Out of the ordinary comes the extraordinary

Photo credit:  Aubree Holsapple
Hardships often prepare ordinary people for an extraordinary destiny.  ~ C.S. Lewis

First of all, this photo is awesome!  And big thanks to Aubree for sharing, who graciously allowed me to use this in my post today.  

What a great glimpse of God...what you don't see it?  I guess I'm a freak or something.  Just take a look at this tree.  And now again.

A little known fact about me is that at one point in my life, I worked in a nursery and greenhouse for a season or two (no pun intended.)  I even took some college classes and know the Latin name for a Pin Oak Tree.  That's information you lose if you don't use it, just like those three years of Spanish I took in high school.  

If you don't use Latin, you lose Latin.  Sad really...it's so hard to learn and I never really figured out the knack to it, except hours and hours of memorization.  

I do know some conversational Spanish and know how to ask where the bano is.  Some Latin has that stuck in the insides of my brain too.  And...I also know how to pick out a great photo on Instagram when I see it.  

So how do I see God in this?  

He loves to reveal Himself in our lives.  He captures His character so creatively....

It's one of the oh so lovely characteristics about our Lord.  He doesn't have to show us who He is, but He loves to lovingly and most creatively reveal His character in the things He's made.

Through His creation, He loves to reveal His character.

Don't miss this....this is brilliant.

What better to reflect His beauty than the things, the living, the breathing, the beauties He's created?  

What...all this pretty talk really isn't resonating with you?

What draws me into this wonderful captured glimpse of beauty in this tree is in the eye of the beholder.  Aubree really captured it's beauty from a great perspective didn't she?  

Look at the tree's character that is captured in her Kodak moment.  See..this tree has..

stature

strength

height or maturity in tree years

wide span of branches at the top

high reach to the heavens

shelter for the lower plants

healing in it's scars

Yes, healing.

The wonder of this photo is that it whispers that we have a very creative God who takes the time to dot the landscape with His thumbprints of beauty.

And I haven't even started with the life this tree speaks of...which is the point of this post.

There's healing in this tree.  I can see how it's trunk reflects growth and adversity.  See it's rough texture, it's uneven state of the bark, how it looks all rugged and strong?  This tree has stood the test of time's rough natural slap in the gut.

And just like that in the slaps of this tree's life, it brings healing.

Life can slap us in the gut like this tree has been shaped.  And what we see is an ugly exterior, sticky texture that feels rough to the touch and something we want to cut down and burn.

I see how this tree survived the many winds and storms of adversity and has been strengthened.  The anchor root structure that twists and wreaks a hot mess havoc on the underneath side of the earth.  On the hidden side of adversity, growth has happened too.  And there's life, vibrant life, still pulsating through this tree's sappy core.

There's life in the rough, tough, tested texture.  There's life.

Perhaps you see it too.  I see healing in the rough, tough, tested texture in these days we call life.  And there's growth on the underneath side of our souls.  The deep parts, the parts that are hidden and sometimes are laying dormant.

The winds of change and adversity, the hard-whipping-our-skirts winds, the gale forces that ruin a great hair day type of winds, the gusts that slap our guts until they wrench, those winds are the ones that feel like they are going to break us in half, even snap our hearts in two.  

The winds and storms that press hard and we honestly don't know how we can lean any further into them. Those that continuously press change and growth into our lives.

God's gentle breezy growth breathes life into us, our hearts and causes us to pause and reach to the Heavens to praise our Creative Creator who in His new mercy and grace gives us His portion daily to praise Him.  And helps us lean into and press further into His healing and these changes.

There's life again in something ordinary.  There's life to celebrate and grow and deepen.  And all the earth, our hearts, our souls cry out in a great earthy sigh.  We breathe, we heal, we take a step towards His fullness and wholeness.  And we cling to our roots, and we anchor deep. 

How dreamy...to experience God in such a personal way.  

Looks like my roots are emerging a little.

 

You could have heard a pin drop

Photo credit:  Janelle Keith - My quiet zone

There is a place that I go to everyday.  It's where I go to hear from God.

I read, He rights, and we talk.  Friendly conversations that gently fall softly upon my heart.  

I hear His sound.

It must be what Adam and Eve heard in the garden of Eden.  Think about how perfect that communion must of went every day.  Hangin' out with our Creator.

Shouldn't we be just a little excited about that kind of appointment too?

Imagine the fear they must have felt though, after knowing that they had directly disobeyed what God had told them.  No wonder they hid immediately.

Do we respond the same?  Full of shame and regret?

Why did they hide?  They were alone after all.  The serpent had just slithered into hiding, feeling really smug about what had just taken place.  

Genesis 3:1 "Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and they hid from the Lord God among the trees of the garden."

Have you ever thought how far away the Lord really was?  I mean what other perfectly created outdoor space was there?  It was the only beautiful, peaceful, quiet, relaxing place to be.  

I don't think the Lord was too far from Adam and Eve when they were standing face to face with temptation.  I really think that Adam and Eve were so distracted by pleasure that they forgot that the Lord was near.

If God was that close, and they weren't aware of it, think about how Jesus resides in our hearts and we still do wrong things.  Would awareness of His presence cause us to stop when we are face to face with temptation?

I have asked myself this question.  It should, but honestly most times, sadly it doesn't.  I do wrong things in spite of Jesus residing in my heart.  How could I?  How this must hurt my Creator!

When I think about the Lord being near, so near that I can hear His sound, then it should totally change the way I deal with sin.  I shouldn't be thinking about doing what I know is wrong.

I shouldn't be eating for comfort.
I shouldn't be doubting the work He has done in my life.
I shouldn't be thinking about....
I shouldn't be sinning.
I shouldn't be making unholy choices.

How did Adam and Even know they needed to hide from God?  Their eyes were opened to shame immediately.  One bite in and they knew.  

They knew.  We know.

Their hearts were filled with shame.  Regret and now separation.  Guilt.  

How?

They heard the sound of the Lord.  They were so familiar with His Presence, that when He came close, they had to hide their sin, shame, and guilt.  They were so used to Him being with them, so used to sharing their time with Holiness.   Because God had been a constant companion, His Holy nearness was shared between the Divine and the human.  When shame and regret separated, the gap was palpable.  I bet you could have heard a pin drop in the Garden of Eden.  

All of creation held it's breath, and shame slithered and hid.  Shame shouted so loud in those moments of silence.   

God knew what had just happened, He had planned for this event.  He wasn't far away.  Adam and Eve made the wrong choice because they had forgotten the sound of the Lord.

Next time you're faced with temptation, and I am saying this to myself as well, may we all be so familiar with the sound of the Lord, that it causes us to stop and consider the benefits of obedience.

May we consider the palpable silence that sin causes in the shared community with the Divine.  

May we always consider that the Lord is near and always hear His sound.  
  

If We Had Coffee Today...

If we were having coffee today, here's what I would tell you...

Someone loves you.

Not just by those people around you.  But by a Awesome Someone, who knows you well.  

With the breath of Heaven, there is One who thought of you today, and said "you're good".  In His very first exhales...an image was created.  A special, unique and vibrant life.  A Creator's creation.   You. 

You might say these are fancy words...

But know this...God is for you.  Even if it doesn't feel like it.

Because you are loved by a perfectly wonderful and holy Craftsman, that means its only His love that satisfies.  We look for that fulfilling love in many of the wrong places.  We so easily give our fragile hearts to things that don't love us back.  We lend our hearts to things that don't matter.  We often consume ourselves with the quest of finding satisfaction that we forget to guard what was so innocently created.  

Pouring you another cup...

Stop looking for a love in stuff when that stuff can't love you back.  Don't be consumed by your quest to give your love away at first temptation.  Protect the purity that God has blended into your being.  

You are loved by a God who knows how you struggle with your self-approval and worth.  God sees you with His worthy eyes.  So don't live for God's approval but from His approval.  I heard that in church Sunday and it is still dancing around my thoughts.  That's love in it most beautiful form.  His holy death gives you a life of love.  

Yearn for His holiness not that false sense of approval from people.   

He is dying for you to know Him and love Him like He loves you. 

I will always find what I really need in the One who will never leave me wanting.  

You want to be loved.  I want to be loved.  We all do.  

I love you enough to tell you that you ARE loved by God...just believe it, you don't need to understand why or how.  His love goes beyond our clumsy sin-filled hurting hearts.     

God's love remains.  Even when we don't.  It's the only love that does.

Romans 5:8  "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:  While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

Let this love dwell in your heart and dwell on it.  God.Loves.You.  Don't harden your heart to His love.  

Ready to believe it now?    More coffee please...

Obsessed!

Photo by Marleen Eastin

I am obsessed with sunsets and sunrises.

Here's why....

Sunsets and sunrises make me pause in my too-busy day and be thankful that God is near. After spending my time working, thinking, writing, and whatever-my-days are full of...I tend to arrive at the sunsets and sunrises very empty. When God gets my attention, I notice my Creator in His creation. 

I see the Son and my soul becomes full. 

I am obsessed with seeing God in every moment. 

At the end of the day, at the end of these moments, at the end of myself, I see God. And may I be honest with you? As I come empty to these scenes, I need to see God in these moments of the sunsets and sunrises. I want to see God in every moment of my day, in every moment of my life. This may sound weird to you but....

I crave God's presence. 

"From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, 

the name of the Lord is to be praised." Psalm 113:3

You must think I am a over-the-top-spiritual freak. Surely you are thinking that I am some-radical-chic on some-kind-of-no-where-ending-path-of-super-spiritual-craziness.

I care deeply what God thinks. I care deeply about being on God's page.

This life I lead is about my destination, not my life-on-earth-journey. I am created for worship. I am obsessed with worshiping God in His created moments of brilliance. So pausing and tweeting about how glorious the sunrise or the sunset, is my spiritual act of worship and my acknowledgement, that God is God at the beginning and end of my day.   

"so that from the rising of the sun 

to the place of its setting 

men may know there is none besides me. 

I am the Lord, and there is no other." Isaiah 45:6

When I gaze upon these beauties...I am in awe in wonder of God's amazing grace, mercy, holiness all wrapped into a sweet and creative package that burns into my sponge-like soul,  drinking all their awesomeness and radiant illuminations.   

I am filled with wonder.  Ah.....

...As you look at creation do you acknowledge that God is still God? And all His people said....?

Photo by Jerrica Rackley

Music Monday...{Beautiful Things} (Re-visit)

Beautiful Things 

This is my favorite song right now...again.  The message I heard in church on Sunday rocked my world enough that I came out speechless (and for me, you know that's saying a lot) and I left singing "Beautiful Things" by Gungor.  

In August of last year I blogged about what this song meant to me.  It's worth a revisit to re-discover truth in the "beautiful things" part.  

I was reminded of God's beautiful act of creation.  Genesis tells us that He spoke everything into being.  In one word, the skies are magnificently painted with beautiful things that shine, reflect and twinkle.  In a few words, our world was colored with His beauty.  

But when it came to creating people, God wanted to give more than just His word.  He wanted to personally give life.  God tenderly bent down and got His hands dirty, and created man.

Genesis 2:7 "Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, 

and the man became a living being."

God loves the idea of life so much that when it comes to souls, he wanted to take care of that Himself.  There was no delegating life to one of the angels.  He formed us with His hands, individually and distinctly, for a purpose with His plans already set in motion before time began.  And then God breathed...with an eternal love....into our souls.  And that's when something beautiful happened.  

In silence and with no words God brought life to us, to me.

God exhaled.  The Holy brought life to the holy.

The Pure breathed fresh air to make life.  

Upon receiving the breath of God, we received God's life.  But not just a ordinary, normal, run-of-the-mill-problem-filled life, we received God's beauty.   

We are made from a beautiful God with His beautiful breathe inside of us,

and for His beautiful purpose.  

His heaven-based plans were set from the first rhythmical exchange of breaths.  God continues to breathe His beauty into our lives daily.  His original beauty plan for us was birthed from His holiness.  Our beauty is a direct result of His fingerprint on each one of us, and don't miss this...the God of the Universe breathed His holiness into our souls.  That's Perfect beauty.   


I don't know about you, but when I think about my Creator and how He bent low to breathe beautiful into my soul, I am humbled into a ball of raw emotions.  

His breath is my beautiful.  

God still bends down, in the middle of your dirt, breathes life. 

 Wow...are you speechless yet?