Monday, January 30, 2017

Nurturing Monday- How To Nurture In The Lord

“Be the one who nurtures and builds. Be the one who has an understanding and a forgiving heart one who looks for the best in people. Leave people better than you found them.” 
Marvin J. Ashton





I literally have one or more children in my life everyday. This affords me so many opportunities to nurture in the way of the Lord. Last weekend I hosted two recitals for my piano students. They were fantastic. So many of them had to sacrifice time to arrive where they could play musically. They were nervous, concerned with their performance, and open to be lifted to higher ground. 


The Lord lifts. He takes what we are and makes us better. He does this by filling us with His love. 



I look at these young faces and remember our time together. Everyone of them has softened my heart. I have loved and have admonished, too. 







To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click here.

Friday, January 27, 2017

Control







   For fifty years I have searched for control, outside of me and inside of me. The search was fruitless and I was aware of that but yet, on occasion when life unfolded my way, I clutched the credit to my chest. I longed for a particular outcome, then worked on manifesting that outcome, and then  rejoiced when it was so. This mindset made clutching my hands into fists, holding my shoulders tightly together, and clenching my jaw, a daily occurrence. So much control and so much insecurity about the truth of the control made me physically sick. 
   Equanimity is my new favorite word. I wish to have that quality of mind. With it I breathe deeper, rest easier, and care more deeply. 





 I have been writing with the Five Minute Friday Group for more than two years and I really enjoy the talented writers 

Wednesday, January 25, 2017

Whimsical Wednesday Writings- Socks

"I'm also a fan of ridiculously coloured and patterned socks."
Daniel Radcliffe


I don't pretend to understand the secret life of socks. They hang out in pairs but inevitably one or the another dashes off somewhere for a life of it's own. Don't we all have a stash of mis-matched socks? 
Socks are the one fashion statement that I make that reveals my zany side. I may have nicely matched trousers and jacket but under the pants I can be wearing stripes or even better polka dots. 
When my socks are plain, like black, you can be sure that there is writing along the inside. Secret messages parade up my leg reminding me to Keep Breathing or Stay Calm. They inspire, they really do.
On the island where I live there is a little shop that sells the most divine socks. I am salivating just thinking about what could be on their shelves. If Daniel Radcliffe isn't diminshed by his ridiculous socks I think I can keep this little habit and be happy with what lies beneath.

I am joining Ann Dee Ellis and other writers in using a prompt to record  memoir moments. If you don't write your story, who will?





Monday, January 23, 2017

Nurturing Monday- Abiding In The Nurture of The Lord

"It's about how you see your reflection in the person you are with."


Jamie and his partner, while off-duty, found themselves at a restaurant during an armed robbery. Ever prepared policemen, they subdued the thieves and restored order. Jamie's partner, Eadie, was hopeful that her boyfriend, who was with her at dinner, would be all right, perhaps even amazed at her abilities. Unfortunately, he found the incident totally unnerving and it was a deal breaker to their continuing relationship. She was hurt that he would react in this unfair way. Later, this profound statement explained her boyfriend's response.

"It's about how you see your reflection in the person you are with."

Eadie's boyfriend could only see his reflection in the incident. He was cowering under the table while the woman he was dating was saving lives. He could not abide in the relationship and be the man he confronted under the table.  



And, so it is sometimes, as we abide in the presence of the Lord. 

While studying the Book of Romans, I encountered this scripture,



Romans 3:10
10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

Looking at footnotes I found that these same words appeared in many other places, including in the Joseph Smith account of his vision. I was in a frame of mind to think God was trying to tell me something. I took it to him in prayer. "Am I good enough?" He let me sit in discomfort for many days. I monitored my reflection in Him. Yup! Not good enough. 

Then a thought came into my mind. I knew it was from the spirit. It was simple. "It is not about you!"
What? I went back to the scriptures and searched the context. It really was all about Jesus. It was about the essential act of atonement being the only way we can ever feel comfortable in the presence of God. His blood is enough to sanctify and make holy what is mortally flawed. 

So, I find it hard sometimes to abide in the nurture of the Lord. I find myself checking my reflection instead of basking in his power. His nurture is sweeter when I can look beyond my reflection and see Him more clearly. I wish to communicate this principle when I teach my family and others in the nurture of the Lord.




To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click here.

      

Friday, January 20, 2017

Refine

I hope to refine music, study it, try to find some area that I can unlock. I don't quite know how to explain it but it's there. These can't be the only notes in the world, there's got to be other notes some place, in some dimension, between the cracks on the piano keys. 

Marvin Gaye



    It is still early here. Daylight is forming but I sit in the dark in front of my computer. I'm grappling with the word refine. To take something "fine" and try to make it finer, is daunting. It really is like looking for something new between the cracks on the piano keys. 
   If I didn't have some artistic endeavors I would settle for "fine" in my life. But, no matter my ability, I know I must search for a more refined outcome. It is frightening to me to look for that nuance that takes a piece to a higher level. All I seem to have towards that goal is grit. Start over, white out the canvas, go back to the beginning, these are not pleasant tasks. Yet, sometimes they birth something outside of myself, something better than I imagined. Surely there is heaven involved in this process. 







 I have been writing with the Five Minute Friday Group for more than two years and I really enjoy the talented writers 

Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Whimsical Wednesday Writings- How To Survive Illness




   My writing today is not really whimsical at all. I'm sick with the flu. Between chills there are flashes of sweating. I have a screeching cough and I just feel sorry for myself. Poor me! Here is a list of things to survive illness:
  • Don't watch depressing television where everyone's lives fall apart
  • Don't read books with complicated plots that expect you to remember who did what
  • Do open the windows and doors for a few minutes to change the air
  • If you drink 6-8 cups of herbal tea re-use the bags
  • Change your sheets
  • Think back on how efficient and amazing you are when you are well
  • Thank your friend when they offer to bring you more Tylenol and soup
  • Remember that nothing ever stays the same 


I am joining Ann Dee Ellis and other writers in using a prompt to record  memoir moments. If you don't write your story, who will?




Monday, January 16, 2017

Nurture In The Lord- What have I Learned?

Enos 1:1 Behold, it came to pass that I, Enos, knowing my father that he was a just man--for he taught me in his language, and also in the nurture and admonition of the Lord--and blessed be the name of my God for it.




Enos is very grateful for a father who taught him in the nurture of the Lord. I believe it is that nurturing that brought him to pray in the wilderness. He comes to prayer in the spirit of intensity. His answer did not come right away. He wrestled with his doubts, his inadequacies, and with his level of commitment. But his father's teachings sprouted faith. Jacob, his father, was well versed in struggle. Here are some of his words.


   Jacob 3:1 But behold, I, Jacob, would speak unto you that are pure in heart. Look unto God with firmness of mind, and pray unto him with exceeding faith, and he will console you in your afflictions, and he will plead your cause, and send down justice upon those who seek your destruction. 2 O all ye that are pure in heart, lift up your heads and receive the pleasing word of God, and feast upon his love; for ye may, if your minds are firm, forever.

    I believe Enos wanted to feast upon the love of God. A testimony by someone you love, who invites you to feast and who feasts himself on the abiding love is stirring to the very soul. 

   So, what did I learn from my mother who taught me in the nurture of the Lord? No one can do spiritual work for you. Sometimes it feels like you approach God without backup. His nurturing is stronger than you can imagine. When others fail you He is there. He gives you strength to do hard things. The relationship with Jesus Christ and our Father in heaven goes on beyond death. 
   Next Monday I tackle the question of how I can teach others in the nurture of the Lord. And, I am not ignoring the word admonition which accompanies the word nurture in both Ephesians and The Book of Enos, but I want to unpack that word nurture fully. 




To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click here.

      

Friday, January 13, 2017

Middle

You are, at this moment, standing, right in the middle of your own 'acres of diamonds.' 
Earl Nightingale

The playwright often uses the form of the three-act play. Act One is the introduction of the plot. Characters are introduced, the scene is set, and a conflict demands engagement by the cast.



   In Act Two the plot gets messy and absolutes get challenged. There is often anxiety in this section because everyone is forced to grow. Act Three brings resolution and in that act the protagonist triumphs over his trials and joy is often the outcome. 
   I am still in the middle of my three act play. Overcoming my weakness requires crying unto the Lord everyday. It is my greatest solace to know my Savior is present in my second act. His promises are sure and he has promised a fullness of joy. Still, the outcome is tenuous. 










 I have been writing with the Five Minute Friday Group for more than two years and I really enjoy the talented writers 

Wednesday, January 11, 2017

Whimsical Wednesday Writing- The Table



“There are times when wisdom cannot be found in the chambers of parliament or the halls of academia but at the unpretentious setting of the kitchen table.”
E.A. Bucchianeri 

Some tables are round, oblong, or rectangular, and I have had one of each. Our rectangle table was purchased by my daughter when she was still home. She felt we needed a nice table and I agreed enough to buy the chairs. This was not the table that had five little children around it but it does have grandchildren,  often enough to feel the sticky, tacky, hand prints of littles. 



     In the winter the eating area is the farthest away from the heat source. The living room can be 75 degrees but the kitchen table is barely reaching 65. So, we don't always eat at the table. I see that as a problem. The graciousness of having a meal together is often non-existent. I tried to solve the issue by placing beautiful placemats and dinnerware on the table early in the day. I wanted that to draw me to it. It worked at first, but the novelty died away. I eat less mindfully in a comfy chair in the living room. I put things in my mouth without tasting them. Then, I eat a little more because I am so comfortable and don't want to get up. It strikes me that traditions that require connection are often inconvenient. Choosing convenience casts a dimmer light on family closeness. I feel interested in choosing more wisely.


I am joining Ann Dee Ellis and other writers in using a prompt to record  memoir moments. If you don't write your story, who will?




Monday, January 9, 2017

Nurturing Monday- Taught In The Nurture Of The Lord


Ephesians 4:4 ​And, ye ​​​fathers​, ​​​provoke​ not your ​​​children​ to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.


Today is Monday and a day to explore nurture as my word of the year. In the New Testament nurture appears only once and the context was a directive to bring up children in "the nurture of the Lord" I am curious about how Paul might have been nurtured by the Lord. 

2 Corinthians 1:3 "Blessed be God, even the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies, and the God of all comfort; Who comforteth us in all our tribulation, that we may be able to comfort them which are in any trouble, by the comfort wherewith we ourselves are comforted of God. For as the sufferings of Christ abound in us, so our consolation also aboundeth by Christ."


      Comfort is mentioned five times. I can't think of two more nurturing words than comfort and console. Those words describe perfectly a nurturing parent. I asked these questions of myself last Monday. Was I taught in the nurture of the Lord? What have I learned from that nurture? How can I teach others in that nurture?


    Thinking back to my mother, who has been dead for 14 years, I remember her scriptures on the living room end table. They were well read. She brought them with her from Germany when we emigrated. She was a believer and received comfort and consolation from the Lord all through her life. She taught me to pray and often told me stories of how faith and prayer protected our family from the calamities of war. So, yes, she taught me in the nurture of the Lord. My father was not a believer. He relied on his own strength to get through major obstacles. He was strong and willing to sacrifice. I saw a good contrast in my parents. Respecting them both, I did see quiet peace which my mother received from her nurturing relationship with God. I learned from her that God supports and sustains his children. Her testimony is a foundational support to my testimony. 

I was nurtured by her side.





To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click here.

   

Friday, January 6, 2017

Connect

"I'm already including "connect" in daily thoughts as I go about the regular stuff of my life - asking myself how I'm connecting with this and that and especially focusing on what I can disconnect from (love the angle of including the opposite of my word)."
Ali Edwards




What can I disconnect from? I would like to disconnect my enjoyment of eating from guilt. So many of us struggle with food and the consequences of eating in an unhealthy way. I have this brain loop that thinks, I'm not feeling great,-------I should eat something. What if I re-connect to my thoughts like this; I feel good, I should eat something. That seems so weird. Food should make me feel better, right. But, it so often doesn't. If I ate with the prompt, I FEEL good, what would my experience feel like? I know what my mind would do. It would look for reasons why I do feel good, so that I could eat something. Hmm.....how bad can that be? So I am rambling because I cannot solve this issue right now, but thanks for connecting with me on this blog. I will try to shift my connection.







 I have been writing with the Five Minute Friday Group for two years and I really enjoy the talented writers who share their work. Would you like to join us? 



Wednesday, January 4, 2017

Whimsical Writings Wednesday- My Bed


"Your best T-shirt should be like your bed; it just feels like you are home when you are in it".

  Ashton Kutcher


Last July, my husband and I were window shopping and we decided to go into a mattress store. He was playful that day and decided to try out all the mattresses. He climbed on each bed in his camo jacket and boots and patted the bed next to him to induce me to go along. We both knew which ones we liked and they were expensive. Never in a million years did I think we would be coming home with a delivery date of a new luxurious mattress with memory foam and springs. 




   To be honest, the springs on our old mattress were pushing their way into delicate parts of my frame. It was not a luxury but really a necessity. Sometimes in a marriage you get stuck in the cycle of taking care of essential things, not fully understanding what is essential.
   As in all new possessions, I am used to to the bed now. I try to remind myself what I had before to stay appreciative of my great bed.

I am joining Ann Dee Ellis and other writers in using a prompt                        to record  memoir moments. If you don't write your story, who will?



Monday, January 2, 2017

Nurturing Monday- In The Nurture Of The Lord

Ephesians 4:4
"And, ye ​​​fathers​, ​​​provoke​ not your ​​​children​ to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord."







I look for quotations using my one little word in the scriptures, first. The texts are translations so I know the word originally used may have better and even different connotations than the English word. I find it interesting that Paul instructs fathers to bring up their children in the nurture of the Lord not with, or by. It makes me feel that the nurture of the Lord is a way of transmitting care and deep feeling. 

Enos 1:1 
"Behold, it came to pass that I, Enos, knowing my father that he was a just man--for he taught me in his language, and also in the nurture and admonition of the Lord--and blessed be the name of my God for it."

Enos was the son of Jacob, Nephew of Nephi, in the Book of Mormon. He starts his account with the information that he had a just father who taught him three important things. His language, which I guess might have been reformed Egyptian, a written language, the nurture of the Lord, and the admonition of the Lord. To be taught in the nurture of the Lord, the teacher must have some knowledge of that nurture. It would be translated by testimony, but more impacting, it would be translated by love and deep caring. This month of January I intend to get more curious about that nurture. Was I taught in the nurture of the Lord? What have I learned from that nurture? How can I teach others in that nurture?


To go to the overview of My Year of Nurturing click here.