Define Your “Ground”

 

Hello friends!  Well it’s the second week of February and I’m finally sitting down to write my first post of the year.  Whaaat!?!? Where did January go?!?!

January…for me, is usually a fairly calm, not too busy, get-caught-up-on-things kind of month that I always look forward to. Not this year.  January was a whirlwind…not the quiet, productive month that I had hoped for.

But today I pause. Pause to gather my thoughts…and to write. The idea for this post has been floating around in my head and heart now for almost two months…and I think it’s a pretty valuable nugget…so I didn’t want to miss the opportunity to share it with you.

Over the holidays, my Resident Gardener and I talked a lot about RYG…all that it is and all that it’s evolving into. Many of those conversations were with family and friends and I would often hear Doug say that ground in Redeem Your Ground is really a fill-in-the-blank kind of word. In other words, ground can be defined in any number of ways, as our tagline suggests…your home, your yard, your life.  And I completely agree!

 

Although our typical posts mainly focus on the literal ground outside…embracing that it’s really so much more than that has been really helpful to me – especially since I’m not a gardener. So I’ve been thinking…what does redeem your ground really mean to me? So I dove into the dictionary…

re·deem: \ri-ˈdēm\ (verb) – to win back; to free from what distresses or harms; to free from the consequences of sin; to change for the better, repair, restore; to offset the bad effect of; to make worthwhile; to make good

ground: \’graund\ (noun) – the surface of the earth; the area around and belonging to a house or other building; an area used for a particular purpose; an area of knowledge or special interest; an area to be won or defended

With these definitions in mind, the phrase redeem your ground comes more alive for me. It becomes more meaningful and thought-provoking. And it makes it easier to answer the question “what is my ground?”.

So I ask myself…what ground do I want to redeem this year? What do I want to win back in my life?  To change for the better? To repair or restore?  What in my life do I want to change and offset the bad effect of and make worthwhile and good? What in my life do I want won or defended?

By answering these questions, you and I can start defining what our ground is…and then move forward to redeem it.

Your ground just might be your literal ground, your yard. You may want to restore it, change if for the better…make it beautiful and usable and good.  (Clearly…we love that! So go for it…and let us know if we can help.)

But your ground may be something more than that. Your health, your marriage, your parenting, your time, your home life, your schedule, your finances…or even an old hobby or project you’ve put off for way too long.  Your ground could be a number of things…something general or something really specific.

So today, as I pause to write this post…I’m also pausing to define what my ground is this year. And my ground list is getting long…and a bit overwhelming. But I’m not going to let that keep me from claiming a few areas to focus on first. Some ground redeemed is better than no ground redeemed. Right?!

So here’s what I’m thinking…

• • I want to redeem intentional family time and have more fun together…because tasks and to-dos often steal that from me.
  • I want to redeem rest and stillness and calm in my life and in our home…because busyness and distractions often steal that from me too.
  • I want to redeem my physical activity and get this body moving again. I need that for my personal health…and it will also give me more energy for my family and friends.
  • I want to redeem my routine, my schedule…to find ways to maximize the time I have to be productive. This will also help me more joyfully and wholeheartedly love and serve my family and those God puts in my life.

I want to win back all these areas of my life. These are my ground.

So…can I encourage you to define your ground?  Will you pause to determine the ground you want to redeem this year…or this month or maybe just this week. Maybe each morning you determine something you want to redeem that very day.  Whatever it is, write it down and make it a priority. Then start taking small steps to making it happen…small steps to redeeming it?

However and whatever ground you end up focusing on, I hope you pursue redeeming it for all it’s worth! I’m certain you won’t regret it.

Here’s to 2015 and ground redeemed!