So, you know how “vacation” prep is insane! I mean, it is just not easy to move everyday existence with 4 little boys and a hubby to a location (albeit a beach location) other than homebase!
Oh my gosh, YES. Packing for a trip with littles is SO.MUCH.WORK!
Yes! But somehow when I’m standing on the beach looking out at the waves, the whining and the bickering and the overtired grouchy little ones do seem less annoying than they do at home.?
Hmm, this is so true. Why do you think that is?
I just think beauty does something for the heart. Just looking out at the creation of God. The vastness of the ocean, the consistency of the waves, the life that is all around out there.
Speaking of, we captured sea cucumbers one morning. They totally creeped me out, but the boys were fascinated! Isn’t it cool that even children notice how amazing creation is?!
Yep, it goes back to that whole truth about how much we have to learn from children! Each time I get away from my messy kitchen and out with my girls, breathing in fresh air, it really changes my mood and helps me focus on what really matters. And by the way, I have never heard of a sea cucumber! ? ?
Well, they are strange little creatures, but even they inspired a deep longing in me for the Creator of the beauty. When I seek Him first and find Him in nature, and thank Him for His creation, I find that I’m somehow satisfied. I don’t have much reason to be upset at anything.
I think that’s why I feel near to God when I go to the mountains or the beach. It centers me to remember that the same God who brings the sun up every morning over the ocean is the same God who can work in my daily life. Looking at that beauty helps me remember how BIG God is.
But as I write this, what’s coming to mind is a beach vacation we took a few years ago and if I’m honest there were many frustrating moments. So really, it’s not really about the change of location – it’s deeper than that. ?
Right, because dare I say that moms who live at the beach or in the mountains aren’t living an endless vacation and still need Him to work in their everyday lives too?!? So maybe I need to try to refocus on what’s right in front of me at home. Because the most awe-inspiring creation is US. ?What if I could see past the annoyances and disobediences and see God in my little people. Allow the beauty in them (in my husband, in myself even) to satisfy my heart and draw me close to the Creator everyday. ? Wishful thinking?
This is good stuff. So what you’re saying is that I don’t need a vacation from my life, I really need God and His perspective. To ask God to help me focus on what He has put right in front of me instead of always wishing it to be different or more magical (something I can be guilty of for sure…).?
Yes. I could really use a vacation-mindset in my home all year long. And the cool thing is all we have to do is ask for His help to see Him in the midst of the craziness of our real lives. He wants to be found.
Amen to that. I want to remember that vacation is a nice change of scenery, but what my soul is really craving is God, and thankfully He is not confined to tropical locations. ?
Soaking in the Truth
Scripture to encourage you:
- “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature–have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.” (Romans 1:20, NIV)
- “Then God said, ‘Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground’… God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.” (Genesis 1:26, 31)
Music to inspire you:
- “Oceans” by Hillsong United
Readings and Resources to come alongside of you:
- Sea Cucumber Info… just in case you were wondering!
- Vacation by The Minimalist Mom
- “Genesis provides us with roots. Those powerful, winding, digging legs a tree sends into the ground to hold it firmly in place. So why is it so hard to grasp? Why do you and I struggle to see ourselves as marvelous creations of an artistic God? Perhaps because we’re too caught up in the flaws to be captivated by the glory.” from I Am by Michele Cushatt