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Brenda Bradford Ottinger

Encouraging Women to Live Rooted in the Sacred

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Tomorrow’s Yesterday

Exhausted, I stopped to catch my breath; the distance that I’d traveled was significant. I recognized the path; it had been a while, but I’d taken this route many times before. This time, though, the road was split…each side going in opposite directions. One side familiar and well-worn, the other side brambly and unbeaten. Miles of fickle sod in sight, one side moving forward, one side moving backward.

This marathon took place in a nearby, yet illusive, place. A place called Time. The setting – a winding, scenic thoroughfare in Time – a street called Memory Lane.

My exhaustion that day wasn’t due to running a race of distance, but to running a race of nostalgia.

You see, I was finally tackling a long-overdue task—sifting through umpteen boxes of all-things-maternal. These boxes held yesteryear so pristinely, so honorably, waiting for…this day. I’d originally saved these keepsakes out of necessity, as I had children growing into and out of them. Later, as the years grew, I felt paralyzed as to how to let them go in a way that would provide closure for this sentimental heart.

Truth is, I needed supernatural strength to make this trip. The fact that these boxes lay waiting for me all of these years was never lost on me. I’d long felt a heaviness of heart at the thought of having to go through them and remember. Remember bygone days of young motherhood…remember baby snuggles, and pajama-footed toddlers…remember sweaty young boys learning to ride their bikes. There are times when I feel this intrinsic bond with Jesus’ mother, Mary—often we’re told how she “pondered all of these things in her heart.” So many things a mother carries in her heart—a gracefully heavy thing, a mother’s heart is.

With traveling mercies granted, I nostalgically meandered along Memory Lane, removing the contents of each box, one by one…

Twenty-seven months of maternity clothes—clothes that I eagerly waited to fill out.  And, eagerly waited to – not fill out.

Itty bitty baby clothes—the same tiny outfits I’d mooned over while pregnant, dreaming of the cherub who would fill them.

Baby bottles and sippy cups—a faded generation of beloved preschool characters displayed on them, frozen in precious time.

Plush pastel blankets in miniature—some homemade, some not.  Blankets that quietly cradled my young, in Dreft-scented comfort, as they tiptoed through dreamland.

Tattered clothes of active elementary boys—my mind’s eye warmly welcoming glimpses of each of my children donning these favored play clothes.

Many a year of picture clothes—clothes that eternally grace the walls of my home; clothes that my sons wished would vanish from existence.

Man-child clothes—the ones that hold young men with deep voices; young men whose eyes I must now look up to meet.

So many miles I’ve traveled along Memory Lane— ever so gently transferring these treasures of another lifetime into donation containers, praying for the homes that receive them.

How ordinary days transform into years is a mystery to me. Once again, another year bounds in; they’re sneaky like that, rushing in before we’re ready—rushing out before we’re ready.  As this new year unfolds, I want to honor the irreplaceable beauty of the past, while still setting fresh footprints on the other side of Memory Lane…the side of Time that moves tenaciously forward.

Will you meet me there? On that side of time that has yet to be consumed by yesterday—to celebrate the fleeting breath that is today? As we ponder fading yesterdays, and uncharted tomorrows, let us refuse to cheat today out of its blessed place in time. May we set out to redeem the ordinary moments in 2015, and resolve to spend them in a manner that brings glory to the Gatekeeper of Time.

Only God is privy to our tomorrows; that’s one street in Time that is inaccessible. No doubt that this year will follow the footsteps of its predecessors, relentlessly pressing ahead. Psalm 90:12 offers this fitting reminder: “Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom”. Let us embrace today, with all of its precious chaos, knowing full-well that it offers something that no other place in time can offer. It offers us this hour, this minute…this very second to actively make a difference.

May the wisdom that we’ve gained on the beaten path, remind us to number our days aright with a renewed sense of this lone place in Time where we’re able to alter its landscape—making a difference, one today at a time.  flower

 

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Every-which-way I turn, I sense it: Heartache. Su Every-which-way I turn,  I sense it:
Heartache. Suffering. Pain. Sorrow.
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My compassion can barely stand itself.
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A tide of trouble beats against the shores of my heart, begging a prayer or two or ten.
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Compassion can sometimes feel like more than a heart was made to hold.
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We long for life and health and peace for our families, our communities, our world…ourselves.
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Flipping through my Bible this morning; my eyes catching on years of faded ink underlining generations of ancient truths,
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Verse upon verse…underscored reminders of the tender nature of God,
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Sacred pages alive with precedent,
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Revealing a heart beating wildly with compassion for a world in pain.
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Oh, to step in the shadow of the Savior,
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Who chose to feel compassion’s ache, instead of looking away.
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More than ever I recognize that it’s the Christ in us that swells compassion upon a hurting world.
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These are the glory days of hope. 🙌
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For we have this confidence: There will be another day—when pain will not exist. 🙌
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Thank you, Lord, that our hope is not misplaced in You. 💗
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Dear friend, life can be overwhelming at times, AmIRight?!
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Praying today that your soul may find rest & peace in the gentle heart of God who never leaves us alone. 💕
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Many a time in life I’ve felt I was standing at Many a time in life I’ve felt I was standing at the edge of a sea, hemmed in by its boundary, unable to discern a path forward.
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If this feels familiar, friend, I have the sweetest of news…
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God has not misplaced His plan for your life.
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Our great God is not bound by limitation. His roads can cross right through our seas, on pathways no one knew were there! 🙌
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Oh friend, may you rest quietly before your God at the water’s edge, trusting Him to bring you to a place of abundance.
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The mighty waters of your circumstances are no match for His power, His heart, His purpose.
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You’re not alone, for He goes before you, ordering unique pathways along His timeline—all for you, my friend.
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Set your every hope into the tender palm of God and walk in freedom, for He is able. 💕
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Friend, no matter what you’ve been through…hea Friend, no matter what you’ve been through…healing isn’t hopeless.
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So often it can feel easier to tamp hurt upon hurt deep into our spirits, than to do a new thing.
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But, friend, our God is a God of fresh beginnings who makes pathways through the wilderness and steams in the desert. (Isaiah 43:19)
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You don’t walk alone, for His kindness and faithfulness walk with you through it all.
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This book _Good Boundaries and Goodbyes_ by @lysaterkeurst is a beautifully honest resource for learning to understand & create healthy, Godly boundaries in our lives.
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If you’re looking for a good resource to begin forming healthy boundaries, or are looking for help to understand others’ healthy boundaries, this book is a great place to start.
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I have an extra copy I’d love to give away. Leave me a comment on Instagram if you’d like to be entered to win.
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Also, OBS (Online Bible Study) is beginning a free online community study of this book January 23rd. If you’d like to sign up, head over to proverbs31.org.
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May this be a stream in your desert, dear friend, the dawn of a beautiful new thing God’s set apart for you. 💕
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About 5-6 years ago I started doing this thing tha About 5-6 years ago I started doing this thing that, at the time, didn’t feel like anything radical or life-changing.
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I simply started trying to stop eating around 7pm, and not start eating again until 11am.
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At the time, I’d never even heard the term “intermittent fasting;” I was just trying this new-to-me thing to help with weight management.
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Over time, I learned that what I was doing was called intermittent fasting, and that it has health benefits well beyond the weight management realm.
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(Search the word “autophagy” if you’re interested in learning more about that.)
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I’m not gonna lie, back when I started, 7pm to 11am was hard! It took some time, and I didn’t always do it “perfectly.”
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These days, I typically go from 6-7pm to 1-2pm. My body has adapted and most days it’s very easy. Often, I’d fast longer except that I take supplements that keep me awake at night if I take them too late in the day.
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Yes, I came to intermittent fasting for the weight loss. (30 pounds has long been gone.) But, I stay because I’ve never felt better. Allowing my body the restorative time each day has been a game-changer for me.
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For a few weeks now, I’ve been feeling like I’m supposed to share this…like someone needs to hear it.
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If that’s you, friend, I want you to know that it’s not as hard as it seems. Start as slowly as you need to. Add another hour or 30 minutes, or even 15 minutes per week until your body adapts.
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There’s no right or wrong. There are no bad days. It’s a lifestyle of freedom. You can switch it all up when you need to or want to for social reasons. It’s easier than it seems.
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I’m no doctor. I’m not medically advising. I’m just a girl who has always longed to make a difference, so I share in hopes of helping.
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No matter what your goals are this year, whether they’re health or relational or work related, it’s okay to go slow. It’s okay to get off track by January 10th and start over again.
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All is progress, my friend. Baby steps count. 💕
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