Blog — Praises & Life

I think we all have sadness in our lives, about one thing or another (or many things).  As we get older, it can build up.  I've never found the phrase 'time heals all wounds' to be accurate -- time helps those wounds to have softer edges, and allows those wounds to be incorporated into who we are -- time allows God to use those wounds for His greater purposes.  But they never really go away.  Not for me, anyway. Sometimes grief and sadness are easy to set aside amidst the joy of the holiday season.  Other times, the joy makes it feel...

I've often heard (and said) that we have a "Just in time" God ... He prefers to do things "just in the nick of time", rather than with plenty of time to spare. I'm not sure where I heard it from but it's something I've long believed to be true. A few days ago I was on my way out of the valley, in a hurry, as I often am. Like many Hintonites, I debated "do I go the train way, or, the mill way?" Based on where I was and where I was headed, the train way made more...

Friday is Good because Sunday is coming And by that we can know, and trust, that even dark times in life can be good because … Sunday is coming. I always find Good Friday and the Saturday a bit pensive and solemn. Even now, 2023(ish) years later … the darkness of knowing Jesus died in such a terrible way, is painful to bear. And I know how it ends … how terrible it must have been all those years ago, when they didn’t know the next chapter, and felt it finished. Yet they went about their sabbath, believing the worst...

I think one of the biggest things I have learned lately, is that sadness/grief/struggle don't necessarily mean something is "wrong". Difficult as those feelings and stages of life are, I think sometimes they are part of the Design. Like how roses have thorns.... to protect them.And butterflies need to struggle out of cocoons..... in order to fly. While thorns could be seen as flaws, and the struggle to emerge could be viewed as a problem, they are actually part of the grand design for their respective creations. Grand design, from a master planner. I don't know why some things happen...

I inwardly giggle when my kids complain about the toughness of life, or when they take issue with the fact that sometimes I let things be hard. I giggle because they have no idea really of all the “hard” I spare them. I was thinking about it more tonight. How things are like that between me, and God. Sometimes I grumble and complain about the toughness of life, and I feel upset that God allows some things to be hard. I have no idea, really, about all the hardness He spares me from. Maybe the virus he flicked away at...