Fall Cleaning...

I'm partial to fall cleaning over spring cleaning.
I suppose I could do both.
But I don't.
I hate to clean.
Fall is the time I like to clean under sinks...
behind dressers...
under beds...
Mostly because I'm in the house all winter and I don't want to be in a dirty house all winter.
Makes sense, no?
This year I cleaned my blinds...
I won't tell you the last time that happened.
Because I can't.
It never has.
Don't tell anyone.
It never occurred to me honestly...
Yes, I saw the dust on occasion but I looked away and it disappeared out of sight.
Easy peasy.
Until my white blinds took on a mushroom color...
It was time.
FINE!
So I cleaned them...inch by inch...
Blind by blind...
I hear you can take them down and dunk them in a bathtub but I didn't.
I painstakingly cleaned each one.
First with a dust rag,
Then with a Lysol wet wipe,
Then with a damp cloth.
They're clean.
I wish I could say I was done, but today I cleaned under my kitchen sink...
Woah.
The nasty that was living under there!
I do occasionally clean under the sink but I hadn't in several months and it was, well...
dirty.
It's fall, though, so I didn't just clean, I fall cleaned.
I not only scrubbed, I replaced the shelf paper.
It's sparkling new!
I won't be embarrassed when someone wants to throw something in the garbage under my sink now!
"Go ahead, it's under the sink" I'll say with a wave of my hand,
Instead of "Here, let me throw that away for you" as I barely open the cupboard to hide it's filth and toss it blindly into the trash.
Which could be why it got even dirtier under there...
The miss factor.
When you don't want to see, you miss your target and dirt gets flung all over!

Which made me think...
Of times I've tried to hide things from God...
Secret sin that I try to cover up, usually making a bigger mess of things...
Which is silly...
God sees everything.
It's a lot of work to clean...first to admit it's time to tackle it,
And then to do the painstaking work of making things shine again...
To clean a house is one thing but to clean up my life, my attitudes, my thoughts, my actions...
Especially the corners of my heart.
That's hard work.
But so worthwhile...
It feels good to set things straight and shiny.
And the rewards are everlasting.
I pray that I will not let my life get as dirty as my blinds...!

1 John 1:6-7
If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.

Saying "I do" again...

My sister and her husband renewed their vows today.
They ran off to Hawaii and got married 15 years ago.
She regretted not having a traditional wedding ceremony.
The whole she-bang.
All the bells and whistles.
The dress, the cake, the walk down the aisle, the gathering of friends and family...
So today they did it.
The whole she-bang.
The dress, the cake, the walk down the aisle, the gathering of family and friends...
Except something occurs to me.
This is really special.
Instead of being starry-eyed, youngsters in love,
They know what to expect.
They know what sickness and health means...they've been sick and healthy.
They know what richer and poorer means...been there, done that too.
They know what for better or worse is...in 15 years, there's plenty of worse...and plenty of better.
Fifteen years ago, they took those vows all starry-eyed and ignorant.
Like we all do.
But now they've repeated them knowing full well what each word means.
They know the gravity of the promise...
What the cost will be...
And they did it.
Again.
In front of God and all these witnesses...
And they pulled that knot tighter.
And we watched and celebrated as if it were the first time!

Happy New Year!

The first day of school has always felt more like a new year than the new year!
Even though my kids are all grown and gone,
Seeing the busses...or...
Being stuck behind the busses...
Is a reminder that the new school year is starting...
A fresh year!
My heart jumps a little and I get excited...

A new thing is happening this new year...
I'm starting a new writing group with my new friend Marialyce...
So much newness!
And although we haven't yet had our first meeting,
The response has been really good!
Apparently there are many women out there with stories to share.
Women who want to get the stories out of their heads and onto paper!
Who knew?
I had an inkling...
I was one of them once...
Lots of stories and no encouragement.
Lots of dreams and no inspiration.
Then an invitation to a writing group and the floodgates opened.
Stories spilled out.
The deluge hasn't let up!
It turns out, when you turn the faucet of creativity on,
It doesn't run out, it actually multiplies on itself...over and over...
Inspiration overload...
Until the only thing to do is share it with others.
I can't wait to get started!

Shadows and Sunbeams...

I took a bit of a break from running this summer.
LOTS of stuff happened...
It was a busy one.
I've been fitting runs back into my mornings lately.
It hasn't been easy to "start over".
And really, I haven't had to start over.
Breathing is easy...
My legs get very tired though.
And then there's the aches and pains afterward.
Buck up, Heather!

So the other day, I was running on the trail...
It was 7am on a sunny Saturday and no one was up...
I was all alone...me and my iPod...some bunnies...
and Needtobreathe.
I kept pushing replay.
Multiplied...Washed by the Water...Lay 'em Down...Difference Maker...etc.
I appreciated that they had been shuffled together.
It doesn't always turn out that way.
Bunnies darted out from the hedge of fern, salal and Queen Anne's Lace...
They would run with me for a while and dart back into the brush.
They distracted me from how tired I was getting.
I'd only run about a mile or so.
I didn't want to quit but I really, really did want to quit.
I saw a patch of sun ahead.
I'd run to the sunbeam.
The shadow seemed to stretch as my eyes locked on the patch of light.
Keep on going, keep on going..
Needtobreathe serenaded me...
"Your love is like radiant diamonds
Bursting inside us, we cannot contain
Your love will surely come find us
Like blazing wild fires singing your name"
The sunbeam came and went and I hadn't collapsed in a heap, so set my sights on the next sunbeam.
But... I had to go through the shadows first.
The shadows always seem to stretch...
But the sunbeam finally came and I looked ahead to see how far the next one was.
It was do-able.
So I kept going.
"God of mercy, sweet love of mine
I have surrendered to Your design
May this offering stretch across the skies
And these Hallelujahs be multiplied"

It occurred to me as I ran from sunbeam to sunbeam,
That life is like that.
Shadows and sunbeams.
Sometimes the shadows stretch, but we know that if there are shadows, there's a sunbeam ahead.
And sometimes the sunbeam is wide and long...
Warm and bright...
We soak up the light and then another shadow.
God is faithful in the shadows and the sunbeams.
And I'm so thankful that He runs with me...
On the trail...
And off.

Psalm 36:5
Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds.

More Heart...Less Attack

My daughter and I went to a NeedtoBreathe concert on Saturday night...the lighting was weird and we look very pink in the photo...it's sort of cool I think!

oh my holy freakin' goodness that was a good concert!
We sat in the balcony.
That proved to be an excellent choice.
The main floor was wall to wall people...
standing room only...
hot, sweaty, high-heeled, phone raising, screaming people...
I'm too old for that kind of togetherness.
Mostly, I was worried I'd get stepped on.
I have big feet so it happens easily in less crowded situations...
imagine the odds in that sort of scenario!
So the show starts...
it rocked...HARD!
I had perma-smile...
My hands hurt from all the clapping...
I sang...loud...and not well...
but it didn't matter because the music was louder.
I danced in my seat...
No one in the balcony was standing...
A blessing and a curse...
There are only so many moves you can do while sitting before you start bothering your neighbor.
We danced every one of those moves.
They played my favorite songs...my very favorite ones...
I almost teared up when they played "Keep your eyes open"...
I learned to run by pushing repeat on my iPod when I felt like quitting...
I've heard that song one million times...
It was heaven to see it played live.
They played for nearly two hours and when they came back for a second encore,
They played "More Heart, Less Attack".
It was quiet and beautiful and convicting...
Here are the words...

Be the light in the crack
Be the one that's been there on the camel's back
Slow to anger, quick to laugh
Be more heart and less attack

Be the wheels not the track
Be the wanderer that's coming back
Leave the past right where it's at
Be more heart and less attack

The more you take the less you have
Cuz it's you in the mirror staring back
Quick to let go, slow to react
Be more heart and less attack

Ever growing steadfast
And if need be the one that's in the gap
Be the never turning back
Twice the heart any man could have

Be the wheels not the track
Be the wanderer that's coming back
Leave the past right where it's at
Be more heart and less attack
Be more heart and less attack
Be more heart and less attack

There's a little more to the song, but that's the gist of it...

The "Amen's" could be heard ringing out from every corner of the venue.

It was a good reminder...

Love must be seasoned with grace...
lots and lots and lots of grace...
God's so perfect at that...
us, not so much.
I'm going to work on that...

Proverbs 16:24
Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body.

I'm In Print!!!

Do you see that?

That's MY name on that page!

Pardon me while I giggle....

It's the first time this has happened...yes, yes, my art was published in a magazine once but THIS, this means more to me than the cover of an art magazine...this is my HEART on a page!  

I'm thrilled.

Here's what the cover looks like...

It's a book of devotionals for the first year of college...

Here's what I wrote:

Sweet Selfishness

Proverbs 3:5-6 (ESV)

Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.  In all your ways acknowledge him,
and he will make straight your paths.

          “Beware of the three B’s!” we warned our kids before they left for college.  Have you heard of the three B’s?  Chances are, your parents already warned you about them. 

            Booze, Bills and Babes.  The three dream killers.           You’ve heard the lectures about booze and bills.  In a nutshell, don’t drink, and live within your means, but what about those babes?

             Your parents taught you to get along with others, to share, to be helpful, kind and unselfish.  Now you’re living away from home, working toward your goals.  You may not know what your ultimate destination will look like, but you are moving in a forward direction toward success.  You live among friends and perhaps you’ve even met someone special, a “babe”, someone you hope you can build a future with.  You generously and unselfishly give them your time and attention.

            May I suggest that there is a sweet sort of selfishness that is pleasing to God? 

            Stay focused on the plan that’s been set before you, even if you aren’t yet sure of the final destination.  Distractions will come.  Friends and “babes” will try to redirect you.  They’ll entice you with loving promises or dreams they’ve planned for themselves, won’t you join them?  Too often, we decide that God must have sent these people to direct us away from our path, to a better one. Often, though, it’s a detour.  A long, bumpy road around a large messy construction zone that leads right back to the original path.   Much later, you merge onto the same road again, alone, and a little ragged and dusty.

            The college years are a time for sweet selfishness.  This type of selfishness focuses on God and you together, and His plan for your life.  Maybe God’s plan includes another person and a fusion of your dreams.  Stay in close fellowship with the Lord so you will have discernment when distraction comes.  If you are aligned with God’s plan, you will avoid unnecessary detours!


Just an additional little thing....I'm so thankful....truly grateful to God for this affirmation of my huge change of direction...away from a successful artsy fartsy art business and toward the art of writing...  I have no regrets and look forward to where this new road may lead...  

Solo Fellowship...

Solo fellowship?  An oxymoron?

I love solo runs.  By myself.  Alone.  Me and my iPod.

I drive to the trail...stretch...turn on my iPod and go.  I listen Christian music mostly...the good stuff...Needtobreathe, Rend Collective, Tobymac...

As I run, my mind is caught up in the music...the words...the beat (Needtobreathe makes music that goes perfectly with my stride.)
It's not long before a lyric brings to mind something I'm thankful for...
Then something to pray about...
I come to a hill and I struggle...
I focus on the music...
It's so strange, it seems that every time I get to the hills, the music is PERFECTLY timed for that particular challenge.

As my run continues, I realize that I'm not alone at all.
I've been chatting with God the entire time.
Worshiping Him in the sunshine...or rain...
Enjoying His creation...
The sweet scent of the grass and trees...
The occasional bunny crossing my path...
The fresh air filling my lungs...

When I get to the last hill, the one that kicks my butt every time, I thank Him for giving me the strength, the legs, the ability at my age, to run up that hill...
Running isn't easy.
It's not always fun.
But...
It's a place that I meet God...
It makes me feel strong...stronger...
physically...
and spiritually...

I love the fellowship of running with friends....
but a solo run...solo fellowship...is sacred.

A Very Good Friday...

I'm reading Prayer - Does it Make Any Difference? by Phillip Yancy...one of my favorite authors.  (It's SO good!)

Last night, I read a timely bit about Jesus' prayers.  The prayer he prayed for wisdom in choosing his 12 disciples and His prayers for the two disciples, Peter and Judas, who would deny and betray him.  At first glance, it would seem that God did not answer those prayers...after all, Jesus was crucified...had those two done right by Him, perhaps His life would have been spared...or does God work differently than we would think?

God used those two men to accomplish salvation for you and me.  God's "freedom-respecting" style of goodness and grace, allowed those two men to exercise their free will to do as their hearts would lead.  He gives you and I the same freedom.  That is why we need His grace.

In the book, Mr. Yancy describes the "freedom-respecting style of good and the freedom-crushing style of evil".  He examines Mark 9, where "a young boy was foaming at the mouth, gnashing his teeth and throwing himself into fire and water.  In every way, evil possession transforms the boy into a caricature of a human being, forcibly overwhelming human freedom.  Contrast that scene with possession by the Holy Spirit.  Paul warns, "Quench not the Spirit and grieve not the holy Spirit of God"  The Lord of the universe becomes so small, so freedom-respecting as to put himself somehow at our mercy."

Wow.

As I ponder Good Friday...the day we recognize as the day Jesus, God taking the form of a man, died on a cross - the most degrading form of death at the time - to pay the price of the sin of every man, past, present and future...I think of this freedom-respecting style of God.

He doesn't die for us and then get in our face and say "LOOK WHAT I DID FOR YOU!  OBEY ME!!"

No.

He loves us and waits for us.

The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance. - 2 Peter 3:9 

What is His promise?  His promise is eternal life for all who accept His gift of grace...freedom from death...and the promise of eternity with Him.  

"not wishing that ANY should perish"...not one.  no matter what they've done.  no matter who they are.  no matter who they love.  no matter where they've been...or how long it's taken them to see...to accept...to repent...because all have sinned...and all need a Savior.  

I'm so thankful that God respects my freedom to choose...to believe or not to believe...

I'm so humbled that God, the God of the Universe, loved me...and you...little us...so much that He would die in our place so that we may live...

What a Good Friday!

Dumb Chicken!

This is Pearl.
She's my dumbest hen.
I've learned a lot about chickens in my time as a chicken lady...
They're chicken...as in scared...not species.
They aren't terribly smart.
They are generally followers, except for the hen at the top of the pecking order.
They're fast.
They're twitchy.
They squawk a lot.
They can destroy a patch of lawn in no time flat!
And other various things, the most important being that they are hilarious!
Pearl is a special kind of dumb.
She is near the bottom, if not ON the bottom of the pecking order.
She is a poor follower.
She is chicken...the most chicken hen I have.
I enter the pen and she starts running to get away from me,
sometimes running TOWARDS me, realizing her mistake and changing directions abruptly, squawking a warning of my aggression to her coop-mates...all of whom understand that I will be throwing them scratch and flock around my feet in anticipation...
Pearl is always on the edge of the crowd...missing the bulk of the treats.
I sometimes throw some out to her...
She runs away, frightened.
Dumb hen.
Lately, I've been letting the ladies out of the pen to feast on bugs, worms, green leafys and other goodies.  They generally stick close to the house and close together.
Even Pearl knows the drill.
Until it's time to go back into the pen.
After a few hours of scratching and nibbling and bathing in soft, dry dirt, the ladies are ready for a handful of scratch and the comforts of home.
I grab a handful of grain and call them back into the pen...
They come running...
Into the coop they go where I've thrown a handful or two of their favorite treat!
All, that is, except for Pearl.
She ALWAYS get's "stuck" outside the fence.
She runs back and forth, back and forth, back and forth...
"Where's the door...I can't find the door!" she squawks
She's in full panic mode...
Running, running, running...
back and forth...back and forth...
I say "Oh my gosh, you're so dumb!"
And I sigh and grab a little handful of scratch to give her a trail to the door...
It doesn't work.
She's too dumb to figure it out.
"It's over here!" I say
I move away from the door to give her room to come in without feeling threatened by my presence...
Nope.
She continues to panic.
She's sure the door is on that side of the pen...but WHERE did it go??
I usually give up after about 5 minutes of coaxing...By then the other ladies have eaten most of the scratch.
I go into the house and let her panic alone...the other hens watch her, I imagine what they must be thinking...it's no wonder she's on the bottom of the pecking order!
After she paces on the outside for about 15 minutes, she is calmer, perhaps able to think clearly (if that's even possible for her to do) and I go back out, into the pen again, grab some more scratch and THEN she figures it out.
It's a dance we do every single time they are allowed out of the coop...
every. single. time.
And I wonder...
Am I like Pearl?
When God wants to give me something, do I rely on my own ideas or thoughts or wisdom to find it?
Am I listening when He opens a door and says "Go right in and feast?"
Do I say "NO, you don't understand!  The door is on this side of the situation...THIS is the right way!"
The door to my coop is around a corner from where Pearl runs back and forth...
It takes a good amount of trust for a chicken hen to go around a corner...especially if the hen is as chicken as Pearl.
It takes a good amount of trust for me to step out of my own knowledge of what the situation is...to trust God's plan for my life.
I have to believe that He knows more...seems like a "duh" moment...it should be a "duh" moment, but I always seem to question and hesitate or turn the other way...I can't see the door.  I can't see that it's open.
I rely on myself, rejecting God's wisdom.
I don't want to be a Pearl...I want to go through doors the second they're opened...to reap the bounty of God's goodness...to step out in faith and not be so "chicken".
Thankfully God doesn't stand by the door saying "OH my gosh, you're so dumb!"...He lovingly waits...patiently...for me to stop being so....Pearl-like!
I'm working on it...God is good...the opportunities to grow in faith are endless and daily and I pray that someday I won't relate to creatures like Pearl!  :)
Isaiah 55:8-9  For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

The Importance of Faith...

Our state experienced a catastrophic landslide this week.
The numbers of dead and missing fluctuate from day to day.
I'm reminded how precious life is...how precious people are...how life can be snuffed out so quickly.
The images of the devastation are everywhere...the sorrow-filled faces of family members, friends, neighbors...tragedies like this one tend to bring people together...to ignite us deep inside to the compassion and love and tenderness that is always there...stuffed down in the mundane of our day to day activities.
I watched the local news this morning.
The anchors spoke to a pastor because they said:
"Faith is important at a time like this."
At a time like this.
Faith is important at a time like this.

And then I wondered...

If we're in the midst of the pinnacle of happiness...does faith lose importance?

What if you were in the midst of the pinnacle of happiness...giving a new baby a bath, talking to an old friend on the phone, enjoying a latte...and the mud came down and ended it right there.

When is faith important?

We run to God when life gets too difficult for our spirits to bear alone.
When we receive a frightening diagnosis.
When we lose a loved one.
When we need a job
When the phone rings in the middle of the night.
When we feel all alone.

But what if we lived our lives in close fellowship with God
every... single... day...
and the difficulties came?
They're inevitable.
Life is not easy.
Death is sure.

To be close with God is not all about following a set of rules...
It is a relationship...
it is peace in the swirling chaos...
power in the face of fear...
love in the presence of hate...
and
joy in the midst of sorrow.

It is life eternal when death descends...

Jeremiah 17:7-8

Blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD And whose trust is the LORD. For he will be like a tree planted by the water, That extends its roots by a stream And will not fear when the heat comes; But its leaves will be green, And it will not be anxious in a year of drought Nor cease to yield fruit.

Texting and Trusting...

I have this daughter that goes to foreign lands to serve the Lord...and she has a mother that trusts God BUT wants to know details so she can be SURE everything is in order...that God's got all His ducks in a row...wait...that is a bit contradictory...

Here's how it went down...

I received a text message at 3am this morning...as my daughter boarded a plane in Miami, bound for Haiti...

Love you mom!!!  Talk to you in two weeks :-):-):-)

The text message chime woke me up...I read it and my heart started beating a little bit harder.

I texted her back.

Love you too!  Praying for the team and everyone you'll meet!  Have a save trip!

Love, Love, Love!

I prayed for her...I prayed for the team and for the people she would be meeting and for the children she'd fall in love with...thanking the Lord for the opportunity He'd given to her, I laid back down...closed my eyes...and...

Did she take her malaria meds?  She should have started taking them already.  She never mentioned them to me.  We went over everything she packed and she never mentioned the medicines the travel clinic gave her.  She must have.  Surely the team talked about that in their meetings.  What if she forgot them?  What if she doesn't have the medicine and she GETS malaria?  What if I get a call saying that she's deathly ill in a hospital in Haiti?  What if?  She MUST have taken it....it's probably in her backpack.  

I prayed, asking God to protect her from malaria.

Amid my swirling worry, she texted:

Love Love Love

Oh good, she's still got her phone on!  I should ask.  No, that would be silly.  What if she DID forget it and now she's going to worry too!  But I could trust God and not ask and just trust that He'll protect her.....hmmmm.....

:)

I shouldn't ask...that would be very faithless of me....but...

You're taking your malaria meds right?

Just checking!! (when you put 'just' in front of a word, it minimizes the next word...just sayin'...just checking...."I know you did, I'm just saying it out loud, I don't really need to ask...just checking.")

Love you!  Wrap it up with a little love and she'll never know I was worrying...it's hidden...she'll never know I've been stewing for the last 10 minutes...

Yes in a minute. :-)

love you don't worry

I'm in God's hands :-) 

:-)

Tears sprang to my eyes.

I won't worry!!!!  I know you are!

Schooled by my own daughter.

If I can't rest in the knowledge that she's in God's hands, I will not know rest.

God has called her to be His hands and feet.

To step in as His ambassador.

If He called her to do His work, He's not going to leave to her helpless.  

I know that in my head.

That truth sometimes gets stuck in worry on its way to my heart.

Today I'm thankful that God is with Emily and all of the people around the world sharing the Gospel with every nation.  

They're in His hands.

In His very trustworthy hands.

Philippians 4:19

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

Trustworthy...

I've been praying a lot lately...
There's so much going on.
The world is hurting...
my loved ones struggle...
my kids are far away...
we are in transition...
excitement is afoot...
And just when I feel like my prayers are going up and turning to vapor...
disappearing...
falling on deaf ears...
God sends a message.
LOUD AND CLEAR
I've got this.
I heard you.
I hear you.
I love you.
Trust me.

OK...I will...and...Thank you!

Psalm 138:8
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;  your steadfast love, O Lord, endures forever.
Do not forsake the work of your hands.

Running and Rain...

Yesterday was an odd day.
It started out rainy.
Stormy.
By mid-morning it was cloudy but dry.
I met my friend (my running partner) for coffee...
We had cancelled our run that morning because of the storm.
It was almost sunny out.
"Let's run later!"  We said.
"YES!"   We agreed
We enjoyed a mostly sunny day.
But...
When the appointed time arrived, the skies darkened.
We got out of our cars and looked at each other.
"It's now or never." we declared.
And we stretched as the sky opened up
with a downpour that exceeded my shower that morning.
And much colder.
We took off running.
It was very difficult.
The wind pushed us from the side.
Then from the front.
The rain drenched us completely.
I entertained the thought of suggesting we turn back.
But I didn't want to quit.
I certainly didn't want to be the one to suggest it.
I secretly hoped she'd suggest it.
She didn't.
As I heated up, the rain felt good on my face,
not so good in my eyes.
Mixing with sweat, it burned.
I struggled to breathe, sucking in drops of sweat-laced rain with each breath.
Perhaps we were running faster than usual.
We certainly wanted this run to end.
And it finally did.
And we felt proud.
Hardcore.
Cold.
Wet.
Miserable.
But we did it...we did the hard thing.
The good thing.
Turns out, she had wanted to quit too.
Neither of us wanted to be the weak one.
And it made us both stronger.

Proverbs 27:17
As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.

The Value of Mud

She stood on the path, blocking our way.  We approached her slowly.  She stepped to the side.  She was pretty, but she wasn’t as energetic as others that wandered nearby.  I took note of her belly…swollen.  She must be pregnant I thought.  She blew air out of her nose lazily, making a long puffing sound. Her head was down.  She wasn’t bothered by our presence, but her eyes watched.

            “She’s pretty”, I said.

            “She looks old and tired”, my husband added

            “She’s PREGNANT” I rushed to her defense…she was too tired to speak up for herself…to winny at him in protest…to rear up on her hind legs and show him her real strength.

            “Let’s go”, he said, taking my hand…let’s find some shark’s teeth!”

            We headed down the path to the small beach the ranger had said held the treasure we sought.  We already had a bag full of beautiful shells we’d found on the beach but there were sharks teeth on the other side of the island and we wanted to find a few to add to our collection.

            We arrived at the beach to feel the earth giving slightly under our steps. 

            “It’s muddy” we echoed each other

            We could see the beach just a few yards away but the mud – which was invisible under a layer of sand and grass – was like quicksand.  We kept trying, walking up and down the area surrounding the beach.  We discovered that if we walked very quickly, the ground wouldn’t have time to give.  We scampered over the grassy, muddy, sandy stretch to the beach.  Our shoes were covered in dark gray mud.  We wandered onto the sand until…it started to give way.  I quickly jumped to some more solid-looking sand…it was sinking sand too!  My shoe was sucked under and I struggled to pull it out as my other foot sank.  My husband was sinking too and he quickly ran to the safety of the land beyond the beach. 

            “If you go fast, you won’t sink!  Hurry!” he called to me.

            “ACK!  I’m sinking!”  I yelled

            “Run over this way” he called.

            “I’m coming” I replied as I stretched my legs as far as they would go, leaping from where I was to more solid ground.

            Our shoes were muddy and so were our pants.  We were a mess! 

            As we walked the path back to the dock, we noticed the horse again…this time she was lying down.  She looked up at us as we got closer but she didn’t get up.  Why was she just laying there?  I worried.  Was she okay? She didn’t seem THAT close to delivering.  As we got closer, she finally, very slowly, and with great effort, rose to her feet.  It was then that I noticed her legs.  They were muddy all the way up to her swollen belly.  She had been stuck in the mud too! 

            “OH look at her legs!” I said   She looked at me.  I could see the exhaustion in her eyes.  How awful that must have been…pregnant, heavy, struggling to get free from the sinking sand.  She must have been frantic.  No wonder she looked so old and tired.  She’d spent every ounce of her energy!  I talked to her, telling her we’d been stuck too and how scary it must have been for her.  She was muddy, very muddy, but I hadn’t noticed.  It wasn’t until I’d wrestled with the mud myself that I was able to see evidence of her struggle.

            I thought about that on the walk back to the dock.  How often do I ask God to show me how to serve others and in the same prayer, ask him to keep me from discomfort and struggle.  Trials can be the answer to the first part of that prayer.  Trials are not wasted.  They are often the tie that connects us to someone else.  Enduring a struggle can help us see a brother or sister in the midst of one, or the ability to tell them where the mud is…to warn them against the danger.  A shared trial can be a comfort to someone who feels utterly alone.   

            Perhaps when we pray for opportunity to connect with others, we could also pray for grace to withstand the inevitable mud we wander into every day...to be thankful for the trials that grow our faith and draw us nearer to God…for eyes to see the value of mud and empathy to care for those who are stuck.

James 1:2-4

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness.  And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

Cumberland Island is a barrier island on the Florida/Georgia border.  http://www.nps.gov/cuis/index.htm