Day 1: Still Water

The first day of my Such As These Challenge was such a blessing.  Josh was off from work today, which made the day even better.  Hana woke up at her usual 7:00a.m.  After a diaper change, we brought her back to our bed to cuddle and give us time to wake up a little bit.  But just after just a few minutes of cuddling, Hana was over it and onto the next thing, asking, "Show, show mickey house ... mik [milk]?"  In response to that undeniably cute request, we grabbed that baby up and started our day.  Josh set her up with some milk and her "show, show mickey" while I served up yogurt and raspberries on Eggo waffles.

I am a firm believer that mornings are probably the most important time of the day - they set the mood.  In light of that, I really want to make more of an effort to spend time in the Word every morning, even if it's just five minutes before we hit the door.  As Josh and I sat down with our Bibles, waffles and coffee, I started asking the Lord, "What is it that You want to say to me today?".  In that very same moment, I started thinking about our finances.  Worrying about finances lead to questions regarding my stay-at-home-mom status, which eventually led to me thinking, "So many women balance children, home and work in suck a seamless, healthy way ... what is my problem?"  In the duration of this sequence of thoughts, I found myself reading the twenty-third Psalm ... yeah, the one that's always read at funerals.  Omen?  No, answers.  Psalm 23 reads:

The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul;
He leads me in paths of righteousness
For His name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord 
Forever.

What more do we need when the Lord, our Shepherd, is guiding us?  He guides our paths towards right relationships, shining His glory through us.  He guides and protects us through even our darkest moments of distress, anxiety and insecurity.  He heaps blessings on us, big and small, which we sometimes see and sometimes we have yet to realize them.  But, ultimately, we will experience His goodness and mercy all the days of our lives and into eternity.  Dwelling in the Lord is so much better than dwelling in my desperate moments of worry or insecurity.  When I think of my life with that perspective, I understand why God has guided me to this point in my life and continues to lead me.  Right now, His glory is revealed through loving my family in the way that He has asked me to, and He'll take care of the rest!