Tag: life

-A refuge for the troubled mind

‘The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.’

‭‭(Psalms‬ ‭18‬:‭2‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

We read this verse at the Precepts Bible Study on Wednesday morning.There’s such powerful imagery of God being our safe, secure shelter.

As I pondered these things, my thoughts drifted to the word bothy- the Scottish word for a hillside hut, a shelter in the mountains for hikers.

I like the idea of a bothy- somewhere to shelter in the mountains or by a Loch as we discover & explore the wilderness! I like the thought of God being like a bothy.

A refuge. A haven. A shelter.

‘The Lord is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him.’
(Nahum 1:7 ESV)

In this bothy, our Father God is so close that we are under His shadow & we are shielded by God Himself.

A bothy is not for glamping . It’s a simple hut to protect from the elements. And so with God our bothy. In troubled times He has promised to provide needs – not our wants.

He gives comfort rather than keeping us comfortable.

He gives shelter in the storms of life. Sometimes He calms the storm & sometimes He calms His tear-stained & heavy-hearted child- in the bothy.

The One who scattered the stars collects our tears. He knows our name & He knows our hearts. And He still loves us.

We can’t go back to change events that caused the storm. We can’t erase our mistakes or undo our past. But we can come to our God & find shelter in the difficult days & peace in the dark chapters.

We can share our heart as we pray to our Maker. We can trust Him at all times, through all our days.

‘On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah’
(Psalms 62:7-8 ESV)

When the axis of our world suddenly tilts,

When the cadence of everyday life is unexpectedly disrupted,

When our journey is interrupted by a bump in the road & we stumble-

Even then {especially then} our God is the Great Unchangeable One- our Rock,our Fortress, our Shelter- Our Bothy.

Blessings

Ruthx

‘Praise the Lord, for he has shown me the wonders of his unfailing love.’

‭‭(Psalms‬ ‭31‬:‭21‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

We have so much to praise God for! He has lavished on us so many wonders of His amazing love! His tender mercies are new every morning.

Thank God that:

He lovingly hand-made us in His image.

He shone His dazzling light into our darkness 

He sent His One & Only Son Jesus to die in our place.

He forgives our darkest sins.

He grants freedom from death & fear.

He pours out extravagant grace into our hearts.

He guides us along His paths of peace.

His Spirit is with us step by step.

We have direct access into His presence.

In light of this {and so many more blessings} :

‘So be strong and courageous, all you who put your hope in the Lord!’

‭‭(Psalms‬ ‭31‬:‭24‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

Blessings,

Ruth x

My husband bought me the book ‘How to stop worrying & start living’ by Dale Carnegie. Although it was first published in 1953, it’s still relevant today. The first chapter is entitled Live in ‘day-tight compartments’

The concept comes from Jesus’ words:

“So don’t worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today’s trouble is enough for today.”

‭‭(Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭34‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

So many of our worries spring from anxieties about the future. Our thoughts spiral from today into tomorrow & beyond, gathering momentum into next week, next month or even next year. Our mind leaps forward, projecting what we think will happen, jumping to worst-case scenarios & terrible outcomes. 

But we have no control over the future. However, we can look to the One who holds the future. And He wants us to live one day at a time- in twenty-four hour chunks! It’s how we were designed.

We can book-end our days with prayer- committing our time to God each morning & thanking Him for His faithfulness each night. 

When we live each day with the God of peace, His deep peace will pour into our minds & hearts, displacing worry.

Blessings,

Ruth x

‘Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.’

‭‭(Philippians‬ ‭4‬:‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

These words are easy to read but harder to put into practice!

Last year, I became more anxious than ever before. Sleep was interrupted & catastrophizing thoughts overwhelmed me day & night.

This verse helped me to settle- I repeated the words often. Don’t worry- I told myself-pray instead. 

Thank God for what He has already done in your life in answer to prayer. For gratitude shifts our focus from anxious thoughts.

If we do this,instead of tossing & turning, there will be calm. Instead of stress there will be reassurance.

God’s amazing peace will overflow into our heart & minds (Phillipians 4:7)His love overcomes fear. And faith in God will get us through!

Of course, we may also need medication & counselling (I did) 

But the God of peace will be with us day by day & we can keep on casting our worries onto Him (1Pet 4:7)

Blessings,

Ruth x

I love to see the emergence of spring flowers at this time of year-a glimpse of the changing seasons.

This week I dandered past scattered clumps of snowdrops. And wondered how these delicate yet tenacious flowers had pushed through the frosty soil.

They’re a sign that spring is on the way.

No matter how dreary we feel, winter is not forever. No matter how dark the night feels, the sun will appear at daybreak.

Our winters of the soul may happen due to discouragement & disappointment. They may be brought about by physical sickness or mental anguish. Bereavement & unexpected loss bring long dark winters in life.

Yet, with God, we can trust that the freshness & new life of springtime will arrive.

Our God will usher in new things- hope & loving-kindness. Grace & goodness. Encouragement & second chances.

‘For I am about to do something new. See, I have already begun! Do you not see it? I will make a pathway through the wilderness.’

‭‭(Isaiah‬ ‭43‬:‭19‬ ‭NLT‬‬)

Blessings,

Ruth x

One sunny afternoon I visited my local garden centre. The flowers there were brightly blooming in an array of colour.

I especially liked the red dahlias! And the growing sunflowers too.

As I wandered around, the words of Jesus, the Master Gardner came to mind:

“And if God cares so wonderfully for wildflowers that are here today and thrown into the fire tomorrow, he will certainly care for you. Why do you have so little faith?”

(Matthew 6:30 NLT)

God cares for the flowers & cares infinitely more for us.

“Oh you of little faith,” He whispered gently to my heart.

So often we have little faith.

We have little faith when we get tangled up in our worries.

We have little faith when we focus on our problems rather than God.

We have little faith when we try to sort out tomorrow’s issues today!

We have little faith when our mind is filled with fear.

Our faith needs to be bigger than our anxieties.

We often have little faith as we go through life- particularly when things go differently to how we planned or expected. Especially when things aren’t going our way.

Yet God can grow our faith- turning little faith into a lot. We can trust Him with the garden of our souls- tending to our issues there.

Later in Matthew chapter 6, Jesus says this:

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

(Matthew 6:34 NIV)

We humans live in 24 hour chunks. We live day by day with our Father & there’s no need to worry about tomorrow!

Just trust!

Blessings,

Ruth x