Stop to Smell the Roses

    

     Hello again! 

Let's discuss something a lot of us forget to do;

Enjoy life.

      Yes I know life isn't always roses, but when was the last time you marveled at the flowers you do pass?

How much do we miss looking at life through our cell phone cameras?
Or in the hustle and bustle of 21st century life, have we just stomp across a beautiful field because we were stressed over something that can be resolved?

       Okay, now more personal, how many times have we stopped to enjoy and spend time in prayer with God, the Creator of all?
He should be first One we go to when the weight of the world seems to be blinding us from the beauty in it.

"Fear not, for I am with you;

Be not dismayed, for I am your God.

I will strengthen you,

Yes, I will help you,

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.’" 

(Isaiah 41:10;NKJV)

"God is our refuge and strength,

A very present help in trouble.

 Therefore we will not fear,

Even though the earth be removed,

And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea;

 Though its waters roar and be troubled,

Though the mountains shake with its swelling. Selah

 There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God,

The holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High.

 God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved;

God shall help her, just at the break of dawn.

 The nations raged, the kingdoms were moved;

He uttered His voice, the earth melted.

 The Lord of hosts is with us;

The God of Jacob is our refuge. Selah

 Come, behold the works of the Lord,

Who has made desolations in the earth.

 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth;

He breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two;

He burns the chariot in the fire.

 Be still, and know that I am God;

I will be exalted among the nations,

I will be exalted in the earth!

 The Lord of hosts is with us;

The God of Jacob is our refuge." (Psalm 46;NKJV)

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart,

And lean not on your own understanding;

 In all your ways acknowledge Him,

And He shall direct your paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6;NKJV)

       Although, how many times have we stopped to thank Him for all the blessings we do have instead of asking for more? 

   "Oh come, let us sing to the Lord!

Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.

 Let us come before His presence with thanksgiving;

Let us shout joyfully to Him with psalms.

 For the Lord is the great God,

And the great King above all gods.

 In His hand are the deep places of the earth;

The heights of the hills are His also.

 The sea is His, for He made it;

And His hands formed the dry land.

 Oh come, let us worship and bow down;

Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.

 For He is our God,

And we are the people of His pasture,

And the sheep of His hand.

Today, if you will hear His voice:

 “Do not harden your hearts, as in the rebellion,

As in the day of trial in the wilderness,

 When your fathers tested Me;

They tried Me, though they saw My work.

 For forty years I was grieved with that generation,

And said, ‘It is a people who go astray in their hearts,

And they do not know My ways.’

 So I swore in My wrath,

‘They shall not enter My rest.’” (Psalm 95;NKJV)

"Bless the Lord, O my soul;

And all that is within me, bless His holy name!

 Bless the Lord, O my soul,

And forget not all His benefits:

 Who forgives all your iniquities,

Who heals all your diseases,

 Who redeems your life from destruction,

Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies,

 Who satisfies your mouth with good things,

So that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

 The Lord executes righteousness

And justice for all who are oppressed.

 He made known His ways to Moses,

His acts to the children of Israel.

 The Lord is merciful and gracious,

Slow to anger, and abounding in mercy.

 He will not always strive with us,

Nor will He keep His anger forever.

 He has not dealt with us according to our sins,

Nor punished us according to our iniquities.

 For as the heavens are high above the earth,

So great is His mercy toward those who fear Him;

 As far as the east is from the west,

So far has He removed our transgressions from us.

 As a father pities his children,

So the Lord pities those who fear Him.

 For He knows our frame;

He remembers that we are dust.

 As for man, his days are like grass;

As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.

 For the wind passes over it, and it is gone,

And its place remembers it no more.

 But the mercy of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting

On those who fear Him,

And His righteousness to children’s children,

 To such as keep His covenant,

And to those who remember His commandments to do them.

 The Lord has established His throne in heaven,

And His kingdom rules over all.

 Bless the Lord, you His angels,

Who excel in strength, who do His word,

Heeding the voice of His word.

 Bless the Lord, all you His hosts,

You ministers of His, who do His pleasure.

 Bless the Lord, all His works,

In all places of His dominion.

Bless the Lord, O my soul!" (Psalm 103;NKJV)

The Lord has painted and sculpted every lovely and wonderful thing in this life, He fashioned you perfectly in His image, and He is with you through every small moment.

Maybe we should all take more time to stop a little while and smell the roses. :)

Love y'all!

     

(Photo Credit: First pic: Free internet one ;P Second pic: Arianna Vanderwende Third pic: Me ;))