Oxygen, Hydrogen, Carbon…Priceless!

“Who holds the wind in his fists? Who wraps up the oceans in his cloak? Who created the whole wide world? What is his name – and his son’s name?

Tell me if you know.”

Proverbs 30:4 NLT

Okay so I am pondering this. My daily devotions include reading through the book of Proverbs every month. There are 31 chapters in this book of the Bible, so all I need to know is the date and I am equipped. I have been doing this for several years. Last month I came across this verse as if seeing it for the first time and yes…TODAY is the 30th so… I came across it again. All I can say is WOW.

A Chris Tomlin song talks about “Heavenly storehouses laden with Snow” and then there are all the verses trust me, I have researched, that talk about God’s Creations and how magnificent they are. “He drew the boundary for the sea”, “He calls and the stars appear in order”… Does it get more awesome than that? I mean really! God really has it under control.

The postcards he paints via nature are like love letters to us. It is through nature that we not only see His awesome power but also gentleness and compassion. Showing others how to connect to HIM through creation is what Kissed By the Creator is all about.

How beautiful is the sunset? How glorious is the dew on a budding rose? How intricate is the web of an orb spider or the patterns of the wind on the sand dunes in the desert? With sweeping artistic strokes God has created a masterpiece that we get to live in. Drinking it in can be mesmerizing.

Guess what? The creator of all this beauty, this master of much also created you and me. Yes and not only did he create us, but HE loves us more than any of his other creations. We are the desire of his heart. He views us more special and worthy than anything else he created. So worthy in fact he was willing to die for us. We are his most priceless work of art!

I think of the music I have from musicians I admire, and artists whose work I collect and the books by favorite authors that line my shelves, things I consider treasures and priceless, but would I die for them? Nope. Then I think of God’s priceless treasures. We are HIS collection. We are HIS treasure. The Creator of the Universe and all its splendor and beauty tossed together some hydrogen, carbon, oxygen and a 6 foot strand of DNA and here we are…priceless.

Remember, your maker knows your value, even if others don’t. So today make it a point to respect yourself by making choices that reflect your worth. Don’t permit someone’s view of you to overshadow your importance to God.

Point to Ponder: How can you encourage someone today of their worth or their value?

Writer Possessed or Enthusiastic?

I love Greek food. Hummus, tabouli, stuffed grape leaves, olive oil anything yummo! And I think the language is pretty cool too. I know the alphabet because I had to learn it while pledging in college. Yeah Sigma Delta Phi!


I just came across the definition of ENTHUSIASM according to the Greek…

The word enthusiasm comes from the ancient Greek word eufousiasmz EN +THEOS meaning "inspired by or possessed by God".

The word comes from the ancient Orphic (Orpheus) religious belief system as well as the writings of Plato. The two key meanings in English of the word are:

1. Possession by a god, supernatural inspiration, prophetic or poetic ecstasy; and

2. Rapturous intensity of feeling on behalf of a person, cause, etc: passionate eagerness in any pursuit.

One word that people use to describe me other than loud is “enthusiastic” about whatever I am doing. They usually say it while shaking their heads and rolling their eyes like its negative, now I know better! I tend to have a sort of zest that folks notice. If you are going to do anything, especially mundane and boring tasks, I am all about making them fun.

Recently we sat in traffic. My three kids 16,14 and 9 on a hot black stretch of road called Interstate 80W which we dubbed the “slow road to nowhere” during our recent trip across PA. We sang, we shouted, we waved, we rocked the truck, we did Chinese fire drills - we had a blast! No gloominess, just hilarious! We made a fun memory out of a yucky situation. We relieved stress and arrived home with stories!

When I think of getting “Beside the Sea with Thee” published. I work with enthusiasm. Not only to get it out and on to the next one, but because I enthusiastically want people to experience God through his creation. Sometimes I picture God creating stuff like actually breathing things into existence. He is the author of enthusiasm. He could have stopped at one kind of fish, or one kind of crab…but NO! He created a plethora of species of everything. What was he thinking when he created the penguin? Really can you look at one and not smile? What about that nasty evil looking angler fish..yikes!

When I put words together without praying first, it is all drab and uninspired but after seeking the Creator, it seems I can tackle CREATING with enthusiasm. Now thanks to the Greek dictionary…I know why…EN THEOS…

Now it is your turn! Point to Ponder:

What are you enthusiastic about and why. And how long has it been since you enjoyed it? Why?

Creating something out of Nothing…literally

The week after being tremendously blessed at a Writer’s Conference I am tool-LESS. Is this a word? Nope. It is my reality however. Shortly after being inspired, energized and equipped to pursue my craft and the progress of publishing my book, it happened.

The first “it” was a power surge that fried the surge protector in my office. No Modem, No Router, No Cordless Phone for awhile. I felt adrift. Full of words but no way to share them. But, I did have my cell phone as a link to the outside world. I had it that is until Saturday Morning. The next “it” was when a ride on the Phantom’s Revenge Roller Coaster went horribly wrong according to my cell phone which at some point during the 92 MPH twisty and turny ride was liberated from my pocket. Daughter Hannah made a valiant attempt at retrieval, but alas in the blink of an eye it bounced off the car behind us and fell into that great abyss under the coaster.

So, my contacts, calendar, texts, photos and yes my lifeline remain at Kennywood.

Determined to think positively of being reunited with my phone, I filled out the proper paperwork to have it sent to my house when found. In the meantime, it is quiet. I am undisturbed. No buzzing or ringing.

The lesson? I think I am being forced to spend more time Communicating with my CREATOR than actually Creating. I am not complaining. During this time of cyber solitude and being UNnetworked, I am reading more and searching more. I am enjoying the change. I actually enjoy being unwired and unteathered.

My new office is Panera, where I have been able to enjoy a cup of coffee and a REAL conversation or two with people I bump into daily. Face to Face Chatting has its benefits especially when they are buying .

I am getting out of the house more regularly but am MORE productive house wise when I am there.

This is forcing me to be organized about what is a priority and what is not when I do get my computer time.

So life has seemingly handed me lemons. I choose to make Lemonade from them. The pondering point for the day?

What negative situation have you been in that you turned around to make it a positive experience?

Now it is your turn to write if you have time. I promise I’ll read it. Better yet, meet me at Panera for coffee and oh, bring your wallet!

Blessings,

Connie

Pondering St. Patrick of Ireland and Nature

I’ve been writing and speaking for more than 20 years. I’ve always enjoyed pondering about and crafting a talk. I love weaving imagery into whatever I am trying to communicate to the audience.

Pondering is the bud of my writing. I love to ponder things I see, hear, smell and read. Quotes like “The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn,” by Ralph Waldo Emerson can roll around for days in my mind. Images of nature seem to stick with me.

St. Patrick of Ireland used a shamrock to explain the Trinity. He knew that we could see something and learn something about God by reflection on His creation.

I believe, like St. Patrick, that nature—created by God—reflects His glory.

Through this blog and my book series “Kissed by the Creator” I convey to readers the awesomeness of God through his magnificent creations.

When speaking to people about the sea, heads nod – not to sleep! – they nod in kinship. The sea seems to universally speak to us. In my book, “Beside the Sea with Thee” I take the reader on a vacation for their soul. It is a reflective book that offers hope, encouragement and a respite from the noisy world. (book is in editing currently)

From the book… “

Before you can see it, you can smell it. The aroma of life-giving water combined with the aroma of the gifts of the sea - the shells, fish, plants and creatures that combine to form one of the most fascinating ecosystems on the planet.


With reckless abandon you grab those who love you best and run to the sea as if called by some strange force of nature. You mount the top of the dune or boardwalk and drink it in - the smells, the sight of water that stretches beyond your imagination and you feel the rhythm of the sea. That life-giving sea …

Speaking topics and retreats spawned from the book include: “Buried Treasure”, “Surviving the Sea of ….”, and “Rx 4 H2O”. For more information please contact me, Connie Pilston Shoemaker at kissedbythecreator@gmail.com

I welcome your comments and hope you will participate in the pondering here when you have time or when the spirit moves you to contribute.

Today’s point to ponder, please feel free to comment below.

“What aspect of nature stirs your soul?

Is it a sunrise? A flower? A majestic 10 point buck with symmetrical rack? A hummingbird nest? What causes you to stop in your tracks, breathe deeply and just Know…’this is something special’ ?

Your turn to write!