Aaaannnnnnd on Day 4, I have a plan…..

Well, I move slowly. We all know that…and I ponder long on all things, including what to order on a menu….so no big surprise it has taken me until day 4 of Lent to get my act together…

Exhibit A:

This represents my post-lunch scene…here we have the remnants from morning devotions (including kleenex and reading glasses), materials needed to balance the checkbook, my laptop with an email about trusting God, and the printout of the 40 day Lent series from Ann Voskamp’s website that I am supposed to have cut apart, folded, inserted string into and hung from tree branches artfully displayed somewhere…ain’t happening…

However….I actually HAVE been doing the meditations and today…I got serious and….

I did come up with a plan….

And now we all know why I am not on Pinterest…but here’s what I got from today’s meditation….

The focus was on Matthew 23: 23 – 26 and the part that jumped out at me and “transformed me” today was in verse 23….

but you neglect the weightier issues of the law: Justice….Mercy….Faith

Well…ouch

Because Justice…yes, I want justice. But sometimes I get more caught up in making sure I am RECEIVING justice then making sure I am acting JUSTLY…

And Mercy…oh mercy! How thankful I am for mercy. I had one of those moments in the midst of the ponderings where I came face to face with some ghosts of season’s past and all I could do was weep in gratitude for God’s mercy. Which was quickly followed by His asking me if I am showing the same mercy to those who are making similar mistakes….

And then there’s that matter of Faith. Having the kind of faith that pleases God. Being faithful myself because I know He has never failed me. Believing Him, taking Him at His Word, doing what His word says: faithfully…

Weighty matters indeed. Not to exclude other acts of service, but God is getting through this easily distracted blonde brain….Justice, Mercy, Faith…these MATTER highly to Him!! And therefore, they must matter highly to me as well.

The instructions are clear….

But you must return to your God;

maintain love and justice,

and always put your hope in God.

 Hosea 12:6  HCSB

Bless you as you journey onward <3