As Surely as the Morning's Dawn
Oh, that we might know the Lord!
Let us search to know Him better.
As surely as the morning’s dawn
is His daily arrival and presence in our lives.
He comes to us as the showers,
as the autumn and spring rains that water the earth.
-- Hosea 6:3
We are finally getting some much-needed rain. What a relief! It has been hot here. Wimbledon hasn’t seen or smelled such sweat in a while, I reckon.
Rain is a huge reminder to me of Who is really in control. Rain is always in the conversation here, as in 'It rains too much!' But, believe it or not, we are in a drought year, and prayer requests include rain. That's probably why it has been hot so early in the year. Heat and drought -- one element and one condition the English are neither too familiar with!
Those of us from states such as Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, etc., might laugh at our predicament here. But just having flown back from Scotland, it was a shocker to look down from the sky and see so many shades of brown in the colour scheme of our earthen patchwork quilt. Our Kent does not quite resemble the dusty plains of West Texas, but …!
When it comes to weather, we whinge a lot. We all have our preferences. (Click on today's title.) John loves the heat. Getting off the plane from Inverness, where we were blessed with glorious sunny blue skies and breezy days, it actually felt like we were stepping off the plane in Majorca or Cyprus, not London. He was just revelling and loving the sweat!
Me? I like it cool, and I don’t mind the rain. I am spoilt by air-conditioning, because to survive in most of the places I’ve lived, it would be in the upper 80’s (Fahrenheit) to start off, but then languish between 94F and over 100F for six months out of the year. It was too hot to swim outdoors, because the water in the pool gets hot enough for tea. The pavement has been known to fry eggs. And no one drives with their soft-top down because they would be scorched. So everyone stays inside air-conditioned cocoons: homes, schools, cars, businesses, hotels, restaurants, hospitals, and churches! All are designed to be equipped with cool air support.
In England, not much of every-day life is adjusted for air-conditioned cocoons. Things like ceiling fans are fashion statements, and if they are turned to operate on 'high' instead of low people are afraid their heads will get chopped off. They do not understand how to run them or how to even position basic pedestal fans in the places that will render the best airflow for a cool breeze. People in church stoically suffer through the heat. They would rather die fainting then seek aid from a cool breeze.
Not me! Give me one of those mini hand-held, battery-operated rotary fans with plastic blades any day!! But then, that is my natural inclination. To the Sun Worshippers in the UK, heat is a luxury to wallow in for two weeks on holiday in Spain or the Canary Islands. They are not used to the consistency of daily life with heat. And, until the last couple of years, they have not had to live with high temperatures. Air-conditioned cocoons would be an extremely expensive option for only a few days out of a year that is mostly cold and rainy. That’s why over 1,000 people died here of heat stroke last year.
Sometimes, God takes me to a place where my senses must re-learn to appreciate elements and conditions I have taken for granted. The zone has become too comfortable. Before Noah and the Ark, it never rained. It just misted. I guess Noah was more used to having umbrellas for shoes rather than for his head.
But mostly, God just wants to remind me that He is in control. He has so much to offer me, if only I will admit it, and come to Him for ‘relief’. He does not want me to faint or die when He provides life-sustaining resources.
God is in today’s breeze;
His breath gently caresses my face with loving coolness.
He soothes the affront of the day and restores confidence.
He is the shade of the willow tree
Under which I sit, captivated by our visit,
Knowing the conversation with Him does not ever have to end.
He flows through the streams
Where the waters ripple to lap at my ankles and tickle my feet;
His laughter holds my footing firm in the currents.
His is the gentle rain,
Its music and rhythms against my windowsill
Composing thoughts refreshed and inspired.
When God makes the clouds burst,
The torrent fills my well with emotion and surprise:
He invites me to drink and taste the goodness of Heaven on earth.
God wants to touch me and bring me into His presence:
How will I reach out to feel and accept Him?
Let us search to know Him better.
As surely as the morning’s dawn
is His daily arrival and presence in our lives.
He comes to us as the showers,
as the autumn and spring rains that water the earth.
-- Hosea 6:3
We are finally getting some much-needed rain. What a relief! It has been hot here. Wimbledon hasn’t seen or smelled such sweat in a while, I reckon.
Rain is a huge reminder to me of Who is really in control. Rain is always in the conversation here, as in 'It rains too much!' But, believe it or not, we are in a drought year, and prayer requests include rain. That's probably why it has been hot so early in the year. Heat and drought -- one element and one condition the English are neither too familiar with!
Those of us from states such as Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, etc., might laugh at our predicament here. But just having flown back from Scotland, it was a shocker to look down from the sky and see so many shades of brown in the colour scheme of our earthen patchwork quilt. Our Kent does not quite resemble the dusty plains of West Texas, but …!
When it comes to weather, we whinge a lot. We all have our preferences. (Click on today's title.) John loves the heat. Getting off the plane from Inverness, where we were blessed with glorious sunny blue skies and breezy days, it actually felt like we were stepping off the plane in Majorca or Cyprus, not London. He was just revelling and loving the sweat!
Me? I like it cool, and I don’t mind the rain. I am spoilt by air-conditioning, because to survive in most of the places I’ve lived, it would be in the upper 80’s (Fahrenheit) to start off, but then languish between 94F and over 100F for six months out of the year. It was too hot to swim outdoors, because the water in the pool gets hot enough for tea. The pavement has been known to fry eggs. And no one drives with their soft-top down because they would be scorched. So everyone stays inside air-conditioned cocoons: homes, schools, cars, businesses, hotels, restaurants, hospitals, and churches! All are designed to be equipped with cool air support.
In England, not much of every-day life is adjusted for air-conditioned cocoons. Things like ceiling fans are fashion statements, and if they are turned to operate on 'high' instead of low people are afraid their heads will get chopped off. They do not understand how to run them or how to even position basic pedestal fans in the places that will render the best airflow for a cool breeze. People in church stoically suffer through the heat. They would rather die fainting then seek aid from a cool breeze.
Not me! Give me one of those mini hand-held, battery-operated rotary fans with plastic blades any day!! But then, that is my natural inclination. To the Sun Worshippers in the UK, heat is a luxury to wallow in for two weeks on holiday in Spain or the Canary Islands. They are not used to the consistency of daily life with heat. And, until the last couple of years, they have not had to live with high temperatures. Air-conditioned cocoons would be an extremely expensive option for only a few days out of a year that is mostly cold and rainy. That’s why over 1,000 people died here of heat stroke last year.
Sometimes, God takes me to a place where my senses must re-learn to appreciate elements and conditions I have taken for granted. The zone has become too comfortable. Before Noah and the Ark, it never rained. It just misted. I guess Noah was more used to having umbrellas for shoes rather than for his head.
But mostly, God just wants to remind me that He is in control. He has so much to offer me, if only I will admit it, and come to Him for ‘relief’. He does not want me to faint or die when He provides life-sustaining resources.
God is in today’s breeze;
His breath gently caresses my face with loving coolness.
He soothes the affront of the day and restores confidence.
He is the shade of the willow tree
Under which I sit, captivated by our visit,
Knowing the conversation with Him does not ever have to end.
He flows through the streams
Where the waters ripple to lap at my ankles and tickle my feet;
His laughter holds my footing firm in the currents.
His is the gentle rain,
Its music and rhythms against my windowsill
Composing thoughts refreshed and inspired.
When God makes the clouds burst,
The torrent fills my well with emotion and surprise:
He invites me to drink and taste the goodness of Heaven on earth.
God wants to touch me and bring me into His presence:
How will I reach out to feel and accept Him?
posted by Deb at 30.6.05
1 Comments:
lovely blog posting. Hope all of you are ok in the midst of the chaos over there. Love to you.
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