Saturday, June 13, 2009

Stillness in the Desert

A couple weekends ago, Bri and I flew to FL for Alex's graduation. It was a wonderful time together with family. When the weekend was over Pappa Fitch drove Bri and I to the airport, which gave us some talk time. Pappa Fitch told us some beautiful stories of his time in the military.

Pappa Fitch explained how when he was in the Middle East, in the desert, he would wake up really early in the morning before the sun had risen. Completely alone, he would wait for the night animals to cease there noises. Sometime before the sun rose, the nocturnal animals finally went to sleep and everything became s t i l l .

This stillness lasted for about a few minutes, until the morning creatures arose from their slumber. Greetings morning creatures! The morning creatures began to sing, as the sun rose.

The switch between the night and morning is such a beautiful experience. In this case, Pappa Fitch was experiencing the order of the natural world-God's design and beauty. He was experiencing stillness. "Be still and know that I am God" (Psalm 46:10). I loved how Pappa Fitch purposefully woke up to exist and be a part of the something much larger than himself- the stillness on the earth. This plays as a reminder how we all need to be still before our Father.

I loved hearing about this time of Pappa Fitch's life. I encourage people around age to get the stories out of your parents and grandparents, so we can pass them down to our kids and so on.

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