These pictures were all taken in the same place, by the same photographer. Not only are they beautiful landscape images (says the photographer), but they share wisdom. The key to living your best life hinges on how we discipline ourselves in these these three ingredients:
- how we invest our time and efforts
- the patience to wait for the good things
- a hopeful perspective
Actually the “key” to living your best life can not be reduced to three ingredients. In fact, there is no one “key”. Note to reader: Never believe anyone who dares simplify the complexity of life into three points or even 50. Nonetheless, I hope that you will find some encouragement in my thoughts below based on the 3 “starter” ingredients mentioned above.
The first photo in the collage (pinkish sunrise), to me, is the most beautiful and inspiring of the four. Rising before sunrise is not a major accomplishment. However, when I am on vacation, it absolutely is. Choosing to put my efforts into getting up early enough to wait for nature to unfold is how I captured this beautiful display of God’s glory. The sky never looked like that again that day, but I got to see it “show off” just for me. The other photos show different times in the day with life in motion for humans and wildlife. There had been a tremendous thunderstorm the night before. Blinding lightning,house shaking thunders and torrential rains; it was a little scary. Fortunately, I was too tired to care as I went immediately from being fully awake to stage four sleep mid-thunder-boom. I was like Jesus sleeping in that boat in Mark 4:38-40. (ha, ha, ha, ha)! Despite all this weather drama, one could but scarcely detect the intensity of the preceding hours. The ferry was back on the sound filled with its operators and passengers and the ducks were on their way to “Duck IHOP” for breakfast. Did you know:
Lightning is a discharge of electricity. A single stroke of lightning can heat the air around it to 30,000°C (54,000°F)! This extreme heating causes the air to expand explosively fast. The expansion creates a shock wave that turns into a booming sound wave, known as thunder.* You probably knew that but I didn’t.
Notwithstanding, it too is the glory of God. So, when we put it all together, what do we get? Here is what I get: If we are in Him, we can see Him in our beautiful sunrises and views of the horizon as well as the rocky storms of life. There is a reason the Apostle Paul reminds us to rejoice in the Lord always. (Philippians 4:48)
A Prayer: Our Father who art in heaven, please give us the humility to see and praise You when things are beautiful and the strength to see and praise You in the storms of life. We ask this, understanding that according to Mark 7:37, You do ALL things WELL.
*University Corporation for Atmospheric Research Center for Science Education
blackandwhiteandshadesofgreen 