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Very Carefully

New friends ask me, “Being blind, how do you put on your make-up?”

My answer is simple: I do it carefully.

After living with complete blindness for 33 years, I often forget my limitations. But trouble comes when getting ready to go out. I pry myself from endless tasks. At the last minute, I rush around like a crazy woman. I hop in the shower, slip on my robe and dash into my walk-in closet. Frantically, I slide hangers, looking for any outfit to wear.

How do I do this with no sight? It’s pretty simple. When I purchase an item, I store in my memory its characteristics—the texture, the shape of the neckline, buttons or length of sleeve. One light touch tells me what the item is. But when I’m in a hurry, trying to find the right outfit gets a bit tough. Not because I can’t see, but because I just have too many clothes. Way more than any blind gal should be allowed to have. The bar holding all those hangers is probably sagging from the weight.

A jammed-filled closet and a jammed-filled life.

Oh, how my jammed closet resembled my life—full of tasks of all kinds and sizes. Like a squirrel running from tree to tree, I’d dash from one task to another.

I had no choice—lots of people to please. Fueling that desire, even as a young girl, I tried to perform to win my parents’ and teachers’ approval. Later on, I wanted to please my family, my employer, and my friends. Phew! I thought that the only way to please myself was by pleasing them.

Have you been there? The pleasing craze explodes. We rush through life eager to make someone happy. And the level of stress and tension rises like the thermometer in Orlando’s summers.

So this season of our life, how about if we vow to cool off. God never meant us to live in the heat of tension. He gave one pretty refreshing directive: “Master, which is the greatest commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:36-37).

The 6 Secrets

When life sags from the weight of countless tasks, obeying His greatest commandment is the key to peaceful success.  Early In the morning as we slide our feet into our slippers, this is what should play in our head: Loving God means receiving His peace. And when the world robs it, here are six secrets to bring it back:

1. Inviting Him into our day.
2. Drawing wisdom from His word to place the correct order to our priorities.
3. Presenting Him with our to-do list for His approval.
4. Giving thanks in advance for glitches as we know He will resolve.
5. Invite into our day moments of silence in His presence to refuel our energy.
6. Inhale the aroma of His reassurance for calmness.

Deviating from His ways equals burnout. But obeying His greatest commandment ushers wisdom: To arrange priorities; to press forth when fatigued; to bring clarity when confused; to be calm when overwhelmed; and to know the warmth of His love.

The love that sparks a desire to please Him. To receive His rest. And to know His peace because “It’s useless to rise early and go to bed late, and work your worried fingers to the bone. Don’t you know He enjoys giving rest to those He loves?” (Psalm 127:2, The Message Bible).

Let’s Pray

Father, the tension and stress of life are keeping me from experiencing your peace, which I so long for. I invite you into my day and look to you to bring the calmness and peace I seek. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Janet

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