My 2012 Joy Dare: Sun-rising moment Part 2

I’m so not deserving of the gift to see this beautiful sunrise. To have this moment of time to just sit and soak it in. Soak in the smell of salt. Soak in the sticky breeze blowing my hair in my face. Soak in the grains of sand that stick in between my toes. Soak in the beauty of this sunrise.

The coral, pink and blue-gray clouds breaking darkness. The sun’s Light reflecting on the puffy clouds. Those sun rays run fast through those clouds…every minute is a different view.

It was so worth not sleeping well and waking up at 5:40a.m. to see this spectacular gift.

I’m thankful for the gift to see.

To see the beauty of the beach, the array of colors in the clouds and sky as the sun rises. Seeing our family having a ball riding waves, playing in the sand and looking for those tiny crabs that dig under the sand when the waves go back in the ocean.

I’m thankful while I sit here on the beach that when I look forward out into the ocean, I can’t see all the fishers casting out their rods to my right so I won’t be distracted on this special time on the beach. (#868)

(I’m thankful for lack of vision? Yes, it’ll be 20 years this March that I’ve been without peripheral vision to my right in results from brain surgery.)

As I see this sun rise I ask to have the vision I was created to catch.

I desire to catch the vision of how Jesus sees…how He sees beauty in ugliness; grace in unkindness; compassion in harshness. How He sees joy in the world…gives joy to the world.

And what does He see in me as a His child? How does he see me as a mom, a wife, a blogger or writer? Is it anything close to the way I think it should be? Whom I’m trying to be?

As I sit here, testy flies keep landing on my legs and feet biting me and totally distracting me! OK…so there’s now other distractions…not just a lot of people fishing.

There’s distractions all the time in my day – that take away my vision. Distractions that interfere when I’m praying, when I’m trying to listen to my kids telling a story of what happened at school that day. Distractions of to-do’s. Distraction of worrying of how I’m going to say what needs to be said. Distractions of little bites throughout the day that irritate me and can easily lead to bad temper and grumpiness.

But I don’t want to allow these flies to keep me away from this moment.

I want to keep looking forward again to se the sun rise – what I wanted to see.

There will always be flies, or distractions, that are a nuisance, clouding or even blinds our vision. But I’m slowly learning how God’s beauty and grace trample over all distractions that bother and get in the way. He’s bigger than every distraction. Jesus sees how we see because he came to live as we did…as we do. I can’t imagine the distractions he had all day of people always wanting his attention.

Yet, he purposely stepped away from distractions and went to the beach…or to the mountains…anywhere where he could be in communion with Abba to be reconnected, recharged and rest.

And I know that this is such a treat to have this time alone on the beach to watch the sunrise…and not every day am I given this gift. And not everyday do we have mountaintop experiences…much less try to find the time when there’s already work to go to, kids to take places, clean the house, run errands, and chores day in and day out. But I need to prioritize that time even just for a few minutes to sit and rest and breath…and soak in the goodness of God.

God knows we’re going to always have distractions, but if time alone in His Word, in singing praise, in journaling, and in prayer are purposely set aside, He’ll bless it.

I need to soak in that goodness and grace to recharge and refocus…every day.

Don’t you?

So many gifts found this Labor day weekend with family: