Skip to main content

Let it simmer

Just like a recipe that requires simmering, God started to simmer something in my soul.  A gentle way to say, I'm going to do something and I'll be easing into a full boil.  Quite a daunting thought.  He is a gentle, loving God who only wants the best for me, right?  I have to remember that.  He LOVES me.  Yet, he's had the flame on simmer for some time.  But just like it's so easy to get used to the sting of a steamy, hot shower, so it is with that simmer.  You just get used to it and you can stand it.  Well, I guess he noticed and has decided to turn up the heat a little.  I know I have a high tolerance for discomfort.  I just ignore it, thinking there must be something wrong with me.  My usual modus operandi.  But God says no to that.  He uses discomfort as a simmer in the soul, as if to say I am going to do a new work in you.  I am going to turn that discomfort into something amazing.  Amazing?  Really?  That discomfort starts to take on a name or two.  Things that can be defined if we really take a look at what's simmering.  For me it looks like inner conflict with a mixture of not so nice emotions.  Right now, I really can't imagine God making all of that turn out amazing.  But he's the one with the vision and plan, and I have to trust that.  He's got work to do in me and I have to choose to be still, to listen and to cooperate.  I need to put my guard down, to let him turn the heat up to a full boil and wait for something amazing.  This could take a long time.
 
Is there anything simmering in you? 

Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts.  See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.   Psalm 139:23-24

Comments

  1. Whatever you're dealing with right now, Re, I trust that you'll follow the path that God has intended for you to follow, and you'll come out even stronger and better than before. We are all a work in progress, simmering away.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

What does your "cookbook" look like?

My Betty Crocker cookbook is a wreck. It was given to me as a bridal shower gift in 1979, and I have treasured it ever since. Over forty years later, it remains a prized possession. It has been my cooking guidebook, truly important when you’ve grown up feasting on a mainly southern Italian diet, (no complaints here) which included a lot of pasta and meatballs. Yes, our meals had variety, but gravy was simmering at my house just about every other day. The traditional, and now collectable Betty Crocker cookbook became my best friend in the kitchen. Today, it has all the signs of being used and maybe a little abused. The pages are weathered, written on, and stained. The covers are loose, no longer held in place by the familiar spiral binding. The only thing keeping it together is an oversized, stretchy band. I’ve collected other cookbooks over the years, but this one has been my go-to manual. In it, I discovered new recipes, tried making things I had never heard of, and was thrilled

Baby steps to Big Girl Dreams

My heart was racing.  I had a tug inside of me to make a call to the local community college to inquire about teaching a continuing education class.  I had always had a desire to teach, and the bubbly stir inside of me kept pushing me to act.  My only problem was that  the conversation in my head made me want to run and hide.  But the stir was so very strong.  I had to do something.  And then I remembered a teaching I had just heard by Joyce Meyer.  She spoke about fear and how it can grip your life.   Her solution was simple.  She said, "Whatever you need to do, do it afraid."   A light blub moment !   Her words interrupted that internal conversation, and pushed me to make a choice and shift my thinking.  I marched to the phone....afraid....and made the call to the college.  I asked if they were in need of instructors and before I knew it,  one thing led to another.  By the end of the call, I had an interview lined up and a request to submit a curriculum for a new class

What I learned in March

Another day of snow.  The amount we'd been getting was absurd.  But this one particular day, there was an amazing snowfall.  Even though I really, really wanted to complain, I just couldn't.  It was way to beautiful.  As I drove to work, I looked at the trees along my route.  Each covered perfectly with a velvety ribbon of white.  Just amazing.  How could I possibly complain?  So as I drove, I took it all in.  Any other day, maybe the snow would not have received such a welcome, but this day, it did.  I decided to celebrate instead of complain.  So what happened?  Well, my disposition changed.  Since then, I focused on a simple prayer.  Lord, change me.  Three little words.  Because when it comes down to it, the driver for my mood is my attitude, my perspective, my thinking...all of it.  Learning and saying these three little words was a huge graduation for me.  It gave me a sense of peace and relief.  That is, until I learned a new way to pray just last week.  During a sm