I explored some new territory by borrowing my Dad’s hedge trimmers. The boxwoods by the driveway were really getting out of hand and something had to be done. A year or two ago, I did major surgery on them with a pair of hand pruners. And it showed! This time I decided I needed the big guns and went electric!
Okay, this isn’t exactly new territory for me, I’ve done it once or twice. However, I try to avoid electric trimmers because the thought of those exposed blades sliding back and forth just gives me the heebie-jeebies! My mind easily conjures up images of my fingers or other body parts finding their way between those blades! But I did it and lived to tell the tale. Now, don’t think that they look like the perfectly shaped hedges you see on magazine covers. My boxwoods are sort of “boxy”, but they do leave a lot to be desired. When I took off some of the new growth, the holes and bare spots I made previously began to show. Oh well, who knows, we might even get rid of them all together!
New territory is hard to work through. Change is part of our lives but that doesn’t mean we like it! How do you face change or “new territory?” Some avoid it as much and as long as possible. Others go along but not without a lot of complaining. There is even a group that looks forward to change and jump in with both feet! Depending on what is changing, I can be found in any one of those groups.
When God told Abraham to sacrifice his son Isaac, he went with it. He kept his eyes on God and knew that whatever change was coming, God would see him through it. Peter asked Jesus about walking on water. Talk about new territory! I don’t think Peter had ever done that before! Peter looked at Jesus and stepped out of the boat. (Of course we know what happened when he stopped looking at Jesus!) And moving from heaven to earth was “new territory” for Jesus but He knew what had to be done and He did it! And aren’t we thankful!!
We don’t know what the future holds. We don’t know how long social distancing and wearing masks will be necessary. We don’t know when hand sanitizer will no longer be the national scent. This is all new territory, for everyone. But our God is bigger than anything – and everything! Keeping our eyes on Him will see us through any “new territory” we may go through.
Until our next togethering,
love ya,
Bret
