At a book signing last week, I
saw friends I hadn’t seen in quite a while. One of them shares my love of all
things nature and we talked about the joy of discovery in God’s creation. It
brought this post to mind from a few years back. What I’ve found is that God can
bring healing to our hearts when we choose to focus on the beauty around us.
Let’s continue to remember in
prayer our friends to the South who are trying to put their lives back together
right now due to Hurricane Ian.
Excavation in a friend’s yard for
a renovation prior to the time her family purchased the house left a Native
American arrowhead near the surface, which her family found. They love history
and antiquities of every kind, so the relic was a real treasure for them.
She called last week excited
about another discovery. “I was thinking about the other arrowhead while
gardening, and there in front of me was another one.”
It reminded me of a day this
summer while on vacation when I went out biking along the coastal marsh.
I first saw the marsh hen there
that’s referenced in Sidney Lanier’s poem, “The Marshes of Glynn,” which
appears in my book, Give My Love to the
Chestnut Trees. I’d never seen the bird again, although I’d looked on
several occasions. But this day, in my peripheral vision, I saw movement. I
stopped my bike, and not just one marsh hen, but two emerged from the marsh
grass.
For a long while, I stood still,
and watched them preen and strut. I could have stayed there all day.
I left feeling I had shared a
Holy moment with God―as if He asked me, “How do you like my workmanship?”
“It’s good God. Very good. Thank
you for sharing it with me.”
These small gifts like arrowheads
and marsh hens are what the Psalmist David called signs of His goodness. (Psalm 86:17). They’re all around us, these messages
of His love and grace, but we have to put ourselves in a place where we’re able
to see.
Sometimes, we’re so focused on
the problem, the heartache, the underbelly, that we miss them.
I was once in a hospital room
with a family going through a hard time, and I looked out the window. Just
outside was a lovely garden with trees and grass, and I felt consolation from
the beauty. Just then, someone else said, “What a terrible view. Look at that
old gas station over there.” I lifted my eyes and sure enough, there was a
rundown gas station on the horizon, but somehow God had helped me miss it, while
only focusing on the beauty.
So today, no matter your
circumstances, look for the signs of His goodness all around you. Who knows
what form they will take, but be sure, they are there.
“Give me a sign
of your goodness, that my enemies may see it and be put to shame, for you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me” (Psalm 86:17).
Beverly Varnado is the author of several small town romances from Anaiah Press including her latest, A Season for Everything. All are available at Amazon. A memoir, Faith in the Fashion District, from Crosslink Publishing is also available as well as her other books, Give My Love to the Chestnut Trees and Home to Currahee. She also has an Etsy Shop, Beverly Varnado Art.
To explore the web version of One Ringing Bell, please visit bev-oneringingbell.blogspot.com
Beverly Varnado copyright 2022
Edited repost