As I look upon the stars, remembering every now and again that earth is such a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena – I am once again aware of this blip called life. It’s shorter and shorter the longer and longer in the tooth you’ve become. With age comes wisdom, but time also speeds up. Before we know it the end is here unless the end isn’t really the end at all.
As I receive an email this morning from a friend in Honduras who is celebrating the work of God I am humbled. His joy in being able to baptize a man of great influence in the region was pouring over…because the end isn’t really the end at all. Follow that by another email from friends – a husband and wife who have arrived in Spain to begin their journey of loving Muslims the way that Christ called us to. This, instead of the ignorant and irrational feelings or actions that are usually tossed their way. In this I am feeling small.
As I am given the opportunity to pull back the curtain and see the stagehands at work, tugging ropes and gathering props, switching costumes and rehearsing parts – I am once more attune to the great work that is going on behind the scenes. The things you have to stop to think about and not just what’s right in front of me. There is more.
As I am struck by this insignificance I remember that it was never supposed to be about me in the first place. Imagine the surprise as we discover that the God of the universe, who encompasses all of it’s bigness, would invite us to be a part of the story that goes on forever. Our eternity doesn’t begin at the end of this present existence, rather, it began the moment we were born.
“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.”
– Jeremiah 1:5
Beautifully said!
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Beautiful, Ry.
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“Imagine the surprise as we discover that the God of the universe, who encompasses all of it’s bigness, would invite us to be a part of the story that goes on forever. Our eternity doesn’t begin at the end of this present existence, rather, it began the moment we were born.”
Yes. This. Wow. This was beautiful. Blessings, brother.
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beautiful…Thank you Ryan.
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Lovely! You write so beautifully. I love it!
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Thank you!! thank you thank you thank you….
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Love the Muir woods (I’m guessing you are there). So grateful to be a part of His creation. It is humbling to say the least. Thanks for the post.
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Wow!
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Beautifully expressed…and exactly what I needed to read at this moment.
Thank you.
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What camera and lens did you take those amazing pictures with?
Well said, it is overwhelming to image how intricate God’s creation is.
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Ryan says:
May 27th, 2011 at 12:03 pm
@Karin, I shot with those with a Nikon D90 and a Sigma 10-20mm lens.
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You got it back, preacher.
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Yep – the whole die to oneself and live in Christ thing works – amazing! You are preaching it again Ryan and I’m SO glad to see it – your gifts are too wonderful to be under utilized!
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Thank you for yur insight I needed this on this day!
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Beautiful, Ryan, both the words and pictures.
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Eloquently said and illustrated. Thank you.
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There is apparently a bundle to know about this. I consider you made some good points in features also. Could you update me with your next post please?
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Hi. I hope you don’t mind – I mentioned this post and linked to it on my blog (at http://somesomeandsome.blogspot.com/2011/06/seven-randoms-blog-posts-ive-enjoyed.html). If that’s a problem, please let me know! Becky
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