-side by each (colloquial expression, origin Quebecois): next to each other; side by side
-By day the Lord directs His love, at night His song is with me–a prayer to the God of my life.
–Psalm 42:8
-In the morning, Lord, You hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before You and wait expectantly.
–Psalm 5:3
Ah, the new year…
A time of reflection, and, maybe, resolutions…
Habits to drop, practices to add, routines to establish…
Before us, a giant clean slate the size of 365 days (oops…366 in this case!).
So, on the first of January (why wait?) I was asking for guidance and wisdom…
“Okay, Lord, we’ve agreed that my word for 2024 is service. What changes, adjustments, little tweaks can I make to align with that purpose?”
Short pause.
“Well, Shelbo…maybe a skosh more time resting in Me, and the ‘goal’ will be…to just chillax and get to know each other better. Not too tall of an order, I hope?”
“Nope, Lord, that is beyond reasonable. I love You!”
“Love you, too, girl.”
*huuuuuuge Jesus hug*
Of course, that wasn’t the complete answer…and later that day came the next set of instructions through a friend’s blog post (amberobrien.com)…
“What is weighing me down or distracting me from following closer to Jesus? …a person, social media, a hobby, an addiction, TV, clutter, love of sleep? What do I do first when I wake up instead of spending a date with Jesus? What do I need to take away so I have more room to grow in my relationship?”
Woah!
“Lord, we were just talking about this!”
He smiled.
I dropped into prayer…
“Lord, I feel this is important. Can we huddle on this right now?”
Then I did that most difficult thing…I closed my mouth, opened my ears, and let Him take the floor…
aka “Be still, shut up, and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10, Shelbo version)
My Creator knows that a picture is worth a thousand words, so He gave me this vision…
I get up in the morning and lurch into the kitchen. The countertop is bare, save for three items: a to-do list, my phone, and my Bible. I tear up the to-do list, put my phone in a drawer, and grab my Bible. Then I march to my front door and open it. Outside there’s a huge mob clamoring for my attention. Some of them are waving picket signs that look like emails and texts. I instruct them to move aside and ask Jesus, who is standing and waiting quietly and patiently in the crowd, to walk on up and join me inside. He does, we hug, and then sit down together with the Word, and later in prayer.
Wow.
There go my eyes…leaking out joy again.
Psalm 143:8–Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life.
What a beautiful start to the day…the year…
Bowed over the kitchen table with my Lord, working on the puzzle of His plan, piece by piece…
Side by each.