Free to Follow

Excerpted from a column that was first published in the January 2018 issue of Chapel Hill News and Views magazine.

When I turn the pages of a new, large, month-by-month calendar, I marvel at all the freedom I have to choose what lies before me. As of that moment, there are no appointments or tasks written on it. The landscape of the months ahead is like a blank canvas.      

As the days pass, I, like a landscape painter, choose what to add to that wonderful white space. I fill it with appointments and things to do. In the margins, I make notes and scribble phone numbers and other essential information.

Then, when it’s time to turn the page to a new month, I sigh as I see that I’ve already filled in many of the daily spaces. I no longer have pristine pages to marvel at. I no longer am as awed by my freedom to choose. I no longer spend as much time prayerfully considering what God wants me to do with all those days He is giving me as I’d spent between the ending of the previous year and the beginning of the current one.

Instead, I often feel overwhelmed by all the appointments and tasks already awaiting me. And I know that I’ll add more, more, and more as the months move along. With a sigh, I methodically begin to do whatever is on schedule for a particular day.

But this year, I yearn to avoid filling up precious hours with my plans. I long to leave lots of white spaces so that I can be free to do whatever He asks me to do as I talk with Him at the beginning of each day -- and throughout the day, as well.

My desire to remain flexible in order to give His plans priority over mine increased after I read I Come Quietly to Meet You, which is a collection of devotionals written by Amy Carmichael (1867-1951).

Amy’s devotional entitled “Entanglements” helped me realize I am guilty of having too many entanglements, too many worldly things that allure me more than spiritual ones.

After several days of reading and reflecting on Amy’s words, I woke up one morning thinking about the phrase “free to follow.” I eagerly got up and began searching the Scriptures for verses that contained the word follow.

As I read the many references, I realized that the people who were given specific assignments were going about their ordinary tasks when they received the divine call to “follow.”

For example, Peter and Andrew were casting their fishing nets into the water. James and John, along with their father, were mending their nets. Matthew was working at his tax collection booth. (For details, read chapters 4 and 9 in the Gospel of Matthew.)

When Jesus said to them, “Follow Me,” they immediately stopped what they were doing and followed Him, despite their plans for that day.

I pray that you and I will willingly let go of our plans in order to say yes to Him, that we will be free to follow Him wherever and however He leads us.

 © 2018 by Johnnie Ann Gaskill

 

One by One

I'd hoped to feel less overwhelmed after Christmas. But when the New Year arrived, I shifted my focus from "all things Christmas" to improvements I need to make. Lose at least ten pounds. Exercise daily. Stay in closer touch with friends. Declutter drawers and closets and THE BASEMENT. Publish a second book....

The more I considered what I needed to do, the more overwhelmed I felt. (Does that happen to you, too?) But while reading an email on New Year's Day, I saw a simple solution for decreasing overwhelm. Starting today, do ONE thing! For example: meet one exercise goal for today. Call one friend. Declutter one drawer. Write one paragraph for the new book.

By doing one small task today and another one tomorrow and the next day and the next day..., I'll achieve my goals. (You can, too!) Even the ones that seem unreachable.

Christmas Cards

Note: I wrote the following article in 1999, but it continues to express how I feel. Perhaps you, too, Dear Reader, can relate.

     

I always delay getting started on the annual project of mailing Christmas cards for I know it will take considerable time during the season of the year when extra time is hard to come by.

For me, the first and most difficult step is updating the names and addresses stored in my computer. Every year, I release a deep sigh as I realize how many changes need to be made in the Christmas card list. Some of our friends have moved; others have merely switched from a street to a post office box address or vice versa. In some families, marriages of adult children require me to change the names of the recipients from “Mr. & Mrs….and daughters” to “Mr. & Mrs.…and family” in order to include the new son-in-law. Sometimes I need to add the name of a new baby, but not so this year.

As I make the changes, I rejoice with those who have an address change due to the finding of a new job that required them to relocate; with those who moved closer “home;” and with those who, following retirement, moved into their much-dreamed-about house on the beach or in the mountains.

     
However, I find myself blinking back tears as I delete the names of those who have passed away since last Christmas. In several situations, a “Mr. and Mrs.” becomes either a “Mr.” or a “Ms.” I update those changes easily by pointing and clicking my mouse and then making a few key strokes. As I do so, I become acutely aware that the surviving spouse and family members find changes infinitely more difficult to make.

As I remove the names of the deceased, I pause to reflect on each one.  I recall some of the experiences we shared. I think about the special things they did or said. I think about the things they liked. I think about where they lived. I think about the circumstances surrounding their death. And I know that I miss them this Christmas. 

In the midst of missing them, I give thanks for the impact each one had on my life. Thus, preparing Christmas cards is a bittersweet experience. Mourning the passing of loved ones.  Celebrating the gift of life others continue to receive. Weeping with those who are undergoing difficulties. Rejoicing with those whose dreams have been fulfilled. Acknowledging that certain relationships have come to an end. Welcoming new people into our circle of family and friends.  

Despite feeling such a range of emotions, I am able to look at every name on the list and say, as did the Apostle Paul, “Every time I think of you, I give thanks to my God” (Philippians 1:3, New Living Translation). And, again using the words of the Apostle Paul, I can confidently say to each family, regardless of their situation, that “God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them” (Romans 8:28, NLT), and “that nothing can ever separate us from His love” (Romans 8:38, NLT).

When I begin to give thanks to God for each person on the list, I see that all the steps involved in sending Christmas cards become a gateway to joy, and I wonder why I delay beginning the journey.