Learning to rest

It is fair to say that I am currently in a time of waiting. We tend to look at waiting as a waste of time in our culture, but I am finding it to be quite refreshing in some ways. Grant it, I had to come to grips with the fact that I was in a time of rest and transition and that it was okay for me to be there. Like most of us, I felt I should be "doing" something. As I struggled with family issues and health issues, I found myself in this place and it was a wonderful surprise to me when I realized that God was allowing me to be there; He was allowing me to take the time to be renewed through relaxation. This does not mean that my days are empty. I do have a mandate, even in rest. God has given me permission to focus on some simple things, things that are often left on the periphery. That mandate consists of 5 items: 1) to be available to my daughter (who is homeschooling) 2) to work on making my house a comfortable home 3) to read everything I can get my hands on (I really like this one!) 4) to experiment with gluten free cooking (I have celiac disease) and 5) to exercise and focus on healthy living. Although this is technically meant to be carried out within a certain period of time, I am happy to report that it has altered my way of looking at life in general and I know that I will take the lessons I am learning right now into the next phase of my life, as well.