Norishment For The Soul

 Last week we were able to spend time with two of our daughters, one son-in-law, and five of our grandchildren.  We laughed til we cried.....we shared stories....we walked, worked, and played together.  We gathered with others to celebrate our oldest grandson's confirmation and his sister's induction into the national junior honor society.  We watched a grandchild play volleyball, cheering her on to victory~ twice.  I snuggled with a grand, chatted and ate gelapos with two teen grands, was beaten pretty bad in Wii bowling by another tween grand and grabbed my fair share of hugs from the whole group!  Nourishment for the soul!

Bonnie over at Faith Barista asked her readers to write this week, answering the question, "As moms, what nourishes our souls?."  As a gray haired mom....and grandma many times over, life is a bit different from in the past when our house was full and I spent my days as a domestic goddess for 10!   Things have shifted quite a bit as we have lived as empty nesters now for over 10 years.

Of course the number one way I nourish my soul is through my relationship with God, but besides that most important connection, the number one thing on my list is my family.  You see, none of our children live where we call home at this time in our lives, and distance, busyness, and life keep us apart.  So when opportunities come for us to connect, I hold them close.  My eyes drink in their presence, my ears listen to their voices, and my heart tucks away memories for the future.  Phone calls and text messages keep us in each other's lives, but it is their presence that I(we) enjoy the most. Nourishment for the soul!

Besides my children, in-loves, and grandchildren, another way I nourish my soul is with praise music.  I get up almost every morning and listen to praise songs from several artists, moving and grooving while I sing.   I feed my soul on Biblical teachings from Joel and several online ministries, the Word of God, meditation and prayer, devotionals, inspirational books, Holy Spirit "hugs" and my prayer language given to me by God.  We also nourish our souls by teaching God's promises to others. 

At this time in our lives, when we have been set free from Lyme Disease by the Healer's touch, my soul is renewed by freedom. It is for freedom that Christ set us free!  Freedom to walk, dance, travel, shop, visit, and much more.  We take nothing for granted anymore but treasure it all.  It is nourishment for the soul!

Laughter is the best medicine........Joel and I laugh...with each other, at each other (in kind ways), at life's circumstances.  Just this past week we were, at their request, describing to someone the gift of speaking in tongues and what it means to us.  They responded, "That is just to the right of crazy"!! We have giggled and laughed over that several times!  Good medicine!  We watch TV shows or movies with wholesome humor and we laugh.  We laugh!

Jesus tells us to come to Him all who are weary and He will give us rest.  This nourishes our soul.....the resting....trusting....listening.....the intimacy of knowing Someone so well that we can sit in silence and be comfortable together. 

As I wrote this I realized that ALL nourishment comes from God!   Whether it is through loved ones, books, scriptures, laughter, prayers, the internet or more.  It is all from God, this nourishment for the soul!

The Gift of Rain

We woke up around midnight to the sound of thunder. Soon the wind was blowing hard and the house shook with each loud boom. When the storm made it presence known, it brought rain to our parched land here in north Iowa. Rain. Beautiful water falling from the sky.

We awoke this morning to leaves blanketing the ground and small branches scattered around.  A couple of our neighbors lost large branches, the trees being so dry from lack of rain.  Even though my hubby is having to deal with cleaning up, we are not complaining. The trees, bushes and earth needed nourishment! Like we humans who feel refreshed after a good drink of water, so nature has breathed a sigh of relief for the rain having quenched its thirst last night.

I cannot help but relate this to those desert times that come into our lives. There are seasons where we feel so parched and dry. Nothing seems to touch our weariness, and we long for rain from above.  Living water to quench our thirst, nourish our souls.

God is His perfect timing will provide what we need. He always does.  Sometimes the relief comes after a storm in our lives.  We don't know why, but often after the "winds blow" and the "gust front" makes its way through, the "rain" comes.  A steady rain that nourishes and leaves us refreshed.  The desert place within soaks up the living waters, and we sigh in relief.  All is well with our soul.