Little Lamp

God is teaching me a lot about trust right now.

During worship at church on Sunday, the worship leader paused and gave a word that has stuck with me. She said that God's word is a lamp unto our feet and a light to our path. My first thought was "true, that is in the Bible." But then she painted a picture. She said that God does not give us a flood light to illuminate the road ahead and show us where we are going. He gives us a lamp. And I saw this:

And bless my little visual heart, it clicked!

I have been expecting to follow God through the seasons of unknown and turn the corner and:

God would reveal it all to me, answer the prayers I have been trusting Him with, and I would be in control again! Yet, even as I am living in fulfilled promises and answered prayers that I have prayed for years, God is keeping me ever dependent. With each fulfilled promise and answered prayer comes its own set of challenges and questions.

It's interesting that He gives us a lamp for our feet. God shows us just what we need to see in order for us to go. What I love about the picture the worship leader painted is that the lamp is being held by her feet and not by her head or her eyes. So often, I am immobilized by what I cannot see. I want my questions answered and my reasoning mind appeased before I take a step. But most of the time, I am finding that God shows me where I need to go and that's it. I am learning to allow this restrained light to be a mobilizing force in my life and not a source of fear or doubt. I am learning to change my response from "Where in the world are we going?!" to "Look! There's our next step, let's go!" Sometimes I feel like I am not the most graceful walker. But I would rather take awkward step after awkward step in trusting stride with my Jesus than run on my own. There is rest and peace in this place - in living a life with just enough light.

An ode to the sense of taste

Food is good! What a genius creation where texture, flavor, and color collide. I have to say it is so satisfying to take a bigger-than-your-mouth bite of something delicious and overwhelm your senses...it's a bit reckless. Sometimes it is nice to forget boundaries and just be. Just go!

Maybe this is why I love Thanksgiving. This Thanksgiving I ate: cinnamon rolls, eggs, sausage, apple slices, yams, collard greens, dressing, macaroni and cheese, potato salad, herbed rice, brussels sprouts, ham, turkey, cranberry sauce, banana pudding, sweet potato pie, pecan pie, banana nut cake, cranberry truffle, and carrot spice cake. My stomach absolutely rioted, and I am glad it is once a year, but I would not change a bite.

I am learning more each day how important it is to take care of my body and nourish it well with fueling foods. I love how I feel after I eat a well balanced meal of protein, fresh vegetables, and whole grains. But I am not of the opinion that food is meant solely to prolong my years. Food is also to be appreciated and savored.

I have caught myself eating too quickly lately. We are living in a Rush Hour culture and even when I have nothing to do, "scarf mode" is auto engaged. Don't act like you don't know scarf mode. It is quite possible to eat an entire meal and never taste a bite! Shouldn't this concern us? Taste (as I learned in a science class), requires presence and attentiveness. I think I like food so much because there is so much to discover when I take the time to taste it. The more you attend to what you are eating, the more you taste it and the more you taste it the more beauty [or not] you uncover. You might write me off as a glutton or a nutcase, but I think it is possible that the way you approach your dinner is related to the way you approach other things in life. Do you stop to savor, discover, explore, ponder? It isn't to say that "quick eaters" are shallow and thoughtless (I am guilty as much as anyone). But I wonder how much I have missed by forgetting to taste. And so, a next meal challenge is in order. Pause and complete: "This tastes _____." For as many years as I have been eating, it is amazing how long it has taken me to discover how good food really is.