Daily BITUB- “Be Still”

“Be Still”

“And they lived happily ever after.” I’ve read that several times in things I wrote in my journals for years and years. In fact, I wrote it in 2003 when Andie and I got married. We love it, and we chase it. Then I read things I wrote as the years went by that showed I didn’t really believe that all the time. The trials of life. The dark moments. I doubted my own words. In fact, I see moments I doubted everything and every one. Real and raw emotions engulfed me many times. I had a lot of demons from a lot of things. 

Then as I was writing I had YouTube on and when I looked up I saw something that made me laugh. 

Does anyone remember the old Tootsie Pop commercial in which a little boy asks the wise old owl, “How many licks does it take to get to the Tootsie Roll center of a Tootsie Pop?”

The owl starts counting: One… Two… Three… and then CRUNCH! He bites straight through it.

The more I wrote, the more I realized I am the owl! That impatient crunch captures something I recognize in myself. I know may be a stretch for many, but was a revelation for me. I want to trust God’s process, but when the waiting becomes uncomfortable, I am tempted to force my way through the uncertainty just to reach an answer. One, two, three… Crunch!

This has been a reoccurring familiar situation for me over the years. I even asked myself as I was looking for remedies, the right foods, the right blogs, podcasts, bible verses, the right meds… DC, isn’t this familiar? How many times have we been here? 

We ask God for guidance, say we trust His plan, and then quietly wonder whether He might move things along a little faster. (Just a little faster, please) Patience sounds simple until the waiting touches the people and circumstances closest to our hearts. When I think about our family, I want the confidence that everything will be okay. I want the unknown to become clear and this difficult season to lead somewhere peaceful, but am I willing to accept what God intends for that peace to be? Then I hear God saying that peace is everywhere we allow it to be. Yet faith, or peace, does not require a complete explanation. God has not asked me to solve every mystery or predict every outcome. He has asked me to trust Him and remain faithful in the present. I know I keep saying that in my writings, but it’s my way of conveying to myself it’s real. That does not erase the questions or prevent fear, weariness, and frustration. It means remembering that God is still working. He’s always working. My family and friends continue to teach me what that looks like. Love does not disappear when life becomes complicated; it gives us courage and reminds us that our connection remains strong, even when everyone is stretched thin, med bills may be piling up, tempers flair, emotions are at a peak, and we all seem to be moving in different directions. Maybe that is the real defense mechanism. The real moment we experience God. Maybe, God is saying feel, see, listen, and still trust Me! Be mad! Let it out! Feel it! Share it! Pray about! Ask for guidance from friends! Lean on each other! Share with your kids! Be authentic in a time when that authenticity means more than ever! You all owe it to yourself! Be present and then let Me be! 

So, as I reflected, I thought that perhaps stillness is not the absence of activity, but the decision to remain grounded and be true to our place and thoughts while life continues around us. It is choosing to recognize the goodness of today instead of postponing joy until every concern has been resolved. What if we decided to feel our happily ever after at the end of each day? We had a good day. Today we lived a happily ever after moment. 

Gratitude draws my attention to the people who care for me, the memories we share, and the strength God provides for the next step… not necessarily the entire path. I may not know how long this season will last or what the final answer will be, what God will decide our peace is, but I can choose trust today. I can love my family today. I can be happy today. I can receive today as a gift rather than treating it as a waiting room for tomorrow. 

Oh, and when the waiting feels too long, remember… You do not have to be DC the owl (One, two, three… Crunch!) and force your way to the center. God is already there waiting for as long as we need to get there. 

Believe In The Unbelievable that is YOU and my prayer for you today is from Psalm 46:10.

“Be still, and know that I am God.” 

Have a great day ahead everyone and may today you get a happily ever after moment. 

Little Boy, Big Dreams LLC

Purposeful Pathways

DC