“be still and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10
Before you begin your walk on the Sacred Path, take a quiet moment and invite God to join you and to be very present to you in every way. As you walk, go slowly, expect that the Holy Spirit will guide your thoughts and draw your attention to things you’d normally not notice. Take in the winter landscape. Then consider its small, hidden beauty. This time of year, you will need to take an intentional, closer look, as winter beauty is often unobserved. Snow on a pine cone, ice on a blade of grass, the silver color of a dying berry, the sight and sounds of winter birds. Take notice of your breath in the cold. Be still in God’s presence. It was You who set all the boundaries of the earth; You made both summer and winter. Psalm 74:17 NIV
garden I
“In winter, as white snow blankets the ground, we are reminded of Your purity and Your perfection. The complexity and beauty of each single snowflake only hints at Your transcendent intelligence and creativity. We hunker down and snuggle in, knowing this season will wind down and spring will reappear, as it always has because You created an orderly, predictable universe, not by chance, but from your flawless design.” God in the Seasons - excerpt from a poem by Joanna Fuchs God sets time. He determines the length of life in everything, whether it is the length of physical life, a trial, a long cold winter, or a celebration. These chapters of time have a beginning and they have an end. In between each beginning and end, He fulfills a purpose, seen or unseen.
But the LORD’s plans stand firm forever; His intention can never be shaken. Psalm 33:11 (NLT)
garden II
By now, as you walk down a path or a wooded area, many things once green and vibrant, have changed in appearance and have gone into rest. Perhaps the view isn’t picture perfect, but underneath exciting things are happening. Creation rests, restores, and waits for its comeback. Do you endure winter or embrace it? Let’s contemplate these “off seasons” from a different perspective. Perhaps we need to let them run their courses and die off, when it’s time, rather than despise them. Winter brings the opportunity to examine those things that have fulfilled their purpose, thank God for them, and allow new vision and expectation to marinate within us, rather than focus on what we need to leave behind. Take a moment to thank God for all that he has done. But forget all that – it is nothing compared to what I am going to do. Isaiah 43:19 (NLT)
garden III
“It feels like snow.” We say it all the time because we have learned what a coming snow “feels” like. We sense that the atmosphere is about to change. It gives us an opportunity to slow down and cozy up. In the same way, if we are attentive to the Holy Spirit, we sense Him inviting us to come away with Him for a time. This is where quiet and hidden processes are taking place. He protects, heals, and prepares us for new beauty waiting to unfold in our lives. Are you feeling a change in the air at this time? And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue His work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. Philippians 1:6 (NLT)
garden IV
There was just a small dusting of snow outside my window one morning. A light layer of snow that completely changed the scene. It came during the night while I slept. It fell silently. Beauty often slips in that way, but its presence is obvious by the way it touches and covers everything. God longs to bring his beauty to us. He shows up, covers our sins, and His purity, like the snow, melts into us. Would you like a dusting of snow today? “Come now, let us settle this,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool.” Isaiah 1:18
garden V
For I am about to do something new. – Isaiah 43-19 God watches to see that His word is fulfilled. He spoke this to the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah Chapter 1, along with “I appointed you” and “Get yourself ready!” That is His character and his heart for you. He made you for a purpose, and under the snow, he is growing some amazing things. Spring will come. Was there ever a year where it failed to show up? In the same way, God will show up too, on time. You will soon see signs of spring, so “Get yourself Ready!” Under the Snow Under the snow, the unrevealed is ready to burst and unfold, Soil made fertile, impatiently waiting to bring forth a story untold. Seeds of greatness, protected and nourished, deep within their covering, Dreams being dreamed, by divine inspiration, wait where the Spirit is hovering. Visions of green, glories unseen, residing within winter’s blast, Glimpses of light, in spite of the night, knowing this season won’t last. Under the snow, a slumbering hope now stirs and starts to revive, Treasures of darkness, once quietly lingering, are anxiously coming alive. Unknown to the seeds, the landscape of white is beautiful to the eyes, Its purity empowers regeneration, as beauty begins to arise. © Penny Heilman 2013
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As you leave the sacred path, know how deeply God loves you and how pleased He was to be alone with you today... go in peace... The Sacred Path & Prayer Gardens are on the property of Living Word Community Church | 2530 Cape Horn Road, Red Lion, PA For questions, contact deAnn Roe | droe@lwccyork.com or 717.755.0089