Seeds

Seeds are crazy little things. It blows my mind how the tiniest of acorns can grow into a mighty tree. All you have to do is drop into good soil, add water, and wait.

There is so much information and potential contained in this little package. 

There are so many lessons to be learned from seeds- Jesus taught many. Lately I've been caught up with the idea of how we "plant" seeds.  As we share truths about God and the gospel we are planting seeds. Heck, even when we tell ourselves lies we plant seeds. Everything is a seed, just not everything grows. What are you watering? What are you putting more focus and energy into?

When you plan seeds as in for a garden, you put a few in the hole and thin them out later. The glory isn't to what specific seed grew but to the "fruit" and harvest that will be produced. It's not about the glory of the seed itself or the planter but about the glory of the harvest. 

Jesus teaches all these things, Paul reinforces them, and I'm just amazed at how much they have to teach me. 

Why did God make mosquitoes?!

This is one of the top questions my dad says he is going to ask God one day... along with "who actually shot JFK?" and some others, ha. I know God has purpose and intent behind everything He did. He had purpose and design for his creation as He created it.  BUT what blows my mind is He even had purpose and design to how it would still work after the fall. 

I do not know what the initial purpose of the mosquito was... maybe some kind of pollination? Who knows...What I do know now though is it is summer and they are coming out to disturb my front porch sitting and outdoor yard hangouts. The bites are obnoxious and itchy. I am grateful we are in a place where we do not have to fear the diseases they could be transmitting on top of the annoyance. But still... they are pesky little things.

Some pieces I started to put together are:

• there was no sacrifice of blood until after the fall
• mosquitos suck blood
• blood usually symbolizes life
• here where we have four defined seasons, mosquitoes are mainly out in summer
• summer is a season typically of growth into harvest.

Now what I think when I see mosquitos I will remember this. Part of God's design in using them is as a reminder there are forces out there trying to steal our lifeblood in the midst of times of growth. May the slapping of a bug off my arm or leg be a reminder that there are literal forces out there trying to steal, kill, destroy, and rob me of the growth and life God has given me. And may the itchiness of a bite be a constant reminder of my need for the gospel and Christs' sacrifice because my lifeblood is not enough.

Ephesians 6:12- For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

Thoughts about heading back to the office....

Day one after 15 months of working from home. Phew!  Working in person is exhausting! Real talk, I felt like I had already put in at least half a day by the time I arrived. And that was simply between getting everything done I needed to before leaving (trash cans, watering the plants, not hitting the snooze button, morning prayer walk and reading my passages for the day), dealing with the crazy drivers and traffic driving to work, and cleaning up the yogurt juice that spilled on my mat driving in. I was ready for a nap at 10:30 am.

I am so lucky and grateful that I even had the opportunity to have the luxury and precaution of working form home during the pandemic. Thanks to a great IT department , supportive company, and being able to even afford internet/etc. I am so glad my family stayed safe during all this time. It is an absolute blessing and privilege that we were able to get vaccinated as people in other countries are having new waves of COVID. I have been thanking God for all those things that were answers to prayers early on.

But it was also such a unique opportunity I am grateful to have had learning about and growing in myself. It felt like every three months there were huge changes and shifts. God was so kind to help hit the "reset" button for me. He introduced me to people and groups at the exact right moment. God used them to call out things in me that I had forgotten were there... things I had let gather dust because they were not appreciated where I was. Things I am good at and actually enjoy. God used them to grow me towards a deeper awareness of my understanding of me, my feelings and emotions. God helped point me back to Him in it all with the reminder that he designed me on purpose with specific gifts and to seek him, not the "American dream" as my guide map for how to use them. They are for His glory, not mine. He has done sooo much work in this time, I am both amazed but see how much I still have to grow. 

I think I have learned I thrive working from home. I guess that is a thing? It isn't that I don't like seeing people. I am just way better at keeping myself focused and disciplined on work on my own and developing a healthy balance between work and life as a result. People around me are always going to be distractions- I want to listen to what they are saying... maybe join in... figure out what to join in on and what not to...  I built a little community here that I loved. A routine that I loved. On day one I already miss Eddie the mailman... my Dunkin' girls... waving to neighbors on my lunch stroll... seeing out the window what family member is visiting my neighbor... 

There are good things no matter where I am. There are opportunities to glorify God. This is a new chance to develop rhythms and patterns that focus around his glory from the get go. I don't know where this is all going... but I just know it was a much bigger shift than I expected!  Here we go.