A New Day (02/11/2025)

This morning, as I opened my deck door with my cup of coffee in hand, I was greeted with the sight of a covering of snow. It surprised me. I didn’t know it was supposed to snow overnight. I set my coffee cup down on the cushion tub, grabbed my broom, and swept my path to the table, swept the tabletop, retrieved my coffee and sat down. “Good morning, LORD, thank you for a new day.” And then I sat for a while and took in the lawns topped with just enough snow to reflect the moonlight and illuminate my surroundings. “Thanks for the snow, LORD.”

I love snowy mornings. I love the challenge of getting everything ready for my time with the LORD. I love the light that surrounds us because of the moonlight reflecting off the snow. I love the little extras. I’m southern, you know, and when we southerners entertain, we like to make a little fuss – do a little something extra and special. On snowy days, I feel like I do something extra to prepare for my special time. It’s a reminder to me that time with the LORD is worth the effort. I am getting older; I need reminders.

And then the LORD and I spent time together. I had a lot to give thanks for this morning beginning with just being here. Life has taught me not to take things for granted and to find the blessings in the ordinary. I thanked the LORD for the bible study with friends last evening. I gain so much from sharing the Word with those women of faith, from hearing their take on the Good News, from watching them wrestle with the texts. I also gain a great deal from sharing in their lives. It helps me to better understand the myriads of ways the LORD is present in our world and the fact that all of us have our own struggles.

I spent a long time with the LORD praying for others: for each member of my family and their needs, for friends and their families, for my students, and for those for whom I had promised to pray along the way. I know that prayer matters. I believe in intercessory prayer. I believe that the prayers of others have made a difference in my life.

And then I opened myself to the LORD for guidance. I asked for inspiration for the blog posts. I asked for help in my relationships. And then I just sat. Funny thing about time with the LORD. I spend a lot of time spewing what is on my mind and in my heart. But if that’s all I do, it’s like I’m treating the LORD like an Amazon App – ordering what I want specifically. If I am serious about having a real relationship with the LORD, I need to be still and give the LORD a chance to speak to me about what He wants, especially as it concerns me. And I gotta admit, He can still surprise me.

Our journeys of faith, hope and love require prayer, prayer for guidance, prayer for others, prayer of praise and thanksgiving, prayer of contrition. Our journeys are taking us deeper into our most essential relationship, our relationship with our LORD. And no relationship grows without time and effort. As we continue, let us commit to being present to our LORD, to being open to our LORD, to being loving to our LORD. In other words, let us be people of prayer without ceasing, realizing that our lives are our prayer and our prayers are our lives.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.