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Archive for the ‘Nature/Creation’ Category

The Time of Singing

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #forgettingthemisery, #springishere, #thetimeofsinging, #winterisover on May 9, 2017| Leave a Comment »

Although spring has officially been the season for about five to six weeks, most of that time has been wet and dark.

The last few days, though, have been spectacular in sun, brightness and hints at the summer to come.

Finally the trees covered in cherry and apple blossoms, cups of magnolia flowers, dogwood flowers and buds of roses are able to emerge without fear that the rains will take them away before their full beauty can be revealed.

As humans we too begin to bloom, shedding our sweaters, jackets and long pants. We expose our arms, our legs, our smiles more frequently.

Spring is just so good.

It is so good, because it is fresh, because we have lived months in it’s absence. We have looked up to a moody, grey sky, for the winter months, as it sent us precipitation in it’s many forms.

Job 11:16 tells us, “You will forget your misery; it will be like water flowing away.”

I find it difficult to imagine forgetting misery, yet, I have already forgotten the dark skies and constant rains that have been replace with sunshine and warmer temperatures these last few days.

Thank-you, God, for the joy that comes in the morning after a long night.

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The Sun Rises

Posted in Faith, GOD, Nature/Creation, Walking with God, WONDER, tagged #feelgodnear, #godspresence, #thesunrises on April 25, 2017| Leave a Comment »

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“The sun rises and the sun sets, and hurries back to where it rises.”
Ecclesiastes 1:5

As I awake each morning in spring, I open my eyes to the discovery of how much light is pouring into my bedroom. Each day there is change, each day getting brighter, bringing with it the joy of a new day with more daylight.

After arising, my next discovery is in looking out my kitchen window, which faces East. From there I view the sunrise scene of the day. The mornings I stand there the longest are the ones when the sun’s rays are pouring through the trees, as if they cannot contain themselves any longer.

This spring has brought few sunny mornings, yet I still awaken with the same anticipation.

It has happened before, so I seek it.

That makes me think about the presence of God in our lives.

Sometimes we are so aware of his presence in our lives, it is almost tangible, it is simply undeniable. Many times, though, we do not feel his presence so keenly.

Yet, I still awaken with the same sort of anticipation.

His presence has been felt before, so I seek it.

I am also aware that on a dark day the sun is still present, just hidden by the clouds, God is still present, even when I cannot feel him.

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Winter Turns to Spring

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #winterturnstospring, Easter on March 21, 2017| Leave a Comment »

Snowdrops

Spring has sprung, with the turning of day to day on the calendar. Though it is just the passing of time that heralds the new season in, the change of seasons on the calendar reminds us that things change, that there is always something new around the next corner.

Just yesterday, it was still winter … so said the calendar.

Over a hundred years ago, William Sharp wrote the poem, The Crystal Forest, and it so describes the most delightful winter that the Pacific Northwest has enjoyed (or endured):

“The air is blue and keen and cold,
With snow the roads and fields are white
But here the forest’s clothed with light
And in a shining sheath enrolled.
Each branch, each twig, each blade of grass,
Seems clad miraculously with glass:
Above the ice-bound streamlet bends
Each frozen fern with crystal ends.”

And now, that winter has past. It was yesterday, spring is today.

I remembered that spring had come as I sat in a theatre of spring-seekers today.

“Winter turns to spring
Famine turns to feast
Nature points the way
Nothing left to say
Beauty and the Beast”

As love was declared, as the rose re-gained it’s fallen petals, as the shadows over the castle were cast away by the light, as the lungs of the ‘beast’ were filled with life-giving air, the song from the beloved story play.

Spring had come to the castle-topped mountain, and everything the light touched was transformed into something new.

Love came through Christ, and he fulfilled the work of his love in his Easter gift, casting away the shadows.

Spring is more than just a date on a calendar, it is change pointed the way through nature, and fulfilled by the Creator of the world.

“He made the moon to mark the seasons,
and the sun knows when to go down.”
Psalm 104:19

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ENOUGH!

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #monsoonseason, #rainraingoaway, #rainydays, enough, rain on November 6, 2016| Leave a Comment »

“Rain, rain go away
Come again another day.”

I don’t think it has been 40 days and 40 nights, but rain, grey and clouds have been pervasive in my neck of the world’s woods for at least a month … and it’s starting to get to me.

My head is aching with the atmospheric pressure, and I am convinced that my toes are ready to sprout algae from being cocooned in my socks and shoes. Then there’s the sadness that can overtake life. It is a heaviness of heart that can make it difficult to rise from bed in the morning.

Since moving to the Pacific North ~~wet~~ west coast, over twenty years ago, I have detested half of each calendar, when the monsoon season takes over and I start to dream of tropical locales, such as … Saskatchewan!

I have attempted the suggestions of those who have adapted to the seasonal conditions. One common suggestion is to make sure I get outside every day, no matter the weather. That one didn’t work! As soon as I step out into the moisture guttural sounds begin to emit from within, all on their own.

Other than ingesting massive quantities of Vitamin D, and having a faith that God will eventually let the sun shine down on me once again … someday, I have learned that I just have to wait it out.

I am not one who does waiting it out well.

What is good about this rainy season is that it reminds me of the truth of Hebrews 1:11:
Now faith is the assurance of what we hope for
and the certainty of what we do not see.”

These dark, oppressive days help me to keep my eyes, my hope, on what I do not see, but what I hope for … the brightness of the light that is to come.

And so, though usually through gritted teeth, I pray thanks for the rain.

For I hope for what I do not see.

May the blessing of the rain be on you—
the soft sweet rain.
May it fall upon your spirit
so that all the little flowers may spring up,
and shed their sweetness on the air.
May the blessing of the great rains be on you,
may they beat upon your spirit
and wash it fair and clean,
and leave there many a shining pool
where the blue of heaven shines,
and sometimes a star.
Celtic Blessing

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Thanks in the Everyday

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #givethanks, #justgivethanks, #thanksineverything, Thanksgiving on October 13, 2016| 1 Comment »

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Sometimes thankfulness is big, and loud and proud. It might be accompanied by cards, flowers and public proclamation. It might make our chests expand with pride, and our cheeks redden with humble acceptance.

Then, there are the other times when it’s barely a whisper, said under an autumn sky, with only the company of leaves blowing from the trees and across the grass.

The later was my experience of giving thanks this past Thanksgiving Monday.

At almost 3:00 in the afternoon, I was still wearing my pyjamas, but the scent of the turkey in my oven was beginning to waft out and into the house. The table was set for seven. Vegetables were ready to be cooked, appys were ready to be heated and the house was cleaned.

All that was left to do was … plant the bulbs that had been sitting in a container on my counter for about two months (who does this in the midst of preparing a turkey dinner?).

So outside I went (in my pjs), sat down on the steps, and proceeded to plant the bulbs in an awaiting planter.

Then I looked up.

And the cloudless, indigo sky took my breath away.

And the sun was shining on my face.

And the leaves were floating through the air.

And the wind lightly caressed my face.

And,

I gave thanks.

No announcements, no microphone, no eloquent words, or poetic reference,

I. just. gave. thanks.

From, not just the bottom, but the entirety of my heart.

The beauty of the Creator, reflected in the beauty of his creation.

The blessing of my senses, intended to draw my focus back to him.

The simplest, most mundane and undervalued of life, took the breath of life from my lungs momentarily, only to refill them with the freshest, most life-giving, soul-feeding inhalation.

just. give. thanks.

O praise Him! O praise Him!
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!

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Perspective

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #allcreationpraises, #hesgotit, #psalm 50:12, Perspective on June 23, 2016| Leave a Comment »

Walking is an activity that goes beyond movement or exercise.

We walk for many reasons. We might walk for the exercise, or to be in the fresh air, or to reach a destination, or to clear our heads, or to spend time with a friend (fur friends included).

Recently I left the house later in the evening, knowing that the long-stretching daylight would brighten my path … and, I hoped, my mood.

I walked, alongside the WonderDog, who seemed to know that my mood would not be compassionate to his frequent pulling. As I walked, I groaned.

Like tectonic plates under the Earth’s surface, a domino-like catastrophic event seemed to be rocking my world, and I wanted to respond in volcanic fashion. I was holding nothing back, and God was getting an earful of the really real me. I honestly do not even recall anything that I said, heard or smelled, until I reached a beautiful vista of the valley below my neighbourhood. It was then that my heart began to hear the still small voice, through the lyrics of an old hymn.

“This is my Father’s World” started reverberating in my thoughts out of nowhere.

I have had this sort of interruption often enough to know to listen to the message.

“This is my Father’s world …”

Not mine, His.

” … and to my listening ears
all nature sings, and round me rings
the music of the spheres …”

And I listened … to the birds, the insects.

” … I rest me in the thought
of rocks and trees, of skies and seas;
his hand the wonders wrought …”

What an amazing world we have in which to live.

” … the birds their carols raise,
the morning light, the lily white,
declare their maker’s praise …”

All of creation shouting out praises to the Creator.

” … this is my Father’s world:
he shines in all that’s fair;
in the rustling grass I hear him pass;
he speaks to me everywhere …”

Yes he does, for he interrupted my groaning with reminders that his creation is made to praise him.

” … this is my Father’s world.
O let me ne’er forget
that though the wrong seems oft so strong,
God is the ruler yet.
This is my Father’s world:
why should my heart be sad?
The Lord is King; let the heavens ring!
God reigns; let the earth be glad! “

God, our father and the maker of heaven and Earth, is in control.

I looked out over the valley below, looked at the colours of the setting sun painted across the sky, smelled the scent of flowers on a nearby bush, heard the crickets, the birds, the panting of the WonderDog at my side. All of creation singing their praises to the Creator.

That night I was reminded that he is in control, and that we still need, and are able to praise him, though no Earthly solutions are within our view.

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Mt Baker from Two Perspectives

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #mtbakerfromtwoperspectives, #psalm121, #wonder, Overwhelming on July 23, 2014| Leave a Comment »

I was eager to see Mt. Baker again. The day before it was magical! The sky was a cloudless blue, and it’s snow cover was glistening white. When I see Baker, my spirit says, “I lift my eyes up to the mountains, where does my help come from?”

Baker is a beauty from many vantage points in our area. But one of my favorites is the view I see as I am on the ‘return’ of my trail walks. It’s view is one that energizes me to reach my halfway point, and preoccupies my mind (from my aching muscles and joints) as I am on my return. Every day that I see it, it looks different, and the anticipation of seeing it’s sights is like a child’s eagerness to open Christmas presents.

But, as I drove down the road, I was experiencing an overwhelming sense of … overwhelming. And I was seeking the wonder of Baker to lift my spirits.

It had been a very busy, a very people-filled day (this is not a bad thing, but fatiguing for those of us who are more introvert than extrovert), and my cup was bone dry.

So, as I drove to my favorite trail, down by the river, with my favorite beast I ‘cried out’ … I just needed head-cleaning.

Now, there were no tears, there was no wailing, no gnashing of teeth, just a moaning, a groaning of my heart …

“to the river”

“slow my mind”

“I need grace”

“I need a refuge”

“I feel so weak”

“I feel so dry, so empty”

“protect me”

These words of my groaning heart made no sense, were not moaned in any special order … they were just the raw cries of my weary heart.

Then a song started on the radio, and I heard it … all. The aching cries of my heart were being responded to … on the radio.

I immediately made an iTunes purchase. I was now even more eager to see the beautiful Mt. Baker … for I was already experiencing a sense of wonder.

The beast and I parked, peed (she, not me) and I set my phone on repeat. Then we walked, and I listened, and listened, and listened. I was in awe at how every time I heard the song, another of my groans was

related to … responded to … heard.

And Baker … she was a spectacular, fully unwrapped gift.

And even in ‘it’ … a pile of stone … my groans were heard.

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
My help comes from the LORD,
the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

The LORD watches over you—
the LORD is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.

The LORD will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
the LORD will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.”

Psalm 121

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Creation Calls Me to Believe

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #creationcallsmetobelieve, #ibelieve, #keeplooking, #wonder, Creation, Life, nature on July 21, 2014| 10 Comments »

I actively look to see what I can learn from all created around me. If you have read enough of my posts, you will know that I am a dreamer, I am terribly immature, and I love wonder (like I love chocolate … and that is saying something). I hope that, when I die, I am even more of a dreamer, more immature, and that I can even see the wonder in the leaving of this Earth for my Foreverland.

The photo to the right is of a pond I frequently walk past with my beast (either beast #1 … the dog, or beast #2 … the hubby). One day, as I glanced towards the pond, I could see something in it … moving (and no, it wasn’t a bear). Upon investigation (and much squinting), I saw that it was a beaver. It glided beautifully along the water, then … flop … with a flap of it’s tail, it submerged. I was delighted with my ‘find’, which now gave further significance to the fallen tree a bit beyond the pond.

This was about a month ago, and I still look to that pond, every time I pass, for Mr. Beaver. I keep looking, because he showed himself to me once, and now I know he is there … somewhere.

Along my walks I also frequently see horses in a field. Their grace and beauty bring me to a place of awe, every time I see them! But sometimes … most times that I pass their field, I do not see them. Still, because I have seen them in the past, I know they are there, so I keep looking.

Along my walk I also get beautiful, jaw-dropping views of local mountains, that even I can snap a great picture of. They NEVER look the same, because the amount of snow changes, and the sun shining on them, from different angles changes their appearance. But some days (really, if you look at the 365 days of a year, it is most days) they are covered by clouds, and they cannot be seen at all. That fact does not mean I do not still look for them. I always look for them, because I know they are there … just hidden from view.

One day I saw something I had not seen before (and did NOT want to see any day). A snake (ewie)! And I guarantee you, I will be looking for him EVERY time I am on that part of the path, because I know he is there (and he is waiting for me. I looked back over my shoulders for at least a mile after seeing this guy, certain that he was creeping up behind me like Fred Flintstone … but I digress). I have seen him, once, and now I will be watching.

The beaver in the pond, made me consider how God, and his comfort, are not clearly, obviously, in your face visible every moment of every day. But, if you have ever known His comfort, His presence, His answers, in your life, you know He is there. Sometimes He is there in a piece of music, or a hug from a friend, or in falling rain, or an eagle soaring in the sky, or a buttercup, or … a beaver in the pond.

And, I think the message might be … keep looking. He has revealed Himself in the past, He is there/here … keep looking. Because it is in looking for Him, when we do not expect to see Him, that we are enabled to BELIEVE.

Music moves me, and, the first time I heard the following song, on a day when tears were leaking from my eyes, I was moved by how the lyrics spoke the words of my heart. And I pray, because I have seen Him in the past, I will die saying, just like a child, I believe …

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I Wonder, as I Wander

Posted in GOD, Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged #blessingandcurse, #iwonderasiwander, #wonder, GOD, nature, walking on July 16, 2014| Leave a Comment »

I know I experience beauty.

I know I experienced joy.

I know I experienced peacefulness.

And, I KNOW I experienced … WONDER.

I know this from a day off I had one spring day. It was on my favorite trail, with my favorite beast (next to hubby), on a SUNNY day (I got a tan … I was beginning to think I would turn green with mold, before I would turn golden brown), enjoying every step I took.

And I really mean that I was enjoying every step I took. Now, most of the time, my walks are walks with a purpose (jiggle the cellulite into submission), but this particular day, I felt compelled, no, insisted upon, by someone much greater, to just enjoy the journey … and so I did. And it was wonderfilled!

There was the dandelion, gone to seed …

How is it that something that, when in flower, can cause me such frustration on my own lawn (and disaster once it’s gone to seed on my lawn), can bring me back to sunny childhood days, when future planning, and dreaming was only a breath away?

Or the tree, bent over right to the ground …

How could such a strong and beautifully created thing, looking so hopeless, from the strong winds of life, still live, and show signs not just of blossoms, but of new life in it’s leaves?

Or the bright, beautiful blackberry blossoms …

How could something so beautiful, so eye-catching (and foretelling of the juicy, sweet berries to come) also be so damaging to the wetlands, to other plants and trees, to streams that it’s ‘mother plant’ drinks dry?

Or the beaver …

How could such a visually adorable, brilliant builder, who really knows how to sink his teeth into his work, be so destructive to forests?

I learned that day that things are not always what they seem. That beauty and evil can be in the same place. That blessing and curse can be wrapped up in the same package. And, maybe even, that good can even come from something that also is, or seems to be, evil.

Ah, so much to wonder …

“I wonder,

as I wander,

out under the sky”

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Things that Steal the Wonder from my Day

Posted in Nature/Creation, WONDER, tagged Beast, Change, dog, Future, Hatred, Language., Life, Profanity, walk, Women, Wonder on June 18, 2014| Leave a Comment »

Oh, I so love to wonder! (like you didn’t know that by now)

But, once in a while, I come across a thing (like snakes ... well, most of the time), or a place (like the dentist’s office), or an event that really steals the wonder from my day.

One day, while walking in the beautiful sun, with my beast, Shiloh, I walked by two women. One woman was pushing an infant (I peeked, and ‘it’ was definitely an infant) in a stroller, and the other walking along side of them.

They looked to be mid-late twenties, attractive, and nicely dressed (I noticed all of this because I am a female, and WE notice EVERYTHING about people). But, they didn’t notice my beast (everyone notices my beast, she is a beauty. When we walk, she makes eye contact with everyone, looking for positive attention … she hears, “oh, pretty puppy” so often, I have had to push her into the van after the walk, due to the swelling of her head … but I digress). I do not think they noticed me either, but that is not uncommon, as I walk with a beast who gets all the attention.

Just as my beast and I were passing the trio, the lady (?) pushing the stroller, says to her friend, ” … and I said, that was F#@$ing rude …”

Ouch! My ears were hurting. Then I thought of the the infant in the stroller, and my heart was aching for him/her (no color definition in the child’s clothing to indicate the gender). I may be a purist, but a new little bundle should not start life hearing such cold language. Man, what will that child hear (at home) when the ‘newness’ of infant becomes the ‘awkwardness’ of adolescence, or the independence of teenage?

Sadly, I expect more of the same. And as I walked by, feeling the sense of wonder of nature, and of life ebb from my being, I also predict that the child, sleeping peacefully in his/her stroller, may grow up hearing such caustic-ness directed ‘towards’ him/her.

I felt deflated! I felt angry! I felt violated!

What I felt most was a desire to turn around, catch up with the classy-looking ‘ladies’ and give them a piece of my mind!

But, instead, shoulders hanging low, I prayed. I prayed that God would inject, as only He can, himself into the life of that child, and the lives of those two women. I prayed that the child would never hear such nastiness, at home, when he/she is old enough to mimic what is heard.

Then, I prayed for forgiveness. I may not use the same word I heard from that lady on the path (I tell my kids that only people who have no creativity of language use such words, so loosely, and that I know they are creative people, so I expect more from them). But, my kids have surely heard the same cold, hard, unrighteous anger from me.

That day on the path reminded me that if wonder is so important to me, then I need to be more conscious to not steal it from those around me with my words … and my attitude.

“Watch the way you talk.

Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth.

Say only what helps, each word a gift.

Don’t grieve God.

Don’t break his heart.

His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you,

is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself.

Don’t take such a gift for granted.

Make a clean break with all cutting, backbiting, profane talk.

Be gentle with one another, sensitive.”

Ephesians 4:29-31 (Message)