We serve an amazing Creator.
Simply amazing.
The landscapes, the mountains, the sunsets, sunrises. There’s absolutely nothing that can compare.
Which is why I’m always excited to visit my sister who lives on an island in the beautiful Bahamas. The ocean is literally just across the street from her front yard.
Across…the street. Are you hearing me?
Walk out the front door, take a few steps through the front yard, cross the barely-there two lane street, and boom! The Atlantic Ocean. In all its splendor.
I’ve got proof 🙂
I was there visiting her not too long ago and in between my scheduled naps, I was out there on the beach every single moment I could get. And when the heat had consumed me, I went back in the house, plopped myself on the couch and just stared out the window. I would stay indoors just long enough to cool down and then do it all over again.
And where was my sister during all this? Indoors.
That’s right, people save up money for months to come and spend just a few days in this paradise. And then there are those like my sister. She lives right there and is no longer amazed by the beauty resting right outside her front door.
Does she not know?!
She knows. Oh, she knows. Yes, it’s beautiful, but it’s also just ‘home’. The place where she does life. Her place of comfort and normalcy. The ocean has not lost its splendor but she’s become so very use to it. This is everyday life for her. She no longer marvels at her view with the same wide eyes of her visitors. On the other hand she lives her day to day changing diapers, helping a friend, running errands and making a home.
She just happens to live there.
Just like San Francisco has the Golden Gate and LA has the Hollywood sign, they have…
(soft, pink, luxurious sand, beautiful driftwood, and crystal blue)
…water.
Just water.
No big deal.
Until someone in need of a taste of paradise comes to visit. I arrived with fresh eyes, a new appreciation and a different reality.
And it got me to thinking…
What in MY surroundings have I gotten so used to, that I am no longer in awe of its beauty. What do I take for granted because ‘it’s always there’? To dig even deeper, WHO in my surroundings do I take for granted because they are always there?
Ouch.
How can I savor and appreciate what’s around me in my everyday?
I have decided that I don’t need for something new to happen in order for me to get a fresh take on the things I see everyday.
So, I’m closing my eyes.
Yes, I’m closing my eyes. For two whole minutes within my day I close my eyes.
(These two minutes feel like one second away from forever, by the way. If you don’t believe me try it for yourself. Go on. Right now. I’ll wait.)
I’ve begun this routine of periodically closing my eyes and LISTENING to what’s around me. Each time I am surprised by the normal things that I began to notice. The hum of a heating vent, rain tapping against a window pane, and the wind rustling through the pile of leaves outside. I find myself slowing down and appreciating the little things.
No, I may not live within walking distance of pink sand, but the splendor, His splendor, is all around me. And friend, it is all around you, too.
Take a few minutes today, close your eyes and get a fresh take at the beauty that He has placed right in the middle of your day.
~ Nicole ~
