Take me away

Text message to me last night at 7:00 pm: Grammy can you get me up at 4:30?  Me, thinking: Would that be 4:30 pm or 4:30 am?  My text back:  Yes! And I will expect you to rise and shine with a smile on your face.  Your turn now…. OK!   Everybody Up!  Rise and Shine  Good Morning 2 You
Are you ready for this day? Are you ready for the weekend? What is in your plan?  Whatever it is, I hope it turns out even better than expected.  I was up and ‘on the clock” at 4:25 am – not my average Saturday morning, but since that alarm clock had to be shut off ,  I decided that Zig Ziglar is right; it’s an opportunity clock .  I’m partially through my lengthy ‘what to get done today’ list and I’m hearing the echo in my mind “Calgon take me away.” I’m sure you have to be closing in on age 60 to remember those commercials but every now and then I think of how great it would be to just say “take me away” and poof!  Instant vacation!  Hmmmmm I’m wondering.  Do you ever feel that way?
I think David felt that way.  Take a trip through the Psalms sometime.  How about:  Psalm 59:16 that says “I will sing of your strength, in the morning I will sing of your love; for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble. “  Right now, it’s 7:30 am and my back already hurts – I need physical strength.  What about emotional strength? I don’t expect trouble today, but God will be there no matter what.  God’s reminder of that is right here in Psalm 46:1 “God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.”  Do you know what causes exhaustion?  Seeing the road ahead jammed with too much work, bad news in the media, too many commitments, barricades to progress, and broken relationships.
If we let them, our circumstances will produce total exhaustion!  Corrie Ten Boom had reason to be exhausted.  She was a holocaust survivor who went on to write a book (The Hiding Place) and she spoke bravely about demoralizing and devastating conditions of her life.  Corrie said “If you look at the world, you’ll be distressed.  If you look within, you’ll be depressed.  If you look at God you’ll be at rest.”  I love that prescription for contentment. Look at God …
It’s hard to wait for our circumstances to change, for life to slow down a little – It won’t! Trust me on that. We are not a patient people; we want the desires of our hearts now, not next week, not next month – we prefer not to wait for the next hour sometimes.  We are exhausted ….. just from waiting.  Could it be that Isaiah 40:31 was written for those of us who are exhausted from the wait? “But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.”
I wonder today, how much productive energy I would regain, not from dreaming of Calgon sweeping me away to a tropical haven, but immersed myself instead in waiting on the Lord? Not waiting for my circumstances to change or for my life to suddenly become storybook perfect.  But just wait and as Psalm 46:10 says “Be still and know that I am God.” What if?  I wonder if Proverbs 8:30 would be my reality?  “Then I was constantly at his side. I was filled with delight day after day, rejoicing always in his presence.”  Something to think about – “Right thinking leads to right doing” remember.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MOtRV5RxiTk