The Beach

St. Augustine- listen to the sound of the waves and wind.

I love the beach! There is something wild and yet peaceful about it. Just the sound of the waves and the soft warm sand beneath my feet instantly soothes me.

On the bind of my most recent Coastal Living magazine there is a quote by Jimmy Buffett. He says, "The ocean has always been a salve to my soul." This resonates with me.

When I was a junior in High School I wrote these words about a particular spot on the Gulf of Mexico:

"The lights illuminate the metal walkway and dance across the rolling tide,
glistening on the sea. It is so beautiful. A picture could not even capture
its beauty. It is a graceful, light and lovely beacon reflecting off of the
sugar white shore and the deep green and white tide as it falls
into the black night. When I am at the end of its long walk, I am
overcome by a sense of freedom and fear as I stare into the gracefully
powerful abyss. The lull of the gently roaring waves along with a deep
breath of almost sour sea air is my inspiration to write.

God, Your beautiful rhythm is found in the dunes, Your peace and beauty in
the stars, Your love in the warmth and light of the beacon pier, Your vastness
in the sky, and Your power and greatness in the crashing of the waves. I see You
stand strong and stable- unchanging. Just as the pillars that hold the pier up
from the raging waters, so do You hold me above my peril."

I love to see God's glory in creation- don't you?

"And one called out to another and said, "Holy, Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory." Isaiah 6:3 NASB

Pumpkin- a lesson in Discipline

Here's our new little buddy. Yep, this is Pumpkin. I know he is not orange. It is October and black cats and pumpkins are seen so often together that his name is Pumpkin.

I've had an interesting experience with two situations over the past two weeks that at first seem unrelated...there not.

My husband and I just rescued this new little black kitten, which incidentally is why I have not been blogging as of late. Pumpkin came home with us a week ago Monday. We had read up on how to introduce your current cat with your new one, I had asked questions, we felt prepared...we were not prepared.

Remy proceeded to hiss, slap his paw, growl and snarl at not only this new little kitty; but us too--his mommy and daddy that love him! Can you believe it? And those of you with cats answer a resounding--YES!

I, however, was horrified. At one point I had even picked Remy up to bring him to meet the kitty and I promptly got slapped. Dennis then had to discipline the cat, because I just stood there and cried.

****

Recently, I have been working with a group of young ladies, who are not that unlike my feuding felines. And I have responded to them much like my response to Remy's slap. As these two separate events finally collided on pages of my life God reminded me about discipline.

Discipline comes from the word disciple. God reminded me of His Word:

"My son, do not despise the LORD's discipline and do not resent his rebuke, because the LORD disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in." Proverbs 3:11-12 NIV

"And you have forgotten that word of encouragement that addresses you as sons:"My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son." Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?" Hebrews 12:5-7 NIV

"He who spares his rod [of discipline] hates his son, but he who loves him disciplines diligently and punishes him early." Proverbs 12:24 AMP

I had never thought of discipline being out of love. The more I thought about it- the clearer it became. A parent corrects a child that runs out into the street, because he/she love them and doesn't want harm to befall them.

Parents, teachers, grandparents, and a whole host of supportive adults helped discipline us, because they loved us; because they wanted us to be the healthiest, happiest, and most productive we could be. Without correction how would we know if we were doing something wrong? How would we know how to do it better? How would we grow to be healthy blessings to those around us? Our lives were improved because of the discipline and love we received from these adults.

I thought about these young ladies. It would serve them better for me to take charge of the class and help facilitate discussion. They are not benefited at all by me allowing them to run roughshod over each other and me. It's a good thing for them to leave our time together with some instruction.

I am happy to report that with some discipline of my own, my husband and I have been working with our cats. You can see a picture of them today on the side bar. They are sleeping on the bed together. Remy is now grooming Pumpkin and I even heard some purring earlier today. We gave them discipline and boundaries because we love them--and they are the better for it!