Time to Breathe

Breath.

Photo Courtesy of  Tivery Lucky

We take it for granted how we move in rhythm -- in and out -- our lungs filling and releasing the very essence of what we need to exist.  John Coltrane said, "God breathes through us so completely, so gently, we hardly feel it."

Photo Courtesy of  Tivery Lucky

In Him we live and move and have our being ~ Acts 17:28

Breath is a gift.  Spiritual breathing gives the life we crave -- a life of taking in and receiving and of pouring out from the receiving place.

During sabbath we can take a breath.  The spiritual breath is ours for the taking.  We open to receive the gifts of care and provision God has for us in this day, in this moment.  He lavishes gifts, even {and especially} in the most difficult of external circumstances.  Beneath the chaos and the din of our own expectations, hurts, fears and longings, we can pause, we can release and we can breathe.

Find the place of breathing.  Let Him come near.  We need not resist His nearness. 

Let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. ~ Hebrews 10:22-23

We have been washed and we can be cleansed again and again.  

We can draw near and breathe in His presence. 

Today I have been blessed with the opportunity to review a friend's book which she was courageous enough to push through and self-publish.  It was a labor of love done for you and for me.

Jaimie Bowman knows what it is to try to find a breath in the midst of motherhood.  She knows how hard it is to find the time just to sit, let alone to breathe and find God near amidst the rattle and hum of caregiving, housekeeping and homemaking.  She wrote this book because God prompted her to be an instrument to meet a need she experiences and a need she knows is not unique to her alone.  Even in the introduction, you know.  You know you are known and this desire of your heart is common.  She gives you morsels.  In this book, she lays out the snack you need -- like a spiritual Power Bar to chew upon -- just enough to sustain you as you move through your day with the Lord in your mothering life.  What she writes has staying power.  The writings stay with you and come back to you throughout the day as gentle reminders to lift your eyes above your circumstances and to worship and receive.  She names it: the drowning feelings we sometimes face when overwhelmed by our solo journey of wiping noses and bottoms, of picking playdough out of the carpet (again) and of longing to look into the face of Jesus in the midst of it all.

In each and every devotion, Jaimie brings us to the place of common ground and then she brings us to God's Word and lifts our eyes and our hearts upward to Him.  She reminds us and refreshes us in the midst of this season.  She takes us through issues such as mommy guilt, doing too much, forgiving our children, worry over our children, and many more common struggles and in each case, Jaimie shares her own stories and helps us apply scripture in such an encouraging and growth-producing way.

I highly recommend you wipe the jelly off your hands and get a copy of this e-book for yourself or as a gift for a friend who needs some strength for her mothering journey.  Jaimie has written thirty-one devotions which can be revisited over and over to refresh you and help you draw near to God in a season when the word "devotion time" takes on a whole different meaning and shape.  Find this lovely book here.

And if you have time to look at the best things I saw on the web this week, go to my Pinterest Best of the Week Board