Seasons

by Sharon O | Jul 27, 2010 | Uncategorized

This morning I woke up
way earlier than normal.
It is quiet and cold.
Yesterday the air conditioning felt good
the days temp was in the high 80’s.
This morning the air is cool and I need a sweater.
Reminding me how much
I love fall.

I am longing for days of coolness
flannel shirts and a fire in the fireplace.
I am by nature
not a summer person.
For a small season of time I enjoy it.
Then …
My soul needs cool days
and crispy leaves outside to step on
while the wind snaps against fall trees dying
for the season is for resting and slowing down
and going dormant.
It requires a change…and renewing a spirit that is parched from
summer days.

I love cool days
and hot tea or coffee
and a warm blanket and book.

Summer doesn’t allow that time
for hunkering down and snuggle.
Summer is about hiking and camping
and water and sand.

Fall is a time for books and stillness
and candles burning.

This morning I miss
flannel sheets
warm cocoa
and crisp fall days.

As the seasons change
so do I
Lord help me
to grow and change in a direction towards you.
Help me to be encouraging
challenging and prayerful.
As the seasons change
so do I…
do you?

A new name

by Sharon O | Jul 24, 2010 | Uncategorized

You’ll get a brand-new name
straight from the mouth of God.
You’ll be a stunning crown in the palm of God’s hand,
a jeweled gold cup held high in the hand of your God.
No more will anyone call you rejected,
and your country will no more be called Ruined.
You’ll be called Hephzibah (My Delight),
and your land Beulah (Married),
Because God delights in you… (Isaiah 62-2-4 the Message)

Can you imagine the picture with me;
you will be a crown in the palm of God’s hand.
A crown is often coveted by someone who is in competition striving for winning the price.
It is beautiful ~ shining ~ and full of great value.
That is what this verse is saying about YOU.
You… (Insert your name) will be a stunning crown in the palm of God’s hand.
That means he would hold his palm out and SEE you…
How awesome… of a thought.
You will be like a jeweled cup held high in a place of honor and delighted by God.
Can you grasp that he delights in you?
Are you getting it?
The concept is very hard to receive.
When we go through a process of growth with God we become different and renewed.
Often those who served God in the Old and New Testament received a new name to ‘symbolize’ the change in their heart and the change in their lives.
Jesus changed the names of those who he entrusted to do the finished work.
A new name… given along with a changed status and responsibility.
What a wonderful promise for us as we wait and long for a new name in Glory.
Do you wonder what your ‘new name will be as he delights in you?’

He brought me into a spacious place; he rescued me because he delighted in me. Psalm 18:19

The quiet

by Sharon O | Jul 22, 2010 | Uncategorized

“In the morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation.” Psalm 5:3

In the quiet of the morning…
the start of a new day…
There are choices to make
to walk, to read, to pray, to write, to rest more.

I am beginning to enjoy the quiet of the morning.
There is no TV, no music from the radio… nothing but quiet.

In the quiet I can hear the soft whisper of God.
In the quiet I can allow the struggles of my heart to be real.
In the quiet I can TRUST that HE who began a good work in me will complete it…
In the quiet I become new and restored.

Before the day starts in the quiet of the morning…
I wait with expectation.
Lord do your good work… teach me and show me all that I need…
to be still and KNOW that YOU are God.