Father Sky sketched some beautiful white clouds today. I was afraid he had lost his white pastel cause he’s sketched a cloudless sky the last few days. His turquoise colored skies have been so pretty, like jewelry for the sun. Today’s sky was azure blue with the yellow sun beaming down hotly. I sat on the porch, eating breakfast as Penelope sunbathed in the grass. Kat sat on the sidewalk surveying her world of songbirds and squirrels. So far she hasn’t killed any birds so maybe she was hungry when she killed those others. She loves her cat chow, following in piglet Penelope’s footsteps.

The prettiest, tiniest pine siskin sat on the gardenia bush near the porch bannisters this afternoon and sang the most beautiful lyrical song, a bird opera of thankfulness for a glorious day and a yard full of bird feeders. I’ve always had these little finches in the yard and on the feeders but never heard one sing so prettily. It sat forever right where I could see it and sang a long happy song. Maybe he was singing to me!

Went back outside after supper to perch in the swing and watch Mother Nature paint the horizon in a wildfire of ripe peach colors, reds and deep oranges and yellows and dark raspberries, melting into each other like the colors of a ripe peach’s skin. The sun dropped a veil of golden light on the neighborhood trees and set behind a vanilla cloud cover as Father Sky took her hand and walked her down the pageant walkway, both dressed formally in their evening wear, the sun dressed in sequined raspberries and Father Sky in a jet black tuxedo. The night fell and evening began as Father Sky kissed the sun goodnight. The moon and twinkling stars came out to guide the night travelers, pinning themselves high on the velvet black sky canvas. I love this part of the day as dusk creeps across the neighborhood and the cardinals flock to the feeders for dessert before they nest for the night. All is quiet and still as night wakes.

I’m thankful I live a simple life in a Southern small town with no schedule or pressing commitments, content to while the days away sitting on the front porch watching the birds. Jesus says we should be still and seek solitude. The world, restless and confused, seems to have so many storms raging now. Jesus needs to hear our prayers as we pray for the world and pray for peace.

Whatever we face we can be confident that God is with us and will calm the storms in our lives. But we have to believe that he can calm the storms before we can feel the storm winds cease. Never feel abandoned by God, he will take the burden of our worries. He has planned the path of our lives and knows which direction we should travel. Life is complicated even in the best of circumstances. God didn’t promise it would be easy to be a Christian but he did promise to stand by us in faithfulness, pick us up when we fall, give us the strength to carry on, shoulder our burdens, and love us unconditionally.

“Be still, and know that I am God,” reads Psalms 46:10. In moments of silence and stillness we go to God with our prayers and in moments of turmoil we call out for his help. God is always working for us and watching over us. Be content and confidant in your faith. Jesus says, “My father is always at his work.” No matter what is happening around us we can count on God to be our refuge and our strength. Be still and know that he is God. “Life is God’s novel. Let him write it,” Isaac Bashevis Singer.

“This is true faith, a living confidence in the goodness of God.” — Martin Luther