by Cathy Baker | Faith |
Living a meaningful life is a worthy pursuit, wouldn’t you say? But exactly how does one define “meaningful”? For me, it goes something like this: Embracing the eternal {God, relationships, the gospel} so tightly, so fully, that the temporal {“stuff”, foolish arguments, stepped-on-toes} are gasping for air.
The desire to live more intentionally was the catalyst for a recent change — a reset if you will. Before making our move toward mountain views, life had begun to feel frantic. Deadlines, to-do’s, self-inflicted pressure, etc. Oh, and let’s not forget the bumper-to-bumper traffic just outside our front door⎯all culminating to create one frazzled female.
It was there, in the midst of chaos, that I sensed God telling me to focus more on living and less on writing. Not that my writing needed to decrease but rather, take its proper placement in my life. While I believe writing is a calling God has given me, I am certain it is not my only {or most important} calling. Now that we live closer to one set of grandchildren, I want to be available as much as possible for them. I also want to be available for family, friends, and neighbors, including my drop-by buddy of 20+ years, Becky {who now lives only two doors up the road!}. It feels good and right when I joyfully set aside writing to spend time with her when she drops by for an afternoon visit.
Before our move, I had a tendency to see most things as an interruption {sigh} when writing. It’s an embarrassing admission but embracing the eternal⎯living a more meaningful life⎯includes cultivating a teachable, pliable heart/mind, a willingness to not only face what the Spirit reveals but to also move forward {in His power} to turn in a different direction. And to turn in a different direction, one must slow down.
Few things in life feel slow especially if you’re a mother of young children or scurrying to build a career or a dozen other reasons. But I believe there are a few things we can do to slow down our inner pace in order to hold this God-given life in reverential awe:
- Before the feet hit the floor, spend a few moments thanking God for the gift of sleep. Sometimes I also pray that God will help me be attentive to the eternal, meaningful things that day, and to release the rest. Because if you’re like me, you can sometimes take on things that are good {church work, helping at your children’s school, etc.} but perhaps they’re not the best choice for that particular day. Only God knows so staying open to His will automatically helps us to move through our day with more intention.
- Schedule “rest stops” throughout your day. Many of us grew up believing that if we weren’t always doing something then we weren’t achieving anything. Wrong. Statistics show that those who choose to take brief respites in the form of a mini-nap, a savored cup of tea, or simply pausing to listen to instrumental music, are ultimately more rested and creative than those who choose to treat life more like a treadmill.
- Harness the power of silence. Turn off the radio in your car when you’re driving. If it’s terribly uncomfortable, start with just a minute or two. Or escape to the bathroom {or better yet, the bathtub!}, take a walk around the block, curl up with a captivating novel. Learning to embrace silence is a gift we give to ourselves and ultimately, to others.
Learning to live a more meaningful life can fuel our calling {or callings}. It is choosing to live from the abundance of life rather than settling for the leftovers.
What does living a meaningful life mean to you? Do share!
I pray that you and yours will have a blessed Thanksgiving. Know this: I am ever so thankful for you!
by Cathy Baker | Faith, Home |
Our hilltop barn.
I didn’t plan to be away so long.
When I went away on our family beach vacation in early September I fully expected to return to blogging the following week. This, despite the fact we had only a handful of days to pack our life up in brown paper boxes, close on two houses, and move to our new place in the foothills of the mountains, almost an hour away. But that’s not what happened.
My time away from blogging, however, allowed me to clearly see certain things that were once clouded by chaos.
Four {Life-Changing} Lessons Learned from Our Move:
It’s not what we hold in our hands that will leave the legacy, but rather, what we hold in our hearts. While packing, I came across a dozen Precept workbooks where I’d marked up words, pages, made extra notes, etc. They represented studies that quite literally changed my life. It was through Precept years ago that I learned about the Bible, and more importantly, where I learned to love the God of the Bible. (Thank you, Kay Chandler and Kay Arthur). My initial thought was to keep them so that my grandchildren and great-grands would one day be able to read them and know they had a grandmother who loved the Lord with all of her heart, in spite of her pre-Christ choices. It wasn’t until I began sliding the tape over the seams, that the Holy Spirit reminded me that future generations would not be convinced of my love for God by seeing what I did, or even what I knew. They will know that their grandmother loved God by how she lived (imperfect but intentional) and the choices she made birthed from that kind of love.
Community. It’s a beautiful thing. Moving supplies passed on from long-time friends (our daughter-in-law’s parents!). Two vintage metal gliders delivered to my mom’s house. Another glider and two children’s car seats temporarily housed at my bestest buddy, Teresa’s, house. Brian’s musical instruments (including an upright bass) along with umpteen boxes of vintage LP’s, landed in the living room of Beth Saadati’s dad’s house. (Gary was even gracious enough to open his home to us if we’d needed a place to stay between houses. Gentle hearts and spirits run in this family.) Zach recruited friends from college to help in the move and one of Brian’s friends, whom he’d not seen in awhile, simply volunteered his Saturday morning to help. People who are a long-standing part of our “community” via family ties, friendships, and various churches, all came together at different times and in different ways to help us. We remain humbled and eternally grateful.
Releasing “stuff” isn’t just a step in the right direction, it’s a delightful destination. In the past, I’ve hauled stuff from place to place vowing to one day figure out what I really needed to keep. Not this time! For the most part, I went piece-by-piece evaluating if I would use it. I asked myself what my first reaction would be to the item when unpacking it on the other side. If there was the least bit of hesitation, it didn’t make the cut. I also asked myself if I would purchase it again. If not, why would I want to keep it now? I even released some sentimental things which proved to be the hardest part for me. But I knew if my relatives in heaven could speak to me, knowing what they know in heaven, they’d scream from the top of their lungs, “Let it go! It’s so temporal!” While I kept a few things that meant the most to me I took a picture of the things I didn’t keep and felt pure delight in knowing those things I couldn’t use would now be a blessing to others.
Jesus is in the details, not the devil. I’ll elaborate more on this in future posts but I marvel at the ways God led us to our new place. Honestly, it’s not a place, house-wise, I probably would’ve chosen were it not for the land, views, etc., but that too is part of the beautiful plan for Willoughby Way (the name we’ve given our place on the hill). I look forward to sharing more details, along with “before” and “after” pictures in the near future.
Can you relate to any of the above lessons learned during a move? If so, please share in the comment section. I’d love to hear from you and there is no doubt it will encourage others. Thank you!
by Cathy Baker | Faith, Home |
Maybe it’s the sentimental clutter crying for relief in my attic. Or perhaps it’s the upcoming move signaling a fresh start. Point is, Joshua Becker’s latest release, “The More of Less…Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own” left me questioning what spiritual clutter might be discovered beneath my sentiment-driven, what-if-I-need-this-some-day, because-two-of-something-is-always-better-than-one kind of debris.
My desire to tuck away pretty things began at an early age. As an eight-year-old, I hid a true blue Easter egg in my headboard bookshelf. Why? Because I wanted to know it would be there when I felt the need to gaze at beauty for a moment. It didn’t take long to figure out that even beautiful things eventually decay…and reek.
It wasn’t, however, until I was in my thirties purchasing Beanie Babies {Did I really just admit that?} for no apparent reason that I began realizing there was more to those purchases than a fuzzy little feel good. Thankfully, they ended up in the hands of children in an overseas orphanage but unfortunately that was not the “why” behind the purchases years prior.
Those are just two snapshots from my past but even today when I find myself aimlessly wandering up and down the aisles of Target I have to ask myself the “why” question. I don’t want to subconsciously find peace and, dare I say, joy, in all the wrong clearance spaces.
Joshua’s latest release, “The More of Less” is a daily tool in my back pocket. The pages hold clear and concise wisdom, less a beating. The tone is conversational, friendly. It’s an easy but enlightening read, to say the least.
Snippets from The More of Less, some paraphrased:
- Minimalism: the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from them.
- The beauty of minimalism isn’t in what it takes away. The beauty and the full potential of minimalism lie in what it gives.
- Decluttering will help you clarify your purpose and values.
- Remember, the goal of minimalism is to unburden our lives so we can accomplish more.
- In the end, your particular practice of minimalism is going to look different from that of everyone else because your life is different from that of everyone else. You may have a large family, a small family, or no family. You may live on a farm, in a house, or in a studio apartment. You love music, movies, sports, or books. You practice art, or maybe you don’t. Maybe you believe you were put on this earth to host beautiful dinner parties or offer your home as a place of respite and retreat for others. Follow your passions to the best of your ability with the resources you possess. Fulfill your purpose with great focus by removing the distractions keeping you from it. And find a style of minimalism that works for you, one that is not cumbersome but freeing.
- The more you believe you are not influenced by advertisements, the better they have done their job.
- Generous people have less desire for more. They find fulfillment, meaning, and value outside of the acquisition of possessions.
{Told you it was good!}
As I clear out the physical clutter in preparation for the move, a subtle, more insidious kind of clutter lies in wait. I find evidence of mindless shopping. Clothes with fancy tags but little wear. Books that wouldn’t be read anytime soon but bought because I refused to deny the rush of happiness that surged through my veins. Misplaced values and unhealthy dependencies now made visible because I {finally} took the time to look at the “why” behind the purchases.
Peeling back the motives behind our “stuff” allows us to discover not only what we value but also where we find it.
Although you may have enjoyed a large house in the suburbs with the accompanying comforts of life in the past, perhaps now you are thinking more about the value of experiences over possessions. Maybe you are more focused on leaving a legacy than adding to a pile of possessions. {To the Baby Boomers, like me.}
Did a particular excerpt from Joshua’s book resonate with your current circumstances? If so, please share in the comment box. It’s always nice knowing we’re not alone.
Amazon: The More of Less, by Joshua Becker
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by Cathy Baker | Faith |
Waiting. In line. In the waiting room. For the results. On the pain to pass. To hear God answer our prayers. To see our prodigal come home. To be in love. For Fall, or for vacation, or retirement.
“Patience is not simply the ability to wait – it’s how we behave while we’re waiting.” Joyce Meyer
Notice the title of this post is written in the present tense. I don’t have this waiting thing licked. I write with bare-skinned knees from flat-faced falls and carry band-aids in my pocket for future ones. But as a daughter of the King I’m confident there will be no lasting scars. Still, the process of waiting remains, and I have much to learn. Here are a few things I’ve picked up so far:
1. Misguided Expectations Eat Your Lunch and Devour Your Dessert Too.
In recent months, four friends sold their homes within 24-48 hours. When ours recently hit the market, I expected no less. So when no one called within the first several hours I was convinced something was wrong with the phone. I didn’t realize how much I’d allowed my expectations to get out of whack until I found myself in quite the funk…for days.
I confess my unbelief because, well, that’s exactly what it was⏤not believing what God has for us was His absolute best, regardless of the wait. And then I came across this post, {Above all, Trust in the Slow Work of God}, by Shawn Smucker, featured on Emily P. Freeman’s site. To me, it was a simple nod of acknowledgment from my Heavenly Father saying He is with us in the waiting room. We wait, God works.
For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
neither are your ways my ways,”
declares the Lord.
“As the heavens are higher than the earth,
so are my ways higher than your ways and
my thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8,9
2. There’s a temptation to devour anything more than the Word.
Do you spot a pattern here? First, there’s talk of devouring desserts and now this. I wish this was a good thing, but it’s not, at least for me. There was no longer any doubt that I was an emotional eater during our wait. Stress must weigh in around 500 calories per bite. Sigh.
My indulgences⏤my dependency⏤are to be in the Word and I failed miserably. Truth finally gained traction as I clung to grace and mercy around every bend of my wayward ways.
When your words came, I ate them; they were my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, LORD God Almighty. Jeremiah 15:16
3. God isn’t a game player. He is a game-changer.
He doesn’t toy with our lives or with His time. Every breath is heavy with purpose. Being confident of this in the wait ushers in inexpressible peace. Everything God does in the lives of His children is motivated, spurred on, and poured out from a heart of love. Even His discipline is motivated by love. There’s no escaping it! He isn’t a God of love. He is love. In this, we can trust…and rest.
Anyone who does not love does not know God because God is love. 1 John 4:8
No doubt there will be other lessons to learn in this waiting room of life. But I pray I’ll be found faithful, not consumed by circumstances but by the One who is sovereignly at work behind every word, spoken or unspoken, and deed.
Heavenly Father,
You are the designer of the waiting rooms we find ourselves in today.
The walls seem high, but You are higher.
The floor shifts at times, but You are our Rock.
The chairs, they confine us when all we want to do is run
but instead, we trust.
You alone know the precise moment in which to open the door and call our name.
It’s not a moment too late or too soon.
It is perfect timing
because Your love is perfect.
Help us to awaken every morning with a whisper of gratefulness on our lips,
and a heart bursting with anticipation,
confident that You are at work
while we wait.
Amen.
Are you in a time of waiting? If so, do any of the above observations resonate? Or do you have a different observation to share?
by Cathy Baker | Faith |
My story. // Fragmented family. // Young bride. // Two boys born here on earth, one in heaven. // Divorced. Twice. Single mom. // Came face-to-face with Jesus in a duplex. // Returned to church. My grandmother’s church. A New Beginning’s Class. // Met my husband of 25+ years. // Gained two God-glorifying daughter-in-laws. // Chosen to be the grammy to four future foes of the enemy. // Surrounded by fellow warriors, aka, friends. // Praying. // Hoping. // Watching. // Believing. // The beginning. // The end. // The in-between.
A new song. Psalm 40.3 // Unto God. // My Rescuer. // My Redeemer. // My shame-bearer. // My Conquerer. // My Joy. // My Grantor of Grace. Abundant. Fresh. Mercy. // Singing for my Pappa God. // My forever song.
Inhaling. // Working. // Playing. // In Traffic. // In Target. // Daydreaming. // Praying. // Loving. // Serving. // Coffee. // What is Said. // What Remains Unspoken. // Exhaling.
-Blessed Assurance, Frances J. Crosby, 1873.
This is a snapshot of my story. What’s one or two words that you would insert below one of the above verses to describe yours?
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by Cathy Baker | Faith, Writing |
I love quotes. And they love me. Pithy, thought-provoking…it’s all there. So in the midst of this blazing summer heat, I thought I’d offer refreshment in the form of a fistful of favorites. In addition, you’ll find a quick sip of thoughts. As you read the following five quotes, is there one in particular that resonates with you?
So how do we fuel the curiosity within us? One way is through play. Who says adults have outgrown a playground or that our playground must consist of a slide and a swing? I admit that I’ve not always been good at playing as an adult. In fact, I’m still working on it. But playing, whether it’s through a sports activity, dancing free-form when no one can see you {cue 70’s music}, or simply daydreaming, it empowers us to be creative, free-thinkers, and more flexible.
Self-doubt is a danger to creativity. But more importantly, it’s a danger to our souls. Our testimonies. Our calling. When I began attending the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference I found my validation as a writer in receiving awards. I’d never won anything as an adult. So each time I heard my name called and the roar of applause that followed, I felt a little more like a “real” writer. I know now that my worth — as a wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, friend, and writer, must be grounded only in the person of Jesus Christ. He alone is where we find our confidence. When we rest in this truth, self-doubt quietly slithers away.
Oh boy! I’m still not sure what to think about this quote but I couldn’t exclude it. It was just too darn intriguing. Maybe it’s the term ‘stealing’ that leaves me unsettled. Edie Melson and Vonda Skelton, who led our writer’s group for years, often reminded us that there is nothing new under the sun. I don’t know about you, but that’s a relief. I used to beat myself up because I couldn’t think of something to write about that no one else had already written. Now I know that my inspiration and perspective are unique…and so are yours. I pray the Lord will open our spiritual eyes as we anticipate fresh insight from Him, even on the most hum-drum of days.
Don’t you find this to be true? I learned this while participating in the 31 Days Blog Challenge a couple of years ago. The challenge? Choose a theme and dedicate 31 consecutive days {October} to blogging on that subject. I thought for sure I’d run out of ideas within the first three days. What I discovered, however, was quite the opposite. Creativity was at every turn! Thoughts came quicker and from unexpected places.
My heart’s desire: to take what God has made and shape it and use it to make Him look great. For He is worthy! How about you?
Now it’s your turn! Was there a quote or thought you especially resonated with today? Please share. I’d love to know.
If you like what you read here, please consider subscribing to my blog. It only takes a moment to insert your email address in the right-hand column under “Get Updates” and by doing so, a NEW bi-weekly post will automatically land in your inbox. You can unsubscribe at any time. Thank you for spending time with me today. I count it a privilege.
Living a meaningful life is a worthy pursuit, wouldn’t you say? But exactly how does one define “meaningful”? For me, it goes something like this: Embracing the eternal {God, relationships, the gospel} so tightly, so fully, that the temporal {“stuff”, foolish arguments, stepped-on-toes} are gasping for air.
Few things in life feel slow especially if you’re a mother of young children or scurrying to build a career or a dozen other reasons. But I believe there are a few things we can do to slow down our inner pace in order to hold this God-given life in reverential awe:
Maybe it’s the sentimental clutter crying for relief in my attic. Or perhaps it’s the upcoming move signaling a fresh start. Point is, Joshua Becker’s latest release, “The More of Less…Finding the Life You Want Under Everything You Own” left me questioning what spiritual clutter might be discovered beneath my sentiment-driven, what-if-I-need-this-some-day, because-two-of-something-is-always-better-than-one kind of debris.
As I clear out the physical clutter in preparation for the move, a subtle, more insidious kind of clutter lies in wait. I find evidence of mindless shopping. Clothes with fancy tags but little wear. Books that wouldn’t be read anytime soon but bought because I refused to deny the rush of happiness that surged through my veins. Misplaced values and unhealthy dependencies now made visible because I {finally} took the time to look at the “why” behind the purchases.
My story. // Fragmented family. // Young bride. // Two boys born here on earth, one in heaven. // Divorced. Twice. Single mom. // Came face-to-face with Jesus in a duplex. // Returned to church. My grandmother’s church. A New Beginning’s Class. // Met my husband of 25+ years. // Gained two God-glorifying daughter-in-laws. // Chosen to be the grammy to four future foes of the enemy. // Surrounded by fellow warriors, aka, friends. // Praying. // Hoping. // Watching. // Believing. // The beginning. // The end. // The in-between.
A new song. Psalm 40.3 // Unto God. // My Rescuer. // My Redeemer. // My shame-bearer. // My Conquerer. // My Joy. // My Grantor of Grace. Abundant. Fresh. Mercy. // Singing for my Pappa God. // My forever song.
Inhaling. // Working. // Playing. // In Traffic. // In Target. // Daydreaming. // Praying. // Loving. // Serving. // Coffee. // What is Said. // What Remains Unspoken. // Exhaling.
Self-doubt is a danger to creativity. But more importantly, it’s a danger to our souls. Our testimonies. Our calling. When I began attending the Blue Ridge Mountains Christian Writer’s Conference I found my validation as a writer in receiving awards. I’d never won anything as an adult. So each time I heard my name called and the roar of applause that followed, I felt a little more like a “real” writer. I know now that my worth — as a wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, friend, and writer, must be grounded only in the person of Jesus Christ. He alone is where we find our confidence. When we rest in this truth, self-doubt quietly slithers away.
