"Beautiful!"

Thursday, March 20, 2014 (7:42 a.m.)

Cruising north toward Port of Houston, TX

“Beautiful!”

That was my first clear thought upon opening the drapes to come sit out here with You. Almost black waters accented by the aquamarine wake directly below me. The moon still visible to my right reminds me of having come out hours ago to watch its glow amongst the stars.

“Beautiful!” Absolutely beautiful!

Blessed God, thank You for this opportunity. This opportunity to sit and rest. Relax. Enjoy. Reflect. Consider. Plan. Reconsider. Rejoice. Regret. Retract. Repent. Repeat.

It seems the more I am indulged [pampered, spoiled] the shorter my fuse. And I guess that makes perfect sense. Too much food, too little exercise, lots of free time, not enough responsibility and I begin behaving like a two year old in need of a nap.

Thank You for the opportunity to begin again. Often.

(9:26 a.m.)

Like right now.

For almost two hours I have sat here watching the moon practically fade from sight. Three white birds [doves?] seemed to be playfully following behind us. The ocean appears to be more blue than black and still I concentrate on the beauty You set before us.

Is it truly in the eye of the beholder? Lost on some, yet plentiful to others. I want desperately to be counted as one who not only sees, but appreciates, Your beauty!

The praise song ♫Beautiful♫ keeps singing itself to me. ♫Beautiful. Beautiful. Jesus is beautiful. And Jesus makes beautiful things of my life. Carefully. Touching me. Causing my eyes to see. Jesus makes beautiful things of my life.♫

Mm, there's such a peacefulness that settles around me here.

(10:34 a.m.)

And did I mention the beauty? Loving God, I just can't thank You enough for the beauty! The aquamarine color of the seawater is subtly changing to more of a turquoise. Beautifully accented by the lacy white purity of the gently swirling path the ship is making. Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful!

Blessed Father who we dearly love, You are refreshing and recharging us through this trip. Let us use all the resources You provide to Your good and to Your glory. We have yet to do that consistently and well. We truly want to be Your good and faithful servants. Good stewards.

Looking to Your Word, I read again A Story About Using Gifts Wisely (Matthew 5:14-30). We freely gave on two separate occasions this trip. It felt good to be helpful. Empower, embolden, equip us to do so even more often.

You are so good and Your gifts so limitless. Truly teach us Your meaning of sharing. With hands and hearts wide open. We love You Daddy God. We need You. And we long to please You. Equip us to do exactly that. Thank You. We love You. Amen.

(474 words ~ 11:19 a.m.)