Desperate or Distracted

Usually I find these winter months, meaning January and February, a great time in the year to slow down, refocus and of course hibernate, particularly after the chaos of Christmas with all it's events and celebrations.
But when I returned to work after the Christmas holidays it was incredibly busy. I had a number of upcoming meetings to prepare for and training sessions. The result being my mind was reeling with "work thoughts" invading my home time. If you work in any type of administrative role, you are usually multi-tasking to the max, arranging, preparing and making sure the wheels are well greased ahead of time so everything runs smoothly. So with all these things going on, I was feeling pretty distracted. I would sit down to spend some one-on-one time in prayer and I was soon moving back to "did I email so and so?" or "I have to photocopy that" or "I had better book those rooms." I think God has been patiently waiting for me to look him in the eye and say "you have my full attention!"

On the other hand, there are the desperate times. Desperate people are very focused. On one thing. They are not distracted. They are desperately listening and waiting for that one answer. They also can be pretty needy.

I've been in both sets of shoes. The funny thing about the distracted is sometimes, if God can't get your attention for any length of time, He will move you into a desperate mode, just so He can talk to you! Sometimes, you will move yourself there. "Help! I have too much going on!! I need some answers!! I'm desperate!"

On the flip side, I'm happy to say, God is never desperate or distracted. He never stops giving you his full attention, He never says "just a minute, I've got a few things going on right now."
He never says "I'm desperate for some answers myself!"

If you are desperate or distracted, you are swinging to the far side of the pendulum. Neither are a good place to be. It's time to balance out - somewhere in the middle where life is full and fulfilling but you can still find your center and refocus without feeling distracted and without feeling needy. I'm working towards that myself right now. As I'm definitely swinging on the distracted side I will purposefully leave work at work and take time to quiet myself and listen in the stillness to the voice of my Lord and Saviour.

The Problem with Popcorn

Bet you thought I was gone for good didn't ya? Actually it was January in Canada and I was hibernating. Now that we are well into February, half way through, this little bear is starting to wake up and sniff the air.
And I'm hungry.
When it comes to food, I'm a nibbler. I perfected this technique whilst waitressing in my young and energetic days. Having no time to actually sit down and eat a meal, I would nibble. A french fry here, a scoop of rice pudding there.
But I started this nibblemania much before that. I nibble down the sides of chocolate bars. Makes them last longer I say. First the very tip, then down one side and then the other, then the bottom end. I nibble my way through cookies. Makes them last longer I say. Nibble, nibble nibble.
But here is the anomoly. I have a problem with popcorn.
For some reason I take huge mitt-fuls and try to stuff them all into my mouth at once. I don't know why....I certainly don't do this with anything else. Strictly stick to delicate little mouthfuls or nibbles. Why I don't pop one little kernal into my mouth at a time, like any well educated nibbler would do, is beyond me. In an effort to choke myself on popcorn, I drop it all over my lap, the counter and the floor, much to Amelia's delight who just snaps up all those falling gems.
So, if you find yourself getting frustrated with all my nibbling, hand me some popcorn and watch the transformation begin.