Chasing Dead Leaves

I have been chasing dead leaves and it took a butterfly to show me.

 

This morning, after a busy, busy few weeks of school, I slept in late and finally had more than a few moments to spend with the Lord.

He led me to just what I needed - and as I was "chewing" over it and contemplating what He was teaching me, my eyes focused on butterflies chasing each other outside my window.  

I was mesmerized by them.  I thought of how freely they were moving and enjoying the beautiful day.  

I decided to get up from my chair and open my front door to watch them more closely.  I made sure I opened the door quietly so as not to scare off any creatures.  

Except, when I opened the door, I saw that they had gone away from just seconds before!  I hate I had missed them!

But then, the Lord drew my eyes closer to our front steps.  There, I found a beautiful yellow butterfly flitting among the pink petunias.  The area was so alive and vibrant!  I decided I needed to capture this beauty so I went for my camera.

A few seconds later I saw those "butterflies" again - but closer this time.  

I realized what I had mistaken as beautiful butterflies chasing each other were actually dead leaves caught up in a mini whirlwind. 

It was then, the Lord began to use the Scripture He had already shown me, with the picture from His Creation before me, to teach me I had been chasing dead leaves instead of butterflies.

Since school has begun, I have been non-stop.  

Such is normal for a school teacher and mother.  It is life.  It is what I always expect this time of year.

However, this year I have felt more stress than before.  I think it has been a combination of things - older kids, more responsibilities with them, my regular students/parents and the normal time of getting to know them, responsibilities of teaching and what that requires, my parents' health not what it once was, my desire to get in 10,000 steps each day.... 

I think you get the picture.  

In all of that, I have felt recently that I didn't even really like MYSELF.  I have felt empty and stretched.  I have felt a bit "dead" - and caught up in the whirlwind of life.

I have had my daily time with the Lord, but I will be honest - it has been reading but not a lot of applying each day.  I am currently reading through the Scriptures in chronological order, and while that is important and I am learning from it, I have found I haven't gotten to STUDY the Scriptures deeply.  Then, when I have had a moment, I have just been too tired to absorb what He wanted to show me.

Until today with my Scripture reading and a butterfly.

He gave me Romans 12:12 today in my study - 

"Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer."

I have lost some of my hope because I was chasing the dead leaves of this life.  I was falling away from patience, and my prayer life had become like the whirlwind - fast and furious.

As I watched that butterfly I saw that it was still busy - but it was busy doing each flower one at a time.  It took what it could from one flower, and moved to the next.  

If you look closely at the picture, you see that the butterfly has had a tough time of it, because one of its wings is damaged.  Yet, it perseveres continuing to do what the Lord designed it to do.

I needed that picture. I needed that image of perseverance.  I needed to realize that my chasing of dead leaves was not beneficial to me or to those around me. 

The Lord didn't ask me to get caught up in the whirlwind.  He asked me to serve Him one flower at a time.

I am going to print out that picture after I put Romans 12:12 on it.  I am going to place it all around me where I can remind myself of this truth from God's Word.

A truth of what the Lord taught me as I chose to get out of the whirlwind and be still before Him:

Rejoice in hope.

Patient in tribulation.

Constant in prayer.