Restoration - Part III
Pondering the Lessons of Air
Introduction
In this issue of the restoration series, I invite you to ponder with me the lessons of the air. We breathe, we feel the wind, and we can fly. Abundant restoration is available all around us; I pray you find something here that blesses you.
A Minute of Motivation
Bloom Where the Wind Takes You
I’ve often wondered why I was born in a small town, and raised on a farm. I’ve never felt much like a country girl and felt like a misfit in my home town. However, I learned a lot there; I’m certain those beginnings are essential to who I am now.
Perhaps you’ve felt like I have – that the stork delivered you to the wrong address. Or maybe you’ve wondered, “What am I doing HERE? This is NOT where I wanted to be? I should be somewhere better, or at least different!”
But, there’s a reason why you are where you are. There are reasons why you have been where you were in the past. All of these things together make you the unique person you are today. And, with that uniqueness, you have something to offer to this life, TODAY, that only you can offer. Plus, there are still things you can learn, right where you are.
That’s really what life is all about – learning from where you are, and offering who you are into the lives of others around you. You cannot rewrite history or change who you are today – but you can live, love, and learn HERE.
A tiny seed, blown uncontrollably by the wind to a seemingly random location, will, nonetheless, do its best to grow and offer beauty wherever it finds itself. Bloom where the wind has taken you. Bloom where you are.
Note. This excerpt was originally written in 1993 and has never before been published.
Enjoy Life More
Joy “Under the Circumstances”
Some days a pile of circumstances is weighing me down; my being feels heavy and sighs are more frequent than usual. No doubt you have days like this. Where is joy found “under the circumstances” of a heavy day?
Instead of sighing, try a slow, deep breath. Breathing in, say: “I am alive.” Breathing out, say: “Thank you.” Repeat. “I am alive. Thank you. I am alive. Thank you.”
Try saying “thank you” for the pile of circumstances. Each one represents something important and valuable in life. Life is full. Circumstances reveal abundance.
Some of the pile consists of burdens related to responsibility. Some of the pile consists of the blessings of responsibility. Are they different? Or is it merely perspective?
On days weighed down by circumstances, try saying thank you. “Thank you for the burdens. Thank you for the blessings they hide. Thank you for the joy of the burdens, the joy of my circumstances.” Breathe in the joy hiding under the circumstances.
Faith Corner
Fly “by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7
This verse, from the original text, uses the word “walk” instead of fly. I awakened this morning with the phrase “fly by faith, not by sight” calling to me from within my spirit. When Paul wrote the original version there were no planes, only birds. It was many centuries before the first Wright brothers’ flight.
I love to fly. My favorite part of being on a plane is take-off. The feeling of acceleration thrills me; the moment of leaving the runway is incredible.
I marvel at seeing planes fly overhead. I know the physics of how it is possible; but I can’t see anything holding those massive metal ships in the air.
In years past, in my nightly dreams, I could fly – without a plane. Upon awakening I could still feel the wonderful sensation of being airborne. It would seem as though I had remembered a lost ability during my dream, only to forget it again when awake.
Don’t misread my meaning here. I know I cannot actually fly. But there’s something beautifully freeing about the metaphor of flying by faith, not by sight. Just like those planes lift off the runway, flying miraculously in the air, held up by forces I cannot see, so, too, my life of faith can be like that.
Dear Lord, I am so amazed by the reality of flying. Just as I cannot see the forces of air movement lifting and carrying the planes, so, also, I cannot see the forces of You lifting and carrying me. But I can close my eyes and know the reality of You. Help me to “fly” by faith in You, not by what I can see. Amen.
Poetry Pause
On Eagles and Flying
Eagles are made to fly,
But even eagles cannot fly
Without the Wind.
No matter how hard they struggle,
Without the Wind
They will crash.
To leap off the cliff on the pretense of flying
Without spreading one’s wings
(even if hoping for a strong Wind)
Is foolishness,
Even for an eagle.
To fly
An eagle must leap
From the security,
Spread its wings,
Believe in the Wind,
And glide with it.
The leaping is scary.
But eagles were made for flying,
Not sitting.
And not to leap
Is not to be an eagle.
Trusting the Wind without struggling is scary,
But no amount of struggle will result in flying
Without the Wind.
And not to spread one’s wings
Is not to believe in the Wind.
Trust:
Eagles were made for flying.
Trust:
Unseen Wind is a reality.
Dare to leap,
Spread your wings,
Believe in the Wind,
And fly in harmony with it.
By Cindy MacGregor, Pre-1992.
Note: This poem was written pre-1992, published in Minute Motivators, loosely inspired by Isaiah 40:31. I made some updates for today’s publication.
Old Mom to Young Mom
Get Some Fresh Air
Though my active “mom-ming” season is years behind me, I can remember well the heavy burden of being responsible 24/7 for the lives and well-being of little humans. I look back and marvel at how I managed to have the energy for it. Of course, I was a younger version of myself.
What are the lessons of the air from an old mom to a young mom? As I pondered this for today’s newsletter I thought of things like fly a kite, take a deep breath, and go outside. But I settled on this: Get some fresh air.
At moments when it feels like too much to be a parent: Get some fresh air. Sometimes that means to pause, draw in a big breath, and re-oxygenate your weary brain. Sometimes it means to go outside and get a fresh perspective. It can also mean to watch a kite being lifted miraculously into the sky.
When our first born was just a baby she would always be calmed from her crying if I took her outside. Years later, when she was an attitude-plagued teenager, I would pause before reacting, take a deep breath, and then, calmly respond to her.
Being a parent is tough. It’s exhausting and it’s perpetual. Remember to breathe. Get some fresh air.
Dear Dr. Mac
With degrees in psychology and leadership and a lifetime of spiritual study, I have a lot of advice to offer. some of it might even be good. If you would like to hear what I think about something, please send an email to: drcjmacgregor@outlook.com .
I also welcome your comments and reactions in the comment box below. What has moved you? What made you think? Your words may bring encouragement to others as I hope mine bring to you.