Blessed

Today an old man passed by my youngest son and I while we were eating lunch and said, "You sure are blessed, aren't you?" I had just been scolding Drew for throwing his applesauce at me (which looks great caked on a navy blue cable sweater, by the way) and was even considering cursing a little as I leaned over my bulging belly to pick up the spoon. So, I am grateful that this old man reminded me that the mischievous little guy sitting in front of me was indeed a great blessing.

I woke up this morning wondering if I was doomed to have a repeat of my bad day yesterday (and the day before); I have been feeling stressed and unmotivated and sad and frustrated all at the same time. I don't know what to blame it on, there are so many culprits: pregnancy, my absent but much needed father, the kids' health issues, my busy dh, my busy self, lol, unfinished projects, mischievous little people :). But I realized something very important this morning as I said my prayers. It had been a while since I'd done that first thing out of bed, and when I was done it was clear to me why. I haven't been feeling worthy. Hormones could definitely be plagueing my emotions, but I have been so edgy lately that I just assumed the Lord did not want to hear me whine, let alone ask for help. Basically, I'd been waiting to get over it myself before approaching Him. Oy, pride. The minute I began my prayer this morning I realized nothing could be further from the truth! The overwhelming sense of love that poured over me helped me to realize that my Heavenly Father had been waiting, longing even, for me to come to him. He'd missed me. He hadn't moved an inch. But I sure had. And why?

If you can visualize the rocks in our lives - our faith, our family members, our friends, our beliefs... all things that will forever be with us. Now imagine placing those in a jar. Visualize the things that bring us joy, such as a clean home, neat toys, and accomplishments/accolades as pebbles and mentally pour those into your jar. Lastly, visualize the most disposable things in our life as sand... things such as pedicures, hobbies, shopping (hard not to make that one a rock, huh;))... and pour that into your jar. The jar is now full. Everything fits, but only becuase of the order in which you placed them inside. If this process were done backwards, there would probably only be enough room for a few rocks; a few people or a few beliefs, rather than all. You all may have seen this object lesson before, but it really does open your eyes to the important order of priorities. My priorities have been backwards lately. No, I haven't gotten my one lucky pedicure for the season yet, or even had my hair cut in forever, so please don't think me completely shallow. But I have been seeking to fill a void in my life with sand, basically using it to meet my needs.

This morning, by saying my prayers, I immediately armed myself with strength and with guidance and with comfort. It definitely helped me to get through my hectic morning a little more calmly than I have been the rest of this week.

As we were leaving our lunch spot, I smiled at the old man that had approached us and thought to myself, "Yes, yes I am very blessed indeed." Thank you, dear stranger, for that reminder!