once again sleep aluded me. Awakened around 12:15AM by an unknown reason, I could not go back to sleep. Last time I looked at the clock it was 1:30AM and I debated on getting up and settling down in my chair for the duration of the night. But I resisted, and finally dozed off to sleep, only to wake up at 4AM. This morning has been a struggle to stay awake - again - and often found my eyes closing. I finally decided to just get dressed out of my jammies and I think I'm finaly able to stay awake. Maybe. It will be a light day today so if I need a nap, I know that I can get one in. Both of my bosses will be at Corporate today for meetings so I don't expect to hear much from them - if at all. I am still working on my mandatory training stuff so have plenty to do.
Because I have had difficulty staying awake earlier, I haven't read my books yet this morning - well, I did read my Bible, and I have read one other book. But haven't done my lesson yet. And I still have time, but thought I'd start on this first. But the problem with that is - my mind is blank and probably still tired - and nothing is coming to mind to write about. Let see.... what can I share...
Have you ever done something that made you want to go and hide and not be seen? Not held accountable for something? I'm sure we all have at some point in our childhood - and in our adult lives! A light example would be..... some time ago I wanted a cookie. Now I know a cookie is NOT on ANY of the diet plans I have been on. But I STILL wanted a cookie. I think they were oreos - which are one of my many favorites. And I wanted one. Not a handful. Just one. So I got up from my desk, walked to the kitchen (hubby was in the front room and I had to cross over from one side to the other), quietly got into the pantry, got a cookie, and walked back to my 'office'. I text'd my little sister and told her "It has to be pretty bad when an adult has to go sneak a cookie and hide it under her shirt so that she can enjoy a cookie without any comments" (or something like that). My sister had to call me - she nearly choked on her water when she read my note! Now in all fairness, hubby would not dare to tell me I couldn't have a cookie, but he could make a comment... and I didn't want to hear it. I didn't want him to know I was getting a cookie. So I snuck it to my room under my shirt, so that I could enjoy it all by myself. I am 72 years old - surely I can have a cookie if I want it!
And isn't that what we do with life? We see something we want and go after it, but then we think we shouldn't let it be known (sometimes) what we did. Sometimes we put the item in the closet and after a week or so, bring it out and when someone asks when did we get it, we respond with "oh it has been in the closet". And, in all honesty, sometimes you HAVE had it for awhile and the other party just doesn't remember you having it. But sometimes, that shirt or dress, or a book, may be on a shelf or in the closet for awhile before being brought out into the light. :)
Genesis 3:8 (NIV): Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden."
Ah, yes, I am referring to Adam and Eve. You remember the story. The serpent tempted Eve by asking her "Did God really say you couldn't eat of that tree?" And Eve, desiring the fruit, took and ate of it, and also gave to her husband, Adam, and he did eat of the fruit. But then, reality hits! He looks at her - she looks at him - and both realize they are totally naked! So what do they do? They couldn't let God see them naked (although He already had, since He created them!) - so they (somehow) sewed fig leaves together to cover themselves. And then they hid. And when God came to visit them, to walk with them as He always did..... they were hiding from Him.
And that is what we often do, isn't it? We may just speak a cross word to a child or to a spouse... and then we want to go back into our corner to hide because we know we did something we shouldn't have done. It doesn't mean they love us less (overall, anyway), but it just means that we know we have sinned and shouldn't have done that. We want to hide and pretend nothing happened.
But because of God's great love for Adam and Eve, he clothed them with animal skin, and sent them out of the garden to till the ground. They still worshipped God, but had to accept the consequences of their disobedience. Same as we do; same as the punishment we give to our children. "I TOLD you not to do that - but you did it anyway! Your punishment is....." Consequences. Being banished from the Garden of Eden. That's tough. But very necessary.
Oh, and the serpent got punished too! He was made to eat dust all his life... crawling along the ground. And yes, to get even with man, he will strike out at our heels, but the devil's head was crushed when Jesus went to the cross and died for us. The devil thought he had won the battle over good by getting the people to crucify the One who was God's only Son. But the battle wasn't over. Jesus died, was buried, and rose again on the third day - and Victory was declared over the devil. Death could not hold Jesus down! Hallelujah! Now THAT is a story that should never be hidden!
Hmmm now that I mentioned oreos, I want one. And I don't have any. Oh well. Guess I'll fix a shake for breakfast this morning. It will get me through the morning.
What - or who - are YOU hiding from? Have you heard that small voice inside trying to tell you something? Maybe you need to apologize? Maybe you need to make things right? Maybe you should change the way you do things? I don't know... but if you have that small voice causing you to 'hide', then perhaps you need to step back and NOT hide, but face whatever it is.
God loves you - no matter what. He loves you so much, He has given you such great worth, that nothing you do could ever cause Him to walk away from you. Why not take a moment and just have 'that conversation' with Him this morning? Ask Him why you are hiding from Him, and what you can do to get taken care of.
Me.... I'm out of cookies.... so I'm not hiding right now! (Not that I need to ever!)
Blessings!
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