Summer's Fruit

Half way through an absolutely stunning summer. 

What's special about this summer, you ask?

This one is different.
 

First day of Kindergarten/Last day of Kindergarten

 I've had my first born back in my life all day and night! Although, Tyler and I keep the kids on an early bedtime schedule to keep me sane, and so he and I can have reconnect time (i.e. popcorn and Netflix) "Don't mind the sun, kids, just pull the covers over your heads!"

We have spent our days swimming, visiting friends and family, taking late afternoon naps, watering our blossoming tomato plants and just plain enjoying each others company. It has been marvelous. Seriously, it has been blissful.

I absolutely love how our bible study on Gideon started out with the verses in the bible all dealing with summer and how it relates to where we are in whatever "season" we are in right now in our lives.

“From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near." Mark 13:8

"He who gathers in summer is a prudent son, but he who sleeps in harvest is a son who brings shame." Proverbs 10:5

In the past, I am not sure I really allowed myself to enjoy life. Yes, I do think I'm an optimist and I really try to take in moments, savoring them, but it was to the point of squeezing the life out of them!
 I was so worried I wouldn't soak it in "enough" 

I destroyed the actual peaceful, joy of the moment. 
 I also would fret during or soon after that I shouldn't be enjoying something since so-and-so is suffering right now and life's unfair. There is a place for empathy, but not to the detriment of our own lives.

Staci Coston Photography

I'm really taking to heart there are sowing times and reaping times for every single living human. And the sowing and reaping does not happen at the same time for everyone.

I'm soaking in the blissfulness of this reaping season.

It is just as important to God that we grab a hold of our summer fruits He's provided and drink in their flavors. When we do so, we are able to reach out to others from our abundance and have the energy to share and be the hands and feet for Jesus. We will also be full, ready, and rested for our own next season of sowing. 
"For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer." 1 Tim 4:4-5 (NASB)

"And people should eat and drink and enjoy the fruits of their labor, for these are gifts from God." Ecc 3:13

Much love to you all and I pray you can claim your fruits this summer!   - Bonnie

Created to Create!

I have a terrible memory. Just pitiful. I attribute part of my memory problem to being a mother. Over half of my brain power at all times is being used to ensure my children are breathing, fed and not missing. A fourth of my brain power is diverted to living in intentional joy, not succumbing to the whirlpool of grief. That leaves a measly 25% of brain power to remember appointments, people's names, grocery lists, passwords to the multitude of internet sign on thingies. (See, I can't even remember the word for "log in.")
These percentages are based on full night's rest, mind you. Anything less than nine hours of sleep and all bets are off.

So it wasn't all that surprising to me when I finally buckled down and made myself finish an entire book assigned for our writing course, only to find out I read the WRONG flipping book.
How embarrassing! Unless no one knew I did it, right? Oh no, of course, I posted in our class's Facebook group asking why the author was a lunatic (I didn't use that word, because I assumed I was too uncultured or uneducated to see the point of the rambling book, but I tried to be polite in my question about the purpose of this man's philosophy.) When the teacher asked me what page number my question was in reference to, I began to panic and scrolled back to our syllabus which listed the author's name which I had NOT read. DOH!

Gratefully, she's the kind of teacher that will laugh with me and not at me, but I kept racking* my brain as to why that silly thing happened. Yes, I was in a hurry at our public library and happy to see a book listed on the syllabus that I wouldn't have to buy without checking the author's name...but for heaven's sake the title was the same and it did have to do with how to write...I vaguely remember having Thomas with me pulling books on shelves in the non-kid-friendly section, so I was distracted...remember my brain percentages problem??
So literally the moment I realized my mistake and saw that the book was SUPPOSED to be Madeline L'Engle's "Walking on Water," I ordered it via my phone (which has my stored password for book buying purposes=dangerous.)
I've only read one chapter and I can see myself buying it in bulk and handing copies out to anyone I happen to pass by.
I have never called myself creative. Never. This writing on my blog thing I've been doing for a few years, you ask?
Nope, not creative. Necessary.

Writing is necessary to my survival of grief and life.

 

And then this writing course happened. It's like God dared me to sign up. I feel dared to try and see myself in a new way...yes, maybe even creative. Also, I feel dared to apply myself to an elusive dream I did not know I even had.
Ugh. Apply. That means spending time. Working it out. Actually, putting fingers on the keyboard, not just thinking about it everyday.
Part of me thinks: Ain't nobody got time for that!
Unless, I accept it as a calling to do so. Unless, God is asking me to be obedient and do it. Don't ask why or where it's going. Just obey. I obeyed and signed up for a course that felt out of my league. I feel blessed by it and it's opened new ideas and created new friendships that I could not have imagined.
I've told people for months...or has it been years(!) that I hear Him telling me to obey and to write. So why is it so dang hard to just obey, right away?
In Chapter one, L'Engle likens obedience to the beckoning of creating. We can accept or refuse, however "because we are made in our Creator's image, we are created to create!"
 So here He is again. Whispering the same word I've been hearing for some time now...obey.

Fine. I'll try.

I usually don't ask questions at the end of my blog posts, but in this case I'm curious and I'll try it...how do you (or did you) find the time, energy or courage to obey a calling or desire in your life?

*Wracking or Racking? Maybe it wouldn't be so hard to obey if I didn't spend so much time looking up stuff like this for one blog post!?