We had cause to drive 2.5 hours for a picnic lunch the other weekend! It was actually a meeting point to pick someone up. (Here in the USA driving time and distance looks very different!) We hadn’t planned on making the trip so it seemed like a big deal to us, even though we wanted to meet our friends. We hadn’t even left our small Kentucky town for 3 months, so driving all the way into northern Tennessee seemed like more of an adventure than we were ready for. As you set off from where we live towards the interstate (motorway) you have to drive for about an hour on smaller roads. I still have to concentrate very hard to make sure I am driving on the right side of the road (literally) and turning into all the right lanes, so it felt like hard work.
We arrived at our meeting place and sat to eat our picnic next to a lake. As I sat there I saw the waves on the lake and the water was cloudy with all kinds of debris. It was getting really hot and I was thinking about all the things that I had planned to do that day that had not included driving to a picnic.
I paused to take a picture of the view and to my amazement in the photo the lake looked like a mirror and the sun magnified the beauty of the place. In that moment I felt like the Lord had put me beside still waters. I hadn’t wanted to go. The drive had started out onerous. And yet here I was, captivated by our creator God’s magnificent handiwork. And the whole picnic time was no longer just a means to an end but a means of grace in my life.
I relaxed in enjoying the space the Lord had planted me for that moment, with the wonderful people around me, food to eat, and real sense of joy in the resting. We took a walk by the water and marvelled at the huge heron and dragonflies (I think God super-sized the animals in America!). I felt my strength renewed and my joy restored.
As we set off back up the interstate I looked ahead of me and around. The countryside in northern Tennessee and southern Kentucky is beautiful, with rolling hills and miles and miles of trees creating a green blanket all around. I was surprised to find myself enjoying the drive home!
How different the world looks when we let the Lord show us His perspective! For many of our readers you are still in various stages of lockdown. You may not be able to take a road trip, or even visit a green space. But no matter where you are, the Lord wants to rest with you, to renew your strength and to work His miracle of grace in your life. Allow the Spirit to meet you in the space He has put you right now. Let Him renew your soul as you remember His promise:
The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; he leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength. He guides me along right paths, bringing honour to his name. (Psalm 23: 1-3 NLT)
Samantha in the Administrator for the Inspire Movement. She usually lives bi-locationally between the UK and the USA, but is currently stuck in the USA because of the travel restrictions.
