It was such a glorious day today! Not only was it Sunday, the day I meet with my home church, but it was also sunny and breezy and beautiful outside. I hung out two loads of laundry before I left this morning, and it was dry when I returned home in mid-afternoon. I washed two more loads and got them on the line; I knew they would dry quickly with the beautiful breeze and warm sunshine we were enjoying.
Days like today make me want to wash every sheet, blanket and curtain in the house. I love the smell of them when they come off the line. If I fold them soon enough, they will still be warm from the sun's rays. I did that today. Folding a big, fluffy white towel, I couldn't resist burying my face in it, and inhaling that wonderfully fresh, clean fragrance that only time spent on a clothesline in the breeze can create. Strangely enough, as I was doing so, a line from Psalm 19 came to my mind. I'll highlight it below:
"The law of the LORD is perfect, restoring the soul;
The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
The precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
The judgement of the LORD are true; they are righteous altogether."
(Psalm 19:7-9)
I love this Psalm, and these verses are my favourite from it. I love these words:
perfect, sure, right, pure, clean. Don't ask me what the exact connection is between these verses and the scent of my towel today. Perhaps because just drinking in that delightful smell rejoices my heart in some way. Perhaps because, in such an ordinary, everyday thing as doing laundry, I find contentment, knowing that I am blessed to be able to do so, when so many others haven't the resources or ability to, if they live in a third world country or are homeless in this one. Perhaps because the smell seems so pure to me, as if it has taken on a part of nature, having hung in the sunshine and flapped in the breeze that a kind and loving God has created. Perhaps just enjoying that simple pleasure reminds my heart that it is just one of the countless blessings that I receive from Him, every day.
6 comments:
And here I thought you were just trying to save money on your electric bill:-)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgpcE8_9_Fc
Some wives make other wives look bad :o)
Dryer user
Ah, yes but the guys at Family Room Media and all of that ilk (the love-is-God crowd) argue with all their strength that fear is an Old Testament relic, not an appropriate reaction or emotion for any New Testament believer.
Such a belief set would render your scripture irrelevant for today.
Ike, sadly I have resorted to hanging laundry on lines in the basement. Our many feathered friends have started their yearly feasting of berries off one particular tree, and they love to leave their deposits on my drying clothes. Makes for some nice abstract art sometimes, but then I just have to wash them all over again!
William, such a belief would not render it irrelevant; the scripture will always be relevant, as it is truth. The one who believes otherwise will be operating under a false premise, a premise that the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament are two different Gods. Hard to imagine, since Jesus Christ is "the same yesterday, today and forever." (Hebrews)
I would love to write a book someday titled "The Blessings of Fearing God", although I think Jerry Bridges may have already penned one with a similar title.
The moment I began to fear God was the moment I moved from darkness to light. (Doesn't scripture say it is the beginning of wisdom to fear Him?) Fearing God does not make me cower from Him, as I once may have done. It stirs in me a desire to follow, serve, please, obey and love Him, the One Who is all powerful and ever holy, Who stooped to save this miserable sinner. Yes He is my dear Friend, but He is also my Lord. He can't be your Friend, or Savior, without first becoming your Lord.
(I know you think the same as me, just felt like going on a bit. Keep up the good fight!)
I came to relationship with the Lord Maureen, principally via a short tract that convinced me I am a sinner and subject to damnation without the Lord. I couldn't rest until I had resolved the challenge put to me in that tract. I cannot tell you how often I have been ridiculed for sharing that story with the love-is-God crowd. I shared what I did Maureen to serve as reminder to you that the more profound you get on your blog the greater the contempt your/His enemies will have for you. This post of yours was wonderful, but that is all the more reason you are going to be hated.
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