Found Your Own Personal Green Pasture Yet?

"He makes me to lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside quiet waters, He restores my soul ... "   from Psalm 23

Oh how quickly we grow after we lose the bondage of, "What will people think?".

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Last Saturday after stepping into the cafe and hugging Linda, an old friend I'd arranged to meet there, my cafe friend, Jill, exclaimed, "Debra! We were just talking about you. Seriously! How you'd not been here in ages." 

Amy (the young owner) said, "Yeah! I even made your favorite muffin a few times, but still you didn't come."

I smiled and included the other ladies around them, "Oh! You can blame it on that awful humidity. I barely survived this summer. Barely." The five women chuckled, nodded. Jill and Amy said they were happy to see me and thankful I hadn't had covid.

Oh! Delightful, all of this, but so Twilight Zone-ish for me. 

See, the cafe is one of my 'beside quiet waters' places. God restores my soul there so usually (I imagine) I'm blending into the pale yellow walls while staring out the window, praying, drinking decaf, nibbling scones, reading. I'm being invisible.

A very quiet process, indeed, yet Saturday, again, I remembered people are watching.

Long ago I became suspicious of Christians who say God leads us only to certain green pastures, certain quiet waters and restores our souls in certain, specific ways. Their (often legalistic) ways.

Yet way before these covid-covid-covid days, God began restoring my soul in odd, not-usually-recommended ways, like:

reading not-specifically-Christian (but sweet) books

staring out windows

taking walks

watching favorite movies or tv series

sitting on the front porch

working in my garden

listening to music and teaching videos

going to movie theaters alone

listing my gratitudes from our good God

taking drives by myself

doing 'prepper-related' things

painting walls, rearranging items

and yes, even cleaning my house--

--all these while sensing Him beside me, speaking with silent words. Leading, energizing, loving me. Inspiring me, as well.

Why share this? Because I keep hearing that many Christians are becoming super discouraged. You know, slapped around by uncertainty due to our world's sorry, sorry state. 

Yet why allow the world to yank us through rocky, no-rest places? Why follow the lost ones, then slip into dark ditches? Why meditate upon Life gone wrong?

Instead, may we return to being led by God; through His green pastures and still waters even if--to other Christians--our personal pastures and waters seem silly.

And then may we be sent out from a strong base of peace, not anger, as we obey Him who restores our soul even in the midst of wars. 

Remember! He prepares tables for us in the presence of our enemies. Not just after they've all faded away, but in the midst of their bugging us. 

So may we follow Him today down the green pastures, through the quiet waters until we reach that wonderful restoration, that place from where we can then venture out and face absolutely anything. 

Unshakeable in battle. With joy.

"Do not let your heart be troubled (afraid, cowardly). Believe [confidently] in God and trust in Him, [have faith, hold on to it, rely on it, keep going and] believe also in Me."   --- John 14:1, Amplified

Yes, even in 2021. More than ever, in fact--

People are watching us to see if the Jesus we have within us is real or just imagined. Jesus enables us to react differently to Life than those who've not yet met Him.

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Last week this, below, greatly inspired me. (Your results may differ.) シ

"Get out there and be friendly when you're at the grocery store and other places.

... I think we're just going to split into two different worlds. And I think that's ok. Because the world that I'm gonna help build is ... built on the ideas of individual choice and freedom ... We're going to build new things and let the other people build what's based on critical race theory,  or do diversity race hirings, etc. 

I just don't see a way around it. But it doesn't mean it has to be horrible. I don't want to see people fighting in the streets... Let the others have what they've built--I don't want it.... 

I want to promote people, those who are fighting for the right things. We can build something better together.

Let's rethink our relationship with technology.

Whatever's left of the good America, I want to fight to save it... to dare to get out there, dare to build new things, interact with other people and take some of the lessons our parents and forefathers learned about freedom and the human experience."    ---Dave Rubin

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Please remember: My posts are always about more than they appear to be. 

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 "For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses." ... Matthew 6:14,15