Beauty in the Woods

Woods on the Isle of Arron, Scotland. Photo by our friend Neil May

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. John 1:1-2

Except from One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are:

The woods spell out words. I need a lens to read them. Every dark woods has words. And every moment is a message from The Word-God who can't stop writing His heart.

...What do all the words written in the world really spell out? I had read it in Job, what makes reading God's message in every moment a form of art, fullest life: God speaks to us not in one language but two: "For God does speak -- now one way, now another" (Job 33:14 NIV) One way, His finger writing words in stars (Psalm 19:1-3), His eternal power written naked in all creation (Romans 1:20); and now another way, the sharp Holy Writ on the page that makes a careful incision into a life, blade words kindly cut the tissue back to where soul and spirit join, tenderly laying bare the intents of the heart (Hebrews 4:12)...

To read His message in moments, I'll need to read His passion on the page; wear the lens of the Word, to read His writing in the world. Only the Word is the answer to rightly reading the world, because The Word has nail-scarred hands that cup our face close, wipe away the tears running down, has eyes to look deep into our brimming ache, and whisper, "I know. I know." The passion on the page is a Person, and the lens I wear of the Word is not abstract idea but the eyes of the God-Man who came and knows the pain...

That which seems evil, is it a cloud to bring rain, to bring a greater good to the whole of the world? Who would ever know the greater graces of comfort and perseverance, mercy and forgiveness, patience and courage, if no shadow fell over a life?

Without God's Word as a lens, the world warps.

Beauty Calls

Beauty is the voice endlessly calling and so we see, so we reach...Someone is behind it, in it. Beauty Himself completes.  Ann Voskamp

Lily pads in my garden

Touch beauty! Write a poem. Draw or paint a picture. Be united with the beauty you see, pass into it, receive it!

From The Weight of Glory by C.S. Lewis:

What more do we want? Ah, but we want so much more -- something the books on aesthetics take little notice of. But the poets and the mythologies know all about it. We do not want merely to see beauty, though, God knows, even that is bounty enough. We want something else which can hardly be put into words -- to be united with the beauty we see, to pass into it, to receive it into ourselves, to bathe in it, to become part of it.

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Beauty Sparks the Romance

Beauty is all that is glory and God is beauty embodied, glory manifested. Ann Voskamp

A new day

Excerpt from One Thousand Gifts: the Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are:

#362 Suds...all color in sun

A soap bubble, skin of light and water and space suspended in sphere. Who has time for that?

Hadn't I? Only because I was looking. Because that list of one thousand gifts has me always on the hunt for one more...one more -- to behold one more moment pregnant with wonder.

Time is a relentless river. It rages on, respecter of no one. And this, this is the only way to slow time: When I fully enter time's swift current, enter into the current moment with the weight of all my attention, I slow the torrent with the weight of me all here. I can slow the torrent by being all here. I only live the full life when I live fully in the moment. And when I'm always looking for the next glimpse of glory, I slow and enter. And time slows. Weigh down this moment in time with attention full, and the whole of time's river slows, slows, slows...

This. Is this eucharisteo the way to that elusive fullest life, the one that lives in the moment? What my sister urges when I get angry and knotted about tomorrow, when I sorrow for what is gone, her words always tugging me to stay right here -- "Wherever you are, be all there." I have lived the runner, panting ahead in worry, pounding back in regret, terrified to live in the present, because here-time asks me to do the hardest of all: just open wide and receive.

Light on soap film, its energy traveling, reflection, refraction on a wall a few millionth of an inch thick. Light waves permeate and collide, crest to crest and crest to trough. Yellow marbleizes into indigo dark. I do see this. I hold it. 

This is where God is... God Himself framed in moment.

When I'm present, I meet I AM, the very presence of a present God. In His embrace, time loses all sense of speed and stress and space and stands so still and ... holy. Here is the only place I can love Him. I have time for God...

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My Pace Setter

Divine strength is not given to us until we are fully aware of our own weakness and know that the strength we receive is indeed His Gift and not the reward of our own excellence.            Thomas Merton          

The quintessential rose

Psalm 23, Thomas Merton translation

The Lord is my pace-setter, I shall not rush;

He makes me stop and rest for quiet intervals;

He provides me with images of stillness, which restore my serenity.

He leads me in ways of efficiency through calmness of mind,

And His guidance is peace.

Even though I have many things to accomplish each day,

I will not fret for His presence is here.

His timelessness, His all importance will keep me in balance.

He prepares refreshment and renewal in the midst of activity

By anointing my head with His oil of tranquility;

My cup of joyous energy overflows.

Surely, harmony and effectiveness shall be the fruit of my hours.

For I shall walk in the pace of my Lord,

And dwell in His house forever.

[Glory to the Father]

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Grace, Thanksgiving, Joy

We only enter into the full life if our faith gives thanks. Ann Voskamp

Resurrection power...

An except from Ann Voskamp's book One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are:

Isn't it here? The wonder? Why do I spend so much of my living hours struggling to see it? Do we truly stumble so blind that we must be affronted with blinding magnificence for our blurry soul-sight to recognize grandeur? The very same surging magnificence that cascades over every day here. Who has time or eyes to notice?

All my eyes can seem to fixate on are the splatters of disappointment across here and me.

I open the bathroom linen closet. Pick up a brush to swish toilets. I don't need more time to breathe so that I may experience more locales, possess more, accomplish more. Because wonder really could be here -- for the seeing eyes.

So -- more time for more what?

The face of Jesus flashes. Jesus, the God-man with his own termination date. Jesus, the God-man who came to save me from prisons of fear and guilt and depression and sadness. With an expiration of less than twelve hours, what does Jesus count as all most important?

"And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them..." (Luke 22:19)

This. I live in this place, make porridge, scrub toilets, do laundry, and for days, weeks, I am brave and I do get out of bed and I think on this. I study this, the full life, the being fully ready for the end. I start to think that maybe there is a way out of nightmares to dreams? Maybe?

I run my finger across the page. I read it slowly. In the original language, "he gave thanks" reads "eucharisteo." I underline it. Can it lay a foundation under a life? Offer the fullest life?

The root word of eucharisteo is charis, meaning "grace." Jesus took bread and saw it as grace, charis. But it also holds its derivative, the Greek chara, meaning "joy." Joy. Ah... yes. I might be needing me some of that. That might be what the quest for more is all about -- that what Augustine claimed, "Without exception...all try their hardest to reach the same goal, that is, joy."

I breathe deep, like a sojourner finally coming home. That has always been the goal of the fullest life-- joy. And my life knew exactly how elusive that slippery three-letter word, joy, can be. I think of it again, the night of nightmares, the flailing, frantic, moon-eyed lunge for more. More what? And this is it; I could tell my whole being responded to that one word. I longed for more life, for more holy joy.

That's what I was struggling out of nightmares to reach, to seize. Joy. But where can I seize this holy grail of joy? I look back down to the page. Was this the clue to the quest of all most important? Deep chara joy is found only at the table of the euCHARisteo -- the table of thanksgiving. I sit there long ... wondering... is it that simple? Is the height of my chara joy dependent on the depth of my eucharisteo thanks?

So then as long as thanks is possible ... I think this through. As long as thanks is possible, then joy is always possible. Joy is always possible. Whenever, meaning -- now; wherever, meaning -- here. The holy grail of joy is not in some exotic location or some emotional mountain peak experience. The joy wonder could be here! Here, in the messy, piercing ache of now, joy might be possible! The only place we need see before we die is this place of seeing God, here and now.

I whisper it out loud, let the tongue feel these sounds, the ear hear their truth.

Charis. Grace.

Eucharisteo. Thanksgiving.

Chara. Joy.

A triplet of stars, a constellation in the black. A threefold cord that might hold a life? Offer a way up into the fullest life? Grace, thanksgiving, joy. Eucharisteo. A Greek word... that might make meaning of everything?

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My Treasure Trove

Taped into one of my 2013 journals. This little card got us, Lee and me, through many a hard, pressured time.

I love to journal. I record all of the delightful, surprising, and often very challenging ways God shows up for me each day. I also copy verses of Scripture, inspiring quotes, and excerpts from books I am reading. As I copy life-giving words in my journal I am also writing them on my heart. This is my way of meditating on them, and my journals become for me a treasure trove.

 David, in the Bible, and his soldiers went off on a recognizance mission one day. When they returned to Ziklag, their camp, they found the Amalekites had attacked. The Amalekites, a particularly blood thirsty people, had taken captive the women and all who were there, small and great, and burned the place to the ground. David and his men were greatly distressed, and grieving to the point of exhaustion. His men were so upset they were ready to stone David. They had lost everything. David had nowhere else to turn except to God. 1 Samuel 30:6 says David "strengthened himself in the Lord his God." Do you see that?! He strengthened HIMSELF in the Lord his God.

When the going gets tough, I strengthen myself in the Lord my God by opening my treasure trove. I love to sink my hands into the gems up to my elbows -- feel the hard edges of the diamonds and sapphires and those smooth round pearls of great value on my skin, running through my fingers. Ink is cheap medicine.

Tomorrow I'll be posting an except from                                                                                        One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are.

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Giving Thanks

Eucharist [thanksgiving] is the state of the perfect man. Eucharist is the life of paradise. Eucharist is the only full and real response of man to God's creation, redemption, and gift of heaven. Alexander Schmemann

My favorite mug. My sister Melissa gave this to me for Christmas 27 years ago. I drink my morning tea from it every day!

One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are by Ann Voskamp was published in 2010. It was on the New York Times best sellers list for 65 weeks -- a book about Jesus!  Christianity Today counted Ann Voskamp among the 50 women most shaping culture and the church when One Thousand Gifts was in the limelight. Ann and her farmer husband are Canadian, raising their six kids on their family hog farm. (They have recently adopted a little girl from China, so that makes seven). Ann has been blogging for years. I would recommend visiting her blog site: www.aholyexperience.com if you are in need of a blast of wisdom and joy from above.

In One Thousand Gifts Ann takes the reader on her breathtaking journey out of darkness (depression, confusion, isolation, shame and guilt) into the marvelous light of God's personal love for her. A friend had challenged her to count 1000 beautiful moments as she went about her days. In her quiet time alone with God early in this challenge, Ann came across the word Eucharisteo in Luke 22:19. Jesus, in His final hours, when everything in His life pointed to utter failure, took bread and gave thanks.  Through the book Ann shares her growth in coming to understand the depth and breadth of the word eucharisteo as she learns to apply it to her own thinking and life, counting moments of beauty in the ordinary. #1 morning shadows across old floors, #2 Jam piled high on toast, #3 Cry of blue jay from high in the spruce, #4 Leafy life scent of the florist shop, #5 Wind flying cold wild in hair, #6 Earthy aroma of the woods...

Psalm 100 (Message Translation)                                          

On your feet now -- applaud God!

Bring a gift of laughter,

Sing yourselves into His presence

Know this: God is God, and God, God.

He made us; we didn't make Him.

We're His people, His well-tended sheep.

Enter His courts with the password: "Thank You!"

Make yourselves at home, talking praise.

Thank Him. Worship Him.

For God is sheer beauty,

All generous in love,

Loyal always and ever.

[Even in the midst of the most severe of trials]

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Deep, Contented Joy

Deep, contented joy comes from a place of complete security and confidence in God -- even in the midst of trial.  Charles Swindoll

God speaks through the timing of things -- loud and clear!  This past Saturday, I attended my nephew's graduation from Washington College in Chestertown, MD. It was a cool, overcast day with 0% chance of rain -- perfect for the outdoor ceremony held on the central lawn.

After the ceremony, we wound our way along back roads to a hunting lodge not far from Chestertown, where Stuart's parents, my cousin Debbie and her husband Ed, were hosting a luncheon for family and friends. I say nothing happens by random chance. God makes Himself known to us through every detail of life. He speaks through the timing of things!

The road we took out of Chestertown was very familiar to me. At 3:00pm on the afternoon of December 15, 2001, I was struck from behind by a drunk driver on that road while riding bikes with my daughter Margie. I emerged from a 10 day, medically induced coma on Christmas Eve.  Where was I?  I couldn't move!  My face felt funny and I was in a lot of pain. We were supposed to be going to Vermont to spend Christmas with Lee's brother. I had no memory of the accident.Talk about being completely turned upside-down.

I was told the impact of my body had shattered the windshield of the car that had hit me, and that the driver had left the scene, leaving me to die. But God intervened in an amazing way, and I was flown by helicopter to the Shock Trauma center in Baltimore, in critical condition. I had many broken bones, and Lee brought in a photo of me so the doctors would know how to reconstruct my face. I spent  a year in recovery, a year dotted with periodic follow up surgeries. Through this horrific experience, we came to know God as the miracle working God He is. We heard about it over and over from the doctors and nurses who tended to me and I knew it for myself.  To look at me now you would never know I had once been a broken, bloody mess left to die on the side of a country road.

So there I was, driving by the site of that accident after attending a graduation ceremony. Many people refer to death as graduating to higher glory. Against all odds, I didn't graduate on December 15, 2001, just two months after 9/11. I lived to declare the works of the Lord (Psalm 118:17)

On April 24, 2016, Lee graduated. I know he is enjoying all of the wonders of heaven. Jesus showed us that resurrection is real -- After his crucifixion, He rose from the dead and walked the earth for another 40 days. He had a new supernatural body. With scars still on His hands and feet, he was able to walk through walls. Lee has a new supernatural body outfitted for heaven. and is probably walking through walls.  

And I am still here, continuing to declare the works of the Lord. God has put a fresh urgency on my heart. We will all be graduating. We never know when. Our graduation could come suddenly, without warning, as it did for the 3000+ people trapped in the twin towers on that clear September morning back in 2001, or in any of the shooting sprees and other acts of terror happening with an ever increasing regularity. Or we can be made very aware of our mortality through the slow grind of cancer. I ask myself these question: is my life preparing me to graduate, whenever that day may come. Am I living in complete security and confidence in God, even in the midst of trial. Am I fully alive in the present?

From now on, I will be making daily blog posts, sharing how God makes Himself very real to me in and through the details of my life as a widow. (I never liked that word - it reminds me of the black widow spider.  But I am not a black widow, I am a deeply contented widow full of the light of Christ). 

Building and encouraging faith in others was the thrust of my 36 year marriage to Lee. This is the legacy I will be upholding through this blog. It was the foundation upon which everything else in our life was and continues to be built.

I just now checked the time on my computer.  It's 9:11.  Thank you Lord for underscoring the urgency with which I write this morning.

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Tend Your Creative Garden

When I walk in a carefree way, without straining to get to my destination, then I am living in the present. And it is only then that the creative power flourishes.                                                   Brenda Ueland, Author of If You Want to Write.

Two Saturdays, June 10 and 17, Margie Boynton will be offering instruction on drawing and painting in watercolor at Lilac Hill. Lunch provided. Cost for instruction and lunch $35/day. Enrollment for instruction limited to 12. RSVP by June 1, Margie.boynton@gmail or Martha.boynton@yahoo.com. or call Martha by phone (410) 263=6336. (Leave a message if no answer)

Schedule for each day:                                                                                                                        10-12 Drawing simple still life outdoors                                                                                                     12-1 Lunch and creative fellowship                                                                                                        1-3 Painting the still life in watercolor

Writers are welcome to come for a day of quiet in a garden setting and to join for lunch. You can bring your own lunch or partake of the lunch we provide for $5.  If you would like to join us please RSVP by June 1.

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The Goodness of God

When you’re overwhelmed with the goodness of God to you

— you overflow with the goodness of God to others.

                                                               Ann Voskamp

     ~~ Author of One Thousand Gifts: A Dare to Live Fully Right Where You Are

            The goodness of God: those moments in life when we sense that God has a very good, very clear plan and is orchestrating every minute detail from His throne room in heaven. That serendipitous moment when the lives of two friends who haven’t seen each other for years intersect on a street corner at the dawning of a fall day, that chance meeting exploding into “a brilliant idea.”  When two friends who haven’t been in touch for over a year write an email at the exact same time and they cross in cyber space over the Atlantic, both  receiving them on the same day. Those moments when we feel God enfolding us in His arms of love and care. 

            Lee and Betty Knupp were colleagues. They shared a passion for art. Betty taught art history classes through the Anne Arundel Community College, Ginger Cove and at local senior centers for over 25 years. She gave her all and had a strong following of students. Whenever she taught on Impressionism she would invite Lee to come demonstrate and share his life as a fine art painter.

            At the second reception for the Lee Boynton: Light of Life show, a retrospective of Lee’s work at Maryland Hall for the Creative Arts last October, Betty approached Margie with her characteristic warm smile and a friendly air of determination, like she had something important to discuss. Margie had been on Betty’s mind for some time. She told Margie she would be turning 70 on her next birthday and felt it was time  to retire from the teaching. She asked Margie if she would be interested in taking over her classes and bus tours. “I will mentor you through this process,” she said, “Don’t worry, I won’t let you fail.” The goodness of God!

            A month after Betty extended this kind offer to Margie, the Community College called Margie. The teacher for 3 ten week classes on painting in watercolor had had a family emergency. They were desperate for a replacement. It turned out the teacher Margie would be replacing was another good friend of ours. Margie was an oil painter, she had never painted in watercolor before. But she had assisted her father with his classes, especially toward the end, and she had his book Painting the Impressionist Watercolor. She said yes, and then dove into teaching herself to paint in watercolor.

         Between the three classes that started on January 3, 2017, Margie had 43 students, me being one. What a great way to start the year!  Both Margie and me saying “YES” to life!  I had set a goal of learning to paint in watercolor so I could use Lee’s paints and paper and now I would be receiving instruction from my daughter as she was donning her father’s teaching mantle. On the first class she humbly explained to her students that she was learning right along with them. Over the ten weeks of the class, I saw Lee’s talent for teaching beginning to blossom in our daughter. I pictured Lee looking down from heaven with a big smile on his face!

            Margie took on Betty Knupp’s teaching mantle this spring. She has been teaching a six week class on contemporary watercolor artists at Ginger Cove and through AACC at the Edgewater senior center. I have attended the class at Ginger Cove. Margie has prepared the material for her classes under Betty’s guidance, covering the work of Audubon, Homer, Saergent, Hassam and others. Last week she featured her father as a notable contemporary watercolor artist. She spoke about how he had pioneered the application of Claude Monet’s theories of color and light to the watercolor medium and showed examples of how he had done this through his work.

            Betty would organize bus tours to art museums in D.C. and other locales based on the contents of her classes. Margie will be leading her first bus tour to the National Gallery of Art in D.C. on May 16. Forty two students have registered for the trip. They will have a special viewing of many of the watercolors Margie has covered in her classes from the archives.

Oh — and good news! My father saw the first hummingbird come to the feeder at Lilac Hill yesterday!

  By Martha Boynton         

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