It’s been awhile since I did Bible art journaling. This tulip reminded me of the passage in Song of Solomon 2:11-12 (CSB): “For now the winter is past; the rain has ended and gone away. The blossoms appear in the countryside. The time of singing has come, and the turtledove’s cooing is heard in our land.” Yes, I am SO ready for spring.
By the time you reach the seventh decade, lessons have been learned and philosophies have been established. Sometimes I try to simplify the myriad deep thoughts that keep my mind busy. Put simply, I have concluded that two “areas” or “issues” that are at the very top of my “priorities in life” list are: COMMUNICATION and RELATIONSHIPS. Most everything else in life could likely be put into one or both of those categories (even my number one priority in life, my walk with Jesus my Savior, is about a relationship). Additionally, the two (communication and relationships) are somewhat interrelated (for example, a good relationship requires good communication).
My thoughts today are about relationships. I read SO many devotional thoughts, inspirational messages, and wonderful things that are “important to remember.” Because there is so much good stuff available, sometimes I actually save an article or a message that I want to read again and again. Such was an article published by Ann Voskamp in October 2017. I came across it in my files this week. Following are some of the points she makes in “When You’re Tired of Your Heart Getting Hurt: The Secret to the Good Life.” I found the article in February 2018 and saved it with this note: “I need this.”
*Let your heart live unguarded—and you let love capture you.
*Paying attention to hearts—is the only way to spend your life well.
*Results of one of the longest longitudinal studies ever conducted: “Close relationships, more than money or status, are what keep people happy throughout their lives,” the study revealed. “Those ties protect people from life’s discontents, help to delay mental and physical decline, and are better predictors of long and happy lives than social class, IQ, or even genes.”
*The best stewardship of time is making time for relationships—even when it wounds.
*The secret to healthy aging is healthy relationships.
*To risk loving one another is our greatest safety, and to fearfully try protecting our hearts is our gravest error.
*LIVE WITH WALLS TO BLOCK OUT PAIN, AND YOU WILL BLOCK OUT ALL THE LOVE THATS TRYING TO GET IN.
*The walls you build to protect your heart end up being the walls that imprison your life. The walls you’re building to keep the hurt out are the same walls that keep the healing from getting in.
*Your job is not to find love. Your job is to find all the walls you’ve built to keep love out.
Yes and Amen.
#AnnVoskamp #watercolortulip #spring #SongofSolomon #wallstoprotectalsokeeploveout
