Oo = Oxygen

O is for Oxygen

Apparently my brain has a lack of oxygen because in my excitement to write the letter P for Peru, I seemed to glaze of O. So a bit backwards, O is for Oxygen and why I love it so.

Being in Peru, I really valued oxygen because I was always gasping for air. With the elevation at 11,300 feet, my not entirely fit physique and asthma... I was a gone-r in Peru. Did I mention everything is stair and hills and then more stairs, going uphill on stairs, both ways... no matter where we went. I survived... thankfully and luckily.

The stairs down to the church after the walk down hill from the road.

I really do appreciate oxygen for the obvious reason of breathing and it allows me to live life. But having to breathe it in more deeply and slowly helped me on this trip. It helped me to slow down truly, instead of rushing through my trip. Here in California, we get so caught up in our swing of life where we have the "suburban legend of busier is better". Well, I must say false. Busier fills my life with the desire to feel needed or appreciated, when really... I know I am. My value and worth comes from God, as my redeemer and creator. I shouldn't need to fill my calendar and have everything scheduled to the perfect detail, but we often get so caught up in trying to make sure we have enough to do. I honestly don't need the distractions. Do I give into them? Yes. Human nature and sin and fall of man, causes me to stumble. But what do I do to change that, to really live life out for God's will? Peru taught me about the simple life.  And I'm still processing everything from Peru, and I am still a work in progress as well.

I must say that there is nothing more amazing and more beautiful than just serving, completely and utterly bowing on my knees in prayer to serve and worship my Creator. I experienced that in Peru. I didn't have to deal with my alcoholic and drug addict father who tries to continually succeed in something that only pushes our family and his finances further away from reality, I didn't have to be consumed and stressed by the job that I hate... I got to be me. The me as God's daughter and a princess. The me that finds pure joy in serving and being with people. I got to partake on an amazing adventure as a bridegroom of Christ. To feel him providing every step of the journey and to know He provided every deep and weezing breathe than I  took in. That He provided the strength to push my weight up each and every stair with one foot after the next despite my complete exhaustion and frustration with my pace. He granted me with some amazing team members who didn't waste their breathe in talking to me and encouraging me and giving me the strength to continue to push forwards.

How many breathes do we take each day?
17,280-23,040 per day
The average person takes about 15 breaths a minute. So, 15 x 60 (minutes in an hour)= 900 x 24 (hours in a day) = 21,600.So I take 21,600 breathes in a day... with all the weazing in Peru, more for sure... what do I do with those breathes. Do I wasted them on gossip or meaningless conversation? I would challenge myself and you that we would use as many of those in meditation and prayer to God, that we would whisper His name with some of those. That we would use them to shout out in praise and worship, to whisper thanks with adoration. I pray that we would even use some of those breathes for rest, to silently rest in Him. To take time and think and just being quiet, to not be distracted by our facebook, or blog, or cell phone, or what latest television show is on... but to stop and just breathe and rest.

Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still and know that I am God".

So let us be still and take a deep breathe in...... and out..... in............ and out..... and whisper..... thank you Lord, for this oxygen.

I thank you Lord, for showing your existence with each breathe that I take and I pray to stop wasting my breathes and time on worldly gain, but to envelop it in your Word and presence and wisdom and peace. Amen.