Tag Archives: relax

Step Back

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Some thoughts from the last few days:

What if every morning I just prayed and said to God, “I’m stepping back, God.  You’re in charge of my schedule, my encounters with other people, my words, my behavior, my safety or lack thereof, my thoughts, everything.”  What amazing things would I experience?  What freedom!  I know I still have plans and schedules, but to release it all to God first thing and remember that His plans are best.  Those are the ones I want.

My sis and I were “talking” through email about this and she had these wise words for me, “Jesus just moved through his day and touched and taught as he went along.  …He was on his way to heal a man’s sick (actually dead) daughter and the sick woman touched his robe.  He stopped briefly and she was healed (ok, her life was changed and it took him like 2 seconds) and then he went on where he was going!  He just allowed life to happen and he worked in the situations that presented themselves.  For whatever reason, ok the Holy Spirit, it was suddenly so clear to me that with Jesus as our example, that is what God wants us to do, too.”

to doSo true!  We tend to be goal-oriented, task-driven people focused on the end of the race as our goal when our goal should really be all the stuff in between, the day to day running, the pressing on, the scenery along that day’s path, the little moments when we see our big God at work in and through us.

I’m going to pray as I walk/jog in the mornings that God will let me relax back into all that He is and just be carried along through the day by Him.  Total trust.  Total surrender.  Total peace, too.  I’m going to just step back.

We can make our plans,
but the Lord determines our steps.   Proverbs 16:9

Day Two

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lakesideWe woke to a beautiful, sunny day and once everyone got dressed and had some of Grandma’s eggs and sausage, we headed to the nearby lake to take a walk/jog.   I’m coveting this lake and the walking path right along the edge for several miles.  It was so pleasant to walk and jog along the twisting path underneath big shade trees, with the lake breeze blowing.  Ahhhh.

The girls and I went to Chili’s for lunch then Target and Barnes & Noble, before coming back to the house.  We all had yummy grilled chicken and pasta salad for dinner and then watched “The Knowing” with Nicholas Cage.  It’s a very interesting, albeit weird, movie.  I liked it – very thought provoking in parts.   Is our existence something that was planned or just a result of a string of amazingly coincidental cosmic accidents?   What would I do if I knew the end of my life was supposed to happen on a certain day in the near future?   Would that change the way I live?  Most definitely.  The truth is, we are all on the path to death (in our human bodies) and none of us know when.  The cliche of always living as if it were your last day kept coming to mind while we watched.  That’s actually not a bad idea!  The movie didn’t meet the “Mimi’s happy ending” preference, but I think it was worth watching.

It was fun to have a day when we could just do as we pleased.  That’s true vacation in my book – not a lot of plans, just time to “be”.  It’s actually been freeing to not have our phones or facebook.  I feel like we’re all present more in the time together and conversation here.  It’s peaceful.  It was a little crazy when the girls and I were out and we had no cell phone.  I thought, “What if we get turned around or lost?”  But then I realized I could go old school and use a pay phone or ask someone for directions.   You know, I existed happily before I had my cell phone, I just forgot what it was like.

I think it’s time to go sit somewhere and read.  Ahhhhh….