tomorrow.

May 31, 2013May 31, 2013 by Kathleen Moulton

Some churches deal more with overcoming the pain than feeling it. That leaves people thinking they don’t have enough faith and they ignore the pain.

It’s just as wrong to ignore the pain and call it faith as it is to wallow in pain and never move through it the way God intended.

When my son died, there was no ignoring it. Pushing it away is like trying to cover a fatal, bleeding wound with your hand.

Each day, you face the pain. It is what it is and the best way is to have courage. Courage doesn’t mean you are not afraid, just like feeling pain doesn’t mean you don’t have faith.

Courage is based on truth and so we call it what it is. God has equipped us to walk through the pain, not avoid it.

When the sun goes down at the end of the day, darkness settles over us and we don’t see clearly. Things sometimes look worse.

But remember, the sun always rises in the morning. And the new day is meant to brings us new hope and a new outlook. Don’t dread tomorrow! God is with you always and will guide you through your pain if you let him.

~~~

Photo: Ibrahim Iujaz / Foter.com / CC BY

surprises.

May 29, 2013June 4, 2013 by Kathleen Moulton

One day I was looking at my small flower garden and discovered an unusual flower which I did not plant.

I was intrigued, to say the least.

How did it get here?

I got online and searched and finally posted a picture to a garden website. Mystery solved: Japanese Balloon flower.

With a little research, it’s not the easiest thing to germinate where I live – cold winters!

But here it was, putting on a show for me.

It’s delicate beauty seemed contrary amid the sturdy tiger lilies 3 times its size, but there it was standing tall.

Life is like that. Yes, some surprises are tragic and unexpected. But many are delightful and unexpected.

It’s all in how you look at it.

~~~

live.

May 27, 2013May 24, 2013 by Kathleen Moulton

We look at life through a lens.

We either see the good and are angry about the bad, or we see the bad and are thankful for the good.

With destruction, there is always hope.

The earth reveals who God is.

Why doesn’t he stop evil and tragedy?

I don’t know.

But I do know he brings something good from it.

It doesn’t make the pain go away, but it makes you live again.

~~~

Photo Courtesy:

Eggs&Beer / Foter.com / CC BY

paths.

May 24, 2013May 24, 2013 by Kathleen Moulton

We’re all on a path.

Sometimes, the path is straight and clear. We like that. We can see where we are going and there is light at the end.

But sometimes, there are twists and turns that seem to lead us in circles. There are obstacles or it’s dark and we cannot see.

We live in a time when life is more predictable than any other time in history. We have grown accustomed to it. So when something goes wrong, it throws us off our path.

Should it?

There was a time when it was understood “the Lord gives and the Lord takes away”, and it was settled.

Today, we’ve strayed from this acknowledgement. It seems too simple for our complex, fast-paced world.

But it still stands.

Blessed be the name of the Lord.

~~~

Photo Courtesy:

Stuck in Customs / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA

tricky (rick harrison) / Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA

how?

May 22, 2013May 24, 2013 by Kathleen Moulton ♥ 2 Comments

High – low.

Light – dark.

Happy – sad.

How can joy and sorrow dwell together in the world?

Let us hope.

(Dedicated to the tornado victims and survivors of the Oklahoma tornado. We weep with you.)

~~~

Photo Courtesy: seyed mostafa zamani / Foter.com / CC BY

predictable.

May 20, 2013May 19, 2013 by Kathleen Moulton

The earth is designed to heal itself and bring forth life.

Sometimes, we have a hand in it.

Sometimes we don’t.

The seasons come and go with predictability. Birds migrate to their intended destinations and butterflies shed their cocoon and take flight. The depths of the sea hide mysteries undiscovered and the stars take their position in the universe. Ice storms prune the forests and wildfires generate new growth.

Life is unpredictable.

But some things are not.

Cling to what you know!