Originally Posted August 2017
Psalm 40:3-4 “And he hath put a new song in my mouth, even praise unto our God: many shall see it, and fear, and shall trust in the LORD. Blessed is that man that maketh the LORD his trust, and respecteth not the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.”
“Momma!! Come see the colors! You gotta come quick and see the colors!!”
My 4-year little boy Josiah came running to the back of the house where I was working on some paperwork. He was very insistent that I hurry. More times than not I don’t always come quickly as I should. I don’t always look out for the little feelings and the important things to my little ones in the daily ruts. But the LORD knew that I needed to see, and he prompted my heart to go right away. So, I ran back through the house with the excitement to match a 4-year old to see what he was talking about.
I really didn’t understand what “see the colors” meant.
I reached the front porch and Josiah told me to look up, “see the colors!” Then he was off running around the driveway with 4-year old abandonment. I looked up in the sky to see a beautiful foothills sunset… the colors beautiful in the night sky. I just STOPPED for a while to take in the beauty of the colors and God’s creation. The comfort to my soul as I remembered an ALL POWERFUL God, the ALPHA and OMEGA, the one who created the heavens!
And then I hugged my 4-year old and thanked him for coming to get me to “see the colors.”
I am glad that I ran quickly… the sunset goes by quickly where we live in the foothills of West Virginia. Some evenings I ride the 4 wheeler to the top to see the sunset for a little longer. The picture above is the sunset from the top of the foothill.
Too often I know I don’t come quickly enough when the Holy Spirit is calling to me, or wants to comfort me, or wants to use me. Often, I am busy in my mind thinking on the unnecessary instead of meditating on the blessings of life and on God’s Word. I wonder how many times I miss the peace and comfort that God wants to send my way because I am too busy… too occupied… or too insistent on my own timeline. How many times have I missed an opportunity to “see the colors”?
Following God’s call into Evangelism, selling the farm house in Ohio, and moving to be based out of West Virginia has been an adventure. Then again, as I grew up in the suburbs most of my life, it was an adventure becoming a farmer’s wife and many other adventures along the way. There has been so many things over the last 2 years of this adventure that just make my heart smile. Either a blessing or just being blessed that a particular tough part of the adventure is over, knowing God carried me through it!
What I miss the most about the farm house and our home was my quiet place where I watched sunrises with my Bible and the sunsets in the flat ground. I wish now that there were more days that I battled the flesh and got out of bed earlier to enjoy the early morning sunrise, and took a few moments to enjoy the peaceful sunsets. The sunsets in the flat farm land of Ohio lasted for 45 minutes to an hour, full of beautiful colors. Even so, GOD KNOWS MY HEART, and the ones I see now are more special to me. Some days when I miss the sunsets and the beautiful clouds around the old farmhouse, God lays it on the heart of dear friends to send me a few beautiful pictures of the heavens back in Ohio.
One morning, shortly after God called us into Evangelism, God gave my heart a song as I met with him watching the sunrise at our farmhouse. He gave me the verses above and a new song in my heart. “This Land is not my home… I am just passing through.” I miss many things, and there have been many changes, but as long as I have kept my sites on Jesus, there has always been peace and comfort beyond understanding on this journey. I am thankful for the conviction of the Holy Spirit; to slow down, to appreciate more, to keep looking up to the heavens, and to keep my focus on Jesus.
Katie Fiedler