Saturday, July 22, 2006

Breaks

I sat on my back porch yesterday morning and listened to the rain gently falling. The quiet and the coolness were such a welcome relief from the heat wave we've been having. It was such a nice break from the stress of life, a break from insurance quotes and mortgages and laundry and bickering kids and messy rooms and projects that never seem to get done.

Later I enjoyed lunch with a friend and our whole gang stayed up until 1:AM reveling in the company of another family. As I went to bed, the same thought came to me. What a nice break.

But what if I'm looking at it all wrong? What if it's the other way around? What if the stresses of this world are the real "break"? Am I letting the BUSINESS of life break me away from the JOYS of my life? My existence does not consist of tasks and bills and appointments. Why do I let it be defined that way?

"The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full." (John 10:10)

It's a good trick, don't you think? The devil's got us all thinking backwards. I know it will take some practice, but today I'm going to view the good things in life as my life. The "breaks" will be the things that stress me out and I'll try not to take too many of those. I want to ENJOY my life.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a different way to view things. You've really got me thinking on this one. How different would my life be if I didn't let the Devil switch things around on me? What if the stressors are breaks. Hmm...Interesting, interesting...

Kara Bird said...

LOVE these thoughts! Why do we let our life be defined by the BUSINESS instead of the joys? Wow... how easily my thinking gets twisted. Great stuff to think on.

Anonymous said...

Nice blog.
Seems that Christians are full of self doubt and second guessing. They are eternally unhappy because they can't live up to God's expectations. Would this be a correct statement? Seems rather miserable to me.

Tami said...

Ryan,
What is it in this post that takes you to Christians being full of self-doubt and being miserable? I don't think Christians are more guilty than anyone else in this area. Christians may realize their shortcomings more than non-Christians, but I completely disagree that we are miserable. It is quite the opposite. We are full of hope and gratefulness because we understand Jesus covers our weaknesses and failures. Because of Him, we can be happy and not afraid of eternity. I think what you are interpreting as unhappiness is the regret Christians feel for not honoring God more by being "better". Don't mistake that as misery. We know we don't measure up, but we have hope because we can be right with God through Jesus. The whole point of this post is that we don't have to let the stress of the world get us down. God is way above it all. That should bring us happiness.

Anonymous said...

Oh Tami,
I've been reading your blog on a regular basis and hanging on every word.

Today I had to leave a comment. I too was having one of those days when I had let all the distractions of life get in the way of the people and things that truly matter to me.

I had disappointed my spouse, my beautiful children, and my Lord. I was so busy being the whirlwind, perfect, super-mom, super-employee, super-housekeeper, super-volunteer that I neglected my own well-being and they all paid the price.

My husband tells me I more than measure up in everyone's eyes but my own.

Today I vow to take a deep breath, stop and smell the roses or the rain and give thanks for the stressors in my life for there are people who aren't employed, don't have family who love them, don't have a roof over their head and those who don't know the hope and peace the Lord brings to life.

Thanks for helping me keep things in perspective!
~A long time aquaintance