He Restores my Soul

Fifteen months ago, I had a mild stroke which changed the nature of my life significantly. One aspect that changed was my ability to read the bible. I was on heaps of medication that caused sleeplessness and shakiness. I felt like I was pumped full of adrenaline and despite feeling tired, it was hard to sleep.

I earnestly desired to read God's word. This morning I read Psalm 42 which reminded me of how I felt at this time:

"As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.
My soul thirts for God, the living God. Where can I go and meet with God?"

About six weeks after my stroke, out of the blue, a friend who has had chronic fatigue since 1989 called me. She wanted to know how I was. We hadn't spoken in over a year, and the day before, while she was doing online shopping at Koorong books, she felt like God was telling her to buy me this book called "God's Psychiatry" by Charles L Allen. She couldn't work out why on earth I would need or even want a book like this.

When she heard how I was, she said, "now I know why God was telling me to buy you that book." She then said "Sarah, you know your favourite Psalm is Psalm 23, well, God is telling you that it is time to lie down and rest. I am going to send you a copy of this book - it contains a series of devotions on Psalm 23 - I think you will find it helpful."

For the next six weeks, I read Psalm 23 every day. I memorised it and pondered its words and let the kernels of its truth feed me. It was an amazing and eye opening experience. I discovered that taking time to read God's word slowly and savouring its truth was what fed my soul. In fact, as David wrote in this Psalm "He restores my soul" - I discovered the reality of this.

I was asked to write a devotion for a book called "devotions for ministry women". This is what I wrote:

He restores my soul

Events in life can knock the stuffing right out of us. Our inner being gets worn down and we lose our zest for life, a bit like an orange that's been juiced, leaving a discarded skin. These words "He restores my soul" are a wonderful reminder that the Lord, the Great Shepherd, is the one who revives us and makes us whole again.

In Psalm 23, David uses the image of a shepherd caring for his sheep to describe the relationship he has with God. The shepherd is everything to his sheep - their guide, provider and protector.

I have been thinking about how my Shepherd restores my soul when I am downcast and crushed in spirit. In recent years there have been many occasions when I've felt like that empty orange peel as we watched friends face tragedies in their lives and more recently as I recovered from a life-changing illness. Reading God's word has revivied me time after time.

Can I encourage you to open your Bible when your spirit feels crushed, and feed on his marvellous word - it will nourish and restore your soul. Turn to the words of Psalm 23 and remind yourself that in Jesus you indeed have a shepherd who will lead you beside still waters, who is with you when you walk through the valley of the shadow of death - his rod and staff will comfort and protect you. Remember that one day we shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Prayer: "My Lord, thank you that you are my Good Shepherd. Thank you that you walk with me and that when my spirit is crushed and I am downcast, you are the restorer of my soul. Help me to remember that you laid down your life for me and that one day I shall dwell in your house forever." Amen.

Today, I am reminded once again of the importance of this deep truth.

Ricky Baxter

If you click on the question mark, you will open a poster of the man himself.

Paul's Prayer for the Colossians for Bible Study

Iron Cove Bay

One of my favourite Sydney walks that I have done frequently whilst "Convalescing in Sydney". Last week I picked up Johnnie from school and we drove to park below Leichhardt pool to start our walk. Spring was in the air - it was walm and balmy and we could smell the wattle and bottle brush. We passed school groups participating in afternoon sport, paced over the Iron Cove Bridge and visited the new cafe. The outlook is splendid - views across to Rozelle Hospital and its grounds, but the service was poor. Johnnie ordered an iced chocolate and got an iced coffee which kept him up all night. I ordered a berry friand and got an almond one. We waited ages and had to ask the staff for our food three times. Not a great experience to repeat.

Despite this, we enjoyed the warmth in the air and being in the sunshine. Johnnie talked about the holocaust - a topic he is covering in school and expressed surprise at the lack of knowledge of his classmates. I wondered where he had picked up information about Auzwich, Anne Frank, who started World War 2 and Hitler. His insights of our world often surprise me.

There are masses of wildflowers out - spiderflowers in purple, crimson and pink, wattle and grevillea and bottle brushes. The tide is low and we laughingly remember watching a small boy kick a soccer ball during a game that flew out to the water and started drifting across the bay. He and his Dad decided it was too cold to chase. A second ball hit a parked car - a dangerous place to be on a Saturday morning.

I love the coloured boats moored in the bay - they are red, blue, yellow and green - bright and friendly. They bounce gently with the tide.

How to make an American Quilt

I don’t have many friends who share my passion for quilt making, so I mostly work solo at home. Last year I pieced a quilt together for my Mum called “Sun on the Water” – she lives by the sea. It is for a queen sized bed and is mostly blues and yellows. I love it and now have to quilt it by hand – I haven’t started this – it is such a big project that I keep putting it off and starting something smaller.

See more progress on: Make a quilt

Kyrgyzstan

I have recently visited Kyrgyzstan and would love to return. One of the main languages spoken there is Russian. It would be good to be able to speak to the Kyrgys and Russians who live there – I met a few and they mostly speak English as well as Russian and Kyrgy. Surely, I could learn to speak their language!

See more progress on: learn Russian

Convalescing in Sydney

Last year I had a mild stroke and it totally changed my life. A friend gave me a book by Alice Steinbeck called “Without Reservation” which inspired me. Alice takes a year off and travels. From each place she visits she sends herself a postcard. I was not in a position to travel, but something I could do was walk. As it was winter, and as anyone who lives in Sydney knows, when it is a sunny day in winter, it is just gorgeous to be outdoors.

I started to write a book called “Convalescing in Sydney” in which I talked about some of the walks I did during this difficult time. These walks contributed to my recovery.

One of my favourite outings was to catch a bus to Circular Quay and walk around to Mrs Macquarie’s chair. The sun sparkling on the water, the light reflecting from the shells of the opera house made this place seem magical.

See more progress on: write a book