Stop. Look. Listen.

In the movie Gone with the Wind, Scarlett says this to Ashley:

“Oh, don't let's fool with any books today. When I'm wearing a new bonnet, all the figures I ever knew go right slab out of my head.”

That’s exactly how I feel on days like today. The sun is shining and it’s warm.  It’s one of the first really beautiful days we have had since the new year and I am so distracted by the sunshine that I can’t think of anything else but being outside. Everything on my to do list just goes right out of my head. (It’s hard to believe that tonight the low will be 6 degrees and we are expecting some ice and possible snow flurries tomorrow - but hey - this is Pittsburgh!)

It’s one of those days when you dig the sunglasses out of the bottom of your purse and drive with the window open.

It’s one of those days where you find extra errands to run just so you can walk around the neighborhood a little longer.

It’s one of those days when everyone one else on the street seems to be walking just a little slower and the outdoor tables at the coffee shop fill up with fellow work procrastinators.

On Sunday during the Time for Children during worship, I told the kids about how the lessons I learned as a child about how to cross the street can be a great guide for the season of Lent.

Stop.

Look.

Listen.

Take the time in these days leading up to Easter to Stop. Just as we have to stop at the corner of a busy intersection - go ahead and stop yourself from all the movement just for a few moments. Completely stop. Sit still. Don’t think about where you have to go next or where you just came from. Just stop.

Now, look. Look both ways.  Just as we look both ways for oncoming cars, look right - and then look left. Really look at the things that are around you that you see everyday and just don’t notice anymore. Really read that quote on the wall. Focus on the crack in the corner by the window, or really study the shapes of the leaves on the tree outside. Look at that picture on your desk of your smiling loved ones. While you are at it, look up and down. Notice the ceiling or the sky above you. Look at your feet that carry you all around God’s beautiful world.

Close your eyes and listen.  Just as we need to listen for traffic that may be in a blind spot - Close your eyes and listen to the world. Today I hear the calm and rhythmic ticking of my office clock. I hear the traffic signal alerting folks that they can cross the street. I hear the beat of loud music from a car stopped at the intersection.  And below all of that - I can hear all the other sounds of the world reminding me that God is here and present in my life.  I realize that the tic- tic- tic of the clock beats in exact time to the chirp- chirp- chirp of the traffic signal - which I have never paid attention to before. This reminds me that - more often than I pay attention to  - different parts of the world can strangely synchronize and harmonize and that God’s hand is in it all of it.  

Where are you encountering God today?

Stop.

Look.

Listen.

You will find God in the most unexpected places.