Refocus on God
I have seen things where a few years ago I would have been in awe, been astonished at the beauty of God’s creation. I used to live on the east coast of Australia and naturally over the ocean see these amazing sun rises. Then I moved to the west coast and no longer saw this. But then the majestic sun set over the water in the west, and I was wowed! The colours in the sky took my breath away.
Further up the tip of the west coast, I even saw the sun setting in stages – like going downstairs – simply amazing!
The more I saw the splendidness of God the more I appreciated Him.
Psalm 104 describes God’s splendour so well.
Bless the Lord, O my soul.
Psalm 104:1-4 NRSV
O Lord my God, you are very great.
You are clothed with honour and majesty,
wrapped in light as with a garment.
You stretch out the heavens like a tent,
you set the beams of your chambers on the waters,
you make the clouds your chariot,
you ride on the wings of the wind,
you make the winds your messengers,
fire and flame your ministers.
But if I was not careful my eyes, my heart did not appreciate God’s amazing gifts of creation to us. If I was not careful my eyes no longer could see the joy and beauty within the sunsets, within God’s creation.
I needed to be reminded about this wonderful God.
May the glory of the Lord endure for ever;
Psalm 104:31-34 NRSV
may the Lord rejoice in his works—
who looks on the earth and it trembles,
who touches the mountains and they smoke.
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to him,
for I rejoice in the Lord.
That is partly to me what happens during Lent. The Holy Spirit reminds me about God, about why I love Him so. I am encouraged to refocus my eyes, my heart, my mind once again on My God, My Creator, My Friend…….
May these jottings from my journal inspire you to believe in and fall in love with Christ- the hope of the world, as stated in Jeremiah 17:7, ‘Blessed is the man who believes and trusts in and relies on the Lord and whose hope and confident expectation is the Lord!’
Love
Rosemary
Every week groups of ladies meet together to chat about the things I raise in my weekly blog post and to chat about life in general. We call these ‘Heart Connect’ groups.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
Where is a time where you were awed by the creation of God?
Have you ever lost that awe? How were you reminded of the splendiness of God?
During this Lent where do you need to refocus your eyes, heart and mind on God?
One Comment
Valerie Lack
Q1: where is a time that I was in awe of God’s creation?
A: the sheer power of the sea in a storm, when travelling by ship across a vast ocean.
The awe felt when walking through a Forrest of enormous trees.
The splendour of an enormous waterfall.
Q2: Have I ever lost that awe?
To a certain extent, yes. I guess the sensitivity of youth becomes a little jaded as we view things through aging eyes. Becomes more an appreciation perhaps.
Q3: refocus of eyes,ears, heart and mind during Lent
A: This Lent the refocusing is more about cleansing the inner life, as Bruce quoted today the story of the leper who Jesus healed. My prayer is “ Lord If you choose to, heal me”