Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
- Joshua 1:9
So you know for several weeks I have been trying to practice constant mindfulness of God. Turns out, it’s not easy. de Caussade has some great stuff in his book but I can only read about 3 pages at a time, then I have to meditate on what he’s saying. Meaning, it’s not immediately and obviously helpful.
I picked up Brother Lawrence’s book “The Practice of the Presence of God” which has been much easier to read – and even to skip around in. Come to find out, Brother L thinks about God while he’s washing dishes and during all of the mundane things of out life. Sort of like what Anita said about the “in-betweeners”, people who gracefully handle the 99% of time when they are not having some profound thought. If Anita gave an award for in-betweeners, Brother L would have won the first one.
Now, I did a lot of box digging last week and one of the cooler things I found in storage was an index card file box containing about 200 cards in it that Anita wrote both inspirational bible passages and notes to herself about dealing with things in her life. I have thumbed through a number of them, but the first one that really hit me hard was the verse from Joshua above.
The theme of this chapter of Joshua is God reassuring Joshua that if he is faithful to Him, he will be successful in his endeavor to lead. But even if we are not all meant to be leaders, I think this verse provides comfort. Do not fear. Do not be discouraged. God is with you. Be strong and courageous! And isn’t that exactly what I’ve been seeking? Letting loose my fears and accepting with all my heart that God is with me ALL the time. Hard times, Stressful times. Don’t be discouraged! God is with you.
So I’m going to go finish washing my dishes. With God.
