Wouldn't it be great to look into each day, as the morning breaks, without a care or a worry. Just to see before us the expanse of potential that will both enliven and excite us as we wend the course of old trails less trod and new ones yet to become an adventure. There is little of that I fear, in this day and age. I do have friends, perhaps more than I know of, who take the time to go on daily walk-about and both taste the goodness of life surrounding them and record the moments to be enjoyed later on, or for others, who are the seekers and watchers from afar.
It would seem in this busy life that many more are watching the timelines, trying to catch the moments in a more scheduled style as they meet personal deadlines, get themselves and even more-so the children, off to school, to daycare centers and then after school programs, as they strive after the elusive all round lifestyle and foundation for themselves and their children's futures. We hear chanted the latest and greatest of products that will expand our time away from cleaning kitchens and households, to healthcare products now so greatly improved that the old products seem dim in comparison. We are being told from every side that we can improve life, expand horizons and even reduce our debt loads by buying more now by borrowing against our futures. I sometimes watch it all go by and wonder who we have become and how we have fallen so enamored with the newest, latest and greatest, while leaving behind the old faithfuls, the tried and true means by which generations have survived. I heard a person in a conversation echoing much frustration and fatigue with life expounding on technology at all levels of personal and home use... "They come out with a new product and tomorrow it is old technology... there is no keeping up with it all!" And everyone has bought into the game... well, I should not be too inclusive... "some" have not!
The time when life was a more carefree style of living is past. Oh, but wait a moment. Was it ever? My grandparents lived a hard life with minimal existence through the tough years of the depression. Jobs were hard to find, food was sought from the land and health, warmth and security were sometimes another elusive pursuit. Gosh, maybe we have just changed standards and experiences. Could it be that every generation has challenges that they must face and doing so are put under stresses that must be dealt with or the price paid with family deterioration and personal demise. More than one person has succumbed to poor health and loss of life due to stresses and poor lifestyle ... and they still do... all over the world. For us here in this more stable society of N.A. culture, we see more affluence in life, than the effluence of life in the constant tribulation for the poor and forgotten of this world. To see this first hand, it is hard to realize that we can not just give, we must teach, train and assist when and where invited. My words to the poor villages of India in my visits have echoed through mission for years; "Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day; teach a man to fish and he can feed himself and his family for a lifetime!" Easily spoken, but difficult to always translate into the needs as seen through the eyes of the continually poor. I digress!
There is so much in life that we take for granted. Each day we survey those potentials which are, the prospects, challenges, the hopes and dreams which make up the daily route along life being lived. This is the stuff of living, it is to be expected and when the unexpected comes it tends to unravel us. Yes, a good old fashioned term that still holds its meaning and power of description today. Little can be done about those moments. All the preparation in the world can not prepare us for life challenging episodes and none of us are immune to one or some in our lifetimes. I have experienced such episodes in the drama of my own life. I have watched others too many times go through their own dramas and felt their pain of distress and uncertainty. To love and care will often lead us into waters not so placid and surround us with cataracts and undertows that dismantle the assurance of fine living and personal preparation. What we do then, is the challenge that most of us would rather not consider. Yet, this too is a part of living.
So what about today. What is going on with life that brings me here to this topic of indecision? Well, it is a number of things, all of which could be better or worse, depending on the caption in the comic section of life. We go with the captions don't we? I try to provide the captions along with photo journals which will best direct those who follow our renovations, family escapades and travel, with a more humorous perspective of what is taking place. Not everyone follows the statements, but it is amazing how many do and will comment back with delightful retorts of all kinds. Some remain undecided I am sure and will just mull over in their minds the prospects of what might have happened over against what actually did take place. Today I am in that category... the undecided. A challenge is afoot and not only the what, but the hows are making inroads into my psyche and deciding how to deal with the "the stuff" of life is once again at my heels. I know only these thing for sure... God has not changed and He will see us through whatever come our way... He always has!
For those of you who take time to read my blog, this is one of the times when I am both confronted by uncertainty and yet am also comforted by the knowledge that as trials come so does prayer increase. I am certain that God is looking after all the cares we have. I am sure that He loves us more than we know and I am depending on both God and His people to lift us up through prayer for just a while, as we walk the uncertainties of life just now. Are there decisions to be made?... sure there are... there always will be. Are we going to make them all at once?... not likely. We will meet the challenges one at a time... if they become more real than imagined. Here is the key. Lord help us find You present in all that life brings. Help us to lean on You for in our weakness and fear, there are moments when You must carry us once again. Lord, take away all that causes worry and fear and plant Your healing power upon our bodies and hearts this day... as we live near the edge in these moments and help us to remember Lord... it is all about our perspective from here.
