HE KNOWS MY NAME

Decades ago, I received a birthday greeting from then President Ronald Reagan.  A friend of mine had a friend who worked at the White House and somehow, my name got on a list and that November, I received a birthday card with a rubber stamp of the President's name on it.  Not a supporter of that President at the time, it was ... nice ... but I have no idea where that card is now and I am the saver of all things important in my life.  [I think I mentioned once before that my brother calls me a "borderline hoarder"]  A few years ago, I got a similar rubber stamped "thank you" from the desk of First Lady Michelle Obama for some innocuous gift that I sent.  I am a HUGE fan of Mrs. Obama (and her husband) and therefore, this missive brought great joy to my heart and I immediately placed it in a special place so that I would never lose it, could always pull it out to look at it if I wanted to ... you get the drift.  But regardless of my reaction to the receipt of each of these items, the reality is I only got these items because someone, somewhere, entered my name into a database and the card was printed.  Ronald Reagan has no idea that he sent me a birthday greeting at some point in the 80s and Michelle Obama, no matter much I might WISH she knew my name, wouldn't know me from anyone else she might pass on the street on a sunny day in DC.  

Social media can be the same way.  We connect with people as "friends" and "followers" and chase after "likes" and "hearts" - but we don't really know the people on the other end of the computer.  [I am referring to the strangers that we connect with, not real-life friends, family and acquaintances - although, in reality, this might apply to some of them as well]  Even if we read their blogs or send direct messages back and forth, we only know the persona that they present to the world, not the real person behind the screen name.

This became crystal clear to me earlier today.  I was fooling around on Instagram and read a post from a "friend" where she was talking about a situation that she found herself in.  [Full disclosure:  we are only connected because of a daily photo challenge that we each participate in.  We have exchanged a few comments on each other's posts and maybe one of two direct messages, but nothing significant]  Back to the story: In her post, she was basically giving a testimony that, even though she was in the midst of a challenge and didn't know how it was going to turn out, she was putting her faith and trust in God that He would bring her through it.  That even if the trial didn't turn out the way she wanted it to, that He must have a lesson for her to learn and she was going to be open to learning it because she trusted Him and His plan for her life.  It was a lovely thing to read and of course, I responded with a message of friendship and a promise of prayer.  But when I went to pray for her, I realized that, because of how her IG identification was set up, I didn't know her real name. I only knew her screen name and it was basically linked to her business venture.  I know she lives in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area, but that's about it.  How am I supposed to pray for someone when I don't know their basic information?  

Here's the beauty of serving the God that we serve.  It doesn't matter.  It doesn't matter if I don't know her name - HE DOES!  He not only knows her name, He knows her situation. He knows her level of faith. He knows what she can handle and what she can't. He knows the outcome of her challenge already - even as she is going through it. 

HE. KNOWS. 

So, as I prayed to Him, I confessed that I didn't know any of these things, but I knew that He knew and that was enough for me.  Jeremiah 1:5 states, Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.  In other words, we are NOT here by accident.  We are NOT here all alone.  We are a part of His plan and He knows us ... individually, personally, intimately.  We are not a part of a cookie-cutter assembly line of people that all look the same and that are all satisfied with a "rubber stamped" card on our birthdays.  HE. KNOWS. ME.  Me.  Kristina Elise Smith, daughter of Rudolph and Rachel, sister to Kevin, Greg, Scott, Brian, Todd and Nicole.  Me.  And in this crazy, mixed up, topsy turvy world that we live in, that knowledge gives me a foundation, that knowledge gives me peace, that knowledge gives me what I need to face the challenges in my life.  

I pray that knowledge gives you all of that and more. 

Be blessed.
© 2018 Kristina E. Smith

EXHALE

This is the day which the Lord hath made, we will rejoice and be glad in it.  Psalms 118:24

Maybe this has been a trend for several years and I just missed it, but a lot of my friends on Instagram this year have been picking a "word" for the year.  For those that are more metaphysical than me, this word is supposed to "guide" them, give them "purpose", "shape" them for the year ahead. Sort of like a "resolution" of sorts.  I must confess, I don't tend to make resolutions - I mean, seriously - most resolutions are made with the knowledge that there is no way you will ever keep them, if only because in your heart of hearts, you know you are not willing or ready to commit to the change(s) necessary to be successful at the resolution itself.

But something about choosing a word for the year appealed to me.  Something about having a "theme" to guide my path for the next 365 days.  As I searched for the word, I realized that it was right there in front of my face.  A few years ago, on my travels, I picked up a pair of prints.  One simply says, breathe, breathe, breathe, breathe, breathe - in various shades of black and grey.  The second print (pictured above) simply says, Exhale.  Sounds so simple, doesn't it?  And yet, in reality,  this can be very hard to do.  Speaking only for myself, it is so very easy to get weighted down by the cares, struggles, concerns of life that sometimes you forget to just breathe.  Of course, I am not referring to the autonomous action of breathing - in and out and in and out - done automatically and without thinking.  I am referring more to the intentional taking in of a deep breath and holding it.  But more importantly of exhaling it.  Of letting go.  Of releasing.

On New Years Eve 2017, I went downstairs to move some laundry for my mother from the washing machine to the dryer.  Surrounding the bottom of the hot water heater were small pools of rusty water.  I cannot say that I was totally surprised because earlier in the year, I was warned that my 20 year water heater was rusting out and on its last legs.  At that time, the plumber told me that it could possibly cause more damage to move it / replace it and I needed to just wait it out, but to be on the watch for leakage.  He also told me what to do in case it started leaking:  turn off the water valve and run a garden hose from the heater outside to drain it.  I was given a three month reprieve, but having your hot water heater go out at 9:00 p.m. on New Years Eve ensures that 1) no plumber is going to be available for a few days; 2) the thought of a hot shower was off the table for at least 24 hours; 3) washing dishes, clothes and even preparing food was going to take a little more thought and effort and 4) I could either sit down and cry about it - or I could just accept that things were going to be a bit rockier than planned as I started the New Year.

With my new "word of the year" ringing in my consciousness, I pulled up my "big girl panties" and got to work.  Towels were placed around the base of the water heater until I could make a trip to Lowe's for a new garden hose.  A fortuitous phone call from my play brother, who was vacationing in Jamaica, lots of photos sent, and multiple step-by-step "no, Kristina, turn it the other way" instructions - all made for an interesting start to the New Year.  But I kept my cool and calm and pleasant (ok, mostly pleasant) demeanor throughout.  A phone call from the plumbers early on Tuesday, let me know that the situation will last a few more days as there is a backlog of service requests and the earliest appointment is not until Thursday afternoon.

What is keeping me sane?  Remembering that it could be worse.  I could have been away when the hot water heater started leaking and come home to a flooded laundry room and/or house.  I could have been without the resources of knowledgeable friends and accessible tools to temporarily fix the problem.  I could be without electricity.  I could be without food.  I could be without access to facilities to bathe and otherwise survive the non-water issue at my house.  I am blessed in spite of any inconveniences I'm undergoing now.

In searching for a Bible verse to go along with this blog posting, I couldn't find one that simply said, "Exhale".  But I was reminded of my father's favorite Bible verse, found in Psalms.  Nothing that happens to us in any day happens without God's permission.  He KNOWS what we can and cannot deal with.  He also provides us with WHATEVER we need to survive and to deal with the issues of the day.  Every day, we know that we can face the challenges of the day equipped to come through victorious.  And when that happens, we can exhale and let go of any stress, anxiety and angst.

I pray that you have a great day in the Lord, and that you will find the fortitude to "exhale".  Be blessed.