Lost and Lonely

 


One morning while eating breakfast on my sun porch a small bird caught my eye. He was the only bird in the whole yard, and he sat quietly at the foot of a tree, just looking around.  After a few seconds, he hopped a few feet and then stopped and looked around.  He did that several times before flying up into one of the trees.  As I watched him, I wondered “is he looking for breakfast or is he looking for his friends who are nowhere to be found?”  He looked lost and lonely just sitting there all alone.

When I retired several months ago, I felt very much like that bird, lost and lonely.  Even though I am an introvert, I was still used to having people around me and interacting with them throughout the day. There were times in my role as the church business administrator when I had people outside my door waiting to ask questions or give me information or let me know about issues that concerned my department.  Surprisingly, I missed all that, and at times, like the bird, I was lost and lonely.

My main goal for my retirement years has been to make sure that they are lived on God’s terms and not my own. I must admit that I haven't been too great at consulting God before I made major decisions in my life, so I was determined that this time would be different.  As the weeks turned into months, I wasn't getting any direction from God.  Several potential opportunities arose but then the door closed.  I continued to feel like I was just drifting, not knowing where to go or what to do.  Finally, I decided that while I waited, I had to be productive. I couldn't waste the time that He'd given me, and so I began to focus on several things that fit my talents and abilities:  a class on church issues that I'm preparing for a local Bible college, a book that He laid on my heart several years ago, and even beginning this blog.  Those were in addition to the creation of the Sunporch Fellowship that I do with several of my friends twice a month, co-teaching a women's Bible class, and volunteer opportunities at the church. 

At the same time, I continued to pray that God would give direction and confirm to me whether these were the right ways to go.  Still, He seemed to be silent, but my commitment remained the same.  Then, this week during my devotional time I came across Proverbs 16:3

“Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed (NIV84).”

At last, I had my answer! Each one of these projects is fully committed to the Lord. They are each using talents and abilities that God has blessed me with over the years.  I am still continually seeking His direction and His affirmation, but until He tells me otherwise, I'm staying on task, and I know He will bless that because the tasks are fully committed to Him. I guess I'm like the bird.  I'm no longer wandering around looking lost and lonely. I've decided to fly up into the tree and check things out from a higher perspective. I am confident that God will bless my efforts.  No longer lost or lonely on the porch!

Proverbs 16:9

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