You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water. (Psalm 63:1)
Things haven’t been easy for me lately. My brain has been whirling around and around. I find it hard to focus on work or sit still so I’ve started walking and hiking. I hit the trail almost every day and have found some truly beautiful places in my area. I don’t listen to music while I walk, I focus on my breathing and the view around me. I call it my “God time”. It’s when I look at the world around me and see the beauty in everything God has given us. It’s the one time during the day that I can turn off my brain and just BE.
As I’ve wrestled with the issues keeping my brain from shutting off, I’ve found I’m turning more often to God. My walks in the woods has shown me that only one thing can fill the emptiness in my heart – God.
I’ve talked before about my past and how I filled the emptiness in my soul with many things that hurt me. I’ll always be grateful to the friend who helped me find my way back to Jesus because I found what I really needed to know peace.
Turning my life over to God isn’t enough. Just like every relationship it takes a lot of work. I spend time every day working on my connection to Him. I love my early morning bible reflections, but something was still missing. I tried to fill that emptiness with other things – reading, watching tv, playing games on my phone, and more. None of them worked. I didn’t realize what it was until I started hiking.
The first time I hit the trail I felt surrounded by God’s love. As I pushed my body to tackle the steep hills I realized I was also tackling all of the things tying up my brain. I spend those hikes talking to God about what is weighing my heart down and I’m beginning to find peace.
My prayer for all of you is that find that deeper connection to God as well and the peace that it brings.
God, thank you for allowing me to find a way to connect to you better than I could have imagined. Help me remember to see you in everything as I go through life – whether on the trail or in my home. Thank you for giving me the ability to walk and fill myself in your glory. You are a wonderful God and I praise your name. Amen.