Prunes? Wrinkles? The sure answer...

In my years of physical darkness, folks have made comments like, "Look at this." Or "Let me show you." Show me? They forget all I can do is hear, and at best, feel. But phrases have become so commonly used that they lose their literal meaning.

And when it comes to making comments about my looks (which is nothing to write home about), they must know I cannot verify in the mirror remarks like, "Janet, you don’t have any wrinkles."

Part of me wants to grip them in a big hug of gratitude. The other part wonders how in the world would I know. I feel my face, smooth, but how do I know what wrinkles feel like?

I learned one important lesson years ago. If you soak a prune in oil, lotion, or cream, the next morning it’ll still be a prune. But, if you soak it in water over night, next morning…a plump plum.

The same with our skin, drink lots of water, stay away from the sun and viola…no wrinkles.

Well, when I heard that bit of trivia, vanity prompted me to drink tons of water…and who knows the results, I certainly cannot verify them!

But the wrinkles in my soul were another story - they needed a more desperate smoothing.

When my sight left me, I almost shriveled with anguish, and when my youngest son was killed, I wanted to wither with grief.

But when my soul soaked in the water of God’s Word, my pain dissolved, the dryness of my days saw refreshing peace, and crisp reassurance rejuvenated my world.

Have you been there? Experienced dry moments when life just shrivels with stress, demands, worry, and angst. You tried ways to calm your nerves, quiet your storms, or even shed what nags at you.

But the dryness of the world leaves your days like sand in a scorching sun. No protection from the hot rays of the world’s demands.

And it’s in those moments, when your soul thirsts for peace, that God offers the only water that removes emotional wrinkles for good. “Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed, the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life’” (John 4:13-14).
And if you were to look in the mirror, you’ll verify the results - the radiance and a youthful, vibrant look of a renewed soul.

Janet

www.janetperezeckles.com