Hi there,
This morning I put the pressure on myself to write my next blog post. I thought I might do a "how to" post and my daughter suggested pom-poms! How hard could that be right? Come up with a simple way to make great fluffy balls of goodness, take some photos along the way then write some simple instructions.
Well some hours later my pom-poms were not going well, they turned out limp and floppy rather plump and gorgeous like I had imagined( though some more experimentation with the fabric ones could turn into something interesting) and I was feeling pretty down, and frustrated with my efforts.
Stick to the old 2 cardboard doughnut method people!
I decided to go out one of our favourite local picnic spots and ponder, pray, read and seek inspiration.
The word substance came to me - to write some words that mean something to me and hopefully might inspire someone else.
The other words which came to me while scrolling on Instagram were on a mug someone had posted a photo of- Start with Love!
LOVE
Such a big word, and one that I have heard spoken about several times lately.
I believe that we were made by the Creator to love. Firstly Him and then each other. It's that simple and yet we have managed to make it so complicated.
Love is an action!
How can we use love to turn this world around. When we make love the aim/goal/mission of our life it can eliminate so many negatives. When we truly love humanity, we want them to succeed and to become all that they were created to be.There is no room for comparison or jealousy because we all have a unique part to play in this world.
I understand that it is not always easy to love and I'm not saying that you should be close to everyone, sometimes bad and even horrific things occur which make it seem impossible to love. That is where only the love of God can work, and when you know His love you can move on.
We love cupcakes and TV programmes but not the people around us.
We love going to Paris and cheering on our favourite sporting team, but don't notice our neighbour struggling with something.
We love the beach ( my personal favourite), we love chocolate, we love success, we love our pay check, we love ......................you get what I am saying.
Is it really that hard to just love the people?
To get out of our own way enough to see a need in someone else and meet it?
It's is as simple as saying "I love you" or feeding someone, or taking someone to an appointment, or writing an encouraging note, or just giving someone your time. It's about taking notice of the people around you. It's about sticking with someone through the hard, messy and frustrating complications of life.
When a friend gave me a gift of a beach bag and hat because she knew how much I enjoyed spending time there she showed love.
When my daughter bought the chocolate with nuts in it even though she is allergic to them so she couldn't eat it but she knew it's my favourite, she showed love.
Sitting with someone who is grieving a sudden loss even though you have no idea how to help and your words feel superfluous, is love.
It's about giving of yourself.
I know that this is not a new concept, I just want to remind us about it. Can we keep the love movement alive? What are you compelled to do?
Greater love has no one than this; to lay down one's life for one's friend. John 15:13
P.S. I do not love making pom-poms! but I will try and improve my skills in that area and show you how I go:)