rest and reminders

Rest: Wednesday nights are always a much-needed pause in the heat of the oh-so-hectic life I stumble through (I've only been to the gym once in the last 7 days). And last night's could not have come soon enough. It's hard (maybe I'm just not disciplined enough) to just sit in stillness and listen to what HE is trying to get through. It's ironic that the busier we are, the more we need direction and focus, yet the busier we are, the more difficult it is to listen to the ONE that gives direction and focus.

Reminders: I've been reading Nehemiah lately, and something in chapter 8 struck a chord. As the people were rediscovering the law, they read that they were to live in booths made of branches during the feast of the seventh month. This was a time of celebration, but they were to go out from their new homes in the restored city of Jerusalem to live in shacks. And they did it without reservation or complaint. Why?
Because it was a reminder of where they had come from and where God delivered them from. The exiles had returned from out of the desert and had been richly rewarded for their obedience.
As Tim pointed out last night, we should each keep a record of answered prayers and the points in life when HIS presence was revealed. In good times and bad, we can look back and be reminded of what HE has done and what HE has delivered us from.