Weekend after weekend we would pack up the car and head out with fishing poles, lunches, and jackets, with the great anticipation of spending the day in the beautiful Black Hills. We did not have a lot of money to go out to eat or spend whatever we wanted at a department store and certainly we would not be viewed as wealthy in the material sense, however my family was very rich in learning to appreciate and enjoy nature and my soul came alive and responded to God at a very early age sometimes I think because of continually being surrounded by the wonders of His creation.
A quote I read by Eleonora Duse has made me reflect on this truth for sometime now. I am so in agreement with it as I have seen it to be so true in my own life.
“If the sight of the blue skies fills you with joy,
if the simple things of naturehave a message that you understand, rejoice for your soul is alive.”
I have come to love every season of the year and the unique beauty they bring, but spring is my favorite time of the year and always awakens within me the gift of new life and the immense power and truth of His resurrection! Spring for me is the season that illuminates the meaning of the word hope. Spring also brings the memories of special times spent with my family. The times of stopping the car to run out and pick the wild crocuses peaking up through the newly thawed earth. The times of smelling the earthworms as they come out of the ground after the rain, and running out to take pictures of the double rainbows aglow over the Rocky Mountains. The times of watching for the bluebirds return to the feeder and smelling the lilacs as they fill the bushes with their beauty and fragrance. The times of putting my hands in the warmed soil to plant the seed that will bring a bounty of fresh vegetables and flowers. Spring always brings and enhances the awakening of my soul and stirs within me the wonderful gift of life itself and the great love my creator has for me.
All of my family have been apart of my learning the joy of the simple things of nature but I have special tributes to give to two members of my family for this gift of the memories he has given to me and to the continual appreciation they have contributed to in the awakening of my soul to His creation. Those tributes are to my mother soon to be 89 years of age, and to my brother Steve.
I have wonderful memories of walking with my own mother around lakes, and through the trees and meadows as she would point out the wonders of God’s creation to me and exclaim at the goodness of God! I remember and appreciate her love for growing flowers and exclaiming at the incredible peonies and snapdragons and the simplicity of the beauty of the meadow flowers on our walks. I remember the first time we all went up on the Going to the Sun Highway in Glacier Park in Montana when I was a small girl. I watched my mother weep and worship God at the incredible beauty and majesty that was before our eyes. What a privilege it is to be taught to see and know God in all of creation and to find such joy in His majesty! I love you so much, my mother, my forever mentor and closest of friend.
Steve is three and a half years older than I and has lived in northwest Montana for the past 36 years. Steve is a true outdoorsman in every sense of the word and has helped me be alive and alert to the things of nature since we were small children. I believe Steve was born with and was also taught by our father and mother to sensitize himself to see and appreciate all of the animals and wonders of creation in a unique and wonderful way that only few people experience. There is not a time that I can remember of being with Steve that he has not pointed out the red tail hawk in the sky, picked a handful of wild flowers and given them to me, or commented on the number of deer he saw that day or the fish that he caught. Steve gets so much joy from the simple things of creation and for that I will always love him and be especially grateful. Steve is and has been a special gift to my life. I love you Steve and thank you so much for who you are and for being the best brother!
I was recently reading about the life of the well-known hymn writer Fanny Crosby. It is said that more of her hymns than any other writer of the nineteenth century have found an abiding place in the hearts of the world over. So evident is this that there is a fragrance about her very name that no other has. In her time Fanny Crosby was considered of equal stature with colleagues D.L. Moody and Ira Sankey. She was renowned as a preacher and lecturer and people would line up for blocks to hear her speak. She did not even begin writing until she was in her 40’s nevertheless she wrote approximately 9,000 hymns. The passion of her love for God drew the lost into the kingdom of God. Fanny also composed more than 1,000 poems and played the harp and organ in concert. So many accomplishments seem incredible for any one person, but all the more when you realize that these talents were beautifully expressed through a woman who was blind from infancy.
I learned about her background and how the Lord used her grandmother Eunice as a wonderful mentor. Eunice taught her to believe in the goodness and the faithfulness of God. She had a rare gift to see God in all of creation. Creation was a mirror to her that reflected spiritual truth. In all their walks together in the woods and through the fields, Eunice brought understanding and illumination to Fanny that they were not alone but God was walking with them! She taught Fanny that every bird, tree and flower was designed by God to serve His plans and purposes. Eunice taught Fanny about the loving nature of a wonderful God! “Believing and trusting in God is the antidote to bitterness, resentment, and fear.” she would tell her. Fanny literally was led by the hand and walked through pastures, woods and valleys as she was taught of God’s faithfulness in creation. Grandmother Eunice taught young Fanny to look for and find God in every place and in every situation. He is there, but we have to be taught to expect to find Him.
I am now having the immense joy of helping my own grandsons recognize Him in the wonders of His workmanship! There is nothing like seeing God’s creation through the eyes of a child. Watching them awakens my own senses even more to Him. I am again seeing and experiencing like a child even as I delight in watching my grandsons as we touch and smell and learn the names of trees and birds, observe the blueness of the sky, and exclaim at the color and fragrance of the plants and flowers. Simeon is already looking for and expressing joy at seeing the birds and trees at age 2. I had the privilege of experiencing our oldest grandson Jonah at 2 1/2 have sheer delight in seeing the African animals and run outside to play in the rain without his shoes on. I am reminded in the deepness of my soul of how much delight our Father has in seeing our joy of what He has created for us His children. This is what He intended in the beginning and what we have available to us again in the New Covenant! It is restored as we commune with Him in the manifest joy within His creation. The Holy Spirit within us leaps out to show us and confirm His faithfulness and great love to us His precious children. And there is purpose and meaning to the very essence of who we are-walking right alongside of Him in His garden, bathed in His love, joy and peace no matter what is happening in this world around us.
I am also reminded of a part of my training as a nurse. I remember learning about the steps every person goes through in the process of grief. One thing I specifically remember is the importance of the effects of the things He has created to bring healing to our spirits in the grieving process. To allow ourselves to come alive to the beauty of life itself and to find healing in spending time in the secret place He has created for us to enjoy. I have found this to be true in my own life to bring healing and His perspective to the burdens and problems that life sometimes brings. I have learned to put on my coat, take a walk, and ask Him to awaken my soul to the things He has created for me to delight in. I ask Him to awaken me to know that He is always faithful, that He is everlasting to everlasting, that He knows the beginning to the end and that I am His chosen one, dearly loved, and the apple of His eye. That is the secret place, the place that no amount of money can buy, the place that no one can take from me.
So today as you are reading this I pray that you too will find your soul being awakened to the delights of His creation, that he will show you new and precious things that He has made for you to enjoy and that you will have His peace as He takes you to the secret place of His presence and the assurance of His faithfulness.
With all our love,
