***
It just figures that after a three week hiatus... after three weeks of being grounded and of battling sickness and believing for healing and of enforced 'rest'... well - Tired still somehow applies and that is our One Word Prompt today.
The Five Minute Friday community is the best gathering of Flashmob writers around! We wait for the one word prompt and we throw caution and hesitation and editing to the wind, and we let our fingers fly and our feelings feel and we just wait and see what flows out in five minutes (or so! Because, grace!) and we hit Publish without second guessing or backspacing! Our one word prompt is:TIRED!
{GO}
I have been grounded for three weeks... but I had been tired for much, much longer than that!
While I was given a doctors' order to simply (ha!) stop all the things and rest my eyes, the Lord gave me His order to stop all the things and rest... my eyes, yes --but also my mind and my bossy lists and my pouring out and my restless, relentless want for clarity.
Yes, He asked me to simply stop every little thing and sit and wait... to sit and trust... to sit (or nap, thank you Jesus) and realize that it wasn't just my physical body that hit a brick wall... it was not just my body that was tired, but my soul that was a little busted up and bruised... my heart a little weary and worn out.
So He asked me to cancel all the plans (which is normally like Christmas morning for an introvert) and just sit and wait... and He asked me to learn to be comfortable in being uncomfortable.
Great! Super! Fun!
(only exactly the opposite of that!)
Yeah... I'm all about the Fruit of the Spirit,
except for patience.
Obviously.
So... without vision (in more than one way!),
I rested. Only --not exactly.
I couldn't really numb out with Netflix
and I missed watching the Olympics.
(Winter Olympics ALL sound the SAME...
in case you were wondering!)
I cancelled meetings and didn't go for walks,
or coffee, or much of anything.
I did nothing...
but somehow I was still not able to Rest...
Not really.
But here's the thing:
Rest is my Jam!
I even wrote a book about it!
I'm all about Sabbath and Slow!
I know how I am wired and I do my best
to stay true to myself and to follow His lead...
to listen to His voice above every other.
And yet... I was bone-tired and beaten down.
I needed Jesus' invitation found in the Gospel of Matthew, yet again!
It turns out, I never outgrow or outrun or out-anything my need for this beckoning call to Come Away with Him!
I think we all need this call to come away... and I think even those of us who put this into practice on a somewhat regular basis --it's oh so easy to forget...
Resting isn't just Not Doing Stuff...
And Self Care is not just Taking a Bath...
And Coming Away with Him doesn't require a Change of Location as much as it requires a Change of Heart!
When I finally began to tap in to Real Rest,
well --it was when I remembered another Call in Scripture!
The call to BE STILL, AND KNOW...
Ah yes.
It all comes back to Trust, doesn't it?
Always... in all ways... be still and know that He is God!
He is God... and He is Good...
And He's Got This...
--whatever your 'this' may be!
{STOP}
"Be Still..."
This phrase is found in Psalm 46:10 and in context it is talking about how God will protect His people. It's also in Matthew coming out of Jesus' own mouth when He commanded to storm to stop. In both cases, the command of Be Still means to stop striving, to let go, to hush or, in modern language, to shut up! (Amen?)
I'm sure that when God whispers
"Be Still" TO us,
it is full of love and compassion.
But when He shouts it
to the wind and the waves
coming AT us,
it is full of Authority and Power!
And thank God, right?
Thank God that even when we lose sight of who or what our enemy is... when we lose sight of how to stop our striving or our demanding an answer before the time has come for clarity... He knows when to whisper-sing to us, and when to Shout-yell to our enemy.
Again - and always (in all ways!),
He is God... and He is Good...
And He's Got This...
--whatever your 'this' may be!
After three weeks of rest (but really, only one of Resting!)
I got a Praise report that my eyes are healing and have 'greatly improved'... so while I am to take more precaution and better care of myself (in more ways than one!) I am happy to be off restriction and slowly getting back to living life!
In the midst of these three weeks, there are have been some changes. They were not easy and much of the laying down felt like giving up on a dream and yet... He is God and He is Good and He's Got This.
Over the past few weeks, while laying things down and praying for new direction, this song has ministered to me. I pray it reaches out to you and reminds you that you too are Becoming...
The Five Minute Friday community is the best gathering of Flashmob writers around! We wait for the one word prompt and we throw caution and hesitation and editing to the wind, and we let our fingers fly and our feelings feel and we just wait and see what flows out in five minutes (or so! Because, grace!) and we hit Publish without second guessing or backspacing! Our one word prompt is:TIRED!
{GO}
I have been grounded for three weeks... but I had been tired for much, much longer than that!
While I was given a doctors' order to simply (ha!) stop all the things and rest my eyes, the Lord gave me His order to stop all the things and rest... my eyes, yes --but also my mind and my bossy lists and my pouring out and my restless, relentless want for clarity.
Yes, He asked me to simply stop every little thing and sit and wait... to sit and trust... to sit (or nap, thank you Jesus) and realize that it wasn't just my physical body that hit a brick wall... it was not just my body that was tired, but my soul that was a little busted up and bruised... my heart a little weary and worn out.
So He asked me to cancel all the plans (which is normally like Christmas morning for an introvert) and just sit and wait... and He asked me to learn to be comfortable in being uncomfortable.
Great! Super! Fun!
(only exactly the opposite of that!)
Yeah... I'm all about the Fruit of the Spirit,
except for patience.
Obviously.
So... without vision (in more than one way!),
I rested. Only --not exactly.
I couldn't really numb out with Netflix
and I missed watching the Olympics.
(Winter Olympics ALL sound the SAME...
in case you were wondering!)
I cancelled meetings and didn't go for walks,
or coffee, or much of anything.
I did nothing...
but somehow I was still not able to Rest...
Not really.
But here's the thing:
Rest is my Jam!
I even wrote a book about it!
I'm all about Sabbath and Slow!
I know how I am wired and I do my best
to stay true to myself and to follow His lead...
to listen to His voice above every other.
And yet... I was bone-tired and beaten down.
I needed Jesus' invitation found in the Gospel of Matthew, yet again!
It turns out, I never outgrow or outrun or out-anything my need for this beckoning call to Come Away with Him!
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matt 11:28-30 The MessageYou, too?
I think we all need this call to come away... and I think even those of us who put this into practice on a somewhat regular basis --it's oh so easy to forget...
Resting isn't just Not Doing Stuff...
And Self Care is not just Taking a Bath...
And Coming Away with Him doesn't require a Change of Location as much as it requires a Change of Heart!
When I finally began to tap in to Real Rest,
well --it was when I remembered another Call in Scripture!
The call to BE STILL, AND KNOW...
Ah yes.
It all comes back to Trust, doesn't it?
Always... in all ways... be still and know that He is God!
He is God... and He is Good...
And He's Got This...
--whatever your 'this' may be!
{STOP}
"Be Still..."
This phrase is found in Psalm 46:10 and in context it is talking about how God will protect His people. It's also in Matthew coming out of Jesus' own mouth when He commanded to storm to stop. In both cases, the command of Be Still means to stop striving, to let go, to hush or, in modern language, to shut up! (Amen?)
I'm sure that when God whispers
"Be Still" TO us,
it is full of love and compassion.
But when He shouts it
to the wind and the waves
coming AT us,
it is full of Authority and Power!
And thank God, right?
Thank God that even when we lose sight of who or what our enemy is... when we lose sight of how to stop our striving or our demanding an answer before the time has come for clarity... He knows when to whisper-sing to us, and when to Shout-yell to our enemy.
Again - and always (in all ways!),
He is God... and He is Good...
And He's Got This...
--whatever your 'this' may be!
After three weeks of rest (but really, only one of Resting!)
I got a Praise report that my eyes are healing and have 'greatly improved'... so while I am to take more precaution and better care of myself (in more ways than one!) I am happy to be off restriction and slowly getting back to living life!
In the midst of these three weeks, there are have been some changes. They were not easy and much of the laying down felt like giving up on a dream and yet... He is God and He is Good and He's Got This.
Over the past few weeks, while laying things down and praying for new direction, this song has ministered to me. I pray it reaches out to you and reminds you that you too are Becoming...
Velveteen by Christa Wells
Linking up with Kate Motaung and the #fmfparty Community today. Five Minute Fridays gives us the chance to dive right in and share what He puts on our hearts! Click HERE to read what others have to say about: "TIRED"
The FMF lowdown: The gathering happens on Twitter on Thursday nights & then we write our hearts out & hit publish all over the interwebs on Thursday & Friday (& sometimes on Tuesdays!) It's where we encourage & uplift... where we share prayer requests & praise reports... where we talk food & friends & we find support & kindred hearts. It's where we are reminded that life is good & God is good & we're not alone... & then we all write for five minutes flat, a flash mob of wordsmiths letting our hearts & our fingers do the talking tapping & we hit publish before we can second guess it all away. We'd love to have you join us!
I'm also linking up with the lovely writer communities linked below:
Crystal Twaddell for #FreshMarketFriday
Kelly Balarie for #RaRaLinkUp
God is indeed good. It can be so easy to forget that. Self care is so important. Something I'm thankful Seminary engrained in us. Praying for you sweet friend. Love you! I'm in the 6 spot this week.
ReplyDeletePraying for you this weekend/next week as well, friend! xoxo
DeleteAwe friend. This is so good. God has a way of getting our attention, doesn't He? So thankful to hear your eyes are healing. Love and hugs!
ReplyDeleteMe, too! I even wrote AND painted today! #TakingNothingForGranted
DeleteWhy is it so stinkin' hard for us to truly rest? Why does it feel so like defeat - even when we know better than to think that way? Last year I ran myself into a brick wall. Physically, mentally, emotionally. All the going - all the planning, organizing, and creating - and all the pouring out. I knew I needed a break and eventually I took one but I had NO IDEA how much I needed it! When I stopped in December, the adrenaline just stopped and stopped hard. I'm still recovering. I have to be so intentional about not planning too much. There's just so much good stuff to be done! Right? And then there's this false guilt that seems to hang around when I say "no" to things I know I could do to help. Argh! But I feel the limits and I'm trying to be obedient. Thanks so much, friend, for this reminder and for letting me know that I'm not alone in this struggle right now! Praying for your eyes to continue to heal and for you to embrace the "new" ♥
ReplyDeleteHugs,
Lori
Oh my friend... you are SO not alone! So glad you stopped by and --yet again, as always-- found a kindred heart here! God bless the internets, right? lol!
DeleteI needed this reminder to rest, not just my body, but my mind and spirit. I need to re-establish my habit of spending time with God first thing in the morning and learn to be still and listen to Him. Glad you are feeling better. Blessings to you, Karrilee! xo I'm your neighbor at #Glimpses.
ReplyDeleteIt's amazing how often we need to be reminded of Truths that we know, isn't it? I'm so glad you stopped by and found what you needed... and thank you for your prayers! I'm happy to be feeling better, as well! xoxo
DeleteCan I scold you just a little? For the past year: new church, new leadership, death in family, Dad not well, new baby, new relationships, and then I could put those on repeat. YOU KNOW how you are wired Ms K...and suddenly you thought you could defy that wiring and go be superwoman. The One who wired you, your Beloved, put out a few Yield signs...but then He had to put up a great big STOP sign. It is my hope and prayer you have yielded, stopped, and learned. And, I hope you still love me for saying this. xo
ReplyDeleteLOL! of COURSE I still love you! And I agree... last year was a long, hard season - but I promise you I was not trying to be superwoman! I was simply surviving! We leaned in and prayed and we laid down what we could and let go what was necessary and yet -the season of surviving day by day went on. I am happy to report that it seems we are on the other side of it and we have learned and yielded! And you can scold me anytime you think I may need it! I seem to know Truth and still forget it every once in awhile! xoxo
DeleteDear Karrilee,
ReplyDeleteOh, I can so relate to what you are saying! I have been in this place of "BE STILL" for quite a while now. And, while I don't understand everything He is doing, I do know that He is not still, and He is working in these hidden places. I just heard that song, "Velveteen" this week, and it's been on repeat here! I love it! Thank you for sharing from your heart. I have been keeping you in my prayers!
Thanks so much, Bettie... for the kindredness and company, and for the love and prayers! Praying for you, as well! We are both Becoming, as Velveteen says! xoxo
DeleteGod always gets our attention doesn't He? He got mine for 60 days straight, and how I wrestled during that time of stepping away. But this side of it, I feel refreshed and can't wait for my "down-time." Reading this post took me back to a scene in The Shack where the main character's responsibility was just to "hang-out" with Jesus, and the rest portrayed in that scene is a vivid reminder to me. Your words are always so rich Karrilee! Hope you are feeling so much better! Hugs, Crystal
ReplyDeleteThanks so much, Crystal! Know that I noticed you were away and prayed for you often! So glad He is smarter than we are and He calls us to Come Away with Him for Rest and Refreshing --even if/when we don't think we need it! Happy Easter weekend, sweet friend!
Delete