​My family and I were on vacation together in Sisters, Oregon.  Of course, with three small boys and nine people all together, the noise level in our rental house was pretty high.  Being the introvert that I am, I decided to go for a walk.  The air was crisp, clear, sunny.  It was a stunning snowscape around me.  The pine trees plastered with snow.  Snow piled four feet high on roofs and the side of the road.  When I got back to the house I saw the porch chair that had been inviting me to stop and linger.  Since I was fully clothed for the cold I grabbed a wool blanket from inside and accepted God’s invitation to be, to linger, to absorb the beauty around me. 
 
Being quiet and connecting with nature has always been a place of knowing God for me.  So, I sat back in the chair, cozy in my warm cocoon.  Gradually, I became aware of the symphony around me.  The sun was shining and, even though it was still below freezing, the snow on the trees was beginning to fall due to the sun’s heat.  It did not fall in clumps but shimmered down like crystal rain.  The sun hitting the falling tree avalanche became a shower of teeny diamonds.  First I would hear the snow beginning to release from the tree.  Then I turned to see the glimmering show.  Next, I’d hear another release to my right followed by the shimmering rain.  Oh, another right in front of me.  Ooh, there is one far off to my left.  I found myself in nature’s concert hall listening and experiencing a one-of-a-kind symphony. 
 
I sat and absorbed this mesmerizing display of God’s creation for quite some time. Then a thought struck me.  What if me sitting, watching this show, being fully taken by it was actually making this display of nature even more glorious.  Could it be by me being the audience I became part of the delight God was creating? 
 
I believe God created all of creation.  His image is in the trees, the snow, the sunshine and in me.  God told me by accepting the invitation to enjoy the symphony of snow falling from the trees that day the symphony became even more glorious.  How can that be?  I was just a clump of humanness sitting in a chair observing the glory around me.  I don’t know the answer, but I know this experience with God’s creation fully captured me.  I carry the images and sounds with me.  I share them with others and I see their hearts well up with joy from the picture formed in their own minds.  Maybe they have experienced something similar.  Maybe they have heard the call to stop and be a part of God’s creation. 
 
There are other lessons I heard God speak while I watched the snow fall, like patience and letting God work in his own time.  But, the most important lesson is knowing I must listen for the invitations from God to stop, be still, listen, be with and in nature.  Hear and see God’s display of delight.  I would not have experienced what I did had I not paused to absorb what was already happening all around me.  What might capture my attention today?  What delight does God have to share with me this day?  Lord, help me slow myself enough to hear your gentle and persistent invitations to be at home with you.