Tag Archives: Psalm 19:1-6

Sunrise Sightings of the Kingdom of God

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Bible open to the PsalmsToday’s guest post, Sunrise Sightings of the Kingdom of God, written by Anthea Kotlan, first appeared on antheakotlan.com.

Don’t you love a good home or backyard makeover show?

Everyone does because it is entirely satisfying to spend less than an hour watching the entire transformation from broken to beautiful, gross to gorgeous, and so forth. A home renovation or backyard makeover typically takes months, but pop on your favorite streaming service, and you can witness a swift restoration. It’s a quick fix!

As humans, we are drawn to renewal. I believe it is a glimpse into the ache for the now and not yet of living in God’s Kingdom. God is in the business of renovating our lives for His glory. Will a setback turn into a setup for a miraculous display of restoration? Psalm 19 begins with recordings of these sightings in the world around us.

1The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork. 2Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge.3 There is no speech, nor are there words, whose voice is not heard.4 Their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun,5 which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them, and there is nothing hidden from its heat.(Psalm 19:1-6 ESV)

God Sightings

God appears in all aspects of creation. His presence is translated from the skies to the earth. In every 24-hour cycle, His presence is revealed from the first light to the dark of night. No part of earth or resident of this planet doesn’t experience the warmth of God’s presence. He covers every inch of the world and makes Himself known over and over in so many different ways because He is so kind. He wants everyone to see and experience Him. This drives His endless creativity to show up in new ways every day and night. Those twinkling stars, that staggering moon, and the sunrise remind us that His mercies are new every morning. He’s at work in a makeover every single day.

Sunrise Spotting

If your schedule permits, consider getting up about thirty minutes before the sun is scheduled to rise. Check the weather app on your phone; it will tell you when the sun will be coming up. Find a place outside where you can sit, sip coffee (a pretty essential part for me), and watch the first light of the sunrise begin to fill the sky. It’s a slow-motion reveal. Don’t take your eyes off the horizon for even a minute. A soft but growing glow begins the display. Then fingers of light poke up and out. Incrementally the sun appears and then hangs suspended between earth and the sky. So often, there is a vivid display of many colors. The sun almost seems to be paused, and yet it surges on. Finally, it is fully sprung and released to fill the sky with brightness.

This soul-tending activity is a sacred practice in the quiet early morning hours. It feels like a secret that God is sharing just with you. But, most of all, it is a reminder of God’s power to make all things new. A momentary glimpse into the promise of eternity in a new heaven and earth gives us the strength to face another day. These are sunrise sightings of the Kingdom of God.

Prayer

Lord, open my eyes to your displays of majesty. Please help me to see what you are doing in the world around me every day to prove who you are. Thank you for the sunrises. Thank you for reminding me of how you renew my and your world. Amen.

Anthea KotlanFor over thirty years, Anthea Kotlan has served as a women’s ministry leader in the church and community. She has a passion for discipleship and encouraging women to walk confidently in their God-given calling. She designs women’s retreats, teaches Bible studies, writes, and enjoys speaking at events. Recently, she began serving on a church plant team in Conroe, Texas with her husband, a bi-vocational priest. Every chance she gets, she spends time laughing with her two adult daughters or snuggling her two grandchildren. Check out Anthea’s blog for weekly soul-tending devotionals from the Psalms. antheakotlan.com 

Leave a comment below to share your thoughts on the subject. If you think others would appreciate reading this, please share it through the social media buttons.

You can find my August Inspire a Fire post here. Please stop by and read it.

I wish you well.

Sandy

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Learn to Be Silent

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forest treesAs you might imagine, when I taught elementary-aged students, I spent a lot of time talking. A lot of time. Once I stepped out of the classroom, one of the biggest transitions I needed to make was to learn to be silent.

I’m not a telephone person. I don’t like spending time in long conversations on the phone. I just don’t. So the minute Pilot walked in our front door after work each weekday afternoon, I talked non-stop, asking him about the minutiae of his day.

I longed to hear another person’s voice. I needed another person to hear my voice. Through the years I’ve learned to temper that impulse, so it isn’t as bad these days.

To fill in the absence of human conversation, during my day I talked to the inanimate things around me. Of course there were the dogs. I talked to them all day long. I talked to the computer when it refused to perform as I commanded. I talked – well, more like yelled – to the crazy drivers I encountered on the road.

Hey. I’m a fiction writer. We fiction writers talk to the fictitious characters in the books we’re writing all the time. We work out scenarios by talking through them. Depending on the genre we write, the search histories on our computers could prove quite interesting.

Ask any of us. You’ll see it’s true.

But in all of this, one thing I learned is to sit in silence before God and listen to the sounds of his creation. I marvel at the fact God allows us to be a part of that  creation. Don’t you?

Creation doesn’t need to use words to display God’s glory. It doesn’t matter where we live or the time of day, creation tells a story. It tells the story of a Creator God, Elohim, who spoke the world into being. All we have to do is learn to be silent to hear it.

Creation tells of an All-Powerful, Omnipotent God who loves us enough to speak to us through his creation. If only we will pause long enough from our busy life, learn to be silent, and listen.

What are the ways you listen to God in the silence of his creation?

Leave a comment below to share your thoughts on the subject. If you think others would appreciate reading this, please share it through the social media buttons.

The heavens are telling the glory of God; they are a marvelous display of his craftsmanship. Day and night they keep on telling about God. Without a sound or word, silent in the skies, their message reaches out to all the world. The sun lives in the heavens where God placed it and moves out across the skies as radiant as a bridegroom going to his wedding, or as joyous as an athlete looking forward to a race! The sun crosses the heavens from end to end, and nothing can hide from its heat. Psalm 19:1-6 (TLB)

You can find my July Inspire a Fire post here. Please stop by and read it.

I wish you well.

Sandy

Please enter your email address on the form located on the right sidebar to sign up to receive posts every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Thanks!

Photo by Sebastian Unrau on Unsplash

Sunday Scriptures–In the Silence Of Creation

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by Sandy Kirby Quandt

As you may imagine, when I taught elementary-aged students, I spent a lot of time talking. A lot of time. Once I stepped out of the classroom to write full-time, one of the biggest transitions I had to make was adjusting to the silence that surrounded my days.

I’m not a phone person. I don’t like spending time in long conversations on the phone. I just don’t. So the minute Pilot walked in our front door after work each weekday afternoon, I talked non-stop asking him about the minutiae of his day.

I needed to hear another person’s voice. I needed another person to hear my voice. Through the years I’ve learned to temper that impulse, so it isn’t as bad now.

To fill in the absence of human conversation during my day, I talked to the inanimate things around me that weren’t able to answer me back. Of course there were the dogs. I talked to them all day long. I talked to the computer when it refused to perform as I commanded. I talked – well, more like yelled – to the crazy drivers I encountered on the road.

Hey. I’m a writer. That’s what we writers do. We talk to the fictional characters in the books we’re writing all the time. We work out scenarios by talking through them. Depending on the genre we write, the search histories on our computers could prove quite interesting.

Ask any of us. You’ll see it’s true.

But in all of this, the one thing I learned to enjoy in the silence is being still and quiet before God. I love to sit outside and listen to the sounds of God’s creation and marvel at the fact he allows us to be a part of that creation. During those times I talk to God, and listen for his reply.

Creation doesn’t need to use words to display God’s glory. It doesn’t matter where we live, or the time of day, Gods’ creation tells a story. It tells the story of a Creator God, Elohim, who spoke the world into being.

It tells of an All-Powerful, Omnipotent God who loves us enough to speak to us through that creation. If only we will pause long enough from our busy life, be silent and listen.

What are the ways you listen to God in the silence of creation?

Leave a comment below to share your thoughts on the subject. If you think others would appreciate reading this, please share it through the social media buttons.

The heavens are telling the glory of God; they are a marvelous display of his craftsmanship. Day and night they keep on telling about God. Without a sound or word, silent in the skies, their message reaches out to all the world. The sun lives in the heavens where God placed it and moves out across the skies as radiant as a bridegroom going to his wedding, or as joyous as an athlete looking forward to a race! The sun crosses the heavens from end to end, and nothing can hide from its heat. Psalm 19:1-6 (TLB)

I wish you well.

Sandy

Please enter your email address on the form located on the right sidebar to sign up to receive posts every Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Thanks!