Day 14. What we think about...

In conversation today I realized Christmas is next week. NEXT WEEK! I had a slight panic attack as I pondered how I was going to pull it all together (you know, the juggling of gifts and bills) and then suddenly I realized that also meant our time of writing for 25 Days for Peace will come to an end next week as well. I felt an instant wave of sadness.

Writing about one topic every single day for 25 days is proving to be daunting for myself and based on observation I think it's safe to say it is for all of us participating in this project. Daunting, challenging, and so very rewarding. Writing is cathartic--well, if you're a writer. But writing on a single topic for 25 days is a different kind of cathartic.

 Can we view something that is uncomfortable, something that stretches us, something that even proves to be daunting as good, as therapeutic even? Can we view something like focusing on a single word for 25 days to be beneficial to our overall well being? Proverbs 23:7 tells us "For as a man thinks, he is" That means, thinking about a single word like "Peace" for 25 straight days could, dare I say, cause peace inside of me.

As a writer you're always looking for inspiration, when you're writing about something specific like peace you're looking for specific inspiration and when you do that for 25 straight days you start to become desperate for inspiration. But if we view this experience, if we the writers and you the readers remember what you think about is what you are, then perhaps "looking for inspiration" is no longer necessary--perhaps it has just become "I think about peace because I want peace" and then, perhaps, the sadness of the thought of this project ending comes full circle.

We still have more than week left of writing, you have more than a week left of reading and together we will have 25 days of reflecting on a simple word. I'd say this project far surpasses what we even imagined or hoped! Here's to becoming peace!

Our new family member

 We have a new family member, her name is Butterscotch and she is a 3 month old mini lop-eared bunny. We are not “bunny” type people, we are “dog” people, so it’s been a new experience all the way around.

My living room décor currently includes a red and white checkered vinyl table cloth with a small pet playpen, a medium size rabbit cage among the “human” living room décor. My oldest daughter said “We look like a farm, Mom!” and after seeing my expression she added “a classy farm though!” It’s true, we have a hint of farm going on, especially if you notice the random pieces of Timothy hay seen throughout the downstairs.

Since we aren’t well versed in rabbits I’ve been doing a lot of reading about them and I catch myself sitting and just watching her. “She has no idea how safe and loved she truly is” is a thought that came to me as I watched Butterscotch half sleep, her ears twitching at every noise as if she isn’t sure she can totally relax into the moment and doze off.

She has no idea.

Rabbits are timid by nature basically because they are prey to LOTS of animals—and humans. If a noise startles them, off they dart. If you try to hold them, off they dart. If they feel in any way they are in danger, off they dart. Butterscotch is not a wild bunny, she’s been held since birth and to say my daughter spoils her is an understatement. So, there’s part of Butterscotch that feels secure—she gets very excited when the playpen door is opened and will come right to you as if to say “hold me” but is probably trying to say “feed me” (boy rabbits eat a lot!); however, she’s still a rabbit and she still has a timid nature, although we have never hurt her she has times of darting from us.

She has no idea.

As Christians we have what we call “knowledge” because we read the Bible, we banter with others over various meanings, and we have access to the Holy Spirit. However, when you look at the behavior of most Christians we are acting as if WE have no idea. We allow God to get close, then we dart. We go to church, we pray, we do something nice for someone then—life gets messy, something doesn’t go the way we think it should, our heart gets hurt and we question God’s love and turn to something that will make us feel good in the moment. Rabbits dart out of fear, they seek shelter and try to hide when they feel threatened. Humans dart out of fear, they seek anything that will bring gratification so the wound is soothed.

If Butterscotch could lay down her rabbit nature, if she could truly understand how lucky she is to be our rabbit, she would sleep soundly and she would stop darting. If Christians (me mostly) could lay down our doubting nature so we could truly understand God’s love and all that entails we would step boldly and stop darting.

Butterscotch will never know, but we can most certainly know. One trust moment after another will lead us to deeper understanding so when something happens that causes us to hurt, we know we don't have to dart or self medicate, but instead we can keep our feet firmly planted and trust God will show up to be our protector.

Psalm 18:2 “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.”