Salt Life

Buckle up!

It's been almost a year since my last post and much has happened in that time, obviously...that's a lot of weeks!

I won't bore you with the gritty details, but suffice it to say, change has been the theme of our lives this past year. Proof of that is the fact that my small, close-knit family is now dispersed across the eastern seaboard, including my oldest son who is currently at Parris Island. As I type these words I am writing from a new desk, in a new house, in a new neighborhood in our new home town which happens to be in a totally different state than Florida.

As if those changes weren't enough for a person, my father had open-heart surgery, my grandmother passed into eternity and my husband took a position at a new church as an executive pastor! Whew, that's a lot to process!

When I think of change I'm reminded of rollercoasters. I recently took a trip on one called the Intimidator & yes, it was intimidating! I actually feared for my life! Why is that, though? I was safely secured in the seat, locked in tight. I even asked the attendant if they'd ever lost anyone and of course, they hadn't. Common sense told me I would survive and according to the faces of most of those who'd ridden before me, I could even enjoy the ride.

Just when I started feeling better about things, my seat, which happened to be in the first car, started moving up a steep incline that seemed to me higher than the Empire state building! The closer we got to the top, the more my stomach churned. Time dragged and anxiety increased until finally I found myself being fiercely pulled straight down an almost endless slope. For over two miles I was at the mercy of this metal rocket! Each twist& turn sent me to near tears and audible prayers to Jesus continually flowed from my mouth. By the end of the ride, I was completely spent, jittering with relief that it was over! To my honest surprise, I was safe, unharmed, and able to laugh about my adventure.

That's how life feels to me sometimes. A series of twists and turns which I have no control over. I often get myself so worked up over the many changes coming at me that I become irrational, behaving in a sense like I did on that crazy roller coaster! But that's okay with God. As long as I stay strapped & buckled in to His protection, I'll come out the other side and maybe even smiling.

In Psalm 55 David is dealing with some fears of his own..."my heart is severely pained within me, and the terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling have come upon me, and horror has overwhelmed me..." I'd say he was a bit overwhelmed & irrational in his thinking, wouldn't you? But he doesn't allow himself to stay there. He talks it out with the Lord and eventually comes to his senses by standing on the truth ..."cast your burden on the Lord, and he shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved."

God doesn't rebuke David for his honesty. He gently reminds him of the truth. In a sense God says, "tell me all about it, you'll feel a lot better in the end and, by the way, you're under my protection, so don't worry."

That truth has given me courage over the years to face the many changes that are standard in life. Knowing I'm tightly secured in the safety belt of His protection & care, I take a deep breath, close my eyes, say a prayer and wait for the outcome. In the end I always survive, and most times I even end up enjoying parts of it!

posted by Kushmama @ 10:07 AM