10.03.2006

Just me and the oak trees...

It's unseasonably warm this morning. About a block into my morning walk, I was tugging off my jacket. It's so strange - October 3rd, leaves beginning to pile in the gutters, and at 5am it's 76 degrees and heading towards 90.

As I figure it, so long as I can keep this walk up, I can save roughly $400 a month in counselling fees. It's that theraputic for me. I say this knowing that after some time in the prayer room, my day will explode into a series of meetings, punctuated by assorted phone calls and the occassional 'uh-oh' moment demanding to be dealt with right now, generally sends my head into "what if..." mode.

  • What if it becomes apparent to everyone that even though I'd led our marketing team for over a year, I don't understand a fourth of the technical end of design.
  • What if all those scriptures about God providing were a ruse, and we reach the end of the budget before the end of the month?
  • What if one of those moms chooses our family and I'm buying plane tickets this afternoon?
  • What if.....insert your dilema here.

There's a phrase in the Psalms that serves as the inspiration for my morning walk. Selah. A space for pause. A time to think about it. Quit vocalizing. Begin internalizing. Ignore the margins. Find the center. Selah.

As I bobble along the sidewalk, coffee in hand and thoughts in head, I do a mental control-alt-delete. It's just me. And Him. And these gorgeous oak trees. Best of all, the trees aren't talking. Neither am I. I'm listening. Selah.

This morning's selah, accompanied by the soundtrack of oak leaves and the early morning traffic, was sponsored by God Almighty. I must remember to listen again tomorrow.

1 comment:

Alaska1 said...

What a great perspective Randy. I think that is what I miss the most about Alaska. The times in the wilderness...with God and no one else. Being far enough away from any humanity that the only sound heard is that of Creation. No cars, not a sound that isnt wild. Not a smell that is int pure and pristeen. I would call the times out fishing or hunting my mental health breaks. I did not know how much I treasured them until I left them behind...for a season.