A Blessing for One Who is Exhausted - Slow Time Sabbath

"Then Jesus said to them, "The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath."  (Mark 2:27 NLT)

A Blessing for One Who is Exhausted
 John O’Donohue

Take refuge in your senses,

open up 
to all the small miracles you rushed through.

Become inclined to watch the way of rain

when it falls slow and free.

Imitate the habit of twilight,

Taking time to open the well of colour

That fostered the brightness of day.

Draw alongside the silence of stone

until its calmness can claim you.

Be excessively gentle with yourself. 

Stay clear of those vexed in spirit.

Learn to linger around someone of ease

who feels they have all the time in the world.

Gradually you will return to yourself,

having learned a new respect for your heart

and the joy that dwells far within slow time.

How to Walk Out of Self-Sufficiency {It's Easier Than You Might Think...}

Faith is hard to come by some days. 

This former perfectionist still drifts towards self-sufficiency.  The spiritual disciplines can become the end instead of the vehicle to journey into His Presence. 

My stressed out body lets me know that I have wandered, and now I recognize that my mental state of “being out of sorts” has little to do with the pressures of the world or the schemes of the enemy, but rather it is because of my heart, still prone to wander…

I need to change my perspective…like Job.   

My life hasn’t been reduced like his.  That is perspective right there!  

I have been in Job lately, reading chronologically with my sweet teen through the Bible.  Job was asking “why God…” when all of a sudden, God comes in {after 37 long chapters of man’s wisdom, mind you} and “spoke to Job out of the storm.”

Wow! 

Selah…{pause and think about that!}.

God has a few questions for Job, like: 

 “Who is this that obscures my plans
    with words without knowledge?
  Brace yourself like a man;
    I will question you,
    and you shall answer me.

 “Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
    Tell me, if you understand.
  Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!
    Who stretched a measuring line across it?
...

What is the way to the abode of light?
    And where does darkness reside?
  Can you take them to their places?
    Do you know the paths to their dwellings?
Surely you know, for you were already born! 
 You have lived so many years!

…

God continues speaking of all sorts of wonders, each one illustrating that He is the one in total control - the creation and the continuing rhythm of life…all are sustained by God’s hand.  We can only comprehend a fraction of the entire picture of our lives and all of life on earth; then the heavens are even beyond this. When we look at just the simple processes that we observe everyday, we can begin to move to looking at our lives from God's point of view, instead of our limited earth-bound vision.

Whenever we question “why, God”, we show that we believe we are the ones in control.   

There it is again - my self-sufficiency rearing up in my being…a grandiose heart blind to its short sightedness!  Such is the nature of the flesh!

Notice the bolded and italicized verse, Job 38:2, and these particular words: “that obscures my plans with words without knowledge”.   God is saying that we actually hide our ability to perceive His plans for us when we enter into that domain ruled by our own fruitless words and thinking! 

So, when faith seems far away and I have drifted into controlling my life apart from Him again... 

a walk outside grounds me. 

I can see the heavens, grass, trees, rocks and insects. 

I hear birds and crickets.   

Depending on my direction, I can walk beside a pond or come up to a vegetable garden.  

A spent dandelion head reminds me of the charm of making a wish.   

A hopeful kitten checks for a treat in my hand.  

It is fall, so masses of color are everywhere.  

Leaves let go of their anchor and pirouette to the ground.   

Dried abundance crunches underfoot.   

The air smells pungent and warm.   

I am in the midst of everything God has designed…

                  and my perspective is lifted from hidden “whys” to the true questions…

“How should I respond to this?”

and

“What do You want me to learn from this?”

Bringing in the Early Harvest...{Finding Sanctuary, Part 26}

A reminder that the harvest can be full of beautiful variety...

It is no coincidence - I am learning - of this counting of 40 Days of Preparation leading towards Passover + 50 days of counting, leading to the day of Pentecost (which marks the early harvest). These have been days of identifying and  releasing an old habit(s) that resulted in heart turbulence and of developing and strengthening a new one(s) that would keep our hearts in peace, regardless of life pressures, emotional triggers and other life circumstances...



The origins of Pentecost connect with the harvest cycles of the Promised Land, of the early wheat harvest being brought in and thanksgiving being made for the harvest...the wheat came to maturity 50 days after the barley crop (at First Fruits).  But the very FIRST Pentecost, just as the FIRST Passover, is intimately related to the Israelites' release from bondage in Egypt...50 days is the length of time it took for Israel to travel from Egypt to Mount Sinai:

from a land where they served harsh taskmasters 

to the place where God lovingly claimed them as His own people; 

from a place of crisis to a place of covenant; 

from work to worship;

from slavery to sanctuary;

 

Their journey wasn't totally clear to them, the old ways of Egypt sometimes looked more attractive than the new life of freedom...it took effort to leave the old and figure out the new...the journey was filled with challenges and risks, new enemies and new problems...they needed new sources of sustenance - to satisfy their thirst and their hunger, they were pursuing freedom and the promise of a resting place...

a sanctuary...

 And like the Israelites, we now have walked our own 50 day journey: through new challenges and tests till we find that place of renewed covenant, the place of worship filled wonder,  a place of rest for our weary souls...leaving behind old bondages and walking into freedom....our hearts finding more and more room for His Presence as old habits unravel...

finding new sources, better sources, of satisfying soul thirst and spirit hunger - being filled afresh with His Holy Spirit...

and we experience our own personal Pentecost again and again...

Other posts in the Finding Sanctuary Series here:

When you need help after your heart has been stoned...{Finding Sanctuary - Part 25}

I know it has been quite a few days since I last posted in the "Finding Sanctuary" series...



I just wasn't prepared for the next test I was given,  my heart struggled to remain at peace; abiding at the altar of the Lord, in the midst of this storm.


I was reminded of the old nursery rhyme "sticks and stones can break my bones, but words will never harm me..."





The image in my mind during this storm was of a heart, and small stones - representing the words being slung around - slamming against the heart...


The nursery rhyme isn't the truth...


When I saw this image of hands cupping rocks, it struck me of how we cup in our hands the things we hold dear - and if we hold our own opinions, our own perception of truth, unfiltered through the lens of how Jesus sees - as more valuable than another's heart...then these unfiltered opinions and perceptions cause our words and actions to become like these stones...

a look in our eyes,

the tone of our voice,

the words we choose...

are they stones?
Or
are they life?

Image source

When a stone hits your heart (and the heart of someone you love)...what will come out of the brokenness?

The words to the left say "Follow your heart, but be quiet for a while first..." -
me - in other words, find your place of Sanctuary...

Scripture prayers to stabilize the mind...

"Set a guard over my mouth, LORD; keep watch over the door of my lips." Psalm 141:3

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things." Philippians 4:8

"He says, "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth." Psalm 46:10

me - the last part of Psalm 46:10 so ministered to me...as if He was proclaiming His sovereignty - over the situation, over my feelings, over offenses...and promising that by His design He would receive much glory...

I am beginning to see when we have found sanctuary in the Shelter of the Lord - we can "become a sanctuary" for someone else...a safe place to make mistakes, a shelter in their storm, a place of calm, even if their turbulence is directed at and swirling around us...because my sanctuary doesn't depend on circumstances, but on the Lord's Participating Presence in each moment of my life...

If you would like to answer this question with some sort of creativity, you can download a sketch of cupped hands here... 

Draw or collage what you WANT to have in your hands...share in the comments below if you want!




Related posts from others 

My friend, Jodene Shaw wrote about a similar thing this very week...

And please check out Ann Voskamp's post from May 8, 2013 here

All the Finding Sanctuary posts at the button below

Receiving the New in Place of the Old...{Finding Sanctuary - Part 24}

Sweet Tweener and I went on a sewing retreat at a lakeside campground last fall...*sigh*...one evening the light and lake were perfect for photographs.

Rest and peace and quietness are the first words I think of when my mind turns to "Sanctuary".  Shelter is a swift fourth!  So it is natural for me to look across still waters and think of being in the Lord's Presence -

of sensing - 

the magnitude

the stability

the infinite embrace

that is Him...

Walking to the end of this dock, surrounded by the calm evening waters - I turned back to see the "bridge" that had ushered me out to this place, and that held me safe and sheltered in the immense expanse of it all...

This bridge, this dock, leading out into the largeness of God, is what we are doing with building the new habits in "Finding Sanctuary".  Once found, we need to be in it, in the midst of it.  We need - sometimes - to build this bridge out - ourselves, yet in partnership with Him...He desires that our character be formed and strengthened for it holds a promise for the life to come.

This past week, once again, another opportunity to see the quality of the new habit, this resting place at His altar - where sanctuary is experienced, lived, purified in the forge of testing...

I had to process some deep, long-lived anger - the kind that has flesh and righteous indignation all tangled together in a knotted mess...and I had/was able to share what was at the root of it all with the person who was the source of the wounds for many years now, and the resulting damaged trust and near loss of all hope of ever having the sort of relationship that family members should have...and again, I can tell there has been progress - I know that I am through all the pain that this person has caused in the past.  I know this because I actually have new thoughts in the same place where the pain was.  It is like a miracle that I had no part in...except to be responsible to process my emotion till the issue was resolved within myself...it was only then that the peace and love of the Holy Spirit could flow into that place of my heart!  And He did!  I am liberated from the bondage of that old anger!  I am eager to converse with this person once again; I desire to be in relationship...so different from where my heart has been in regards to this person.  Of course, trust has to be earned back, and in reality, what will happen from here on out is that a new relationship will develop with the same person - but not based on the past and fears of being hurt again (tho' the possibility will always be there because we are imperfect humans, after all!).   {psst - just so you know, this is NOT about my husband!!!}

This is the place where many in the Christian realm will say "Oh, you finally forgave him/her." 

No, forgiveness happened a long time ago...an act of obedience; an act of my will.

Forgiveness may influence my emotions, and my emotions may influence my desire to forgive; but processing wounds and emotional pain is a separate issue from forgiveness.  Don't allow confused Christians to tell you otherwise!  Jesus forgave all of mankind on that cross, yet He cannot be in relationship with a person unless reconciliation has occurred -  

So, how is your counting going?  What have your ups and downs been like during this long stretch?

You might enjoy reading more about building good habits here:  The Second Key to Good Habits: Motivation.

Find all the "Finding Sanctuary" posts here: 

We Need Times of...Refreshing...{Finding Sanctuary - Part 23}

When we need times of rest; of refreshing - sometimes we feel so guilty...living in this world of hurry and "super mom" or "super wife" or "super Christian" or "super (fill in the blank)".  These are the times we especially need to "build our nest at the altar"...

But sometimes rest is exactly what Jesus is calling us to -

Rest helps us develop those new habits we are in the midst of the "long haul" of implementing (according to scientific research) ...

Rest allows us to reflect...

• on what is working, and
• on what is not...

Do you know that rest - refreshing - and repentance ...are all related?  Take a quick tour through
Acts 3:19, Isaiah 30:15, Jeremiah 31:25 (times of refreshing because we have walked through the fire or have endured times of scorching.)  Oh, I would give you more, but it is always so much better when the Holy Spirit speaks to you!

The repentance connects to our new habit development in the sense that "repentance" carries the connotation of "turning around" - a turning from a direction that isn't beneficial/profitable to our eternal lives to a direction that is...a direction in which Jesus is walking right beside us in; a direction He has invited us into...

This past week I had the opportunity to experience another event that might have pushed me into flashes of anger a couple of months ago...it was very refreshing to find that I am able to respond from a place of strength and calm and peace - while being firm!  Sometimes God allows us to be tested to see where our hearts are...I am grateful to know there has been progress!

How about you?  Have you found some progress?

Find the related posts by clicking here:

The Season of Our Liberation...{Finding Sanctuary - Part 22}

Layers of winged potential...

I just found out that this season in the Jewish Calendar is called "The Season of Our Liberation"....
starting at the first of Nissan and continuing through the Feast of Pentecost...which in Jewish heritage marks the month of the Exodus from Egypt and extends to the point in time when God brought the children of Israel to receive the revelation of Him and His ways at Mount Sinai...and of course we know Pentecost was the day the Holy Spirit was poured out onto all flesh - the One who gives the revelation of God and His Word in our hearts...

Wow...
there is something about that phrase -
"the season of our liberation" -
that has really captured me! 

In the series of "Finding Sanctuary", the goal was to find roots of issues that might be robbing us of the peace that we are promised by the Holy Spirit - another way to say the same thing could be "to find liberation from habits that have enslaved us"...

And that the Feast of First Fruits (Resurrection Sunday) has another name "The Beginning of the Harvest"...

In First Fruits, a sheaf of barley, the first grain to ripen, was waved to signal the beginning of the 49 day countdown to the Feast of Pentecost...which is the time of the early wheat harvest...

So, I am thinking that the work we have already done is like that sheaf of ripened barley, and we can celebrate what we have already accomplished (i.e., wave it)...and the counting of the omer correlates with the time needed to create and fully develop a new habit - the "season of liberation" being a period of time that is virtually the same as research has shown is the optimal period for new habits...the time needed to go from slave mentality to a mentality of freedom...

The journey in the wilderness was a time of drawing close to God, of experiencing Him as the Providor, Protector, and Friend...a restoration of Garden fellowship in the midst of the desert, because anywhere, anytime, we are in God's Presence it is as if we are in the Garden again...

I pray this period of time is an experience of God's Presence in a way that is deeper, more tender and more personal than you have had before...

Consider counting this time, this creating of a new habit, by placing an object in a jar for each passing day - a stone, a bean, a paper heart (what was the item that represented the exchange for you?  Use that!)  A little celebration, one day closer to the harvest of liberation.  An exercise exercising the spirit man!

Find some time to read this article this week - a wonderful encouragement...

Other posts that might be related:

Cycles of Worship - Part 1
Making Lent Linger

The Exchange (more chalkboard art)...{Finding Sanctuary - Part 21}

Another free download, click here...

THE EXCHANGE OF CALVARY

 

The Cross of Christ is the inexhaustible exchange of Calvary.

All the evil that was due us was put               So that all the good due Jesus could be

was put on Jesus                                                given to us.

He was punished for our sins                          So that we could be forgiven.

He was wounded                                                 So that we could be healed.

He was made sin with our                                So that we could be made righteous

sinfulness                                                   

He died our death                                              So that we could have eternal life.

He became a curse for us                                  So that we could have the blessing that

                                                                               was due Him.

He became poor with our poverty                     So that we could be made rich

with His riches.

He endured our shame                                       So that we could receive His Glory.

He endured our rejection                                   So that we don't have to be rejected
                                                                                       anymore.  We are accepted the way
                                                                                       Jesus was accepted, as God's children. 

 ********************************************************************

The rest of this post is part of the Finding Sanctuary series - read on if you are following!

Today is the final (almost) installment of the Finding Sanctuary series...one final activity to "seal" the work you and the Holy Spirit have been doing!  But first, a short recap...

We have been traveling a road of dealing with issues, the stuff that makes life less abundant than God ever wanted for us...by now, you and myself have been walking a new path for a couple of weeks, there have been times when we have stumbled and fallen...but we have gotten back up...

To be honest, I haven't added more to my original weaving piece, but I will {and I will show it to you!}....you know how life sometimes gets in the way of the best laid plans...but, I needed to spend the energy on actually making the inner heart changes...{smiling} plus getting ready for our Passover/Resurrection celebrations and our church has started lay counselor training - of which I am a part of (of course)... and the tree with roots art piece will definitely come forth after Sunday's celebration - it dovetails perfectly in the course material at church!

But, the final activity has always been:  a touchpoint of some sort...

What do I mean?  To me, a touchpoint is something tangible, small, 

an act, 

an exchange, 

and a promise

that anchors this point in time to your life...

You can see the item, remember the act, lay hold of the promise...as long as you want!  And today is a perfect day - as we contemplate the cross of Jesus and all that was accomplished there.  And my touchpoints always involve taking an object that represents my issue to the cross and nailing it there {the act} - either figuratively or even sometimes literally, i.e., nailing a piece of paper on which is written the issue to a piece of wood.  But just as we never need to leave the cross empty in our hearts or empty handed, there is an exchange Jesus wants to do, so with this act, we want to "take something with us" after we have left the issue {the item} - something that reminds us of the exchange, something tangible...and then always. always. always. a promise from Scripture {the promise}...

Some ideas:

 The item representing the issue                      The item representing the exchange          The promise  

       a stone or small rock                                       a paper heart (a "new" heart)                      Any

                                                                                                                                                     scripture

       a twig - break it to represent the                     a silk leaf or a leaf that can be                   that

                   breaking of the power of                          preserved to represent                           the

                   the habit over you                                     "new life"                                                   Lord

                                                                                                                                                               or

     a piece of dark cloth - representing                  a piece of white cloth -                                   a

                the sin brought by this issue                       representing the righteousness              friend

                in your life                                                  of Jesus you are walking in                          has
                                                                                                                                                          given

   a piece of black construction paper -                  a silk flower, or flower that can           you

            to represent a wound or trauma                      be preserved that represents             that

            that was the root of this issue...                      your heart healing in this area          brings
                                                                                                                                                           hope

                                                                                                                                                             and

You can get the picture!                                                                                                                comfort

For me, today, making this chalkboard image is my touchpoint....the butteflies can mean our sin being removed; or new life emerging in all the areas that we have dealt with...or both!

Now, the Lord has also impressed on me that since it takes 60+ days to form a new habit, that we need to keep up the effort...and the timing is perfect to move from the "Feast of Firstfruits" on Sunday to "Feast of Weeks" on Pentecost!  So, I will post every Monday during these coming weeks - encouragement and thoughts to see you through...

Blessings on your Holy Weekend...

To see other posts in this series, click the button below 

What to do When You Fail in Making the New Habit...{Finding Sanctuary - Part 20}

Something I have been working one - titled "Metamorphosis"

I blew it this past week.

I blew it sometime on Friday, the increasing resistance to doing school last week {we homeschool} caused me to move from the place of calm maturity to that of the weight of her future success being totally on my shoulders at that moment, and it was too much to bear.

I wasn't yelling, I kept my outward composure, but I let sweet tweener know I wasn't happy about the situation...and she wasn't happy about the consequence...

While others may say that I hadn't blown it, I knew that I was not experiencing that place of peace and knowing that "He has it all under control"...I was shaking on the inside...I felt "out of control" and I was desperately trying to release that flash of anger in a healthy way.  And when I knew it had passed, I knocked on her bedroom door {where she was - working through her own emotions}...

I let sweet tweener know that I had "blown it", even tho' she had to continue with the consequence for her own wrong, because she knows God and I have been on this journey for Lent this year.  After talking with her, I heard the "got new message" tone on my phone, and it was so perfect!  Her youth department sends scripture occasionally, just to encourage - and that was the message...it was Romans 12:12 NIV:

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

It was like He gave us both a hug...

Then, when I checked emails for the final time that evening, this was in my inbox...someone else, brave enough to talk about their anger:

How to deal with (your own) anger - from Simple Homeschool

So...while my "Steps" didn't formally contain this final one, it does now...really, I take it for granted that He never lets me go, even in my worst moments - but if I am going to write down steps towards transformation, I cannot forget to document this most important one.  After all, it does go along with "embrace imperfection"...

Final Step:  Look for God's encouragement even when I fail....getting up and beginning again
                    because:

  "though the righteous fall seven times, they rise again...Proverbs 24:16"

  Find the other posts in this series by clicking the button below: 

 

Reflections in Blue...{Finding Sanctuary - Part 19}

I saw a tattoo similar to this and the art just captured me...I thought it would be the perfect ending to my blue feather series!

The final "reflection" from my mind map work...
Reflections from the Blue highlights of the mind-map:

• need a new plan (a new "go to")
• 1 John 4:4 again (yellow + blue connections)
• fear: a) fear of punishment; b) fear of unknown 

Embrace: Definition - clasp, cherish, encircle, enclose
                               a) to take up - especially readily or gladly
                               b) to avail oneself of, welcome
                               c) to take in or include as a part, item, or element of a more inclusive whole
                               d) hold close, encompass, enfold, include, clasp

Imperfection: Definition - a fault, blemish, or undesirable feature; incomplete...

I think this indicates I need to finish a developmental task -
I need to find the line:  discernment vs. fear
                                      fear of God vs. carnal fear (False Evidence Appearing Real)

To "embrace imperfection" means to encircle, clasp hold of, encompass...my blemishes; my incompleteness; my weakness...this is where I meet Jesus- no, rather He meets me - He completes me, covers my imperfections...

When I push away my "imperfections", I refuse my need for Him, and miss opportunities to invite Him into my messiness.  Those who still fear have not received mature love the scripture says...they are still living in an immature mindset - perhaps that is why there is such a feeling of immaturity inside?

Fear vs. discernment
trust vs. fear? - when my needs aren't met, I feel abandoned, less than, like somehow "It's my fault" - the ways a child thinks* - perhaps another reason for the immaturity of feelings?

I could think different thoughts... 

*this connected to a developmental model outlined by Erik Erickson - the Eight Stages of Life that describes tasks that are normally "mastered" throughout the lifespan.  I liked this when I read it during my graduate days as I thought it nicely correlated with the breakdown of the Jewish stages of life  (perhaps I will write about that more later, ??).  Also, there is a wonderful, Christian based book - tho' older - that I would recommend you read if you are interested in exploring this topic further..."Healing the Eight Stages of Life" by Matthew Linn, Sheila Fabricant, and Dennis Linn.

What was really amazing is when I connected to the child like thinking...it also connected to truth such as children are blameless, but not faultless...meaning that children don't do things perfectly - only with the level of understanding that they have and thus are blameless...
...and it also connected children's natural egocentricity, you know, how children tend to think that negative things in their lives are due to the fact that they have done something wrong that has caused that thing to happen...i.e., a six year old can believe that they are responsible for their parents' divorce...I know my family had some trying times during this stage of my development...and somehow it affected this area of my life...coupled with the unhealthy anger...wow.  For this particular issue, as soon as the connection was made, the issue disappeared!  And the Lord has been faithful to allow some situations to test me, so that I can "see" that the old has truly been done away with and the new has come - almost instantaneously (that is after the work of the mind map + years of experience, learning His ways, and graduate school!)...but I think you get the idea of how come it "feels" instantaneous...

Now there is still more "walking out" of other portions of the issue, but this one little thread has been taken care of - I am "free to fly..." 

Till tomorrow...

Other posts in this series can be found by clicking the button below...