Month: July 2020

And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”  Genesis 1:20

We’ve been living on the water for eight months now, and I’m just as excited today as I was the first day to see the creatures that are near us.  When we first moved in, I used to watch the majestic eagles on a regular basis.  I’m not seeing them as much now, but what are showing up haven’t disappointed me.  It’s so special to wake up to a seagull’s laugh or watch a shorebird flying by with a tasty snack.

Focusing on the water brings me great peace; although, my family gets quite startled when it has brought out some major excitement too.  The first time I saw dolphins right in front of our house, I sure scared my hubby and boys with an exuberant response.  I couldn’t help it!  Today, I looked out and saw a turtle swimming by.  How amazing is that?

My oldest loves to fish.  He will catch something, then say to me, “Do you see why I don’t swim in this water?  I know what’s living there.”  Well, thanks a lot Mr. Cautious.  Why don’t you ruin it for the rest of us?  (I say that in the most loving way.)

I took his completely logical thoughts and made them my own until one day the call of the water was just too much.  Having carefully watched person after person surviving the summer pastime of water play, I figured there was enough room for God’s creatures AND me.

A quick saltwater baptism one day made my determination to enjoy that huge swimming pool right outside our door a must.  Yesterday, armed with floats for enjoying, a rope to not be carried away, and water shoes just in case my oldest was right, I was ready for some fun!  Because my youngest was feeling wild and adventurous, he joined me.

I made my way down the ladder into water that felt like it belonged in a bathtub.  So far, so good.  I got situated on the float and watched my cohort break into a grin.  This was great!  We were such risk-takers that we decided to forgo the rope to have a little more freedom.  We’d let the gentle current slowly take us a little ways before we’d make our way back to the starting point.

To advise my youngest, just in case he decided to get nervous, I passed on my knowledge.  If he was struggling, stand up.  It was low tide.  Also, I told him to shuffle his feet in case there were any rays on the sandy bottom.  It gives them time to get out of the way, so they don’t get stepped on.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t positive this was true.

Once we were in there for a bit without any fins circling around us, my bravery was almost out of control.  I took off my shoes!  Summertime joy was surrounding me.  When it was my turn for the inner tube, I was spinning in circles and living life to the fullest.  It was awesome!

There was only one problem.  Something touched my leg!  I pulled them up and paddled quickly away from that spot.  A little while later, it was back!  Don’t worry though because my superhero of a son saved me.  He informed me that I was feeling the plants that were growing from the bottom since it was so shallow.  Umm…there weren’t any sea monsters trying to wrap their tails around my legs and drag me away.  I still didn’t like those plants touching me.  I’d jump and giggle while my youngest rolled his eyes and tried not to laugh.

I learned a few things.  When things are murky, it doesn’t always mean you should just sit back and watch everyone else live life around you, waiting for things to become perfectly clear.  There are times we need to take a step before we know which direction we should go, even if we can’t see the bottom.  There’s nothing wrong with shuffling your feet occasionally if that’s what’s going to get you to move!

Today, take this into consideration…if God created the living creatures in the water and the birds in the sky by just a word, don’t you think He’s capable of keeping you from getting carried away by the currents you face in life?  Come on!  He made the water and the sky!  Let God be your rope today.  That’s a rope I never want to forgo.

By the way, don’t let someone else’s opinion keep you from experiencing great things…even if it does sound logical, it may not be right for you.

He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!” John 9:25

Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, and after taking some food, he regained his strength. Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. Acts 9:18-19

Something happened to me the other day that disgusted me but also got me thinking. This situation has been percolating in my mind for a bit. The working of our thoughts can be an interesting thing. Mine might lean a little on the weird side rather than the interesting, but there you have it.

Certain times, thoughts are rattling around in my brain and firing off quicker than I can make sense of them! Occasionally, they’ll come and go faster than I can even jot down. Those thoughts are usually gone and will not return, unlike this past time.

Quite often, something will happen around me, and I connect it to a lesson to be learned. Every once in a while, those thoughts sit with me, and I’m not quite understanding which way to look at them. I could argue one side against another in my own brain. These times are more complicated than those that go in and out quicker than I can process. Any psychologists out there, please don’t look at that too closely!

Let me explain it like this. Have you ever been looking at a seemingly normal object when you see features of a face? It could be an outlet in the house or a cloud in the sky. Did you know there’s a name for that? Pareidolia. I admit that mine can be quite silly. As I let my mind free to experience its creative side, it’s amazing the things I come up with.

When my youngest was little, we’d put his brother on the school bus and go for a walk that was filled with quite the adventures! There would be dinosaurs all around us one minute and an alligator watching us from the bayou the next. Yes, logs we’ll do that. They were never scary and often would cause us to giggle.

Just like we’d get creative on our walks, a different part of me seems to get creative with the things I see around me. I’d get the boys rolling their eyes as I was coming up with all kinds of stories as to why people were doing the things they were doing. I’m telling you, you have to be careful at the conversations you might hear when eavesdropping! Well, I guess if you don’t actually hear the conversation, it can’t be considered eavesdropping, right? When I knew their names, it really blew the boys away. By blowing them away, I mean I was fearful that the hot air might actually do that.

The crazy thing is that when I tell you these stories I write, no creativity is needed on my part. I seem to attract some goofy happenings. Now, after all my ramblings, we’re back to the part where a lesson connects to something I’ve seen. Does any of this really have to deal with pareidolia? What was my point? See, good example of the workings of my mind. The crazy thing…I’m quite a logical person normally. I’m a list and orderly kind of girl! Except in my thoughts apparently. Sidetracked again. Anyhow, there is a story.

It’s been getting warmer and warmer in the mornings. The sun has been beautiful and bright…and hot! I’ve been taking the pup for a walk, but we’re both panting by the time we get back home. Scratch that. The pup is panting and I’m simply sweating! Using the logical side of my brain, I figured it would be better to get out the door earlier than what we’ve been. It was 6:30 in the morning when my “incident” took place.

The pup did his business and I had to cross under the house to throw it away. Paying zero attention to my surroundings, I made it to the garbage when I stepped on something. That’s an odd feeling pinecone I thought. I looked down, and it took me a few moments to process what I had stepped on. Ewww, Hubby, seriously? How did you lose your bait on the cement? The poor thing!

Since I was apparently walking around in some sort of stupor up until that point, the fog cleared from my eyes and I looked around in horrified disbelief. There were minnows everywhere! They weren’t in water anymore! Even stranger, how did I pass through them without seeing a thing? How did the pup not get curious? I ran upstairs and told my hubby of the breakout. When I was able to form a thought at that early hour, I figured a raccoon came in and was thinking he reached the jackpot of buffets.

Later, the puzzle was solved. The raccoons were found innocent and it was determined the minnows did it to themselves. They jumped out! Rookie mistake on my hubby’s part. Now he has a great system that prevents the traumatic experience from happening again. There was apparently a reason, besides the heat, we were setting out on our journey so early. Many of the minnows were able to be saved. Yes, even the ones who thought they were better off out of the water.

Can I just chalk this up to a hiccup in my morning routine and move on? For some reason I couldn’t. I kept thinking there was a lesson in there somewhere. Instead of looking for a face in a tree, I was trying to see the lesson in the situation. I had two conflicting opinions. First, when we jump before it’s time, we don’t have the necessities to sustain us. Second, if we don’t make the move, we’d be stuck forever. I could argue both of these and it just brought more confusion. Confusion certainly isn’t right.

I figured if I’d start writing my thoughts down, maybe there’d be a revelation in there somewhere. I needed discernment in specifically how this was to apply to me since my thoughts kept going back to that morning. It kept coming back up. Was that God giving me a nudge to keep searching?

When I was writing, I realized that there are times we do have to make a move. The minnows jumped without knowing where they were going. I needed to start writing without knowing where this writing would be going. Everything doesn’t need to be figured out before starting. That makes sense. Since some of the minnows had a very negative outcome, I was curious about that other side of jumping too early. Maybe it’s simply about patience while moving forward.

Those thoughts are valid, but do you know what the startling conclusion I had that changed everything for me? I had two pieces of scripture pop into my head while I was writing. They took the attention from the minnows and put it on me during that situation. How often are we focusing on the wrong thing? It wasn’t so amazing that the minnows jumped out, it was that the pup and I were blind and never saw them when they were surrounding us!

Is that something you can relate to? Have you ever been blind to something that was right in front of you? Maybe there’s something right now that you’re needing to see. It’s there, but you’re blind to it. How can you know if it’s invisible, right? That’s a difficult question. I don’t have all the answers, but I know that just as I searched through writing this that I found my answer, I think you’ll find yours too.

I have a sneaking suspicion that I’m not finished with this lesson. After learning the story wasn’t about the minnows, it was about my blindness, I believe I need to open my eyes to something right in front of me. I hope that when my eyes are open, I’m able to jump since God has been waiting. When He’s involved, I know I won’t be landing on the concrete.

What is it that you’ve been blind to that’s now being pointed out? Once you have your eyes open, you can’t ignore it anymore. I believe in you. I know that there’s a strength in you to take the steps necessary to deal with those eyes being open. I’m excited for you! Don’t be afraid of what’s to come. Be bold and embrace the journey as it unfolds!