joy of nine9

 

Although my nine children are all adults now, I am still wired to either drop with exhaustion or work. Since I don’t need to clean, cook and mother 25 hours a day any more, I have transferred that guilty, work ethic into what should be enjoyable activities like writing, gardening and crocheting. So this week I decided to TRY and have fun…to play.

I am presenting this week’s play challenge in combination with 7 Quick Takes Friday.

 

 

1

Play. God wants us to rediscover play and I think TO ALSO DISCOVER the spirit of a child WITHIN ALL OF US because as responsible adults we some times take ourselves too seriously. We carry the weight of the world on our shoulders when Jesus wants to carry that weight for us

Matthew 11:28-30

²⁸ “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. ²⁹ Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. ³⁰ For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

 

 2

We transfer this work ethic into the kingdom of God, striving to climb the mountain of perfection to reach holiness.

I have recently discovered, to my great joy,

that there is no mountain to climb!

If I truly let Christ save me from myself,

if I truly allow myself to be a child of God

THEN

all my struggles and burdens lift, dissipate AS if a holy pin has pricked a balloon of deception.

Pouf,,

the burdens of Satan disappear, as insubstantial as a black mist

LEAVING THE JOY OF THE LORD IN ITS PLACE.

THE JOY OF THE LORD IS MY STRENGTH

3

I love to create something out of nothing. Perhaps it is a God complex or better yet, a sense of cooperating with the Holy Spirit. I discovered how to upcycle old sheets into crocheted rag rugs. It went so quickly and was so much fun that I actually smiled the entire 3 hours it took to make a beautiful circular rug. Since I used a huge crochet hook and made the stitches loose, the rug is soft and puffy. I am thrilled to realize that I can make house-warming gifts for two daughters as they move into new apartments as they start the university term and for a third daughter who has just moved. They will make great, gifts for my grandchildren to play on AND will cost me nothing more than a box of fabric dye.

4

I LOVE art, especially inspired, Holy Spirit infuse art. Last night I indulged in two hours of posting stunning images onto Pinterest, again with a smile on my face the entire time. A sampling of art from the three modern-day Christian artists-Korean artist Yongsung Kim, the face of Christ by Ann Chapman and Simeon’s Moment by Ron DiCianni

 5

Gardening, with my hands in the soil, making the earth beautiful by cooperating with the Spirit of the Creator

6

Taking time to play with my grandbabies

and connect spirit to spirit with them,

feeling love and joy flow from my heart to theirs

but more importantly

from their heart to mine

7 since I have decided to learn to let go and relax my 7th point is that there does not HAVE to be a 7th point!