Looking back...looking forward

Sometimes we have to see where we have been so that we can see where we are going.

So ...here we are.  The last day of 2015.

I can tell you that this past year was not without sadness.  In January I lost a dear friend when John Gates died and in December I lost my life long friend, Bobby Drashin.  Two very different men and yet two who had made a difference in my life.  I also said goodbye to two consulting opportunities. 

But there were also good things - I've reconnected with several friends from my childhood, college years and the time I spent as a pastor's wife.  My mother got to experience a dream she has had for a long time when she moved to Assisted Living and I started a part time job at the Mandarin Museum.  It was there that I fell in love with squirrels.

I know what you are thinking. ..Paula has finally lost it.

Squirrels are a reminder to me that no matter what happens, "God's got this""

This is where I spend the first hour of each day:

Sometimes a bird, sometimes a squirrel, always a lizard (or two), looking for food or just watching me...

I recently overheard a conversation - "I haven't had an actual pay check in four months", one person said.

"I would be a nervous wreck" was the reply.

"And what about the lilies of the field and the birds of the air?"

It sounded just like something I might have said..  I'm often prone to give a quick answer like that and then lay awake at night wondering...and truth be told...worrying.

I was thinking about 2016 and what lies ahead and worrying. I remembered a verse from my childhood: "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and His righteousness and all these things will be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33).  I might have memorized it but I don't think I knew what it meant.

As I thought about all of this - I checked out some other translations of those words and I found:
 
If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met. (Matthew 6:30-33    The Message)

Which brings me back to the lizards, the birds and that cute little squirrel that climbs on my screen.  They are creatures, God's creatures true, but in my mind - they are just creatures.  They don't have a soul.  And yet who am I to judge? They seem to have a lovely time, scurrying up and down the trees, running along the window sill or sometimes standing up on the screen and staring at me.

Those little creatures remind me of this little guy from my youth:

So here's my new year's resolution -

I'm going to make an effort not to be so preoccupied with getting that I miss God's giving!