FROM THE BACKSEAT............

What a first day we had! It seemed very, very long and very, very, VERY hot. We were absolutely worn out when we arrived at the motel. Done in – cooked, and sunburnt. Poor Wade was sore, tired, and sleepy. We walked to the Walmart next to our hotel and bought a sandwich for dinner which we ate in the room. He fell asleep by 8 pm and I wasn’t far behind him. Someday, maybe, we’ll say it was fun… maybe…. but if we have many more days like the first one – we’ll be calling it quits. We drove in 95 degrees and hotter most of the day and it was humid and super windy – rain was building up but not on us. My feet ached - and I don't know why - most of the time I was sitting....

So this morning we woke up and the sky was overcast and dark to the east. The rain had come during the night and was leaving as we were packing up and driving out.

We began our drive and just wondered what the day was going to bring.

On the back seat I was praying (I do that a lot) and asking God for a word from him right then. I didn’t have access to a Bible so I couldn’t hunt and search, but I was reminded of one of my old, old favorites:

“Because of the Lord’s faithful love we do not perish, for His mercies never end. They are new every morning;
great is Your faithfulness!”  Lamentations 3:22-23 (HCSB)

Oh most definitely!! Here we were riding down the highway and feeling the coolness of a fresh rain that had fallen just minutes before we were there. The towns we drove through were just waking up and traffic was light. No school in session – so no school buses. The fields we drove by smelled sweet – fresh sweet grasses and hays. The sun was shielded behind those clouds that were leaving the area and left rays of sunlight shining down. What a perfectly wonderful morning. A new morning!

Sometimes life is like that too. For a day, we’re beaten down, worn out, burned up, close to giving up and calling it quits. And sometimes it may seem that someone’s day can last more than the normal 24 hours, but then God will show his mercy to us, his wonderful grace and mercy. It's our 'new day' and we are renewed, built up, empowered with new strength. Every day he bestows this on us. What a relief to shed the old day, shake off the weariness, aches, hurts and soak in the new day with new mercy, new freshness and new energy.