My Hearts Weeps No More

October 24, 2019 / The WheatandTares

You converse with me

But no one is standing there.

You laugh and tell me the stories

But no one is smiling.

You rewrite the history to fit your look

But no one hears the news.

You embrace my form and shed a tear

But no one sees your charades.

You reach once more for my hand

But my heart weeps no more.

Penned – MG – 10/21/19

Whimsical Wednesday

October 23, 2019 / The WheatandTares

It’s amazing how one drive can purify a mind.

Look at the swirls of color passing by and see now with clarity.

Breathe deep the air that settles the thoughts of despair.

Let the wind surround your skin, calming the restless soul.

Just step out beyond the norm and find yourself again.

Penned – MG – 10/22/19

Friday Fun Day

October 11, 2019October 11, 2019 / The WheatandTares

Sometimes, you just need a bath…

Wash away the muck and mire of life’s journey. Purify. Purge. Expunge.

Blot out the ugly and the waste of living experiences. Scour. Sanitize. Refine.

Wipe off and polish up for a new beginning.

Fridays are a good day to accomplish a good cleansing. It’s the end of the work week, right before the free weekend.

Great time to make anew.

How ’bout it? Are you ready to let it all go?

Call It What It Is

September 16, 2019October 11, 2019 / The WheatandTares

*song doesn’t seem to be posting. Not sure if cut/past glitch or what. If problem continues, try clicking here.

Listening to this song just reminds me that, sometimes, you’ve go to “call a spade a spade.” Don’t walk through life looking for others to blame for your own wrong doings, and don’t look for justification for your personal sin; however, when it is clearly someone else who needs to own up to their fault, there is no need for you to walk in guilt and shame for their failure.

Don’t carry that baggage. Let them own it, and let it go.

That’s called truth speaking, and grasping this is called truth living. It seems to be a bit rare in today’s culture, but it really is a great place to be.

“And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” John 8:32

Now, be free, and have a Happy Monday!😉

(Not so) Whimsical Wednesday

September 11, 2019September 24, 2019 / The WheatandTares / 7 Comments

Listened to this song for the first time today. Don’t know why I haven’t ever heard it before, but it speaks a message today. On this 18th anniversary of a horrific day in our history, I will remember. I will cherish, and I will never forget.

It’s not about a political party. It’s not about a race, a religion, or a heritage. It’s not even about a personal opinion or thought.

This was a day that radicalism thought it could rule. This was a day when hatred filled hearts surmised they could win. This was a day when evil consumed souls believed they had the upper hand and could bring down a powerful, mighty nation.

9/11 will forever be a day of remembered terrror, heartbreak and death. Yet, 9/12 will forever be a day remembered of a nation uniting to bring rescue, support, encouragement and comfort. The two days shall ever be etched in the memory blanks of my legacy.

This is a realization of what purpose can expose. This is a revelation of what a common bond can bring. This is a testament of what unity can do.

For evil and for good.

Never forget these days in your retelling of truth and of history. Share the brokenness, revel in the heroics and cherish the patriotism. Never forget, a people bound together in one cause, one focus, one goal can accomplish the unthinkable.

America, never forget.

Friday Afternoon Serenade

September 6, 2019 / The WheatandTares / 6 Comments

I read a beautifully written piece the other day by a fellow blogging friend, Modern Serenade, and as I was standing on my back porch this afternoon I thought I’d take his idea and write about my own Friday afternoon serenade.

An airplane flew overhead as the neighbor’s air conditioning unit seemed to kick into overdrive. The wind begin rustling through the trees, and the crickets began their evening rhythms. The dogs across the ridge must have seen a stranger or a critter run by, because they started up in a bit of a panic only to subside after a few minutes. Maybe it was a squirrel that crossed their paths, but his squawking was a bit delayed as he gave a good fussing to some young creature or fellow walking by. The wind rustled through the trees again, as if to attempt to quiet his tirade. I believe it worked. Then, the dogs barked a few times again, and our cats came swirling around my feet with a meow or two just to get some attention. A mosquito buzzed by my ear and landed on my hand as I swatted him. “Smack!” That will be his last bite today; unfortunately, he got me twice. I hear a car driving through the culdesac, probably a neighbor coming home from a long day’s work. The wind rustles a bit stronger through the trees, it seems to be telling the weary soul, “Welcome Home.” My son just joined the chorus as I hear the bass through the subwoofers booming a bit through the walls of the house.

Whish-bark-meow-buzz-smack-vroom”

Another mosquito says goodbye to this life, and I grab the bug repellent; so, I might enjoy a few more moments of the evening serenade before turning in. Even the spray adds a swishing noise to the symphony. The temperatures tonight are quite delightful. … There goes the wind and the crickets again.

“Whish-boom-smack-swish-which-chirp-chirp-bark-boom”

Ahh, there’s the little bird to join in while another plane travels overhead to it’s unknown destination, and finally, the cicadas have come to add their part to the harmony. I was wondering what was taking them so long.

“Whish-boom-chirp-chirp-bark-vroom-whish-tweet-tweet-chirp-chirp-buzz-buzz-cacah”

…a crow couldn’t miss out while he was flying by. 😂

A beautiful symphony given to us by our amazing Creator God. Sitting here, listening and watching just brings a sweet peace to my mind and a gentleness to my heart. It causes me to breathe deeper and smile a little longer. I’m so thankful for my restful place of solitude. It truly brings healing to a weary soul.

I hope you will step outside and listen to the serenade around you, and if it’s just too noisy with human chaos and manmade distractions, take a little drive to a park, an open field, a hiking trail, a lake or a waterfall. Get off the asphalt, and see what you might bring into vision with, not only your eyes, but with your whole being.

Happy listening, and Happy Friday! 😊

Hit By A Mack

August 30, 2019 / The WheatandTares / 8 Comments

Have you ever felt like you were hit by a Mack Truck? Maybe you’re not familiar with the term. Growing up in a rural community in Northwest Florida, we used this term anytime we felt like a sickness had just taken hold of us, or maybe when someone had had a rough night of sleep (or sometimes, even with an alcohol binge). We’d say, “I feel like I’ve been hit by a Mack Truck!” Or “You look like you’ve been hit by a Mack Truck!” 😂

Now that I’m older, I’ve still used the phrase from time to time; however, once I realized what a Mack Truck really was, I’m kind of thankful that was just a phrase. For surely, being hit by a Mack Truck in reality would leave one much worse than what I have felt when using the phrase. When I’ve claimed this destructive weight has hit my life, I suppose, I’m almost whining in comparison to what it would really feel like for that 5-ton vehicle to slam into me.

Sometimes, we do overstate our life conditions, don’t we? Yet, when we’re in the middle of the storm, it’s often hard to see beyond the tornadic winds we are experiencing. So, if you’re feeling down today, or maybe you’re even feeling like a Mack Truck has invaded your solitude, just hold on a minute, and let the chaos pass.

You can make it through, if you’ll just not give up. If you quit now, you’ve let that 5-ton machine win, but it doesn’t have to end that way! Get up! Even if you have to crawl to the curb and signal for help. Sometimes, you may have to lean on someone to help you through rather than being “Mr./Mrs. Independent.” That’s ok, cuz we’ve all been there… both with the Mack Truck and with making it through with the help of a friend!😉

Burn That Bridge

July 26, 2019July 26, 2019 / The WheatandTares

Yeah, I’ll probably just leave that right there…

When you take care of you, and you remove toxic, dangerous or destructive people from your life, it’s okay to burn a few bridges. It’s not mean. It’s not hateful. It’s not even a spiteful act on your part (granted, you don’t add a lot of hatefulness in words or actions😉). Just burn that bridge and move beyond.

That girlfriend who chased you down, and then, went a bit psycho when you needed some space… yeah, burn that number.

That boyfriend who beat you to a pulp, and then, said he was sorry, wouldn’t do it again… yep, need to light a little fuse.

That childhood friendship whose crises-to-crises living is sucking the life from your veins… yes, close that door, burn that rope.

That old flame who wanted you to cheat on your spouse just so he/she could “make you feel alive” one more time… yeah, you better take that lighter fluid and pour the whole can out.

Walk away.

Light that match.

Burn that bridge.

You’re better than that. You deserve more.

And those who truly love you deserve more.

Do it now before you second guess yourself.

Just do it … and breathe.

Filling In The Gaps

July 22, 2019July 20, 2019 / The WheatandTares / 2 Comments

It’s been amazing to me how God’s goodness has just followed me throughout my whole life. This doesn’t mean my life has been perfect, nor does it mean that it’s been devoid of pain and sorrow. That’s actually very far from the truth. However, looking back through the years, and even at the very beginning, His goodness was there, almost lurking in the shadows at times.

I can see His hand at work so many times, comforting me, shielding me, overshadowing me and even uplifting me to be encouraged and reminded of this. I hear often, from people who want to reject Him, ask the question, “If He’s so good, why do bad things happen? Why do people get hurt? Why doesn’t He rescue all from evil?” To completely, and theologically, try to explain the answers to these questions, it would take too long for this blog, and it might be too deep or too boring for some.

Yet, I will say this much, typically, these questions aren’t from true searchers who would actually accept God if they found Him. These questions are designed to set up rebellion in a heart and argument in a mind to the point of stubborn resolution that either there is no God or He’s just a deity that is too lofty for our minuscule life, and He never cared anyway. This couldn’t be further from the truth, and I’d have to contend that you are not a true seeker nor a very good reader. You don’t do any research or read anything to truly help you find the answers to the questions you ask. But I digress. That will be another post for another day.

We live in a fallen world, and just as a person being sick doesn’t make the doctor less of a doctor, dealing with the evil of a fallen world doesn’t make God any less God. Having bad things happen in my past doesn’t nullify the Sovereignty of my God nor does it mean He loves me any less. There are a ton of reasons bad things can happen, and I won’t try to pretend to have all the answers for the Whys. I will say, the more I focus on Him and on His goodness, I see more and more of Him intricately intertwined into every piece of my life’s tapestry, and for this, I am eternally grateful!

I see the godly men He brought into my life when my own father abandoned me time and again. I see the godly women He brought into my life when my own mother and I could never see eye to eye. I see the friends He brought in when another would wound and scar my tender heart. He has always filled in the gaps when the entities of this world left my soul wrenching in pain and agony.

God places specific people in your life to fill in those voids that others leave, those gaps where others have failed their purpose. Sometimes, we are too fixated on what was lost that we fail to see the refreshing fulfillment He places right before us. We have to get our eyes focused back on Him, and He will give us sight to see what we could never have imagined possible.

“Now the Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you mourn for Saul, seeing I have rejected him from reigning over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go; I am sending you to Jesse the Bethlehemite. For I have provided Myself a king among his sons.” 1 Samuel 16:1

“Yet I reserve seven thousand in Israel—all whose knees have not bowed down to Baal and whose mouths have not kissed him.” 1 Kings 19:11