Yesterday morning, I was awakened suddenly at 5:30 a.m. Usually this means God wants to speak to me. I was tired and I asked God as I rolled over what he wanted to tell me. One word came to mind, beauty.
Beauty at 5:30 in the morning? You’ve gotta be kidding! What could possibly be beautiful at 5:30 a.m.? I’m not a morning person, and I was too tired. Instead of getting up, I opted to fall back asleep. Yeah, that’s obedience right there! Okay, not really, and in the restless sleep that followed, the word beauty echoed through my thoughts.
All that day I wondered what could be beautiful at 5:30 in the morning. I hoped to get another chance at seeing this beauty.
True to God’s nature, he gave me another chance. So this morning, when I suddenly awoke at 5:30 a.m., I knew I had to obey and get up, even though I really didn’t want to.
I was still tired and it was way too early.
Nevertheless, I got up. I grumbled as I fed the cats, got my tea, read my devotional, prayed, and waited for beauty. Nothing came. I didn’t see beauty and I wondered if this was really worth the lost sleep.
I got my second cup of tea and glanced out the window at the darkness. I saw a star, a bright star. I looked a little further and saw a familiar line of three stars which form the belt of the constellation Orion. Now this I had to see. I didn’t know you could see Orion at six on a September morning. With a warm cup of tea in my hand and tennis shoes on my feet, I quietly went outside.
I stood in my driveway and looked at Orion. I also saw the constellations Cassiopeia and Pleiades along with other stars. Wow, now there’s beauty. I tried to look for the big and little dipper from my backyard, but the stars weren’t as clear. I stood gazing and marveling at the stars for close to half an hour.
Yes, the stars were beautiful. A reminder that obedience brings rewards, even if we are reluctant and tired. The beauty of Orion was worth the lost sleep.
Questions:
What are you grumbling about?
Where is God calling you to obey?
Do you see beauty in your life?