Whitespace for the Soul So We can Hear and See Something More

I will make a grand statement and include you in the fact that our lives can be so full.

Full of good things.  Things we do for others
Full of things pushed upon us that maybe we wouldn't choose to do or maybe we have to do because of circumstances.
Full of the mundane things that need to be done.
Full of...

When an artist paints a picture they often leave an empty space called whitespace.  Whitespace creates a place for the eye to rest as it views the picture.  It's empty.

When life is full, when there is constant activity, we really have no room to absorb the things that bring rest or soothe our soul.

How do we rest or create whitespace in the middle of all the demands and things that cry for our attention?
Our children, the little ones who need the constant physical care and the older ones who need guidance whether they want it or not. :)
Our jobs, that provides the needed income to provide for our family's needs.
Our relationships, that we want to nurture and care for.
Maybe you or a family member have a physical condition that requires a lot of doctoring and attention.
The ones who are lonely or discouraged and we want to care for them.
And the list goes on of things to do.

There is a time and place for specific time outs of rest.  Times when there's quiet and an atmosphere that refreshes our souls.

But then there are times when we need to pause, right in the middle of all the demands and to-do-lists, and quiet our hearts and inhale God's Greater Truths that refresh and upright our hearts.

So, take a moment and scroll through these pictures... Whitespace.  Space to breathe.  Breathe in  and allow them to refresh your souls...

Whitespace... creates a space where we exhale.  We let go.  And then that space can be free to see what really matters.  What really is important.

And sometimes a snow day forces you to do just that.  To let go of all the plans for that day and adjust.  To breathe in.  To reset.

It takes courage to enter a whitespace.  To let go to see something more.  Go ahead.  Be brave.
Be intentional as you go about your day to take those moments that come your way.

Breathe in.  Breathe out.
Breathe in God's peace.  Breathe out stress.
Breathe in God's love.  Breathe out those lies.
Breathe in...  Breathe out....

Seeds of Miracles and Belief

Seeds are miracles waiting to happen... is a saying I found awhile ago. And it immediately spoke to me, breathing hope. Hope.  And with hope comes anticipation.  Life buried in the dirt.

I cut it out and put it on my refrigerator and it's a ready reminder; reminding me of just that - Hope. Anticipation.  Life that is sometimes buried in the middle of hard things.

The job we were excited to get and didn't.
The endless years of being in a place when you'd rather not be in it.
The misunderstandings... rejections... in relationships.
The child who requires much of your energies.
And the list is endless.  The hard things.  The disappointment that life isn't looking like I thought it would.

And with it, buried in the middle of hard things, we sometimes lose our way.  Our footing becomes unclear.  The waters become murky.

And I don't always get it or sometimes in the hard moments, in the moments when I feel so weak and broken; I confess it's even hard to believe.  To believe Truth.

But maybe... and what if, like Lysa TerKeurst says, what if the very hard thing we'd rather not have is the very thing that leads us to life and God, Himself?? (I'll put this little plug in for her book... "It's Not Supposed to be This Way" is an excellent read if you find yourself in the middle of murky life.)

Jesus hates unbelief.  It keeps us from believing His Truth.  He is Truth and so it keeps us from Him.
There are many times Jesus either said a person was healed because of their faith or belief or He said because of their unbelief they did not receive the healing or like the Israelites, they could not enter the Promised Land.
And so it makes sense when He tells us that without faith it is impossible to please Him.

In John 1:12, John says " But as many as received Him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, [even] to them that believe on His name.
Romans 10:9 says, "believe in thine heart that God hath raised Him from the dead and thou shalt be saved."

Believe.
Webster's definition is: to take as true, real.  to have confidence in a statement or promise of another person.

Jesus is a person that we can have confidence in.  He is one who never changes and really has our good in mind.

It's just we don't always see it that way.
And sometimes.... what if that believing is so weak?

What does that mean when you're in the middle of pain and the hard happenings of life?  How do we live that out when the path is murky and even feels like quicksand?

One evening the disciples were on the waters of the Sea of Galilee and a storm popped up.  It was hard to row the boat.  To keep it afloat.
Then suddenly they saw a figure walking on the waters and were terrified, thinking it was a ghost!  They cried out in fear but immediately Jesus spoke to them, "Take heart, it is I.  Do not be afraid."

And one daring soul cried out, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water."  Jesus says, "Come."

Peter got out of the boat, walked on the water, and came to Jesus.

But then something happened.
He took his eyes off of Jesus and saw the wind and began to sink.

When you and I take our eyes off of Jesus, we sink.
When we see the storm instead of seeing Jesus, we fear.

But look next to what Peter did.
He cried out, "Lord, save me."
(Matthew 14:22-33)

Those words Jesus told the disciples, "Take heart, it is I.  Do not be afraid." are for you and I as well.  Peter was not walking on calm waters.  They were still raging.  It wasn't until Jesus stepped into the boat that the wind ceased.

There was a father who had a son who had a dumb spirit and it would cause him to foam and gnash his teeth, etc. When this father met Jesus, he asked Him to heal his son.  And Jesus replied, "If you can, all things are possible to him who believes."
The father's reply was, "I do believe, help my unbelief!"
(Mark 9:17-27)

In those moments when we falter we can cry out, "Lord, save me!" or "I do believe, help my unbelief."
And on a personal note... sometimes it goes so far as "Lord, help me to believe and help my unbelief."

And Jesus shows up.  He reaches out.
It's not always on my timetable, but He comes.  And when it's not right away, I choose to believe and to wait on Him, believing He will make good out of all things.

So, it boils down to how we view God and what we believe about His heart.

To have confidence in God while life throws those hard curves our way means I must keep my focus on Him as Peter did when he stepped out onto the raging waters.

But sometimes my eyes shift away and I go down...
I then, can cry out, "Lord, save me!"

We really have two choices of belief... what makes sense and what we can see and taking our own control or choosing to trust the heart of God and to believe it is good, even when the path right now makes no sense and we're not sure how to take the next step.

The past year and half has been a murky path for me.  A path in which I've lost my way and been wandering around in circles, even taking a plop on the side, wanting to give up.

Jesus says in Matthew 13:31 that the kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed.  And in Luke 13:19 the grain of mustard seed grew and birds found refuge in its branches.

Psalm 31:24  Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord!
39:7 "And now, O Lord, for what do I wait?  My hope is in You."

As the new year of 2019 has begun, those seeds are there....
And so, I choose to believe and to wait.  Wait on the Lord, for He is Life.  He is Truth.  And He is the Way.

He is our Hope.
He is my Hope.

Right now.  Right in the middle of hard stuff.
Right now.  Right now, even in the middle of joys and mountaintop moments.

Walking through these moments requires me to keep my focus on Him.

God. Immanuel.
He is with us.