"Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices; my body also will rest secure..." Psalm 16:9, NIV

My dog Shadrach has the laying down in the sun part down pretty good. As the weather warms into early spring here in NM, he is spending more and more time out in the sun basking in the pleasant warmth of this time of year. I look out at him as I go about my daily chores and it was in watching him that the Holy Spirit spoke very clearly to me about resting in the Son.

Rather than all the striving and wanting it done yesterday as I'm want to do, the Lord was showing me how to just rest in the comfort of Him. He's in control and I've but to follow His lead. It was interesting in talking to my friend, Dee Kreidel, yesterday that we talked about that very thing: stress and striving. She said, "We don't have to do that. It's not how God wants us to live."

I woke up at 4:30 AM on Saturday morning and thought, "why am I waking up at this time TODAY? I can sleep in!" It's always like that isn't it? When we can rest our minds wake up - exactly! We wake up when we rest! Well rather than lay and struggle to go back to sleep I decided it was a good time to just talk to the Lord. Ponder all He has wrought about in my life recently. Oh I am so glad I did that. All that came to mind were the different women in my life now who are a part of my business and personal life -they are ALL Christian women. They have ALL suffered debilitating and life-threatening diseases and illnesses. None of them are entirely well and will never be!

The interesting thing about all of this is that these women have been taken to the depths of hardship, pain and suffering and have emerged knowing, just knowing and resting in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior! They have let go of the "I need to understand; I need to strive; I need to GET THIS" to resting in the Son through all the rocky roads of life. Do you know why? Because they know what awaits us on the other side of this life -HEAVEN!

None of them would've known this or "let go" unless they had gone through all the struggle of adversity and pain. Several of these women live with chronic pain and yet are building businesses and bringing glory to our Savior through it all and just resting in Him. Their beauty radiates from their words and actions. I feel surrounded in (like I said to one of them) the "aaaaaahhhh" when I read their words or hear their voices or (with the local friends) look into their eyes or their tender loving touches to all those around them.

Beloved, when we rest in the Son, we wake up.