Michael W. Smith released a CD in 1993 titled “Go West Young Man”. My memories of the songs stem from listening to it while in the boat on Lake Superior enjoying a summer of swimming and floating on the boat. The songs were fitting, especially the section of the song “For You” that goes like this:

Sittin’ in the rain
Water on your brain
Got a hole in your boat
Trying to stay afloat
Has got you down

I’ve got a wind in my sail
Rubber boots and a pail
I’ll throw you a line
Rest assured that I
Won’t ever let you drown..

This summer during one of my trips to the beach the memories of this CD came back to mind and I started listening to it again. 17 Years was a long time ago, I’m a little bit older, a little bit wiser, and the world is a strangely different place.

While singing “Seed to Sow” to myself I was struck with one of those “Oh, I get it moments!” as I realized what the lyrics really meant:

Some people quietly reveal
In the manner of the meek
Some people shout the way they feel
To a radical degree
Some people sing it to express
While others hear another call
Some people speak with subtleness
And* don’t rely on words at all

We all are pieces of the whole
With different feelings to evoke
Giving distinction to the role
Different players-different strokes

Some people walk
Some people race
Some people vary in their pace
But God can use what you can give
Within the mystery of His ways

Emphasis added to the stanza that finally sunk in. There is nothing more I can possibly say to complete the thought except that my hope is to speak with subtleness and don’t rely on words.

*According to the disc lyrics “And” is actually “Some”. However, when I listen to the song for myself it sure sounds like “And” to me.

Last summer sunrise on the beach, shared with fishermen. As I waited patiently in the cool dawn air for the Son my contemplations rested on the fact that, to my surprise, I too was a fisherman fishing.

Impalpable

No solid edifice can equal what light can reveal.

The historical importance of a monument is not proportional to its size or monetary value. When significance surrounding a monument is forgotten its importance fades. Light is fleeting, not a tangible reminder but the harbinger of an intangible idea.

Keep the light shining.

He sees you down by the water line
Know what you’re thinking all the time
He sees the rising of the waves
When the tide starts rolling in
He lets you know it’s gonna be o.k.
He sees you dancing in the moonlight

His arms around you hold ya tight
And if those clouds should start to break
He’ll be standing out in the rain with you
And though it’s hard to believe
He believes in you

God is watching over you
As always
You are loved
Whatever you go through
He’s right beside you
God is watching over you
As always
And if you think He’ll ever leave you
You better think again

Phil Joel: God Is Watching Over You Lyrics
Songwriters: Bourgeois, Mark Grey; Urry, Philip Joel;

How can the feeling of an early morning trip be described? The start to an adventure of peril or wonderful safe travels.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Chinese philosopher Lao-tzu

The first step is usually turning off the alarm clock and getting your feet out from under the covers. By the time the morning shower is over (assuming you had time and didn’t hit the snooze button) the you are on to the second step.

After the bags are zipped closed, loaded in the car, and the car begins to move the third step has been completed. From here, a thousand miles await.

The world’s morning stillness, glazed in a the soft orange glow of the rising sun, presents itself for your viewing pleasure as you drive along. Perhaps it is accompanied by the wafting smell of the hot coffee entrusted to the cup holder for safe keeping. Maybe you are fortunate enough to be the passenger on this trip and have closed your eyes, oblivious to the beauty outside. The sound of the car engine sooths your senses as your mind dreams of the road ahead.

I hope you appreciate the feeling of morning trips and first steps.