“‘What I’m trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep yourself in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. Don’t be afraid of missing out. You’re my dearest friends! The Father wants to give you the very kingdom itself'” (Luke 1:29-32, The Message).

I think the #1 hindrance in our relationship with God is hurry. As in being in a hurry all the time. As in busy-ness in doing things for God or just in doing things.

But God says, “Be still.” Take moments to cease striving and be still and rest. Steep yourself in God’s ways and God’s words and God’s wisdom. Take time in prayer not to ask for anything for yourself or others but to simply listen. That’s something I’m really not good at doing with my brain going at 90 miles per hour and jumping between thoughts like flipping through TV channels.

Remember that the one Jesus honored was not the one who was busy doing but the one who sat at His feet, ready to listen and learn. Teach your kids that busy-ness is not the same as success and that it’s okay to be still once in a while — even bored.

Once you understand how God words, you can rest. You can sacrifice the good that gets in the way of God’s best. You can learn to say no to make room for God’s yes.

O God
In my deeds,
In my words,
In my wishes,
In my reason,
And in the fulfilling of my desires,
In my sleep,
In my dreams,
In my repose,
In my thoughts,
In my heart and soul always

A Dhia, ann mo ghniamh
Ann mo ghniamh,
Ann mo bhriathar,
Ann mo mhiann,
Ann mo chiall,
Ann an riarachd mo chail,
Ann mo shuain,
Ann mo bhruail,
Ann mo chluain,
Ann mo smuain,
Ann mo chridh agus m’anam a ghnath

“To be grateful for the good things that happen in our lives is easy, but to be grateful for all of our lives-the good as well as the bad, the moments of joy as well as the moments of sorrow, the successes as well as the failures, the rewards as well as the rejections-that requires hard spiritual work. Still, we are only truly grateful people when we can say thank you to all that has brought us to the present moment. As long as we keep dividing our lives between events and people we would like to remember and those we would rather forget, we cannot claim the fullness of our beings as a gift of God to be grateful for.

Let’s not be afraid to look at everything that has brought us to where we are now and trust that we will soon see in it the guiding hand of a loving God” (Henri Nouwen).

Thank You, Lord, for all of it because all of it brought me to where I am right now, which is right where you want me to be in this moment. For whatever comes next, I trust You. Amen.

Yep, I’m still watching Christmas movies and specials. I realize that it’s after Christmas. Even if you take into account those 12 days of Christmas ending with the Epiphany on January 6, I’m still past the deadline. But I don’t care.

2020 was a bit of a hard year. Even the Advent/Christmas season got affected by all the pandemic and coronavirus precautions. And for the record, I’m all for doing our best to keep everyone safe. I just feel like 2020 Christmas wasn’t quite the same as in years past.

So I’m making up for it by watching Christmas movies for as long as I feel like watching Christmas movies. It may be February. It may be June. Heck, I could be watching them right up until next Christmas season and just start at the beginning again.

Do what makes your weird little heart happy. I personally am not the biggest fan of Hallmark movies, but if that’s what brings you joy, then watch those sappy romances by all means. Life’s too short to worry about what other people think (or to worry about what you think other people think when they’re most likely not thinking about you at all).

So at some point in the very near future, I will be watching Holiday Inn and wishing you either a very belated or a very, very, very early merry Christmas!

Let’s face it. We’re only 10 days into this mysterious new realm known as 2021, and most of us want our money back. We’ve done the free-trial period and thanks but no thanks, we don’t want anymore.

I’m as guilty as anyone of looking at my life as a laundry list of “have-to”s. As in I have to get up in the morning and go to work. As in I have to drive 25 miles each way to my job. As in I have to eat my veggies occasionally, so I don’t end up stuck inside my house because I can’t fit through the door.

But what if I took those “have-to”s and saw them as “get-to”s? I get to go into work tomorrow because I still have a job. I get to drive 25 miles because I have a car that works and is reasonably comfortable if not overly stylish. I get to eat my veggies because I’m blessed that I don’t have to worry about where my next meal is coming from (or if it’s coming at all).

It’s just a little change in terms of words but a big change in terms of perspective. I go from feeling burdened to blessed, from tired to thankful, from grumbling to grateful.

I think that little mindset change can greatly improve the outlook for the rest of 2021. I get to be alive to experience all that God has in store for me in 2021, whether it’s easy and convenient or not. I get to wake up every day, not because I deserve to live but because of God’s grace that keeps me alive.

So with that, happy 2021! It’s not too late to make a new start — even 10 days into the new year.

“There is no fear in love, so we draw near;
Thy perfect love, O Lord, has cast out fear.

As wheat before the wind bends all one way,
So would we bow before Thy wind today….

Our several choices, Lord, we would forgo;
Breath of the living God, O great Wind, blow”

(Amy Carmichael, “All One Way”, Toward Jerusalem).

Sometimes it’s a great feeling to let go. As in letting go of the need to constantly police everybody else and how they conduct their lives and their beliefs. As in letting go of the constant anxiety that comes from me trying to figure everything out right now.

God never meant for me to carry all that weight. He never meant for me to live in fear. He never meant for me to feel like it all depended on me to fix everything.

He said one word. Surrender.

He said that I don’t even need to worry about my own life. My times are in His hands and He knows every detail, even down to the number of hairs on my head. He cares for me more than those sparrows and those lilies, which are there to show us how glorious it can be to let go and just simply be.

Surrender doesn’t come natural to anyone. It’s a daily, hourly thing. Sometimes, it’s a moment to moment thing. But a beautiful thing happens once you’re finally able to take that hesitant first step and let go.

You find that God is able. In every area where you were not able, He is. In every situation where you were inadequate, He’s able. In every pandemic that you’re not able to fix, He’s able.

He’s able.

Just surrender.

Recently, I started following a page on Facebook called My Log Cabin. It has pictures of rustic-looking . . . wait for it . . . log cabins. Just about everyone of them look very homey and inviting. I could picture myself living in any one of them.

I don’t know if I have any particular “dream home” down pat. But the room in this picture definitely qualifies as my dream room. I could see myself sitting in one of the chairs or on the couch, reading a good book by a crackling fire. I suppose the TV in the corner is nice, but I could almost do without it. And I’m not overly crazy about the deer heads on the wall.

My only other change would be to throw in a rocking chair somewhere in the room. Sometimes, you just need to rock and think. But I think other than those little details everything is just about perfect for a long winter’s night.

As usual, I accept all forms of credit card and cash donations for my dream room/dream house . . . in my dreams. But maybe just maybe I’ll get lucky and dream about this room tonight.

Maybe it’s because I’m tired or maybe it’s because I’m old. Maybe it’s both.

All I know is that these days what I look forward to on the weekends is sleeping in on Saturday. Nothing brings me more joy than when I open my eyes at 5 am, I can simply close them again and roll back over for more sleep.

It’s not glamorous or exciting. It’s not one of the traits of the super successful and super influential. But hey, I’m just being honest.

It’s especially enjoyable to sleep in when it’s cold and rainy outside. Not having to venture out into the freezing wet cold is always a plus in my book. Yes, I know my trusty old car keeps me warm and dry, but I have to go from the door to my house to my car, and that’s where the cold wetness is.

I heard once that you should follow your dreams. That’s why I’m choosing to go back to bed.

“If our certainty is only in our beliefs, we develop a sense of self-righteousness, become overly critical, and are limited by the view that our beliefs are complete and settled. But when we have the right relationship with God, life is full of spontaneous, joyful uncertainty and expectancy. Jesus said, ‘ . . . believe also in Me’ (John 14:1), not, ‘Believe certain things about Me.’ Leave everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in—but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him” (Oswald Chambers, My Utmost for His Highest).

“After centuries of handling and mishandling, most religious words have become so shopworn nobody’s much interested anymore. Not so with grace, for some reason. Mysteriously, even derivatives like gracious and graceful still have some of the bloom left.

Grace is something you can never get but can only be given. There’s no way to earn it or deserve it or bring it about any more than you can deserve the taste of raspberries and cream or earn good looks or bring about your own birth.

A good sleep is grace and so are good dreams. Most tears are grace. The smell of rain is grace. Somebody loving you is grace. Loving somebody is grace. Have you ever tried to love somebody?

A crucial eccentricity of the Christian faith is the assertion that people are saved by grace. There’s nothing YOU have to do. There’s nothing you HAVE to do. There’s nothing you have to DO.

The grace of God means something like: “Here is your life. You might never have been, but you are, because the party wouldn’t have been complete without you. Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don’t be afraid. I am with you. Nothing can ever separate us. It’s for you I created the universe. I love you.”

There’s only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if you’ll reach out and take it.

Maybe being able to reach out and take it is a gift too” (Frederich Buechner, Wishful Thinking).

Think about that. Grace is something you can never GET but only be GIVEN. Let that sink in.