Author: Just Simple Days

It’s That Simple!

“With what shall I come before the Lord, and bow myself before God on high?…He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”  Micah 6:6 & 8

I often find myself worrying about what is my passion and my perfect job.  I fret about what I “should be” doing with my life.  The answer is simple, when I take time to stop and listen to God speaking in my everyday life.  I have set a goal for myself this year, that I would make my priorities the things that I know improve my mental and physical health. And there are just two things I want to ensure I add to my daily routine: a morning meditation and a daily walk.  As I speak this out loud, I hear my own voice condemning myself because “what will others think when they hear that I haven’t always had these goals?”  Yeah, I’m that kind of person, the one who likes to look great on the outside but is pretty hard on herself on the inside.  So this year, I’m putting myself out there.  I’m guessing most of you know I’m not perfect but admitting that to myself AND to the world is the challenging part for me.

It’s kind of crazy! I KNOW that a simple daily meditation, such as reading the Scripture of the day on Bible Gateway, sets my mind in a better place for my actual job.  And I KNOW that I FEEL BETTER when I get my 10,000 steps each day. And yet it’s easy to allow other things to take priority.  Well no more!   So my thought is that if I read the scripture, and post something about it every day, I’ll eventually develop a habit. And I’m asking any of you who are reading this, to feel free to call me out if you haven’t seen a post in a few days.  And feel free to comment if you see something you like or something you want to challenge.

It’s really that simple! God doesn’t care what I do for a job or what my passion is.  All that’s asked is that I am just and kind to others and I “walk (all 10,000 steps!) humbly with my God!”

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“Be still, and know that I am God!”

20190102_172130.jpgThis scripture was on today’s devotional in my 365 Devotions book.  And it has been the header for at least the last month on a daily devotional email I receive. I wonder… Have I not been paying attention? Have I not been seeing, feeling, hearing or knowing God for all these days?

It’s easy to miss God in the everyday business of busy-ness if I am not LOOKING.  When I am paying attention to all the noise from clients returning to work after the holidays, or a messy house that needs cleaning,  it’s easy for that noise to drown out the Presence of God.  When I am worried about how I’m going to get everything done on my list, it’s easy to miss seeing God in my everyday activities.

What is it to “be still and know that I am God?”  Where has my focus been and how can I change it to recognize God in everything I do?  As I re-listened to a portion of a book by Dr. Wayne Dyer, Wishes Fulfilled, he repeated the prayer attributed to St. Francis of Assisi:

“Lord, make me an instrument of your peace; where there is hatred, let me sow love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.

“O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console; to be understood, as to understand; to be loved, as to love; for it is in giving that we receive, it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.” Amen.

Lord, help me learn to BE STILL and KNOW that you are GOD, every day and every where I look and to be your hands and feet to others.  Amen!

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“Paint the Light!”

20181117_064459.jpg“Paint the light!”  That was a  line near the end of an old Hallmark Christmas movie I recently watched.    The character was a famous painter whose wife had passed long ago (of course!) and he had spent his later years mourning her loss.  When the neighbor comes by on Christmas Eve to wish him Merry Christmas, he suddenly realizes what he’s been missing all these years.  Cheesy yes, but it did strike a chord with me.

As I took the dog out for an early walk this morning, the sky was just beginning to show signs of light and hints of pinks and purples. Over the course of a few moments, the colors began to darken as the sky began to lighten.  It is an amazing world we live in where we can watch the light being painted before our very eyes! What a gift and blessing we receive from God EVERY MORNING!  Yet often we fail to see it because we are so focused on mourning the things we don’t have in our lives.

This is not likely a new message to anyone taking time to read this post. But it is a reminder that when we focus on our blessings, they unfold before our very eyes and life just gets a little bit sweeter!  Just a Simple Day full of blessing! Namaste!

 

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We only have NOW!

I recall realizing when my oldest son turned 16, that he was now a driver, and that he was only on loan to me.  That epiphany hit me hard! I was permitted the pleasure of giving birth, caring for him, playing and teaching, but he really belonged to God.  And from this point forward, although I was still his mother and he would still come to me for some things, he was beginning to spread his wings. I remember telling God,  “but I’m not done with him yet! I need more time!”

I sit here reflecting on those memories as I lift up my dear friend in prayer because he has just lost his aging father. And he would dearly love more time with him!  I don’t think it matters how long we have them, we still just want more time. And as I anticipate the birth of my first grandchild I understand that no matter how young or old they are, they are only on loan to us.  Parents, grandparents, children, grandchildren, friends and neighbors – all have been loaned to us to care for and nurture and love!

We don’t get MORE time. We only have NOW!  Only in the NOW can we choose to spend the time on things that will bring us only good memories and no regrets.  Only in the NOW can we choose love and joy and lasting relationships.  My physical body is only on loan to me, too.  This is MY now!

I will greet this day with love in my heart. And how will I confront each whom I meet? In only one way. In silence and to myself I will address him and say I Love You. Though spoken in silence these words will shine in my eyes, unwrinkle my brow, bring a smile to my lips, and echo in my voice; and his heart will be opened. And who is there who will say nay to my goods when his heart feels my love? I will greet this day with love in my heart. And most of all I will love myself. For when I do I will zealously inspect all things which enter my body, my mind, my soul, and my heart. Never will I overindulge the requests of my flesh, rather I will cherish my body with cleanliness and moderation. Never will I allow my mind to be attracted to evil and despair, rather I will uplift it with the knowledge and wisdom of the ages. Never will I allow my soul to become complacent and satisfied, rather I will feed it with meditation and prayer. Never will I allow my heart to become small and bitter, rather I will share it and it will grow and warm the earth. I will greet this day with love in my heart. Henceforth will I love all mankind. From this moment all hate is let from my veins for I have not time to hate, only time to love.

Mandino, Og. The Greatest Salesman in the World (pp. 61-62). Random House Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

Today is only on loan! Make it just a simple day of NOW!

roxi3

 

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Corn Day

For as long as I can remember back into my childhood, we’ve had a Family Corn Day (with the exception, maybe, of a few years that the coons got to it all before we did). Sun up to sun down, counting on shade and a breeze to cool us and limit the flies,  buckets upon buckets of corn….picked, shucked, silked, cut off the cob, frozen and divided between our families.   I feel very blessed to say that I’ve been present at most of them. Funny that somehow I imagined it was like a badge of honor to move from the shucking  to the cutting off the cob  in the assembly line work.  The younger years were the best!  After the required “helping” shuck a few ears,  my cousins and I were off to play. (We were planning to be the next Charlie’s Angels)   Some years we were under the big maple tree in grandma and grandpa’s front yard. I remember it was a Maple because I have fun memories of making helicopters with the maple seeds that littered the ground.  Some years we worked out in the yard of my childhood home – near the big lilac bush and my swing set with the trapeze swing where I dreamed of being an Olympic gymnast some day.  Some years we worked under the trees in Uncle Willie and Aunt Rosie’s back yard. I’m pretty sure that’s where my love for Mimosa trees began. I still remember that sweet smell of the blooms as we played along side the working adults…..and here I am reminiscing at the end of this year’s Family Corn Day,  missing our two older children who’ve moved away,  fond thoughts of those grown cousins that I still count among my very best friends, and blessed to be working in the coolness of our basement garage where it’s much cooler and NO FLIES.

 

Sun up to sun down, buckets and buckets of corn – picked, shucked, silked, cut off the cob, frozen and divided between our families….. It’s been just a simple day, but always a day of counting abundant blessings!  We’ll be eating well this winter! God is Generous!

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Recently, I was asked the question, “What powers your passion?” There are days when I don’t even know what my passion is!  On one such day, I was spiraling downward, and not enjoying my job at all!  Having been a student of the Law of Attraction for awhile, I remembered that I get to choose how I want to FEEL each moment.  So I began to pay attention to my thoughts and watch for anything that made me FEEL a little bit better, and then spend a moment relishing that feeling.  On this day, it was teaching.  “Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” (Chinese Proverb).

As a project manager, who works from home, teaching moments are few and far between. That moment when you realize they “get it” is a pretty awesome feeling.  So I relished it.  I don’t remember what event triggered it on this day.  But as I basked in the feeling, I remembered a few people over the years who really powered my passion for teaching.  There is Mindi, who has followed in my footsteps to counseling & advising in higher education. There is Elise, who is now considered one of the campus experts in the college’s software that I helped her learn.  Each of my own children have found a career they love and each one is thriving.  I know there were others who were just as instrumental in creating the persons they are today. So I recognize that it’s not just about what I taught and what they learned that powers the passion. It’s more about watching them flourish with energy and excitement.  It’s watching them stretch and grow and develop.  It’s seeing leaders emerge who never thought they had the skills.  It’s watching them spread their wings and take flight.  You can teach a man to fish, but I would rather teach a man (or woman) to soar…. Just another EXTRAORDINARY Simple Day.

 

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Be Amazed at God’s Beauty! Be Amazed at God! Be Amazed! Be!

This was my view when I headed out of my drive, leaving home this morning.  I was absolutely amazed by God’s beauty and had to stop the car, put the window down, and take a picture.  It’s all about perspective.  Looking again at this photo – I see leaves that never got raked, more weeds than grass in yard that really needs much more attention than it’s given.  There’s the flower bed that never got completely cleaned out last fall, the name-carved log that will soon make better mulch than decoration, the fence-line weeds still in need of a weed eater and the pear trees sorely in need of trimming…..and yet, this morning, with a heart freshly God-focused, I didn’t see any of that!   I saw flowering trees, buds just beginning to open – the background of many years of prom pictures. I saw an old nanny goat, now beyond her breeding years, surrounded by shadows of  many sets of goat-kids, ears flapping, and joyful laughter as our own children delighted in their arrival.  I considered the farmer leading the horse pulling that beautiful rusty rake – crops shared with family, friends and community.  I looked in gratitude at the old log with the Everhart name lovingly carved through it and gave thanks for the hands of the artist.  I saw green grass, new life, flower buds peeking through the ground, waiting for just the right moment to open……and I was amazed at God’s beauty! I was amazed at God!  I was amazed! I was!….. Just a Simple Day

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The Journey Begins…

For there is no friend like a sister in calm or stormy weather; To cheer one on the tedious way, to fetch one if one goes astray, to lift one if one totters down, to strengthen whilst one stands.

—Christina Rossetti

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