Category: calm

Devotional

by worrylessjourney, posted in calm, God, safety

March 16 2025

Psalm 23 Verse 4

4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley,[a]
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

Most o us have had to walk through that dark valley. It reminds me of the dark wood in the old movie The Wizard of Oz. It is scary in that wood but Dorothy is not alone. She has friends with her. We need friends with us too. It is not easy to walk in that valley by ourselves.

We don’t have to do it alone for God is always with us. Fear no evil…we are not alone!\

Prayer: God of comfort, thank you for being with me in the valley. Even i the dark, let me feel the calm of your presence. AMEN

Devotional

by worrylessjourney, posted in balance, calm, common sense, God, silence

March 16 2025

Psalm 23 Verses 1-3

1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2     He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
3     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.

It has always been interesting to me that this psalm says “He makes me lie down in green pastures and leads me beside quiet waters.“

We are the overworked Americans. We don’t know how to slow down. Most of us are on a computer, smart watch or phone…anywhere on social media. There are so many time saving devices to help us have time for ourselves but we fill that time with more electronics. Instead of a time out we are even more busy and stressed. It is even more evident in our teen population.

We have no idea how to lie down in green pasture or sit beside quiet waters. I don’t think we even know what quiet is.

We need to rethink our lives. Repeating what is causing the problems is called “insane.” It is time we we learned how to help ourselves.

Prayer: Help us to learn to really take time out. We need to create some time in our lives to just sit and think. Help us find ways to restore our souls. Let us be still and know that you are God. AMEN

Homework: Take a least ten minutes today to just be….sit quietly somewhere restful and do nothing.

Sit Quietly

by worrylessjourney, posted in calm, contemplation, meditation, silence

I have written and talked a lot about silence. In the book I’m reading I ran across this quote and agree so much with it.

All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone.

Blaise Pascal

The only thing I would add to that is “in silence.” That might not have been necessary in Pascal’s time but today it would be.

It is critically important for us to take “down time.” Not just time to sit but time to sit with nothing else going on. It is easy to notice how difficult this is for people when in church you ask people to sit for a moment in silence. It doesn’t take long for the twitching to begin.

Our culture gives so little time for this kind of restfulness. There is almost always something to watch, listen to, or be distracted by. I have noticed that some school systems in the world are beginning to teach children how to sit quietly in a meditative way. What a wonderful thing. The current generations have great trouble with it.

I was an only child and had much time by myself to just be quiet and think. It has helped me to be able to do this. Everyone needs to learn!

Comfort

by worrylessjourney, posted in calm, dogs, love
resting

This is Tillie. Tillie knows how to relax. She is trying to teach me the same thing. Look at her. Don’t you wish you could rest like that…not a worry in the world. But that is now. Tillie is a rescue. We don’t know what happened to her before but we do know how she is now. She has shaken the past away and now rests without fear. She is calm and is still trying to teach me that I can relax and the world will continue.

Music heals

by worrylessjourney, posted in calm, connections, healing, music

Music means so much to me. It can lift me up when I am down and calm me when I am anxious. I cannot live without it. I love all kinds but I have always loved the songs of John Denver. His songs speak of a better time. Music is healing.

It’s a dogs world here

by worrylessjourney, posted in calm, comfort, coping, dogs, enjoy, love, rest

Last night while watching the movie “Midway” with my husband (who loves old movies) I took a photo of one of our bassets (Miss Tillie). Don’t you wish you could relax like that? That is true comfort. She knows how to lay down and chill no matter what is going on. She knows this staying home is the best of worlds for her.

If you were reincarnated wouldn’t it be wonderful to come back as a beloved dog belonging to a loving family? I would

Human touch

by worrylessjourney, posted in advice, anxiety, calm, comfort, connections, coping, help, humans need humans, try

human-touch-image-may-2018

Most of us are suffering from cabin fever or worse. We so need human touch. For those of us who are completely alone it is a devastating time. It is easy to fall into periods of depression and anxiety. We are not meant to be alone. One of the worst punishments for prisoners is spending a long time in isolation.

hug-yourslf-prints

I am going to suggest something that sounds totally ridiculous. You have to hug yourself. I am talking about physically putting your arms around yourself and squeezing tight. Stay that way for a while and repeat often. As strange as it seems it will help.

 

 

 

hug yourself quote

 

Rely on God

by worrylessjourney, posted in acceptance, anxiety, belief, calm, comfort, coping, God, grace, listen, perspective, safety

Image result for rely on God

There is so much fear out there…..with good reason. For those of us in places not usually touched by war, bombings and attacks fear may not be an everyday thing. We are not used to it. But we are now. We are concerned about our safety and the safety of our loved ones. But God tells us to rely on Him.

Proverbs 3:24-26 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

24 If you sit down,[a] you will not be afraid;
    when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet.
25 Do not be afraid of sudden panic,
    or of the storm that strikes the wicked;
26 for the Lord will be your confidence
    and will keep your foot from being caught.

Grow friendships

by worrylessjourney, posted in appreciate, blessings, calm, choices, commitment, friends, share, unconditional love, understanding

friends timeToday was the day that I finally relaxed from all the holiday, surgery, visitors, granddaughter’s accident stuff. I think I just let go. I am tired but this kind of tired feels good. It is nice to have all of that behind me and look toward what is next.

Routine is calming. As we get older calm and peace can be better than excitement. I still do things that challenge my status quo. It is important to not get stuck but, for me, a little bit is enough.

I depend on friends. They are the backbone I can count on. Life would be bare without them. We don’t need a lot of really close friends. A few will do. That doesn’t meant that we don’t have others who are an important part of our world. They just aren’t the ones who are part of the heart.

The only way that you find those kind of friends is by opening yourself to them. They will not stay close and grow with you if you don’t share your deepest self. If someone doesn’t accept that then you don’t need them.

true-friendship-quote

 

We also have to make the effort to communicate. Someone said don’t let the path grow up between your houses. Today our friends may not be that physically close but the idea is the same. Don’t expect others to keep the path open but do it yourself. We have to take the responsibility to keep reaching out. Friends don’t become close over night. The work must be put in to grow them.

Friends are a crucial part of life. Take the time and effort to share, communicate and help the link between you to grow. It is worth it!

Life is fragile…accidents happen

by worrylessjourney, posted in anxiety, blessings, calm, family, life, medical, mistakes, thankful, worry

Our 2019 ended….badly. Our 21 year old granddaughter was in a serious auto accident and ended up in surgery. She was very blessed that when the surgeons went in the only thing damaged was her spleen. Her spleen was removed and she is recovering. She does have a bruised lung which makes breathing painful. It will be a few days in the hospital barring any infection or other problem.

life is fragile

This was early in the day and was not alcohol related with either driver.

Life is so fragile. One moment everything is fine and the next it can be taken away at the snap of a finger. It truly reminds me to treasure each and every day. Even when things are not perfect it is still life!

If only we could live so that we don’t let our minds move us into places we don’t need to go. The worries and anxieties can remove all the joy and we spend each day struggling.

Just to live each day in thanksgiving and peace. That is really the driving force behind worry less journey. To worry less and experience joy and peace more.

happy-new-year-2020-quotes-and-sayings

May each of you have a blessed new year!