It is a quiet evening on the lake, with just a few boats going by here and there. The sun itself is hidden by a dark forest on the other side of the lake, leaving just a black silhouette of the forest, and the last of the orange glow illuminating up from behind it. As the orange rises in the sky, it melts to a soft gold, which quickly fades to a pale green, then sea baby blue high above the horizon. Below, in the distance, the grey blue waters with quiet ripples give way to a white boat, leaving a wake to quickly meet the rest of the soft waves. The water changes colour from a dark grey blue to a brighter silvery blue as it approaches the shore line I am standing on. The dock along the shore line causes the waters to switch back and forth from silvery blue to charcoal grey. A cool, summer breeze drifts along, as the crickets start singing here and there throughout the green grass.

Evenings like these I wonder how many people stop to notice everything around them? And how many make time to just pause, relax, and enjoy the peaceful moments God places right in front of us? Not just when we are on holidays, everyday. Not just out to where we think is pretty, but even right at home. Hustle culture makes us forget to stop and enjoy where we already are and what we already have; and with how many distractions there are out in the world between the television, phone, social media, comparison, etc., it is easy to get lost in the noise and busyness, forgetting to stop and really notice what is around oneself. Psalms 118:24 NRSV “This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” We are to be joyful, no matter where we are. This is easy to do during to good times, much harder during the times of struggle and pain. Those times of struggle and pain is when we can choose to rejoice and be glad in the day, which then gives us real growth, and allows us to more easily grow closer to God.

Gratitude is easy to find when we are on holiday, but what about in the everyday? What about in the midst of our struggles and on the darkest of days? God uses those days and those struggles to grow us in our life journey and to grow us closer to Him. 1Thessalonians 5:16-18 NRSV “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.” It is a choice to remember to see the light, and a very important choice we make each and every day.

Colossians 3:15-17 NRSV “And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”

As I enjoy the sunset from the shoreline, I think of how grateful I am to see this view. For many years I lived in the desert, where water is almost impossible to find in nature. It rained about twice a year, and that was all the water one could find out where I lived. It is marvelous to see the different landscapes and be able to live in different landscapes now. That is a blessing from God.