Back to the Basics

God has seemed distant to me in the past few weeks. He is Someone whose songs I sing on Sunday morning, whose words I read during the week, but whose face and voice are lost to me amidst the daily details of life. And, while I know that valleys and times of silence are a normal and expected part of this Christian walk, I find myself wondering what I have done to seek Him lately. Have I made the conscious effort to see Him in the day-to-day tasks of work and cooking and dishes and laundry and teaching? Or have I gone into autopilot mode, skating through life with my eyes closed to His working? Do I see today, this current pursuit, this moment, as a gift, a vocation, a chance to live for Him? Or is it merely another day of monotonous tasks that must be done before I can "really" serve?

In my heart of hearts, I admit that the answers to these questions are not what I would wish them to be. And so I've decided to go back to the basics--to do what I can to recover the wonder and joy I first felt at being a child of the King. Nearly a year ago, I joined a "gratitude community", making the decision to seek out and note His gifts on a day-to-day basis. In the busyness of life, I've let that fall by the wayside, but I think it is time to revive that habit, to make a list of those "small" things that show me His love. This is not a formula, an "if I do this I'll feel close to God again" kind of thing, but rather an effort to put my heart and spirit back where they belong--kneeling in awe at the feet of an gracious and loving King.

And so, the list continues:

--lengthening spring days that allow for easy-paced bike rides on weekday afternoons.

--a last (perhaps?) dusting of snow for the season; waking to large, fluffy flakes falling onto peeking buds and blossoming trees.

--curling up under a blanket with a good book and a cup of tea on a blustery afternoon.

--third-graders at AWANA, eager to hide His Word in their hearts. Perhaps more for the promise of an earthly reward than for a heavenly one, but still those verses stick and will be remembered in years to come at times when they least expect it.

--the bright orange of a butterfly that flits ahead of my bike on a winding mountain road.

--the clean, new scent of freshly-washed sheets (washed by my husband, no less!)

Praise the Lord, O my soul! While I live I will praise the Lord; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.
Psalm 146:2