Weary and feeling small?

"All things bright and beautiful,

all creatures great and small,

all things wise and wonderful,

the Lord God made them all."

This isn't a photo of our sweet little Yorkie, Lola, but she's just as cute. :) . I just love the way this little one is looking at us, and one of my favorite things about a Yorkie is that little pink tongue! They are just the sweetest! I must admit, I am a huge dog lover. Big, small, short, tall, I love them all!! I'd have a whole slew of pups if the hubby was on board. (We hit the jackpot with him even getting on board with one ;) )

When I think of how God in His infinite wisdom, power and majesty could not only create the vast kinds of animals and insects and mammals as He did, but also the subcategories WITHIN each of those categories is just beyond astounding!

I often sing that little verse at the beginning of this post in my head or out loud to my kids. I will sing this little diddy at times when they are fighting and I think my heart might palpate right on out of it's chest. I might sing it on a sunny, warm, summer morning when the birds are chirping and the coffee is brewing. I even found myself singing it today when all felt lost, cold and confusing. Today, was a hard day for me. I felt weary and small. Today was the first day that it really hit many of us conservative Christians how far our country has fallen and how fast the ship is sinking. It's not that this is new territory. Solomon tells us this in Eccelsiates 3:

"To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:

A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;

A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;

A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;

A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;

A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;

A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;

A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace."

I have been privileged. I have lived all of my almost 42 years of life in a country that it's principles and morals were founded on freedom and God. I have only read about the sufferings of those persecuted for their faith. I have only heard the stories my grandfather told me of his years spent as a medic driver in the war. I am so grateful for what peace and ease God has chosen to let me be born and grown up in. I have been blessed upon blessed . Not only do I live in what now is a free country because of the price those before me paid for us, I also have the indescribable gift of ETERNAL LIFE because of what Christ paid for me. That gift is the GREATEST gift I possess. It is the gift that always boomerangs back and hits me smack in the face when I "grow weary and feel small" in times of trial and persecutions. Times when close family turns on me because of difference of politics. Times when friends "unfriend" me or grow weary of me because of my passion and commitment to continue to "speak for those who cannot speak." Times when the words "mother and father" are thrown out of use in Congress so we keep things gender neutral. Times when psychological and biological warfare are causing a havoc so great yet invisible to the human eye. Times when churches are being targeted and forced to stay closed or "not sing" yet Walmart is filled and the strip clubs are bumpin'. Liquor stores are essential but the Christian book store is a death trap. Times when an eight year old child is being supported on a government level to have their genitalia removed. I could go on.....you and I both know I could go on. ;)

I know Jim, I know. Me too.

Today I was weary and felt small, because not only did I feel all those feels I mentioned above, but it really hit home that it's not going to get better. At least not in the sense that so, so many consertvative, Christian Americans were hoping for. We have been lied to, spit on, censored, shut up, shut down, stomped on and gaslighted. We have been told we are criminals for supporting a candidate and even because of our gender and the whiteness of our skin. We have basically been told by the world who has the voice of power, "You are a mistake and we need to make you go away." Yet, as Christians, this is what we have been preparing for our entire lives. VBS wasn't just songs and iron-on shirt making, cookies and red kool-aid. My Christian education wasn't just an "alternative" to public school. Sunday school, Bible study, personal prayer and scripture memory had a purpose. My baptism and the Lord's Supper were and continue to be the Holy Spirit intervening for me and renewing my faith "for such a time as this." The past struggles of anxiety, depression, miscarriages and other health issues have made it so much clearer how God used those painful experiences for His AND my good. He has covered me with the Helmet of Salvation and the Breastplate of Righteousness. He has fitted me the Belt of Truth and the the Feet of Readiness to stand down and stand firm. He has protected me with the Shield of Faith to deflect all of satan's flaming piercing arrows. Finally, He has handed me the offensive Sword of the Spirit to use for even the most hostile, aggresive and sneakiest of afflictions.

I am ready. Whether I "feel"I am ready or not, doesn't even matter.

I am ready because Christ made me ready.

He loves the spider and the butterfly. He loves the lion and the lamb . He loves Joe Biden and Donald Trump. He loves you and He loves me. He wants ALL men to come to the knowledge of Salvation in Christ alone. I do not know who truly posesses that in their heart nor do you. We can see actions. We can see when those actions line up close to God's word or as far away as the east is from the west. However, until the New Jerusalem comes, this is the time of Grace for ALL His childen. Let's shift our focus from "Why are you allowing this God?" to, "What can I do to show your love to my enemy, God?"

This is all too big for us.

Let's pray to the one and only God who parted the sea, that He moves the hearts of those who may soon be swallowed alive when it closes back in.

The Lord God did indeed, make them all.

xoxo,

Sola Gratia,

Sara