Where Can I Go From Your Presence?

Constants: a situation or state of affairs that do not change; remaining the same in all circumstances

I am on the go and where I stop, nobody knows, including me sometimes. How many times have I awakened in the night and run into a wall that I thought was a doorway, or opened a closet door and thought it was the bathroom door? Too many to count!

Thanks be to God that though my surroundings are often in a state of flux, my best friend, companion and guide – isn’t. My
Father is ALWAYS with me. Everywhere I go – He is there.

Psalm 139:7-10 says "Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in the depths, You are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there Your hand will guide me, Your right hand will hold me fast."

The little boy in this photo is playing a game of hide and seek. He thinks he's hidden. And isn't that like us? We think we can hide from God, and we often think He's hiding from us, but I love how Jeremiah 23:24 proves otherwise. "Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the Lord."

After a whirlwind week, I’m back home in Frisco and into my normal routines and familiar surroundings.

I think about the CONSTANTS in my life no matter where I am or where I go. Me (I can't get away from me -- I'm always with me) and Father God. I think about how blessed I am to acknowledge the real fact that I will never be without Him and His presence. I see Him everywhere -- in the magnificent beauties of His creation -- the hills, the valleys, the marvelous trees in bloom and the beautiful, fragrant flowers. I see Him in His children -- big and small, tall and thin, old and young. I hear Him in the laughter of others. I sense Him when I open my eyes and heart to Him when I meditate on Him as I start to write my morning FB post. "When you seek me, you will find me." Jeremiah 29:13

I think about a story my husband loved to tell. This was back in the days before bucket seats in cars and you could cozy up to our sweetheart when he drove the car. A wife said, "Sweetheart, why don't we sit close together anymore?" The husband said, "You tell me. You're the one that moved next to the door. I'm still in the same seat I've always been in!" And, I think that's what God must say when we declare "I just don't feel God in my life anymore!" He says, "I'm right here with you as I always have been. I didn't move. Snuggle in closer to Me and you'll find me right here where I've always been."

Winter Wonderland in Tulsa

Day 48 of Photo Inspiration -- Winter Wonderland in Tulsa
I remember these days, as a kid -- so thankful for a snow day when schools were closed.  But, today, t I know the kids are probably thinking "Of all days for it to snow, when schools were already closed because it's President's Day!  So, Happy Snow Day and Happy President's Day, everyone!

I knew these photos of what I awoke to would be my photo inspirations for today.  I bundled up to capture this snowy day in February -- AFTER some record warm temperatures this winter.  Golf clubs replaced parkas as the outdoor accessory of choice and Oklahoma’s kids have only dreamed  of missed school days filled with sledding and snowball fights. The mildness of this winter – the 11th warmest on record at nearly 3 degrees above normal – stands in stark contrast to the cold, snowy experiences of previous years.  

I'm reminded of my science classes where we learned that many billions of snowflakes drift down to the Earth's surface in the course of a winter, yet no two snowflakes are alike.  AMAZING!

And, as amazing as "no two snowflakes alike" -- there are currently seven billion people alive today and not one of us have an identical finger print.  God had His reasons. I am certain God designed every part of our bodies for a purpose.  As the Psalmist puts it:  "Oh yes, you shaped me first inside, then out; you formed me in my mother’s womb. I thank you, High God – you’re breathtaking!  Body and soul, I am marvelously made! I worship in adoration—what a creation! You know me inside and out, you know every bone in my body; You know exactly how I was made, bit by bit, how I was sculpted from nothing into something” (Psalm 139: 13-15, The Message Bible).

So on this snowy, President's Day, I think I'll just bask in the all-knowing, all-seeing, omnipotent, AWESOME God who planned this day from the beginning of time.....and perhaps, even had me in mind -- "I think I'll inspire my girl, Donna, on February 16, 2015, with the revelation of My creativity and My forethought, and My wisdom to know that I ONLY make ORIGINALS -- One-of-a-Kind -- No two alike -- and each one of them are my MASTERPIECES!  I know she'll share that, and she'll also share....I LOVE EACH AND EVERY ONE OF THOSE MASTERPIECES with my everlasting, unending love."