Heartfelt

 

I love the Hallmark channel and what some would say are “the cheesy” movies they play.  I like commercials that play on my heartstrings and make me cry.  I like to express my love and appreciation for people, now, while I can.  I am easily moved by random acts of kindness.  I love a thoughtful gesture from a friend or a stranger when they see a need and jump into action.  It brings encouragement especially when it is unexpected, genuine and heartfelt.  I believe we all need this kind of heartfelt unconditional love.

Speaking of “heart” … I had to wear a heart monitor for 24 hours, yesterday, and it was not fun.  There are heart problems in my family history.  I hate to admit I am at the age where any little heart issue needs to be taken more seriously than previously in my life.  If my heart raced, when I was 40, it was because I’d spent 12 hours working nonstop on a project and overdid it.   I am an all-or-nothing kind of a person!  Full throttle or dead stop!  If I want the garage cleaned, I do it all in one massive chunk of time … as long as it takes, without a break.  I know if I stop I may not get back into it — ever!  Now days I try to continue that same pace and my body is screaming, “what are you doing to me?”  I am praying they call and say all is well, but until then I wait.  That, in and of itself, is somewhat stressful!

I know I have been under a certain amount of stress this year, and I am sure that is all it amounts to.  Stress is a strange monster.  It can affect our lives and our health in ways we don’t even realize. We all live with stress to a degree.  It rises and falls at various times in our lives, due to circumstances.  If we try and pinpoint the source of the stress then we are able to face it directly and deal with it.  Sometimes I just feel nervous, preoccupied, and unsettled, until I make myself stop and identify the source.  What or who was the initial touch-point of this stress I’m carrying?

If your stress is because you spend 8 hours looking at Facebook or watching the news, or because you spend time with someone who is critical and emotionally draining, you can manage that … Stop!  If it is due to reasons beyond your control, you need to do all the things you can that you know are right; get rest, eat healthy, go for walks, be around people who uplift you, go to worship and connect with other believers, pray continually and jump into the deep end of God’s word and stay there.  Psalm 143:8 says, “Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you.  Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.”

Focus on the fact that God is in control, and you try to relax in that truth.  I liked something I read recently that said, “We need a dual focus — Jesus continual presence, and the hope of heaven.” Both those things are important to keep in mind as you walk through your day.  

I wanted to share these verses with you today. These are my heartfelt gift to you today.  Blessings as you walk in truth.

Romans 12:12:  “Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.

Hebrews 6:18-19:  “God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.  We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain.”

Psalm 32:8:  “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.”

1 Peter 5:7:  “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

Proverbs 27:9:  “The heartfelt counsel of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense.”

Psalm 19:14:  “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.”

Just Jesus,

Sheri Langley