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Simple Things

It will still take some time for me to appreciate the beauty of a spider.

I've been lucky enough to spend some time in the mountains of Colorado. It is truly a special place for me. Being there, specifically at the mountainside chapel at the YMCA of the Rockies, finds me in awe of the beauty that God has created around us. I have been lucky to spend time with friends at that chapel singing, praying, worshiping, and just being still. Every time I am there I seem to be filled with an overwhelming peaceful feeling.

I was blessed to be filled with that peace about the creation God has given to us this weekend. It wasn't because of the heavenly reaching mountains around me this time.

We had some time before we needed to be at lunch during the confirmation retreat this past weekend. Jeff led us down to the lake and asked us to spread ourselves out along the lakefront, far enough away from each other where we wouldn't be distracted by those around us. We were then invited to stand quietly, to hear, see, and feel our surroundings even it it were for just a few minutes. Being still and hearing the waves lap up against the shore I began to notice things I otherwise wouldn't have. I began to see small organisms and creatures on the floor and swimming in the lake. They included snails, caterpillar looking beings, as well as other things. Looking into the water, recognizing things I normally overlook, I was once again filled with that peaceful feeling about God's creation that I've felt many times in the picturesque mountains of Colorado.

I am thankful for those few minutes spent on the waters edge surrounded by the youth of our church that are in the midst of the confirmation process. I am thankful for the amazing beauty of snow capped mountains. I am thankful for the littles details of world around us that many times go unnoticed. I am thankful for the nature around us, however big or small, that our God has blessed us with.

"Let everything that has breath praise the Lord" -Psalm 150:6