God’s Canopy

The next few weeks I am hosting a group of guest bloggers. These very special ladies all offered to help fill in while I check off an item from my bucket list: a pilgrimage to Scotland and England.

Today my blogger friend, Katharine Barrett, joins us to talk about listening and learning. Katharine is from Canada and enjoys a good cup of coffee. I have enjoyed getting to know her and hope you will too.

I connected with Katharine though Jen Ferguson’s blog, Finding Heaven , and we are partners in one of Jen’s Soli Deo Gloria small groups.  Getting to know her in this group has been such a pleasure. Being part of a small group that prays for one another is so encouraging.

Stop by her blog, Just a Thought, and stay awhile.  You will be blessed!  And check out her e-book, Grace and Fresh Ink, 52 Devotionals for theSeasons of Faith. 

Thanks for being here today, Katharine!

God's Canopy

It’s almost time to put it away. I always feel sad when we take apart our garden swing and store it in the shed for winter. The snow and cold would wreak havoc with the metal poles and fabric on the chairs, so away it goes for another season!

Years ago we bought the swing at an end of the season clearance. It was the only one with two side- by-side swings that move independent of each other. 

It is often the escape of choice for early morning devotions, quiet coffee times, or evening chats while the sun retires to the sound of the cricket’s choir. For almost three seasons during the year, it keeps company with the late spring blossoms, summer heat and autumns chill.

It’s showing signs of age and wear. Last Falls’ windstorm cut deep into the canopy, and our attempt at a repair is obvious. It has its creaks and groans, and rust. If we swing at the same time, in rhythm with each other, it makes a “clunking” noise. 

One of us has to stop and allow the other to swing, joining in with an alternate rhythm. We are still swinging together, just in a complimentary flow that avoids the “clunk.”

Sometimes, I just plant my feet and stop, listening for the rhythm, the right time to join in. If the creaky joints are too particular, we take turns, swinging one at a time as we talk. There are times when the best hour is spent in stillness, and silence.

And isn’t that the way it is in life? I savor another late autumn swing, and I can’t help think about relationships. The people we journey through life with. Husbands and wives, siblings, and friends, co-workers.

It’s in the listening and the learning.

For each of us, life has a way of careening through the seasons with wind, rain and wear. Is it any wonder that our attempt to journey with each other often produces a clunking sound?  

Knowing when to stop and listen for the God of the universe, asking him for the perfect time, the right words or rhythm. Sometimes, being able to journey together without the “clunk”, means taking turns.  

It’s learning to sit patiently, one at a time, while we listen to each other’s heart.  Often, the best hours can be the ones spent in stillness and silence, giving thanks for those we are blessed to travel with! 

And Grace swirls around under the canopy. Grace, and the love of an amazing creator who walks through all of these seasons with us, and delights in the sound of the rhythm of our days.

Katharine makes her home in Ontario, Canada where she shares life and laughter with her husband and four children. She is on a journey with the God of the universe, discovering who she was created to be, and what it means to walk living loved, in everyday grace. She's just released her first book Grace And Fresh Ink  and the second, “Walking to Bethlehem” is scheduled to be released in November.  Most days you can find her blogging through life at Just AThought.  Always listening for His heart and never without a cup of good coffee in a great mug.