how to slow down & savor now

so this woman sings hymns with us on Sunday mornings in our little country chapel, trades kids with us back and forth, shows up in my mudroom to grab my hand to pray, my just-down-the-road heart friend, Angela Koobs, with  the next glorious installment of our Unwrapping Series (have you checked these out? Your soul & summer will exhale its thanks to you) so…

photos  & text by Angela Koobs

I t’s hot and humid outside, one of the hottest days of the year so far – and I’m thinking about Christmas.

I’m thinking about the year that our family opened Christmas presents…  all at the same time.

I’m not even sure how it happened but suddenly, all of our kids were opening all of their presents all at the same time.

It was complete chaos.

Our children, their aunts, uncles and grandparents all jammed into a little room.

Packages tearing open, tissue paper flying out of bags, thoughtfully written cards getting lost under piles of crumpled up paper. Gifts that I knew had been carefully, even prayerfully, chosen were lost amidst the shinier, noisier and tastier offerings.

I watched in embarrassment while a child offered an obligatory thank you, while hardly looking at the giver or the gift, and quickly moved on to the next present.

My heart sank as I watched it unfold.

I had failed in teaching my children about receiving gifts with grace and gratefulness. It was a very humbling experience, to say the least.

It was also the first thing I thought of when asked to share about ‘unwrapping the gift of summer’.

Because sitting here on this hot day in August? I’m not so far off my little ones that Christmas – tearing through what He has so graciously given me in this season.

You see, we live on a dairy farm and, between the cows, the crops and the kids, our life is busy.

Like buckle-up-tight-and-hold-on-for-dear-life busy.

And I’m very guilty of rushing about – from the house to the barn to the clothesline to the kitchen to the garden and back again – and, all the while, my mind is racing, my blood pressure is rising and all I can think about is what’s next on my list…and is it naptime yet??

Between the cooking, the cleaning, the diaper changes, the schooling, the farming, the feedings…and the rest of life, well, sometimes I get lost.

And I forget that these days are gifts. Gifts given by a most gracious Father.

And I’m ripping through them, barely stopping to say ‘thanks’, while I’m already thinking about –and worrying about!– the next one.

I know this isn’t His heart. And so I sit quiet in His Word at the start of the day – before the hustle and bustle begins – and I listen. And He offers me grace.

“Open your mouth and taste, open your eyes and see— how good God is. Blessed are you who run to Him.” (Ps.34:8 MSG).

An invitation for me to join in His goodness, to delight in Him.

And a gentle beckoning : “Show me, Lord, my life’s end and the number of my days;  let me know how fleeting my life is.  You have made my days a mere handbreadth; the span of my years is as nothing before you. Everyone is but a breath, even those who seem secure. Surely everyone goes around like a mere phantom; in vain they rush about, heaping up wealth without knowing whose it will finally be. But now, Lord, what do I look for?  My hope is in you.” (Ps. 39:4-7)

My hope is in YOU. My hope doesn’t come from my accomplished to-do list, my perfectly behaved children or the fleeting dream of what those gardens could look like if I ever kept up with all the weeds?

No. My hope – the gift – is Christ. The grace and glory that He shows me each and every day.

“For from Him and through Him and for Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever! Amen.” (Rom.11:36)

So I’m trying to stop racing – and start resting.

To take a break from lists – and just start listening.

To stop worrying about what’s next and to be amazed by what’s right in front of me.

Because His goodness, His grace and His glory – they’re all around.

I just need to keep my eyes open.

 

 

Angela Koobs is a farmer’s daughter, married to farmer in shining coveralls, and after 13 years, 5 moves and 6 different jobs – they’ve ended up right back on the farm where they started out. Only this time there’s a barn full of cows and a house full of half a dozen homeschooled kids.

This family? Is our real life people. Our kids love each other like kin & our men find each other every Sunday after the last hymn. Ang’s washing machine is always running, she’s always making food for someone who is is hungry, and these people always laugh a lot, work hard together and never run out of milk. Every day Ang is humbly reminded how much she doesn’t actually know & is astounded by His grace. Our just-down-the-road friends, Angela shares snippets of faith, family & farm on instagram.