Comfy, Content and - - Truly Blessed

I am comfortable. I am happily and may I add - contentedly - reclining on the chaise end of our new microfiber sectional with my feet crossed in front of me. I admired the pretty bright pink bows on my "new" cushioned slipper socks with the hearts in many shades printed all over.

God speaks into my head, "Now you are comfortable."

Ugh. In my flesh, I realize God has once again invaded my selfish, lazy time watching "Chopped" and-loving-it time. It was raining outside, my husband en route to the Bahamas on a mud skipper two-engine plane to do a 10-hour boat delivery. That time my husband was on the plane meant no cell phone to answer, my "To Do List"on hold and my time witnessing those seeking to win the $10 grand on "Chopped" protected from all outside influences.

Or so I thought. Until God spoke to me and prompted me to arise perpendicular as opposed to remaining in the oh so enjoyable horizontal position on our brand spanking new microfiber sectional. Deep breath as I opt to be obedient to the Holy Spirit's leading....

And so here I sit. At my keyboard and ask, "Okay God. Now what? You want me to blog about.....my slippers of all things???"

Yes.

And so here I go. These slippers were purchased by moi (the three of us  -the false trinity which consists of me, myself and I) about a year ago. We had gotten an offer on our house but had no real "dream house" or even a "want to live there" house in mind to purchase. We had accepted a full price cash offer on our home and were looking to downsize. This three-day window before cancelling a great offer was a stressful time for my husband and I. In lightning fashion, we found an apartment to move into with our five cats. We found a short sale home that would close in just over the 30 days after which our home would close (which meant moving not once but twice that summer). The inexpensive apartment was the practical way to go.

And so, we walked into the temporary apartment as the smell of stale, long lingering cigarette smoke accosted our noses. I cringed as we were shown the break-in deterrent in the sliding glass doors (a wooden dowel jammed in to the space between the window and the wall). Mexican tile looked clean enough. Laminated floors in each bedroom were in good shape. It was the old gold tile in each bathroom that made me want to run for Windex and ammonia. I was going to shower in there? I was going to call this place home for even just a few weeks???

And so, a quick trip to Target for a few necessities and some green cleaners. I spotted those slip-on slipper socks with the thick faux sheepskin soles in short order. The rubber nonslip treads on the bottom for safety almost cinched the deal. But what got me were the hot pink ribbon bows on each slipper sock as well as the many-colored hearts on the gray cotton background. Comfy, stylish and practical. Sold!

Upon arriving to our new apart-mentally (sp?) temporal home, I pulled those puppies from the Target bag. I cut the plastic tie trapping them to each other. I put both feet into the slipper socks and walked across the Mexican tile. I traipsed into a laminate-floored bedroom and on into a 6" mustard gold tiled bathroom. Nice. Yes, nice but I did not have a snugly, comfortable, contented feeling like I thought I would have had when I decided to invest the 10 bucks for those slipper-socks.

Days turned into weeks as I looked at these slipper socks which sat on top of a cat carrier in the corner of the bedroom. I was not enticed to wear them during my nesting time of stress waiting for our short sale home to close. I thought of wearing these slipper socks a few times while I watched TV channels I never knew existed but instead wore my husband's old sweat socks. I contemplated wearing them while I boiled water on the stove for pasta (my comfort food of choice) but instead opted for flip flops for no apparent reason I can recall.

The only time I wore those slipper socks was while I lay in bed before slipping my feet under the covers for a full night's sleep.

Why?

And now, today I realized the answer to that question. I was not content. I was not resting in God. I was merely waiting for the practical aspects of life to kick in. I did not find the comfort I thought I would find in those slipper socks (even with the faux sheepskin lining and anti-skid soles).

God was waiting for me to come to Him and find rest and comfort in Him. Not in a pair of man-made slipper socks.

Matthew 11:28-30
"Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. "Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you shall find rest for your souls. "For My yoke is easy, and My load is light."

And so today,  just now actually (a few minutes ago) as God prodded me to get up and blog; I realized that I enjoy these slipper socks and appreciate wearing them now because they are a gift from Him and a symbol (or reminder) of how far He has carried me in our recent house selling and buying. God knew the slippers were never going to give me comfort. But the reminder now of me seeking comfort during a very difficult time through a pair of slipper socks and coming up empty is a return back to the fact that it was God comforting me all along. This was the reason the slipper socks failed to give me enjoyment. Only God could and can give me true comfort, contentment and blessing!!!

Okay God. I got it. Thank you for this reminder. And now that I have shared Your Goodness and Grace, I will now return to the microfiber chaise you have also graciously given us and put my feet up and smile once again as I look at those hot pink bows on those slipper socks that you used to teach me about being content.

I also thank You Lord, for the fact that I no longer have to walk on golden outdated bathroom tile, laminate floors or Mexican tile. I rejoice because You,  Lord Jesus, seek to bless me and keep me walking in Truth and faux sheepskin !! I remain Comfy and Content and - - Truly Blessed. You truly are my rest.

Salty

Finally! I am back to my keyboard, allowing the thoughts to fly onto the page. I had been super duper busy since our move in August. Although I had time while I sat in a temporary apartment until our short sale purchase came through, I just did not "feel" like writing. Writer's block? No, not even that, as I had not attempted to write. I just decided to read instead.

One of the best features of our new home is an in ground pool. I have never owned a pool before. But, in our search for a new home, a pool was the first item on my wish list. I was so specific too. I wanted a saltwater pool, as I did believe the salt would be better for our skin, and easier to maintain.

Boy was I right on the first count but so very wrong on the second!! We inherited a green pool with dead frogs and an unknown frothy substance on the surface. While our short sale close date kept getting pushed back, the previous owner had shut off the pool pump. As a result, the pool looked and smelled like a toxic waste dump.

Pinch a Penny up the street offered to analyze the water and help us get the pool back to good health. However, just before taking on the task, my husband met the neighbor and was delighted to know she took care of pools as a part time business. And so, the battle began of shocking the pool, sucking out the debris and balancing the salt levels. No easy task even for a pro. The previous owner did something mysterious which drastically affected the salt levels.

Three months later, the prognosis is better. We can swim in the pool, but are still draining and adding water because the pool is just still too darn salty. The goal of the perfect number on the pool pump machine eludes us still three months after trying to get to "normal".

And so, as I always do, I thought of God and His Word and what He would say about saltiness. I Googled  'salty scriptures' and found a great site http://www.openbible.info/topics/salt The very first verse got my attention. Matthew 5:13, “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people's feet." Yesterday's directive from the pool technician, "You need to drain a foot from the pool again and refill it. There is still too much salt." And my response, "But the salt turns the grass a funny yellow color and I feel bad discoloring the neighbor's front yard." But the pool won out over being neighborly.

This morning I resignedly hooked up the blue rubber hose to the pool drain, dragged it to the end of the driveway and sighed as I watched the salty albeit clear (sigh) water travel down the road to form a (yes, you got it) salty puddle in my neighbor's driveway. Too much salt.

God's Word speaks of having much salt as a good trait and lacking salt problematic. Salt was and still is used as a preservative as well as so much more! I enjoyed watching the above YouTube and learned how to make salty nail art. Great for Christmas and any other glittery event in which I would like to don beautiful nails. 

Fun, yes, but I wanted to know more about what God's Word had to say about salt in regard to my character, my life, and my Christian walk.What type of "balance" of saltiness is "normal" in God's economy? As I pondered this, I allowed myself a bit of a trip back in time...

Having enjoyed many icy winters in New Jersey, I could not forget the big round bucket of salt that my dad would dive into with a shovel just after an icy event. He would scatter the salt on the front porch, stairs and walkway to the car. There was a method to his salting of the ice. He would wait until the sun peeked out just a bit, then those chunky salt pellets would perform magic it seemed. I remember the rug in the hallway would have a new design as the outline of our shoes would drip salty water onto the rug and our shoes would actually "draw" themselves onto the rug.

Those days, the salt was used for safety. It prevented us from a nasty fall. I also remember gargling with saltwater after getting my wisdom teeth out. Used in this way, the salt prevented disease from making its way into the places where teeth had been. 

Today, I don't dare make my hubby pasta without a heavy dose of salt in the water. The pasta would be bland just as potatoes without salt would be - well - blah.

This guy knows a thing or too about salt - and potatoes in the form of fries....
Good, huh? But God impressed upon me as He always does, when I think I am in control, Christina, , "What about the verse after the salt verse???"

Well, he didn't exactly say that, but led me to Matthew 5:14, "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden."

Yes Lord. Of course. What good is salt if it has lost its flavor? What good is a light if I never turn on the switch? If I never let the glorious glow of my front porch light shine so that others may find me? 

If I do not share the light that God has given me to share with others, then I have wasted my saltiness and my life's purpose has no seasoning and I am well - blah - or like a cold french fry. And nobody wants to be a cold fry. It may be salty, but it has lost its appeal.

My salty experience yesterday with the pool technician had led me into this time today. My pool is drained. I now await the success or failure of the numbers on the pool computer. Too much or too little salt. That is the question. But God's directive to His children (that includes me)  in Matthew 5:13&14, one day my pool will be "normal" and I won't have to test its saltiness or lack thereof, for it will be maintained and kept at a "normal" level on its own.

I now offer a first to all of you. Homework! Yes, I am giving homework to you today. Read all of Matthew 5. And if you rolled your eyes and said no and decided to contact Preposterous above for some free fries, I won't judge you. I will take your disregard for homework with a grain of salt - or possibly go for a lap in my saltwater pool! No worries. Life is full of good choices!!