There were times in the park with God that I wanted to throw up my hands and yell to my Creator. I wanted to sing at the top of my lungs the hymn I was quietly humming. I wanted to praise Him for the morning, for His presence, for an answered prayer. But I did so very quietly and when no one was around.
Sometimes while walking, I dreamed of owning a piece of property in the mountains, so I could run like Julie Andrews in The Sound of Music, singing and talking with God in any manner I felt, at any time of the day or night. Quiet and normalcy is just not enough. Restraint feels odd when acknowledging and adoring of the One Most High.
Why quiet tears of joy and not shouts of acclamation from the top of an oak tree?
Sometimes I see a certain guy at the park who rides his bike while singing along with his tunes for all to hear. Sure, it’s a little strange but still somewhere on the scale of “normalcy” for humans in a park. But most people walk along quietly, keeping to themselves, hiding behind their earbuds, like I used to do.
There is one woman, though, who walks with an exuberant stride. She always offers a wide, generous smile as we pass and has a kind word to everyone around her. One morning I heard a fellow walker greet her and she exclaimed loudly, “Beautiful day, praise God!” Amen!
Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! Psalm 66:1
Meeting God at the Park 