In July we stayed on a lake in the mountains. I had to consider a location for my walks. Would I meander the cozy lake neighborhood? Or drive to a nearby state park? My answer came sniffing and snorting through the yard early the next morning, pushing over large trash bins to find breakfast. My “walks” would be in a kayak in the middle of the lake. Yes, bears can also swim but I took my chances. Walking, after all, wasn’t the reason I went to the park. I ventured out on quiet paths in still woods and snowy fields seeking God. Lo and behold, my kayak found Him out on the water as well.
I can get caught up in restrictions when I start new habits. I may create stipulations which when not met exactly, make the whole thing null and void. For instance, at the start of these walks my self-pride went into overdrive and began creating a framework by which I would accomplish His idea. One of those things was that, because God had called me to the park, I would walk at that same park every day! But God was calling me to begin an intimate relationship with Him. The park wasn’t the point. How cleverly my mind tried to wrangle His merciful love for me out of His hands and into my own.
When my inner Pharisee dictates, fears and threats invade. When I humbly seek God, His grace carries me in peace and stillness. Not my life, not my rules, not my failures, not my victories, but Jesus. His victory. His perfection. His love. Point to Him; be carried by Him; rest in His Light
You shall have no other gods before me. Exodus 20:3
Meeting God at the Park 