Hello everyone,

Is the earth spinning faster these days or does it just seem that way?  The days are flying by and although it is summer, busyness has kept me from enjoying it.  It seems as if we just celebrated the Fourth of July and already school supplies are lining the shelves in the stores.  What happened to those lazy days of summer?  You know, the days when as a child, summer seemed to go on and on…  Take a deep breath.

Everyone I talk to seems to be going through “situations” in their lives.  I’ve had the most unusual summer myself – house fixes, car repairs – even bats in the house!   Take a deep breath…

Then I remember – breathe in the breath of God.  Remember His goodness.  Take in His strength, His peace.  Take a deep breath – just breathe it in.  Think on what is good, lovely, having virtue.  We are all such “do-ers.”  That’s not a bad thing, but do we stop sometimes to look at the flowers?  I mean really appreciate the beauty God gave us?  Do we stop to smell the roses?  Take in the fragrance – take a deep breath…

Even in doing for the Lord – do we forget to take time to “be” with Him?  Can we take enough time to “catch our breath” so that we can take in His?  This summer – take a deep breath…..

Blessings, Evelyn

PS Please check out my articles, “Do-Overs” and “God’s Love Notes” on Inner Voice Magazine by going to www.innervoicemag.com.  Just click on Faith, then Reflections and they will come up.  Pass these on to anyone they may benefit.  Thank you!

Hello everyone,

I have been watching with the rest of the country as the stock market goes through what is called a “correction,” and I realized that God may be taking us through a “correction” as well.  We are a very blessed people, but have we gotten so accustomed to having so many “things” that we always want the new and nothing satisfies?  Do we have runaway inflation within our minds, wanting or needing more and more to fill us up?

Without even realizing it, we gradually got used to having these things – the bigger and better – until the bubble had to burst.  New technologies made life seem easier ar first, but then more complicated, robbing us of simple pleasures.

I remember as a child, the simple pleasure of having an ice cream soda at the local soda fountain.  It was a special treat.  I savored every taste and did not rush through it.  Maybe the good news – if there is any good news in this economy – is that God is taking us back to the simple pleasures in life – giving us the opportunity to enjoy them more.  It is amazing how. when you do not have the money to spend that you used to have, it makes you appreciate the little things.   It takes you back to the simple pleasures in life.

What we thought we had to have a few years ago, now becomes not very important.  Making due with less, actually gives us more.  More time to stop and realize what is most important in life.

I would not want to be without new technology such as cell phones and internet.  However, I wonder if we have become so addicted to them, that we forget to take time for simple pleasures with our families and friends.  Do we have time for our Lord?  Sometimes we “seek ye first” the computer in the morning before Him!  Wasn’t technology supposed to free up our time?  I think that which was supposed to free our time can actually keep us in bondage to it!  These can become time stealers if we let them.

In a previous blog, I wrote about the Big C – Communication, and how even in a restaurant, I see couples, not talking to each other, but on their cell phones.  How sad that we do not give the special people in our lives the gift of our full attention – our time.

Is it possible that God needed to shake us to bring us back to what is most important in our lives?  A “correction” in our thinking to give us a different perspective in what we perceive is important?

Take time to enjoy simple pleasures.  When we do this, instead of feeling “deprived” we start to feel more “alive.”

Blessings, Evelyn