It used to be so hard for me to drag myself out of bed anytime before 8 am.  Even after the kids came, getting up was a struggle.  And then we moved to Laramie.  I don't know what made the difference, but I found myself wide awake sometime between 5:30 and 6:30 most mornings.  Sometimes I would lay in bed and pray, other times I would get up and head to the rec center for a workout.

Now that we're in Kansas, I try to get out and walk in those early mornings.  I head east out of town and sometimes Jesalynn comes with me.  If she's along, she chatters about whatever is on her mind and heart, and I listen.  I'm not a big talker that early in the morning.

If Jesalynn isn't along, I pray and think.   I love walking this time of morning.  The wheat fields are just starting to turn, the birds sing, and usually the wind is quiet.  So I'll walk into the sun, and it's always a good reminder of God's glory--so amazing that no one can truly see it.  But when I turn around to head back home, I discover this beautiful landscape.  When I was facing the sun, the colors were washed out in comparison to the rising sun, but with the sun behind me the greens are brighter, the shadows deeper.

And this week, heading back to town, I was thinking about life.  Sometimes as we're living the actual experience we don't get a clear picture of what's really happening, how everything works together.  But when we're past that point and we look back, we see the whole picture.  The shadows and the low spots add depth, while the parts the sun shines upon add highlights.  What appeared to be a random smattering of little wildflowers turns out to be an entire field.

There have been so many times in our lives when we couldn't see the whole picture.  We didn't want to leave Camp Rock.  We couldn't understand why God called us from Laramie--especially to Kansas!  We've seen kids who seemed to be following God whole heartedly turn and run away from Him.  But it is encouraging to know that God can see the entire journey--what we have already traveled and what we have left before us.  He is in control--He has it all planned out--and it will be beautiful when He is finished!