I had Saturday and Sunday off from my convenience store/gas station/assistant manager job, so we went camping!
We got to hang out with some real cool folks. Drank some beer, ate some food, took the dog for swims, and sat around and had the best visit.
One of the things I enjoy about camping, is the pace. There isn't one! It takes you out of your home element and sticks you out in your yard element. Most of you know, I love being in the yard! What I really love is the way the conversation moves to include everyone. This also means that everyone will also get the opportunity to be picked on too.
The time fly's by and what feels like 1 hour, ends up being 4. This is making time for each other. It's hard to do, we're so busy with our jobs and our stuff, and out things, and our...
It's so important to make time to stop and reconnect with each other, with nature and with the stories of our life!
Who's story can you be apart of? What memories will you pass along to the people you share life with? How will you make God smile today?
I think I see the sun coming up this morning! It has been raining for day's and gotten cold enough that I have had to turn the heater back on! What's up with that anyway? Awww, spring!
Do you let other's steal your joy? Do you let yourself banish it from your life? I do, I like to blame whoever and whatever for upsetting my apple cart and then pout. As I have gotten older, this still happens, I just don't let that attitude set up camp and steal my joy like I use to.
Sounds easy enough, but in all reality, it's a fight...everyday!
What I have come to understand is it is MY joy. If I let someone steal it, it is mine to let go of. Think about it, when someone steals your joy, it's because we allow what they say to have a heavier, more important weight than what we are feeling or thinking.
Well, that's crap!
And that's where I am right now, tired of letting people steal my joy.
I have been called and equipped to do a job. Because I am a strong, bold, outspoken woman, who happens to be a smidgen loud, I am also known as a bitch. If I were a man, they would be singing my praises from here to kingdom come. However, this is not the case and I'm sure it's not the case with any strong women you know, they are all bitches! This use to steal my joy. I would get quieter, act all helpless, you know, become who I'm not.
No more! I am the beloved daughter of the one high King and He made me this way! So back off satan! It's my joy and today I think I'll hold on to it!
(PS. When I said I was called and equipped, it wasn't by man!)
The chain fell off Lilies bike, or something tragic like that, and she's having to ride the three wheeler till the bike get's fixed. I believe she was going for the rickshaw look here. She was holding the umbrella under her chin, trying to keep it over her head without falling off the bike. I suggested sticking it down the back of her pants. The handle wasn't long enough so the umbrella was sitting on her head. Needless to say, she kept on riding the bike and singing some song I couldn't make out.
Sometimes, that exactly what faith in action looks like. It can start off by a challenging mishap that throws you a little off your game. Lily just learned how to ride a bicycle this summer. Before that, she was on this three wheeled contraption. The girl can flat out ride that three wheeler! But as most of you know, the turning radius and freedom of movement is greater on a bicycle. Our mishap happened (chain fell off bike) and we kept on going, finding something else (three wheeler) to help us with our goal (riding and singing).
While our faith is in action and we are doing our thing, feeding the hungry, loving on children, helping out at the local shelter, another road block jumps up and try's to derail us. It starts to rain!
It is much easier to drop everything and run screaming into the house, as if the rain is melting us into the asphalt. Noticing an umbrella, and a red one at that, lying by the door was the perfect boost to our faith in action. This red umbrella comes in many forms. The Bible, a friends phone call, a nap, someone else with the same goals and road blocks. It helps us get back out there.
So, have you ever road a bike with an umbrella? I know, me too, but do you remember the first time you did it? Not real graceful huh? But you kept at it, trying things like sticking the umbrella under your chin, finding someone else to help you at the shelter, loving those kids anyway!
It looked so good in our mind when we thought about it. Riding a bike and singing a song. How did it get this messed up? Wrong bike, bad weather, ungraceful feeling...I mean, come on!
When we let go of what our picture looks like, and when we allow our faith to carry us into action, we need to remember who brought us to this place to begin with and we need to keep peddling.
Have you ever rode a bike in the rain and the joy over flowed in you until you burst out into song? Or walked, or ran or drove in the rain?
Faith is action, it's like that. It's the action that keeps on going even when the picture changes some. It's showing up, even when you think your going to melt into the asphalt or your not feeling very graceful. Next thing you know, joy jumps in your basket and your off singing that song that no one else in the whole world knows the words to.
