Wanted to share one of my favorite photos that keeps me in awe of God. I am an amateur photographer that happened to capture what I think is a beautiful moment of God’s amazing power. This photo was taken in Ensenada, Mexico (April 2011) on my first mission trip to serve some homeless families in need of shelter. We could have ended up working in freezing cold rain, but God cleared the skies for us on the day that we had planned to work. The dark skies opened up as time went on. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bluer sky since that day. When I look at this photo, I’m so in awe, I see God all over it. Maybe it’s just my eyes, but I see things so differently than what I used to. God has given me the eyes to see so much more now, and I am grateful!

Tonight I was enjoying a nice walk with my sister and we had just talked about how amazing God is with the detail of things like the colors of a butterfly’s wings for example. Then out of nowhere as we were walking, a small bird appeared on the sidewalk in front of us. I had never seen a bird so blue in my life. I don’t know what kind of bird it was. It had to be a rare kind. It was sort of a deep royal blue which almost looked purple as it flew away…beyond beautiful. It truly was one of the most beautiful of God’s creatures that I had ever seen. The bird flew across the street to a cute little bird house and jumped in the little opening. Then it quickly came out and flew to the area we just came from, it was a happy little bird. At least that’s how I saw it, it sure made me smile and grateful that I had the opportunity to discover it. I felt like such a kid, so in awe of what my eyes just saw. That was another gift from God, the timing and place couldn’t have been more perfect. I know in my heart, that moment was meant for us. It was a small bird so our eyes had to be aware of our surroundings. We could have missed that blessing if we weren’t walking with our eyes and hearts open. I’m so glad we didn’t miss it!

I’m so full of wide-eyed wonder these days. I hope I never lose it. It’s hard to imagine that I would since God continues to keep me in awe of Him. I think of this scripture all the time: “Truly I tell you, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it.” (Mark 10:15) I’ve had this childlike faith going for a long while now, it’s an awesome way to live and I hope my excitement is contagious!

I know there are people out there that used to have this childlike wonder, but they have lost it. I pray they get it back! It’s easy to do if they would only make the time and effort to work at it. I think taking time to really watch and enjoy some children playing and laughing for a while would help, or just making an extra effort to really notice things around them. If they would only open their eyes and really look at the detail of God’s creation I think they’d start to get that childlike wonder/faith going and get excited about it. So excited, that they will become contagious and people around them will want it too. That is my hope.

It’s so easy to get caught up in our daily lives and struggles that we become blind to what’s around us. I am not going to take God’s creation for granted. I’m going to appreciate it while I’m still walking this earth. I am going to enjoy and appreciate and be thankful for God’s beauty that surrounds me.