the big picture

Last weekend I escaped up into the mountains with my husband to celebrate our 20th anniversary. After hiking a bit through the woods, we came to one of my favorite destinations: the Black Rock on Grandfather Mountain. You have to climb up a rope ladder to get to the top, but the view is amazing...

every time I see it.

Up there on that rock..... you are completely alone. No one else is usually there, and you can just sit and admire the panoramic view.

This time, I sat, and couldn't help but think about how expansive it all was. As I kept slowly turning around to take in the entire panorama, my eyes couldn't even focus on the distances I was seeing. I thought again about the "big picture" and how perspective is everything. I mean ALL THIS... together... in one view.... is so gorgeous!

And then the Lord dropped an idea in my head. This giant panoramic view that HE MADE, is made up of bazillions of tiny minute details. And He is involved in placing each one in its place.  He is involved in every leaf on every tree. He knows of every animal taking shelter in the forests and every bug that crawls by unaware of the role it plays in the entire system. He cares deeply about each tiny detail, and He knows how important each detail is in making up the "big picture". I saw glimpses of so many of these little details, like I was using a telescope to zoom in as I surveyed the view. And I heard Him saying, "I've got that", and "I put that there", and "look at this flower!" I felt His heart and His joy at His creation.

and I felt shalom. ~everything was together in the right place, the right amount, at the right time.

Have you ever taken the time to really think about how special that makes us? How much more does the Father care for us, His children, than he does for these things He places in our paths to enjoy? There, on top of a giant rock in the mountains, He takes the time to rest with me and share His thoughts. He comes down from the "big picture" of all the earth, and enjoys spending time with just one of His most important details:

me.

His presence and shared thoughts with me up on that mountain top were so peaceful. If He's capable of creating and maintaining something like this.... I don't have a single thing to worry about in my own life. He's more than capable of paying attention to the details in my life just as well.

I know, like I know the seasons will change the way "the big picture" looks, that He's got me, and He's got my family.

and YOU too!