Showing posts with label wisdom. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wisdom. Show all posts

Poison Ivy...UGG!!

5:56 PM by Lynnae

We went camping up in North Carolina with some friends.  As you may know from previous posts, we go camping a couple times a year.  This was the first time we ventured up to NC.  We had a great time seeing friends and sleeping outdoors!  There were two small hiccups with our campsite though.  I chose sites about as far away from the bathroom as possible (oops).  Between our friends and us, we had 6 mini-mortals ages 7 and under.  (In fact, if we had camped prior to my eldest mini-mortal's birthday earlier this month, we would have had ages 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, and 2, but instead we had two 7 years old since we went post-birthday.)  So the long haul to the bathroom got a bit cumbersome.  The second hiccup was that the back side of our site was covered in a lovely green vine with three leaves, aka poison ivy.

Now, you must understand, poison ivy and I don't get along!  It may look innocent enough, but I've had it do all kinds of nasty things to me.  The worst trick it EVER played on me was crawling up on me a few days before I got married and breaking me out all over my legs!  I tried every home remedy known to man, but to no avail.  That was a most unpleasant experience.  I've also gotten it so bad I had to go to the doctor.  She prescribed a medication that knocked me out cold for 24 hours.  I took it at 5:00 p.m. and had to call in sick to work the next day because I simply couldn't keep my eyes open.  I finally woke up about 5:00 p.m.  after the drug worked its way out of my system.  It made a lasting impression, obviously, and I've steered very clear of poison ivy ever since!

Wanting to avoid this rashy (is that a word?) fate for the mini-mortals, I gathered them all, pointed out the poison ivy, and informed them that it would break them out in an itchy rash.  I showed them what it looks like and taught them, "Leaves of three, let it be!"  Pride overwhelmed me as I heard them chanting under their breath, "Leaves of three, let it be.  Leaves of three, let it be!"  I thought I'd actually taught them something that might stick.  However, that delusion shattered quickly as we went for a walk along a path. The path was lined with poison ivy in a few places.  As I said, it looks perfectly innocent.  Nothing but a lovely green vine, right?  The mini-mortals started wandering off the path, sometimes into patches of the poison ivy.  We'd round them back up and get them back on track.  The path was getting a bit long and at one point it opened into a meadow after we had been tromping in the forest a while.  My 7 year old mini-mortal saw the grass and plopped right down.  What she hadn't seen was the patch of poison ivy right beside her!  I promptly got her up and hoped she didn't break out.  Amazingly enough, we all escaped unscathed from the rotten little vine and no one had any rashes.

I've noticed in this path of life that there is a lot of figurative poison ivy along the way, things that look lovely and enticing, but that ultimately lead to unhappiness.  We all end up at least brushing up against it at some points during our lives,  breaking into a rash of unpleasantness.  We are lucky, though, the Lord has given us the ultimate medicine, the atonement.  Through His atonement, we are able to repent and stay on the path rash free.  He doesn't want us to suffer, He wants us to be happy.  Isaiah 52:5 states, "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."  He can heal us of all our afflictions if we will but turn to Him.
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Why Did I Shave My Legs For This? (Gaining Wisdom)

1:48 PM by Lynnae


I pretty much followed what my parents told me to do as a teenager.  In fact, there’s only one time I remember blatantly going against what my parents told me to do.  (Yes, I’m sure there were other times, but this is the only one I remember).  Around the age of 12, I asked mom if I could begin shaving my legs.  She told me no because I had blonde hair, no one could see it, and there was no reason to begin any sooner than necessary since I would be shaving the rest of my life.  In my vast amount of 12 year-old wisdom, I just KNEW she was wrong, and that everyone was looking at my legs and laughing at how hairy they were.  The next day, I snuck a razor into the shower with me and shaved!  Ooo, can you just feel the freedom!  I had done it!  I was SO proud of my shaved legs, but I knew I had to keep it a secret from mom. 

About 2 days later, my older sister was sitting on the couch.  I flopped down and plopped my shorts laden legs on her lap.  She looked at my legs, and said loudly , “Lynnae!  Did you shave your legs?!”(Quiet was never a forte for anyone in my family).  My heart stopped.  Mom was in the kitchen, and could see me.  I was pretty sure she was going to kill me dead, right there on the spot!  Very quietly, I said, “Yes.”  Leah responded with, “You need to do it better next time!  You missed a bunch of spots.”  Mom just looked at me and shrugged.  She didn’t plan an immediate, untimely death for my infraction, and I was allowed to live yet another day.

Now, fast forward 20 years…today, I understand the wisdom of my mother.  I’ve been shaving for a long time and realize it’s not as fun as I originally thought it would be.  Yes, I do it, but I think back to what my mom told me…put it off as long as possible, you’ll be doing it for a long time.  That was wisdom beyond my comprehension at the rip old age of 12. 

The Lord has wisdom beyond any of our comprehension.  He created the world and has a plan.  I have the ability to choose to follow Him or go off on my own.  He doesn’t force His hand.  He doesn’t extract revenge against me when I decide to follow my own plan, not His.  He has told us, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways…For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (Isaiah 55:8-9).  I have found throughout my life, though, that as I willingly follow the Lord, He will bless me with understanding and comprehension.  The understanding may not come immediately, but it always comes.


PS - In an effort to actually continue my blog while keeping my personal journal, I've decided to move my posting days to Wednesday.  I hope you continue to enjoy!
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