Fresh Mercies

Great is His faithfulness

His mercies begin afresh each morning

Lam. 3:23

Yesterday, my yard looked like a pond because for days, storms have been pelting us with rain.  The days have been dreary and cold.  But this morning, I woke up to sunshine glistening through the trees.  Somehow, the glorious sunshine has pushed its way through the clouds, even clearing up the soggy yard to make it green again.  And the birds are singing as if the storms had never happened.

This reminds me of how God’s mercy is fresh and new every single day.  So if we’ve blown it the night before, losing our cool with hubby and kids, there's good news.  God knows we’re human.  He also knows our heart.  We don’t have to beat ourselves up over our mistakes and failings…the devil does a good enough job of that.  We just need to lay it all at Jesus feet, ask for forgiveness and start again with His fresh, new mercies for the day. The Bibles says if we confess our sin, He is faithful and just to forgive us for that sin...as well as any other ugly thing we may have said or done.  (1John 1:9)

His “SON”shine has new fresh mercies for you and your family today.  So relax, the storm is passed and the birds are singing again.  Grab a cup of tea and bask in the Son today.

Terri

Preparing Your Ground

Break up your fallow ground

For it is time to seek the LORD

Hosea 10:12

Fallow isn’t a word I use every day...  So what does it mean?  When I really think about it, questions whirl around in my mind.  Do I even have fallow ground?  And if my ground is fallow, what is my ground?  How do I break it up? 

Well, I looked it up.  Fallow ground is potential farmland that is undisturbed.  It is good ground that has not yet been prepared for seed.  It has to be broken up with a hoe so the seed can go down into the ground, grow and bear fruit.

God is always giving us pictures from every day life to help us understand spiritual truths.  So this verse is actually saying it is planting season, (time to seek the Lord), and we need to prepare our hearts, (fallow ground), to better receive Him and the blessings He wants to produce in our lives.  So naturally, my next question is this—How do I break it up?

The answer I guess is in choosing the right tools.  I mean, it would be difficult to break up hard, undisturbed ground with my bare hands.  Even with gloves, my hands couldn’t chop it up.  So I need something with a sharp edge and a long handle for leverage—a hoe. 

Ok, bear with me for just a minute...  I am going somewhere with this.  I’m thinking about real life—our family life.  This is after all, a faith reflection for our family.  In order to have God move and work in our family relationships, it has to begin with my heart and me.  If I’m not willing to break up my own hard places, how can I receive the seed of God’s mercy and see the good fruit of good relationships grow in my family?  It has to begin with my own heart.  That means I have to allow the Holy Spirit to chop up the things I’m holding onto—offenses, stubbornness, my way of doing things.  It’s the Holy Spirit who actually does the breaking, but it is me who has control.  Do I want to do the work and swing this thing into motion? 

Yes, we have a long row to hoe, (excuse the pun), but I love my family and I want God’s best.  The bottom line is this; if I want to see anything grow, and if I want to enjoy the fruit, I have to do the labor.  I have to put my back into it and break up the fallow ground so it can receive the seed.  I can’t do it in my own strength, but with God, all things are possible.  I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

I’m expecting good things to come of my garden.  I'm setting my family table with some big salad bowls and getting ready to enjoy the fruit of this labor.

Terri

Broken Pieces and Fresh Starts

Having a bad day?  Family life stressing you out?  Stepkids pushing your buttons?  Husband not stepping in to correct his kids?  Did the calm reserve fly out the window in a fit of emotional backlash on hubby and the kids?

Well, I can honestly say I’ve been there.  It happened when I was loading the dishwasher after dinner...  Stepdaughter pushed my buttons for the hundredth time that day...dad was oblivious...dishes shoved into the rack...more buttons...more words...dishes hitting harder...louder words...dad not paying attention to his daughter’s disrespect...

One more button pushed and the dishes were thrown into the dishwasher, shattering in the rack... felt good... another dish shattered... have dad’s attention now... one more flying dish (wedding gifts)...and I am out the door...

Well, I drove awhile trying to decide if I even wanted to come back.  Cried...yelled...cried...prayed...cried...

After doing scenic tour of freeway loop for a couple hours, I pointed my car back home...

Love my husband...trying to love my stepchildren...need God’s grace and mercy to see this thing through.

Once I finally stopped ranting and crying, the sweetness of the Holy Spirit enveloped me—comforting me, just as He promised He would.  In Lamentations 3:22 it says, “Through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.” 

Blending is hard work and emotionally taxing, even in the best of circumstances.  We all have buttons, and there will always be someone around to push them.  But God is so faithful to help us through...we are not going to be consumed if we look to Him. 

I went home.  My husband and I talked and prayed.  We settled some hard issues with the kids before going to bed.  His compassion didn’t let me down.

If you read on in the Scripture the next verse says, “They, (His compassions), are new every morning, Great is Your faithfulness.”  In the morning, I woke up to a fresh start on blending my family.

If you’ve had a bad day.  Don’t beat yourself up.  Let God help you pick up the pieces and give you a brand new start in the morning.