Genesis, The Beginning

The Anchor Holds

January 3, 2015

Dear Readers,

We had thunder and heavy rain throughout the night. My furry kids normally do not react nervously but they did last night. It was loud in the cottage as the rain pelleted the roof while thunder booms bounced off the walls. I had four pups stick to me like glue until the storm was over.

My gardens are getting a good soaking which will make for beautiful growth and flowers in the Spring. Now that Christmas and New Year's Eve have passed, I'm ready for warm weather!! Time to get out the tubs and do my deep cleaning...

All is right in my world today. I began the new year thinking about what I wanted to accomplish and it seemed so overwhelming. Then, I realized that each day would take care of itself. I just needed to show up and keep putting one foot in front of the other.

     I have all the time I need to do all that God intends me to do this year!

I hadn't realized how much of a hermit I had become and how depression was starting to set in. Normally, I am a very organized, energetic person and was becoming ... well, to be honest, kind of a slob! I'd recognized some signs of burn-out and knew that I needed to start moving in more of a positive direction or I would become comfortable in living in my own little world in the cottage and growing old ... just taking up space. (That's a scary thought!)

Kennedy's foster mom, Laura, stopped by this afternoon for a quick visit. Kennedy was so excited to see her. He lived with her a very long time before he came to Seidler Dogdom and was beyond happy to see her. She's such a beautiful person ~ inside and out ~ and, I'm so grateful we have stayed in touch and have become friends. She was also Zeke's foster mom so we shared the sorrow of his passing. I must say, she did approve of little Finn and gave me some tips on training him.  Laura was amazed at how far the little Poms (Harmony and Ruffles) had come in their rehabilitation into normal life after being breeders so so many years.

I picked up my Daily Walk Bible this morning and began my trip through Genesis. It's a new year so why not start at the beginning. Each year I read the same pages but something different strikes me every time I start over. What hit me this morning was that the earth was a shapeless, chaotic mass and God was brooding over the dark vapors. In Chapter 1, Verse 3 God said let there be light and light appeared.

In John 8:12 Jesus says, "I am the light of the world." Notice that the light is created in verse 3, yet the source of light, our sun, is not created until verse 16. The Light was in existence before the source of light had been created. Jesus Christ is the Light and He was there from the beginning. In John 8:38, Jesus says, "Before Abraham was, I am."

Stay with me ... there was darkness and chaos. Without God intervention, there was a mess to contend with. When God got involved there was light. I thought about my own life. Without the truth and light that God brought to my being, I was living in inner turmoil and chaos. I had periods of peace and happiness but there were the underlying tapes of darkness that disturbed my soul and created havoc in my life.

Did you know that most people prefer to remain in darkness rather than seeking truth, light, and moving on? The mind is complex and what is traumatic can be distorted until it can be tolerated. I still cannot see the face of my first tormentor but I can see the place and I can hear my cries. I yearn to know the truth and have done everything possible to uncover it. My childhood trauma therapist said that God would allow me to "see" and "know" when I could handle it. I have journaled for years simply because I wanted to keep track of reality. (The mind has a way of distorting truth) It's been freeing!

Today, I read through the first nine chapters of Genesis aloud. Besides entertaining the Fantastic Five, it allowed me to slow down and digest the words. God was speaking; I was speaking his words; and, at the end, I began to really hear what it was He was saying. In just 9 chapters, I traveled from creation to the flood ... that's a lot of territory!

Like Noah, God did not bring me to this point in life, to abandon me. I've been building this ark (my faith ~ one step at a time) and, no matter what life throws at me, I will be safe. The Anchor Holds ... yes He does!!!

Hey, I'm excited about 2015... I am excited to get more involved with my church family. I am excited to try some new plants in my gardens and cheer on the seedlings planted the past few years. I am excited to move beyond what has kept me captive using my creativity. I'm ready to tackle more demons and flush them down the toilet!!

As for you, my precious Readers, I wish you life, love, and the joy that comes from knowing Jesus as your own personal savior. I pray for you and wrap my arms about you ... YA YOU ... every single one of you across the globe. I offer you hope and encouragement as you take my hand. Maybe you're fighting some demons yourself. At any rate, you're not alone no matter what you're dealing with!

Miss Dottie

PS As the days bright forth light, I hope, like me, you will embrace them and fill them with love and kindness.

"Another fresh new year is here...

Another year to live!

To banish worry, doubt, and fear,

To love and laugh and give!

This bright new year is given me

To live each day with zest...

To daily grow and try to be

My highest and my best!

I have an opportunity

Once more to right some wrongs,

To pray for peace, to plant a tree,

And sing more joyful songs!"

~William Arthur Ward