Guest Post by Author C.A. Simonson
“He makes me to lie down in green pastures, and he leads me beside still waters.” Psalm 23:2
Feeling buried beneath responsibilities, I wanted things to ease. Flippantly, I prayed, “Lord, slow me down.” Then one day, He did. Everything pulled to a fast stop.
Rushing to get ready for work, overloaded with lunch, coffee, books, and purse, I turned to close the door at the top of the basement steps. Then it felt as if something pulled my legs out from under me. Tumbling head over heels down twenty wooden steps, I lost hold of everything, breaking my coffee mug against the concrete.
“What are you doing?” my husband yelled.
With my head banged against the cement wall, I couldn’t reply. He tried to help me stand but then saw my crooked knee. Shards from the broken cup had severed the tendon to the bone.
With one fall, God quickly “made me lie down” (Psalm 23:2). No options. For the next six weeks, all I could do was lay on the couch, read, reflect, and pray.
Immobility taught me to quiet my mind and heart. God reminded me of my prayer to slow down. Psalm 23 took on new meaning as God nourished me “in green pastures” and refreshed my soul by “still waters.”
Humbling as it was, I learned new gratitude as I counted my blessings. There was only one cut. No concussion. No broken bones. My husband, his only day off, was there to help. Good friends cleaned the house, shopped, and brought meals.
Next time God ‘makes you’… could it be God has other plans? Trust Him to know what’s best for you. He’s got it all under control.
PRAYER: Lord, I trust in Your peace and hope during this slow-down time. Help me to rest in You and learn more of your love. AMEN.
(From God Help Me, an interactive devotional prayer journal by C.A. Simonson).
C.A. (Candy) Simonson is a freelance writer and novelist. She began writing nonfiction articles in the 1980s with almost 800 articles published in multiple national or online magazines. Her award-winning stories are in seven anthologies, including Chicken Soup for the Soul. Her debut young adult novel, Love’s Journey Home, published in 2013 was followed by seven Christian YA novels and five nonfiction books. As a former IT computer trainer/teacher, she enjoys assisting other authors with book formatting, self-publishing, cover design, and sharing her technical and writing knowledge with writers’ groups. She serves the Springfield Writers’ Guild Board as the 2024 President and SWG webmaster.
See more at CASIMONSON.COM