Good Morning,
I just sat down at my desk with a hot cup of Door County Creme Brulee Coffee. I also have two English Springer Spaniels asleep next to me on the floor. They have been fed and are content to grab some more shut eye.
Normally I would be hunting this morning, but duty calls at home. We decided that the old place needs to be spruced up a bit and we started the process with new flooring. It will be completed in three phases. We are on phase two, the largest of the three. The last one will be completed after Christmas.
The flooring will be installed in phase two on Monday. This has required three rooms of furniture to be moved. Four book cases had to be cleared, as well my desk. The heaviest of the furniture has yet to be moved and you can guess what the duty at home is for today. The bedroom furniture was hand made by an Amish man from Greenville Wisconsin. Oscar built it to last and it still looks brand new after 25 years of service. But the word heavy cannot even begin to describe it.
So today I sit in our den and the last thing left in that room is my desk and a chair. The room is empty and it just seems strange, weird, and not normal whatsoever, not to be surrounded by books, hunting memorabilia and pictures. The rocking chair is gone from the room as well as the old blanket that hung from it. The plan is to start moving back in on Monday and Tuesday, so the emptiness won't last long. What seems to bother me is the emptiness. Everything in this room is just a bunch of things. Some of those things contain precious memories. But still, they are just things.
This room for some reason is reminding me that there are folks out there who are going through some life changing experiences. Due to their fault or no fault of their own, they now have an empty room or two that once was filled with another person or persons. The sting of divorce can really alter the make up of a family. Once where there was noise and laughter is just an empty room. The loneliness and heartache of not having the house filled with those you love is a terrible feeling.
The other thought is this. Someone who has been part of your life for a long time has passed away and now there is an empty chair at the table. It has to hurt immensely. You have memories of that chair being filled with someone blowing out the candles on a birthday cake, eating their favorite Italian food or sitting there agonizing over some huge bills.
But as I sit in this room that echoes now and has given me fodder for today I realize that although the room is empty I am not alone. God is with me and the room is full of His presence and comfort.
Joshua 1:9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid, do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.
Jeremiah 23:23-24 "Am I a God at hand declares the Lord, and not a God far away? Can a man hide himself in secret places that I cannot see him? declares the Lord. Do I not fill heaven and earth? declares the Lord!
Are you adjusting to a new normal and feeling alone and empty? You are not alone. God is with you. Call out and He will answer you? Jeremiah 33:3
You have been prayed for this morning. God Bless,
Marty
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