There is a haze hanging over everything today. It is gray, somewhat foggy, and the air holds a hint of moisture that puts a fine mist on your skin when you venture outdoors.
I took my walk up the road this morning, as I wasn’t sure if that gray sky would turn to full-fledged rain later in the day. I could have listened to the weather man, but so many times he doesn’t hit it quite right and I would hate to miss out on my walk.
You would think, with the air so dense and heavy and the sky so gray that it would be somewhat depressing out there. I found it really wasn’t, because in that dense, gray, moisture laden air there was also the faint smell of Spring on the breeze. You know that smell that smells of dirt, rain and things ready to grow…..that smell….and it was good.
As I walked I could hear sounds from a couple miles away; where a farm machinery consignment auction is going on today. You could not make out the words but you could hear the sing-song chant of the auctioneer on the distant breeze.
You could also hear a variety of birds calling, singing, and just going about their business. It was really rather peaceful in the grayish world this morning.
It made me pause and started me thinking that there can be a peace and a wonderful stillness (Psalm 46:10) in the gray, heavy times. It can be a time to reflect. It also got me thinking about the mission trip my sister took a few years back to Guatemala.
A few weeks after their church group came back they held a Guatemala Sunday. We went and listened to the stories the group told about the time that was spent there. One of the things that hit me most, was when one of the group told of their experience standing on a hill, high above a huge landfill. Down below they could see people digging through the refuse, looking for anything usable or salable.
This gal related, that as tears rolled down their faces at the poverty they saw, their guide told them not to cry. He told them “Grace is like a river that runs down and pools in the lowest places. Those that are in those places marinate in it.” That quote has stuck with me ever since.
On those days when life seems too hard, too gray, too heavy, too dense to carry on; we can either choose to wallow in our misery or we can choose to marinate in His grace. I am thinking it is our choice to make.
I must admit there are times I choose to wallow. I suspect more of you do too. I must also admit wallowing can be enjoyable but that enjoyment does not last long and then just feeling lousy sets in. Fortunately, I have a husband who does not allow me to wallow too long! (That is a blessing.)
I do find that when I choose to marinate in Grace, life is much more bearable. There is a peace and that wonderful stillness of being who you are supposed to be and where you are supposed to be.
If you are presently in a gray time…..what will you do? Will you see only the grayness or will you see the blessing of stillness. Will you see only what is visible or will you see the promise of life around you? What is your choice…..what is my choice? Will we wallow or will we marinate?
For it is by grace you have been saved,
through faith
–and this is not from yourselves,
it is the gift of God
–Ephesians 2:8
New International Version
My favorite part of your post: “On those days when life seems too hard, too gray, too heavy, too dense to carry on; we can either choose to wallow in our misery or we can choose to marinate in His grace. I am thinking it is our choice to make.” I am going to write this down.
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It is something I need to consciously remind myself of when I get to the wallowing phase.
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That is a beautiful picture. I’ve always thought that a long expanse of farmland was one of the most natural and inspiring sights that one could come upon. The serenity of it belies the work put into it and the bounty it provides, but thinking about it certainly calms the soul for me. Thanks for sharing that vignette of your life.
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You are so welcome Al. There is something so peaceful about fields waiting to be worked. Maybe it is the promise of what is to come….the harvest. I am not sure but I love them in all seasons.
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Lovely words:) x
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Thank you! Lots of time to think when you take a walk by yourself.
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Yes, the smell of new turned earth is heavenly. of mornings. Our storm last night finished off this morning with the brightest of Spring . Wonder how many will completely understand the two quotes on grace.? One of our Fathers wonders.
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Grace is something that never ceases to amaze me. And something that always makes me grateful.
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Great post. I’m looking forward to reading more from you .
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Thank you so much! I am going to have to make a visit out your way!
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Beautiful and full of Wisdom! Thank you! xxx
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You are so welcome Ruthie. I sometimes just start typing and am kind of surprised where I end up.
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Great post. I don’t think you wallow.
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yeah…..I can wallow but not for long because then I just get sick of myself and it is time to get over it.
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This is one of the amazing things about you.
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You’re right, wallowing is a choice. This time last week I was definitely in a wallowing mode; I think I’ve snapped out if it now. Great post with lots of food for thought.
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In the last few weeks I have also definitely wallowed! I do know I am so much happier when I choose not to. And thank you!
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Faye,
I have been wallowing too- in my own misery that I actually became sick and had to take two days off from work. The worst is when you lie in bed and sleep doesn’t come because you are so afraid something is going to happen when you take a shuteye.
I couldn’t even find comfort in the Bible- thankfully I kept praying and praying and giving thanks.
A lot of messages came into my email – very inspiring ones and they sort of pulled me out of my misery. But Faye, these attacks from the evil one are too much for a person to bear.
Thank you for your post which reminds me that even in a gray day, one can find the hint of spring in the air. The moisture is welcome by the plants that lie below the soil and the leaves that are waiting to bud and the birds that want to go about their little businesses. It is us humans that instead of being thankful for what we have, we want to think and think that we deserve so much more and lose sight of what we have in hand.
Susie
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I will be praying for you Susie. Yes when the Evil one attacks it is so hard. Hang in there and keep fighting the good fight Susie. God’s got it even when we can’t see that fact. He loves us through the wallowing and through the marinating.
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I was in a hurry the other day and did not get to read this post until now. Gray days get me down, but I try not to stay in such a mood. Spring often takes its time appearing. Happy Day Faye
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Gray days can be a bummer. Yesterday the gray kind of hit me the opposite because it kind of seem to wrap itself around me like a blanket instead. I have no idea why. Have a great day Peggy!
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When we visited India, many of our fellow travelers were upset by what they saw as poverty. I saw people who lived much the way my great-grandparents did when they first arrived in Canada. I saw a people who smiled a lot as they performed their basic tasks of fetching water from a well, farming, or setting up a simple shop to cut hair beside a fruit cart in the market.
While there is certainly some devastating poverty in India, there is also a large population that lives by the remark you made: “There is a peace and that wonderful stillness of being who you are supposed to be and where you are supposed to be.”
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I think that is what the guide was trying to tell my sister’s group. That contentment isn’t always found in more…it is found in just being content and okay with who you are and where you are.
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Ok you caught me, I was wallowing today, I had had enough of work and all its stresses. I start out trying to be sunny & bright each morning and some days I do marinate. I marinate really well on the weekends and I do look forward to when one day every day will be the weekend…then I believe I will be the Marinating Queen! Beautiful story sincerely though Faye! Glad you are out and about walking. My co-worker just had her surgery on Thursday and they started out doing the three holes but she stopped breathing twice so they had to cut her open to do the hysterectomy and she had such a time before, during and after. I hope it’s all behind her now and she can move forward into the grace and out of the grayness.
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Glad to hear you get to the marinating phase :)!
Sorry to hear the surgery went a little haywire for your friend. I had a slightly rocky start after surgery as well. My IV line was faulty in recovery and all my pain meds were going in to the bed underneath me. Took them 2 1/2 hours to figure that out. I would not want those few hours again. Will be praying for your friend.
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Thanks Faye. They gave her Percocet which made her sick, she’s been trying to survive on ibuprofen, I told her to call her doctor back and get some other pain med, that she shouldn’t have to suffer so. It’s really scary to have to go into the hospital nowadays. Thanks for the prayers I’ll pass them along!! xo
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It is scary! I found that out. I also ended up having to learn to self cath for a week…..not a skill I really wanted to learn but it was necessary. I was wallowing the day my supplies came by UPS. My son called and grounded me when he told me he has a friend who has been doing that since he was paralyzed waist down at the age of 16. Nothing like your 30 year old son kindly telling you to marinate instead of wallow.
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And yes….she needs to call her doctor. There are so many types of pain meds she could be using! Ibuprophen will not cut it at first she needs something more.
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another lovely visit-I love to walk in fog and mist-I do hope your recovery is going well-xxo
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It is going well. When I look back a week or two I realize how much better I am feeling. There is something calming about fog and mist I think.
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Just thought I would let you know Michelle. I think the comments I post to your blog are going into your spam folder the last couple posts :(.
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they were! Whaaat!??I do not get that-Paperpuff told me and i think I fixed it! my sweet Faye, I am so sorry-I treasure every word you give me! thank you for letting me know! xxoo
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didn’t want you to think I was ignoring you !
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truth is, i would have been worried you weren’t feeling good!
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I am actually doing pretty good. I just cannot sit so great yet but that will slowly come. At least I am told that will slowly work out :).
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well-that is good to hear and at least now we can chat again!! xxoo
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You are such an inspiration! I tell myself to pray about misery, and God will make things look better tomorrow.
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Isn’t it great we can hand over the misery to God? He knows we are miserable anyway. I also love how He puts something/someone in our way to kind of reassure us that life will be okay.
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I see the Guatemalan people as being both marinated and creative in their quest to make their day a better one!… which we should all strive to do in our daily lives..my way, being pretty much house bound, is to immerse myself in colourful creativity of either art or craft and hope that I can bring a smile to others in the process. It’s lovely to see where your walk and thoughts go, even on a grey misty day 🙂 Great to read you are feeling stronger!
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I agree….the Guatemalan people are very creative! I have seen the beautiful beads they make out of the plastic bottles they find in that landfill. They are gorgeous.
I love your crafts! And they do bring a smile.
I have always had kind of a wandering mind and also a love of wandering this earth…..(not that my budget allows too much earth wandering, but hey! I can dream!). So as I wander up my road I am never sure where my mind will go at the same time :).
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I can totally empathise with those people trying to bring food to the table from their crafts, though I have no doubt also that I am in a much luckier lifestyle position even if our goal is the same! To be able to fabricate a new entity from waste I think is magical 🙂 Thank you for your lovely comments too!
Dreams are the thing that keep us going…!! Look forward to new ‘mind, body and soul’ experiences everyday on your walks…money couldn’t buy them anyway 😉
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You are so right. Whatever a person’s disposition or beliefs might be, marinating seems more graceful, and full of grace, than wallowing.
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For some reason I always need to relearn the marinating lesson…..wallowing seems to be so easy to do.
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We are only human. I don’t expect you ever wallow for long. You are a very positive person!
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I am an optimist…that is true. I can only stand myself wallowing for so long and then I don’t even like me!
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What a truly beautiful post.
It’s made me want to cry. I’m not certain why …. I do have an idea or a thought about why … but I don’t think I can explain it.
I love this post Chicken. And you too. But then … you knew that already.
Sending love ~ Cobs. x
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Love you back Cobs!!! I am glad it speaks to your heart.
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I love that, wallowing or marinating. I love gray days but this late winter we have had an over abundance of them and need a little sunshine to marinate in. The days that let you have a peak at what’s coming give us hope that wallowing faze is nearing its end and we can let the marinating begin! Thanks for another great ride along.
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This was such a beautiful gray day….kind of like being wrapped in a blanket. It was a great day for walking and thinking.
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