Everything is Brighter

I was sick last week, which if you know me is not something that happens very often. Of course, my brother that doesn’t live near me would like to argue that I am sick all the time. What kind of brother would he be if he didn’t argue my every point? Not mine that’s for sure. He just visited while I was sick and he never fails to tell me like it is. 

Anyway, there’s something about being sick that seems to completely dull your senses. It’s like you live in a world of gray. Nothing tastes or smells or even feels particularly great. Or at least that’s been my recent experience. Everything was just kind of blah. But the most amazing thing happens when you turn a corner in being sick and start to get better: your senses come back.

 For me, it wasn’t a slow transition. It seemed to happen all at once. One day, I walked outside to sit while my dogs played, and it was like bam! Everything was all of a sudden brighter, louder, more alive! The grass was greener, the flowers petals were brighter, and its branches were swaying with more sway, if that is even a thing. The butterflies were bright yellow and were fluttering around all over the yard from one flowering bush to the next with what seemed to be some caffeinated energy. Even the squirrel crossing the street seemed to move with a little more pep in his step.

 It was an overwhelming experience for my senses, in the best possible way; almost as if my body just realized it had been missing out on all this amazingness.

Now I know these things are the same, or mostly the same, as they were a few days ago; unless we're coming out of winter and going into spring. But the experience with them is different. I am able to appreciate it a little more because I’ve been without it for a few days. Sometimes I wonder if this is another way for God to show us His love; by letting us experience these beautiful moments of recognition. 

It makes me wonder what else we aren’t fully enjoying because we have been living in a way that has our senses dulled. I think sometimes we can get so consumed with life that we forget to stop and experience it. Whatever is holding us back, from experiencing life the way God intended, we need to pay attention to what it is and why it is causing us to live in a world that isn’t as bright and beautiful as the one God intended.

Yes, I know we live in a broken world with sin and some really bad stuff, but it is still beautiful, and God still shows us the beauty He has created every single day. Instead of living in the dull gray area of what has become our lives at times, we can choose to see the bright and beautiful world that God made. He has made so many creative and lovely things. It is our job to stop and enjoy them. Sitting outside and just looking at what God has made isn't us being less productive, it is a way for us to worship God and to see His glory.

So go ahead and step outside today and look around.

What do you see, hear, and feel?

Do you notice anything different?

Ask God to show you the world the way He wants you to see it today.

I would love to hear what God reveals to you.