The Beauty and the Blessings of a good and beautiful God...




Today we go to the World Series! What an incredibly exciting day - I am so grateful for the opportunity to share this once in a lifetime experience with 2 friends who share my lifelong love for baseball!

Proverbs 30 is attributed to Agur, son of Jakeh...not a name that I'm familiar with at all, so you probably won't know him either...it's interesting to me only because we most often attribute the Proverbs to Solomon, and it appears that he wrote only a portion of the Proverbs, and not all of them. The theme of the verses I've chosen for today's reflection is the greatness of God --

"Who has gone up to heaven and come down? Who has gathered up the wind in the hollow of his hands? Who has wrapped up the waters in his cloak? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is his name and the name of his son? Tell me if you know! Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him."

A few things come to mind as I read this -- the immensity, beauty and syncrenicity of creation is one of the most powerful arguments for the existence of an all-powerful and creative God. I realize more each day how very much my worship of God, and trust in him is enhanced by my exposure to his creation...and by that, I mean being out in it...every day, if possible.

Tonight I will experience a personal dream since childhood, and will attend Game 3 of the World Series between the Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants. I can honestly say that one of the best things about the experience will be the "outdoor" experience. Baseball fields are a beautiful thing...the grass, the perfectly groomed infield dirt, the precision white lines that mark the foul lines and batters boxes. The symmetry of baseball has always captured my imagination...from childhood until now, I am always overwhelmed with the beauty of the field when I first walk into the ballpark. Today is a spectacularly beautiful day...a brilliant and clear blue sky, a slight breeze, and weather just cool enough to let you know that summer has passed, and fall is firmly with us.

My prayer today is that I will live in the moment, savor the beauty of the day, and drink in every blessing that has come my way...and I pray that I will always remain keenly aware that both the beauty and the blessings come directly from the hands of a good and loving God.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Contemplative Politics

Image
I began writing this blog 2 1/2 years ago...what can only be described as several lifetimes ago, from the perspective of the events that have transpired in my life since May of 2010.   I won't take the time to recount those events, but suffice to say, I never imagined that I would use this space to contemplate politics, or the place that our political perspectives may take on the path of our individual spiritual journeys... To rightly share my story, I must go back in time to January of 2008, when I, like many Americans, first heard then-candidate Senator Barack Obama speak after his groundbreaking win in the Iowa caucus.  I remember the experience quite vividly, because I was mesmorized by the ideal he seemed to represent.  As I sat in a theater this afternoon watching the Dinesh D'Souza political documentary "2016", I was struck by the fact that much of our political consciousness is defined by what each of us projects upon the candidate of our choice. You mi
Read more

Strip down, start running...and never quit!

Image
I've made a commitment to participate in a 1/2 marathon on March 27th, 2011. To be precise, the event is the Rock 'n'Roll Dallas 1/2 Marathon, and we are raising money for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure Foundation. You might have noticed that I've made a commitment to participate , rather than to run , and there is a reason for the distinction. I'm using a training system for first-time 1/2 marathoners, and the process requires that you run 1/2 and walk 1/2 of the race...interestingly, the most challenging part of following this system is that I don't feel like I'm doing enough . Do you ever feel that way? Like you're not doing enough? At work, at home...in school...with your friends, for your family? I think it's a common experience, and it can wear you down, if you let it. As I've mentioned before, running has become an enormously helpful metaphor for how I understand life. I said in another blog this morning that my new life philosophy i
Read more

If it's Saturday, then it's a "TO DO" List...

Image
Last night I sat down for my evening reading and journaling...I had missed Thursday night, and realized how much I missed the rhythm of the daily ritual. It felt good to collect my thoughts, read my daily Proverb(s), and plan my weekend. So when I awoke this morning, I was the proud owner of a 15-item "TO DO" list. A track, if you will, to keep the train of my life on course this weekend. Not just any "TO DO" list, mind you, my list contains exotic items like: do laundry, water the plants, pay the bills, load the dishwasher, take out the trash, and clean the bathrooms. Clearly, I am living the life of the rich and famous! In all seriousness, the presence of a list is both helpful and comforting...helpful because it gives me a tool to know where I need to focus my energy, and comforting because it removes the random nature of what a weekend can sometimes become when we have dozens of things to do, and no plan to do them. I have a direction in my efforts - I am lookin
Read more