The Lord is near to the broken hearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. ~Psalms 34:18 (NASB)
I opened the sliding glass doors overlooking our pond, hoping the fresh air would waken what felt dead inside. The beautiful, sunny afternoon beckoned me outside and I sat on the deck soaking up its rays. The warmth eased my tension and I drifted off, napping a short time. When I woke up, I hoped this past week was just a bad dream. Some weeks can be like that! Restless, I decided to walk and paced around our pond. My steps matched the circles my thoughts took in my head. So many questions I begged to ask, yet I couldn’t find the words to voice them. Did God hear my silent plea for answers? I needed them…and so did my friends!
Our lives are changed in an instant…the moment we hear and understand the words. The realization hits us cold and shock sets in. And we learn life is fragile. Our sense of safety is gone and we wait for the next ball to drop. We know tragedies happen; they are possible! But they usually happen to someone else. Our lives are never the same. And we must learn to live with a new normal. The longing of our soul will be our shadow as the sun rises early and lays down in its place…the habitual climb over the treetops and setting…reminding us someone is gone. And we try to make sense of the taking…the mystery of God’s way we can’t begin to fathom. But we know He is with us as we go forward. He will redeem our soul in peace from the battle raged within. We walk seeking beauty…something good from the pain weighing heavy on our heart!
As for me, I shall call upon God,
And the Lord will save me.
Evening and morning and at noon, I will complain and murmur,
And He will hear my voice. He will redeem my soul in peace from the battle which is against me,
For they are many who strive with me. Psalms 55:16-18 (NASB)
The Sacred Garden of Mourning
Here we are again…the secret place…where tears fall
We walk along the water’s edge
Daisies bending in simplicity
Searching for answers by the fields
And God’s hand is a mystery
Silence passes through the breezes
We sit with the innocence planted haphazardly
No reasoning established
Knowing He sits with us
God’s understanding far greater than ours
And we trust His way
Our soul returns to the secret garden
Every day
He will plant beauty by the weeping way
We are not alone
God’s love waits with us
And the sun rises and it sets
For all those mourning this week…may our God carry us through the coming days!
Lily Mae
Gods ways are so above our ways-May we learn to rest in Him–as there is no better place to be than in the arms of Jesus during a time of mouring. God gives us true friends who hold us in their arms as they
hold us up to our Jesus.
Just reread this today, So real and raw and processing and healing and encouraging and wisdom all at the same time. I love the sacred garden of mourning poem. It is like you looked into my soul and wrote the words, God has helped you write this ….it blesses me and I know it will be a blessing to others. I remember well a particular time when I went to my “secret garden” beneath the lilac and forsythia….and sat and sang ….”I come to the garden alone…..and He walks with me and He talks with me and He tells me I am His own…..” crying over the losses in my life and the things that only He can change…crying through the words…”and the Joy we share as we tarry there, none other has ever known” ….sending a long distance hug
Thank you J- your words minister to me as well! Love you…m/c
Sent from my iPhone
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