I woke up this morning to the sound of rain pitter pattering on the roof. I had every intention of getting up early, and starting a good pattern for the week. Goals.
I had some great goals.
But the warmth of our cozy bed, ugh. My first goal went right out the door.
However, I DID manage to get up earlier than our boys and that was still progress. Quiet time without dividing my time and attention between our boys was a really great start to this dark and dreary Monday.
I wanted to post some musings in the interest of being intentional and sticking to a Monday post (remember, I have GOALS my friends).
Our life.
A couple of weeks ago we celebrated Jonah’s birthday by taking a trip to an apple orchard. We did the same thing last year and because it was such a great day, we decided to dub this a tradition that needed to happen in our family. This year we invited our good friends and my in-laws along. It was a really perfect fall day with cooler temps and sunshine mixed with clouds. Our friends have 3 little boys, and with our 2 added into the mix, it was a lot of fun to watch them pick apples. I love visiting apple orchards and eating apples right off the tree; the crisp, sweet taste of fresh apples cannot be beat. Our takeaway was about a bushel of apples, because I decided to pick up a bag of “seconds” (already picked, bruised apples) with our own bag we had picked. Of course we picked up some apple cider donuts as well and we added in a whole basket of tomatoes that they sold in their market. It was a good food haul! Here we are weeks later and still enjoying the fruit of our labor. Apples for days and days! Here are some favorite photos from our trip!
We had a blast celebrating Jonah’s special day. Plus, we even have a family photo together! (thanks Erin!)
Scripture.
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:3-11)
There is so much wisdom in this passage, but a couple thoughts that struck me while reading through it. The unlikely are mentioned. The ones you wouldn’t think would really need a special blessing. Like those that mourn.
We’ve had our days of mourning, following the loss of our third wee baby this past July. But it says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” While discussing this in my core group at Bible study, one lady mentioned something I found encouraging. She said that she wanted to start praying the blessing on those that the verse was mentioning. As in mourning, to pray for them to be comforted. I guess I had never really thought about praying the ending for the ones mentioned in the beginning. Thinking through all the different types of people mentioned in this passage, I started to think through particular people that would fit those descriptions. It’s not hard to think of those that are mourning. I’ve seen many women walk through suffering in mourning. I love praying specific scripture for others and here is just one more way to do that. I am determined to start doing this in my prayer life.
Readings.
I read this post this past week and it was again timely for me. I find myself feeling discontent at the lot God has given me, and question if it’s good. Is it really good where I am? This post was shared with me a couple months ago, and at the time I didn’t fully get where the author was coming from. The second time I read it, I did. It was a great encouragement and a good reminder to be thankful for where I am and what He has done for me and given me (my lot).
Here’s the post by Loving my Lot: 3 things to tell yourself when others prosper and you suffer
Happy rainy Monday friends!