Tuesday, November 22, 2016

The Joy of Consolation




 

 

 

When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.


Psalm 94:19, NIV 








What do you do when 
your heart trembles
under a load of 
anxiety?

Do you have a word that soothes
or a song that comforts?

I have a treasure chest full
that measures an abundance of 
JOY
just waiting for me.

Sometimes easily forgotten, 
one simple thought
can take me down the path
that will open the vault of memories
stored
with friends of the most
heart-full kind.


There is the friend who 
drove the car while my husband held onto 
our mattress tied to the roof of the car.

Then there is the couple who 
brought 3 pies to our house
and got snowed in at Thanksgiving
so we ate all the pies, the four
of us, in ONE day.

Or maybe I would remember the
friend who eagerly shared my
joy in gardening and donned her
raincoat and boots
just so that we would not miss our
yearly Garden Planting Day.

Ah, yes, another gardening friend
came alongside
for our Secret Gardening Forays
as we transplanted and prettied
up our townhouse complex
together.

But what kinds of friends would
willingly
sign up to portray the cast of
a Gilligan Christmas
put on by the STAFF of your Church?
True friends who know what it means
to love to the full
day in and day out
because 
that's what Jesus calls us to do.

And by the time I've 
walked through the years
back up to the present,
and my heart is looking down 
the trail that is today,
I find a new list of friends.
Ones who have joined me with
Blogging, Facebook, and Emails for
Digital Loving,
a phrase I did not know could exist.

But then,
who would have thought that
mattress chugging,
pie eating,
boot wearing,
shovel bearing,
and 
costume wearing
could be ways to find true consolation
and JOY
from Jesus?

There is no room for anxiety
when my heart is so full
of LOVE like that. 


And so to all of my friends,
both near and far,
And to all of my Loved Ones
who live in my heart,
I am THANKFUL for the gift
of consolation
that Jesus brings through you.



I am linking this week over at these great sites:
#TeaAndWordTuesday, Meg Weyerbacher 
#TellHisStory, Jennifer Dukes Lee 
#LiveFreeThursday, Suzie Eller 
 
 

 

16 comments:

  1. Delightful gratitude moments. I think I like the Thanksgiving pie one!! Lots of pie!

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    1. Hi Linda, Yes, I think my younger stomach could handle a lot more back in those days! :-) I am grateful for your encouraging words over these past months my friend! May you be blessed this Thanksgiving too!

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  2. Bettie, what a wonderful list of moments from your memories! Thank you for such an encouraging post. I'm so thankful I "met" you this fall and count your friendship as one of my blessings! Have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Blessings!

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    Replies
    1. Dear Gayl, I am so glad that I have been getting to know you these past weeks also. You have been such an encouragement and gift to me! I pray that you will be blessed by God this Thanksgiving with beautiful memories with your family! Hugs!

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    2. Thanks, Bettie! Hugs to you, too!!!

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  3. I love this!! I laughed out loud about the pies. It sounds like something that would have happened to one of my besties and our family LOL. I would love to be your neighbor. I am desiring to learn how to garden but alas...it has not happened yet. It may soon though. I think my one word for 2017 from the Lord may be making way for experiencing in my life! I am so thankful for you, friend. Hope this Thanksgiving brings new and wonderful memories you can add to this!

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    Replies
    1. Dear Meg, Yes, I also think we would have lots of fun being neighbors! And, gardening and pie make for great memories! :-) I am so thankful for the connections that God created for us through these pages. You are a blessing to me! May HE bring new blessings to you over this Thanksgiving Holiday, my friend! -Hugs!

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  4. This made me smile... mostly about the pies (heaven, truly, to be snowed in with pie all around!!!) but also because of your words about consolation and thankfulness tied up together in the post. So glad we were neighbours at #TellHisStory this week, friend! Happy Thanksgiving!!!

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    Replies
    1. So glad you stopped by and found Joy here friend! Isn't our God so good to bring about His Blessings through ways that are so surprising to us? I'm glad to have been your neighbor this week also! --Blessings to you!

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  5. thankful for friends! Hope you holiday is blessed.

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    Replies
    1. Yes, friends are such a gift! May your Thanksgiving be blessed with Love and Joy!

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  6. I smiled to think of four of you eating three pies in one day. :) Usually by the time I get to the pies, I'm sometimes too full to enjoy them, so this actually sounds appealing to me. :) "Digital loving." I love that. :) I'm so grateful to have "met" you, Bettie. Have a blessed Thanksgiving! Hugs!

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    1. Dear Trudy, Oh goodness, I know that I couldn't handle that much pie now-a-days! :-) But I'm glad that God brings enjoyment through all of the seasons in our lives if we will look up to Him. Thank you for being one of those who has brought "Digital Loving" to me this year! I am so grateful to have "met" you also, my friend! Blessings and Hugs to you also!

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  7. Bettie, we could all use the type of friends you mention here! I smiled at the pie incident and my heart was warmed by reading this:

    "There is no room for anxiety
    when my heart is so full
    of LOVE like that"

    You have been a huge source of JOY to me this year, and I love the thought of experiencing "Digital Loving" together, holding hands and hearts across oceans and blogs. I'm so thankful to have "met" you and grown to become firm friends, supporting one another through the pitfalls of adversity in this chronic illness journey. Your friendship lifts my heart with JOY and encouragement. May you have a blessed Thanksgiving and restful lead in to the weekend, dear friend. xox :)

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    1. Dear Joy,
      Yes, my heart is full when I remember the love of so many friends down through the years! And now in a different season of my life, I am so thankful that God has found new ways for me to connect with new friends. You are a constant source of encouragement to me, also--a surprise gift from God over these many months! May He continue to bless you and bring strength to you my friend! xoxo

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