Stormy winds that do His bidding

I'm having one of those dreamy mornings that only come along every now and then. I woke up after a peaceful night's sleep next to my warm, drowsy puppy. Nowhere to be. Nothing to do. Feeling healthy and strong. Blessed beyond measure. Content in every fiber of my being. Aware that even if it lasted only a few minutes, this was a gift from above.


And then God blessed me some more. 


I opened the door to let my puppy out and discovered a fresh new snow was falling. Big beautiful flakes floating thickly through the air, covering the earth and transforming the bare trees into art that makes my heart sing. Cool. White. Pure. I stood there taking it in and all was quiet, except for the sounds of birds calling and flying from tree to tree, and Ella happily snorting and hopping around in the snow.


Oh, how You bless me, Lord! The whole world declares Your praise. Your ways are beautiful, and everywhere I look I see Your creation. I give thanks for Your overflowing blessings. I do not deserve Your perfect gifts, but I am grateful. Help me to honor You with my life. Bless those who are alone. Grieving. Hurting. Hungry. Cold. Unable or unwilling to see Your beauty. Open their hearts and overwhelm them with Your love. You alone are to be praised, God of the heavens and earth.

Hallelujah! Praise God from heaven,
      praise him from the mountaintops;
   Praise him, all you his angels,
      praise him, all you his warriors,
   Praise him, sun and moon,
      praise him, you morning stars;
   Praise him, high heaven,
      praise him, heavenly rain clouds;
   Praise, oh let them praise the name of God—
      he spoke the word, and there they were! 
He set them in place
      from all time to eternity;
   He gave his orders,
      and that's it! 
Praise God from earth,
      you sea dragons, you fathomless ocean deeps;
   Fire and hail, snow and ice,
      hurricanes obeying his orders;
   Mountains and all hills,
      apple orchards and cedar forests;
   Wild beasts and herds of cattle,
      snakes, and birds in flight;
   Earth's kings and all races,
      leaders and important people,
   Robust men and women in their prime,
      and yes, graybeards and little children.
Let them praise the name of God—
      it's the only Name worth praising.
   His radiance exceeds anything in earth and sky;
      he's built a monument—his very own people!
   Praise from all who love God!
      Israel's children, intimate friends of God.
   Hallelujah!    Psalm 148

Bright spots in a cold, gray day

Two unexpected gifts that made me smile today: daffodils and my puppy's wet, fuzzy nose.

God is good.

A wise old friend recently began nudging me into the world of blogs. (Okay, she’s not old at all. She’s my baby sister. But we go WAY back and she is wise far beyond her years.) I resisted. It’s not in my nature to share my thoughts or feelings for no good reason and some of the blogs I had been exposed to in the past had been cliché, poorly written, full of their own virtue and, well, boring. So I had dismissed them. But this was my sister who is the most thoughtful person I know, and if she finds value in reading and writing blogs then maybe I had misjudged the whole blogging thing? Slowly, persistently, she sent me links to the most amazing and beautiful blogs. I began to pay attention. After all, this was the girl who introduced me to hip hop, email, Mad Men, the miracle that is good eye makeup, Feist, most of the cool settings on my camera, hummus…she never steers me wrong.

Still, it seemed unnecessary. It looked like fun (and I was dying to pick out a color scheme and a font) but did I really have that much of importance to say? Was I up for the commitment? Would I ever write things that were good enough to actually post? (Hi. I’m hyper-critical of myself and others.) On top of that, I reasoned, the last thing I need is another task tethering me to my laptop.

Then one day I was looking through photos from the last couple of years and I came upon the pictures of our trip to Montana last summer. My favorite place on earth. It’s holy to me. I always feel a little bit closer to God when I’m in that country, more likely to hear His voice in the blessed peace. I feel smaller, more like a child, and I miss it terribly when I’m not there. Looking at the pictures I could just smell the sweetgrass on the air, relish the quiet sounds of nature, feel the wind and the warm sun. No traffic, no lines, no competing for status, no deadlines. Just sweet purity.

And it hit me. I need a place of quiet reflection. And this is it. It’s no facebook wall. It’s not an email. It is not a place where I plan to get political or try to be intellectual. It’s a place for me to be still and mindful, and to celebrate the things that bring beauty and joy to this life.

And I’m glad to be here.

"Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for Him..." Psalm 37:7


~ linking up with the little things we do~