It is Well

Saturday morning (a) woke me up early requesting chicken nuggets for breakfast.  (As luck would have it, I actually had a small package to fix him… that isn’t a staple food in our house haha!)  The air was the perfect combo of cool and crisp as the breeze blew in the open bedroom window.  As I walked toward the kitchen I took in a deep breath of the new fall scented air freshener I had plugged in the night before.  The early morning sunshine was streaming in the windows and we were not on any time limit.  That alone was the most wonderful, peaceful combination. 

(A) had a haircut and needed to mow, and the weather was absolutely PERFECT so (a) and I spent the morning on an adventure and the afternoon playing in the yard and cutting fresh flowers for the house.  That evening I drove to church for music practice and couldn’t help but notice how beautiful the last of the uncut soybean fields looked in the evening, orange sun.  And the chance to sing with a praise band for the first time in months resonated deep within my soul. 

Oh my word he was filthy dirty, but the sign in my laundry room reminds me often...
"The best days end with the dirtiest clothes."

If you are still reading at this point I’m sure you are about to quit because you could care less about the details of my Saturday, but I share them with you to tell you that it was nothing extravagant, nothing extraordinary.  It was a pretty low-key day.  But something about it gave me all the warm-fuzzies deep inside. 

I couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was until Sunday morning.  The worship service at church was fantastic, and I felt very blessed to be a part of the praise team that morning.  As the piano began to play the instrumental communion song I quickly recognized her choice of “It is Well with my Soul.”  And then it hit me.  For the first time in a looooonnnng time that is what that warm-fuzzy feeling was… it is well with my soul.

I know the history of that hymn.  It was written at a time of great grief and loss for the author.  A time when the only peace he could find was to rest in His Savior.

Transition is hard, finding a place to belong is hard, moving is hard, new jobs are hard, making friends is hard, finding new daycare is hard, helping a toddler adjust is hard, potty training said toddler is hard, missing the people you love is hard, Common Core Math is hard, dealing with all of those things at the exact same time is really hard… but the simple… that is where the peace is found.  Fresh cut flowers on the table, breathing in cool morning air, giggling with our dimple-faced cowboy, sunshine on my face, the smells of fall, morning snuggles, playing outside, using my voice for Jesus, watching college football with new friends… it is well with my soul. 

I’m so grateful to be finally finding some “mundane” in what has been a very hectic season of our life, and I pray that even in the busy of our work/school week I am able to catch glimpses of that SIMPLE… the place where peace is found.  Where in the calm, I can hear His voice and see His beauty and rest in His precious promises that He is holding me in the palm of His hand…where it is well with my soul.

“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:7