a loving note from my son written to me while in line at the store: “Dear Mom. i hope you like this note. Mom you are the best mom ever. i love you. By: Josh”

27. Dinner date with my son; he said, “It’s not a date, it’s just a dinner together.”

28. My girl’s voice on the phone saying good night; first time spending the night at a girlfriend’s house

29. Resting at home after two busy days

30. Hubby’s procedure went well; good report

31. My girl running out the door to give me a BIG hug when I came to pick her up from her sleepover

32. Kids excited to go to the library

33. The silence of both kids reading their books and enjoying them

34. Going to bed with all four of us under the same roof ; all is right in my world

35. Family Day!

36. The comfort and safety home brings

37. Friday - the end of the school week and beginning of the weekend

38. The Armor of God’s protection over the attack of the enemy

39. Gratitude expressed from my daughter

40. Pizza/Movie night with Dr. Pepper treat!

41. Spending the day at my parents’ house with all the special mothers in my life

42. Mother’s Day - long nap; hubby cooked for me; hugs and kisses from my son; snuggling with my daughter on the couch and her calling sitting with me “the place of honor”; special card from my hubby

43. Patience and perseverance with a strong-willed child

44. Talapia fish tacos - yummy!

45. A language assignment done well after a lot of fuss

46. Hugs and kisses from my strong-willed child

47. “This is my favorite” from a picky eater

48. Music. . . Helped the school day to pass more quickly. . . Why didn’t I think of that sooner?!

49. Another trip to the library. . . My girl picked out too many books to check out at once. . .now that’s a good problem!

50. Tucked up on the couch with my two kiddos reading; only the sound of pages turning for an hour!


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

5 Benefits of Being a Child of God

Image
In her book "Breaking Free", Beth Moore writes about five benefits God intends "to be the daily experience of every child of God." (p. 23) The first benefit is to know God and believe Him . Beth Moore writes that "one of your chief purposes on this planet is to know God intimately and with reverent familiarity. That intimate relationship begins, but was never intended to end, with what we call the 'salvation experience.' So the first question to ask yourself is, Have you received Christ as your personal Savior?" "One of the most beautiful elements of salvation is its simplicity. Christ has already done all the work on the cross. Your response includes four elements: 1) Acknowledge that you are a sinner and that you cannot save yourself. 2) Acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and only He can save you. 3) Believe that His Crucifixion was for your personal sins and that His death was on your behalf. 4) Give Him your life and
Read more

Fuel Up with the Holy Spirit

Image
 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” John 14:26 Once we decide to get on the road with Jesus, we discover that the Bible is like a road map for our journey; helping us to live in a way that pleases God. If we spend time in the Word everyday, we will grow to be more like Jesus. A car needs gasoline in order to work. In order for you to keep going, you have to fill the tank up. Well, just like our physical bodies need food for energy, and cars need gasoline in order to go, our spiritual bodies need a kind of fuel too. This "fuel" is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit gives us wisdom and energy for life. We know that God created us. We know that Jesus saved us. But you might wonder who the Holy Spirit is. In John 14:16-17 we see that before Jesus was going to die on the cross, He told the disciples that God would send another Helper to help them. This w
Read more

A Clamorous Woman

Image
Photo Credit A foolish woman is clamorous; She is simple, and knows nothing. For she sits at the door of her house. . . To call to those who pass by. . . "Whoever is simple, let him turn it here"; And as for him who lacks understanding, She says to him, "Stolen water is sweet, And bread eaten in secret is pleasant." But he does not know that the dead are there, That her guests are in the depths of hell. -Proverbs 9:13-18 (NKJV) A foolish woman is clamorous. To be clamorous is to murmur, growl, roar, rage, to be troubled, in an uproar, in a stir, a commotion, boisterous, turbulent, raging. Here is a big clue for us. Every one of these definitions describes anything but a meek and quiet spirit. Usually if we women make an uproar on the outside, it's because there's an uproar on the inside. A clamorous woman lures other people into her whirlpool - or maybe a better word is cesspool. I know that the first level of application of
Read more