One morning Ridley and I were on our way to school. As we drove down the street I noticed the beauty of the morning sky. The sun slowly appeared over the horizon, and it was as if God painted a masterpiece just for us, with pastel hues of blue, pink, and peach. Our only problem was trees, houses, and power lines blocked the splendor. I told Rildey if we could just hurry to the freeway, our view would open up and we could really enjoy the scene.\u00a0\u00a0As I raced to reach open sky, I realized this was so much like my life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I have beauty all around me…the laughter of my children, my husband\u2019s tight hugs, spring tulips peeking out of winter\u2019s ground, fragrant coffee, my dog\u2019s warm body on my feet as I fall asleep…and my mind says\u2026I\u2019ll play with the kids after I do the dishes, or those tulips are pretty, but look at the overgrown shrubs that need trimmed. So often I allow the sweetness of my life to be overshadowed by the imperfect things in the way. The cares on my mind crowd out the lovely view, and I am racing to get to the point I can enjoy it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Dustin always tells me, the list never ends, just relax. The moment one thing is done, ten others move onto the list. I toil away and before I know it, the kids are asleep in bed, the tulips are withering, and I still have a list a mile long. And scariest of all, if I don\u2019t change my ways, life will pass me by.\u00a0\u00a0That perfect place I\u2019m racing to does not exist this side of Heaven.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ridley and I did get to a spot where we could see the sky with a less obstructed view, but there were still factories and zooming semis to take away from the serenity. I didn\u2019t pay them any mind though. I just took a breath and said, \u201cHelp me Lord, to see your beauty all around today.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
May that be our prayer. Let us not look back and realize we missed much of the magnificent masterpiece God painted just for us.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"