Thanksgiving Day is upon us. We think about and share with each other some thoughts of those things for which we are thankful. I can think the thoughts, and share the thanks, but what I would like to do a better job of this year (meaning this Thanksgiving Day and the entire year which follows) is to live the thanks. In my daily thoughts and perceptions, and also in my daily actions and interactions, may I live a thankful life.
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This lakeshore spot is one of my favorite spots to embrace the sunrise. In those moments God gives wonderful visions of peace and calm for my soul.
Two weeks ago, this favorite "morning spot" bestowed an awesome evening blessing with the full moon rising over the lake. Sometimes the familiar, even when much appreciated, can surprise us in new and wonderful ways. During these too soon, too cold, days of the winter season, my soul is warmed by the warm and loving hearts of my family and friends. May you warm the spirits of others today.
In the cool blue drifts of autumn snows the flowers of summer still stand. Ultimately they will win. For the snow, tho it may be here for a while, will not last forever. The seeds from these flowers will burst forth. Life will again be filled with their colors.
Those vibrant colors of summer have now faded into shades of brown and grey, or been covered by the white blanket of snow. But there is still color in this world! We may think that all color is gone and that what was living is dead and gone. But then we see the pine and spruce trees around us. Despite the drops of frozen crystals, their green hues proclaim life! Look around your life. All is not dead. Life abounds.
It is snowing, and the temperatures are plunging. The lake will freeze over soon. What are these geese waiting for? Isn't it time for them to fly away?
What about you? Are there things you are waiting for? Maybe it is time for you to think about taking some action? The first snow of the season is always so beautiful. The coneflowers are even seeming to "tip their hats" to the event. The bitter cold will come, but for now, let's enjoy the beauty.
Life is like this. We know that difficulties, pain, and hard times will come, but for this moment, let us cherish the moment. Dawn and Dusk are "thin times". They are times when the veil between the physical and the spiritual worlds seem to dissolve. Think about those times when a sunrise or a sunset has left you still and speechless. Those are moments of grace when the power of the Divine is so strongly experienced in nature that you are called to touch that which lies beyond you.
Some days I just feel down. But then God renews me. It might be through the beauty of creation, or the love of family, or the words of a friend, or some unexpected event in the day. And I am lifted up.
Pictures like this are beautiful, but what is often more revealing is what they don't show. It was a beautiful moment to take this shot, but what make it so great was not just the view but the several family members I was with.
What is it that makes the pictures of your life wonderful? |
AuthorJoel Kreger is a writer who grew up in Minnesota, spent many years of his life in Iowa and Wisconsin, and now lives in Minnesota. His life experience includes careers of serving 17 years as a Lutheran parish pastor, working 18 years as a public school teacher, and now writing as a novelist and blogger. Archives
April 2019
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