A Forest Walk

"When you call on me, when you come and pray to me, I'll listen."When you come looking for me, you'll find me. "Yes, when you get serious about finding me and want it more than anything else, I'll make sure you won't be disappointed."  "I'll turn things around for you. I'll bring you back from all the countries into which I drove you""bring you home to the place from which I sent you off into exile. You can count on it. (jeremiah 29:11-13 The message)

I was visiting my parents on Whidbey Island, WA last week and we took a walk, my mom and I. This was not a normal little walk down the street, but it was down her street! Wow! We started at the entrance where the park begins and there was this little path to a trail. We were instantly standing amongst a gorgeous and breathtaking forest and canopy of evergreens, bushes, plants, shrubs and moss everywhere. There was literally not an inch where we walked that was not a lush green. We just kept walking and at every turn on the trail where new discoveries, new moments of peace and a feeling of awe. 

Do you have times away from your 'busy' life to soak in the glory and beauty of God? This little walk in this rainforest reminded me of High School youth group camp years ago. We used to go up to the mountains and were told by the counselors to 'go off alone in the woods and have time alone with the Lord" and to think we thought our lives needed it back in our teens is interesting because it made such a difference to us, we felt renewed and refreshed by the presence of the Lord when we took the time. I feel we need this more desperately today than any other time in life as a culture. We need to take a conscious effort and have the discipline to find that solitude, wherever it may be and seek him with all our heart, soak in his goodness and most of all  'listen' to his voice through his creation. So turn off the ipod, the iphone, the ipads, turn off the Facebook, the Twitter feeds and the Instagram and "BE STILL AND KNOW THAT I AM God" Psalms 46:10

He seeks to know you more, but are we crowding our lives so much with the loud things around us that we are missing the chance to hear him? "Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever."