Friday, July 03, 2009

Up with the sun, walking the hills for:
Operation Sudan Or Bust
2010


We took a wonderful trip last month, 7 beautiful days on a cruise to Alaska from Seattle, Washington. It was a trip to celebrate our upcoming 35th anniversary. And it was fabulous.
We have spent the past year since 7/4/08 saving, planning, dreaming,
working, waiting, and then going!

We shared the trip with 4 other couples from our Sunday school class and that added moments of shared fun and pleasure. It was a vacation of good memories - some time in the near future I'll share a few of our 450+ photos. Just a few, I promise. ;-)

In the meantime, we begin our next major trip preparation. . . this next trip will be a trip of the heart, a trip to connect and love on our daughter, son-in-love, and granddaughter who now live and work in southern Sudan. They rest and recoup in Nairobi, Kenya every couple of months so we'll share time in both Kenya and Sudan. We are saving money, working on getting fit . . and so my morning walks have begun this week. Got to be ready for next summer.

I live in the south and our weather has been as HOT as a firecracker the past few weeks. So getting up just after dawn is the best time to pull on shorts, tank top, socks, shoes, sip some water, and get out on the road with the dogs.

Its pleasant, the sounds are wonderful, the traffic minimal, the the temperature is just right.

I used to listen to a podcast as I walked, loved listening to Revive Our Hearts, still do, but for now, I'm practicing being present in the moment. I'm taking in with my eyes the plants, neatly manicured yards, seeing wild birds, pets, and other walkers. I'm hearing lawn mowers, water sprinklers, and tinkling wind chimes. I'm smelling flowering shrubs and fresh cut lawns. I'm feeling the cool morning, the breezes, and at times the sprinklers that are watering the street.

In the time it takes me to walk my set path
I feel refreshed, awakened, peaceful,
ready to go home, take a cold shower, dress for the day
open God's Word, meditate, memorize, and study.
Ponder what I'm hearing and learning,
looking over my to-do list,
eating breakfast, and
moving out into what this day holds on the schedule.

My days go SO much better when I take the time to listen to God's Word before hearing man's word, eating the bread of life before eating breakfast,
savoring God's creation within the blocks of my neighborhood before working inside a climate controlled, antiseptic setting with people from all walks of life.

It gives me fresh perspective.

His view.

How do you begin your day, dear reader?

Truth For Life
And now, O Israel, what does the LORD your God ask of you but to
fear the LORD your God,
to walk in all His ways,
to love Him,
to serve the LORD your God
with all your heart and with all your soul.
Deuteronomy 10:12

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