Into a Broad Place...

Psalm 18: 18-19, 28-33

...but the Lord was my support.
He brought me out into a broad place;
he rescued me, because he delighted in me.
For it is you who light my lamp;
the Lord my God lightens my darkness.
For by you I can run against a troop,
and by my God I can leap over a wall.
 This God—his way is perfect;
the word of the Lord proves true;
he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him.
For who is God, but the Lord?
And who is a rock, except our God?—
the God who equipped me with strength
and made my way blameless.
He made my feet like the feet of a deer
and set me secure on the heights.

Once, many years ago, when I was still in high school, my older cousins invited me to take a special trip with them.  They were driving up to New York City for the day and asked if I'd like to go too.  Of course, I was thrilled for the opportunity, never having been there before.  I remember the drive up, the anticipation...the first time seeing the Statue of Liberty and the city skyline.  It was incredible!  I remember walking around the city all day...to the Empire State Building where we rode to the observation deck, and then to Times Square.  Standing in Times Square, I was completely overwhelmed by the enormity of it...it was sheer sensory overload.  I had never seen anything like it before.  

Just the other day this memory came back to mind...I was feeling exhausted after a week of starting back to homeschool with the kids.  My brain felt overloaded by the number of things on my to-do list and the number of hours I had left in the day....

Aren't all of our lives, somehow, consumed by busy-ness...all the time!?  And yet, how much of this is self-imposed.  Like Times Square, do we have the choice to stay, or to leave for a time and give our minds and our souls the rest they need so very much?

All summer long I tried and tried to capture a few photos of my resident hummingbirds.  But every time I'd grab my camera and go out to find them, they'd disappear.  Now my yard is rarely a beacon of solitude...there is almost always someone screaming or running around.  Watching the days drop off the calendar and knowing they would be departing soon for their winter in the South, I finally made some quiet time to go outside when all was quiet and just wait.  And soon after, I was rewarded.  

Doesn't God wait to bless us in just this way?  When we are consumed by busy-ness...always distracted by all the noise, the to-do list, our man-made idols...we can't catch a glimpse of Him. The picture of Him rescuing me, bringing me out to a broad open place, is absolutely beautiful.  He knows what I need before I even do.  He sets my feet on firm ground when I feel like I'm losing my footing.  He is SO GOOD.  

Dear God,

As we exit one season and enter another, I pray that You would help us to see You, through all of our distractions.  Help us to keep our focus on You, our priorities straight, our hearts longing after a close relationship with You.  Let us not miss out on the truly remarkable blessings right in front of us, because we are too busy to quiet our hearts before You.  Give us rest, renewal, refuge...be our ROCK.  I thank You God, for caring so much about us as we spin off in so many directions...and yet You keep reaching down and bringing us back.  Forgive us, keep us close to You in this new week ahead.  Amen.