hidden things

I know it isn't fall/autumn quite yet, but I couldn't hold back any longer. 

I had to buy a pumpkin.

I had to drag my fall stuff out of the attic.

You can't see it, 

whatever causes it is well hidden-

but I smelled it when I mowed the other evening. 

Fall is in the air.

You can't see it.

I almost missed it and I was right there!

When I went out the door Friday afternoon I glanced to my left-

and did a double take

I had a guest.

 I don't know why but praying mantis' intrigue me. I thought "little guy, you are out of position...your hands are not folded in prayer like they should be! Why are they straight out? "

I was on my way to meet someone so I did not have time to stop and correct him.





I did not expect him to be there when I returned that evening,
but he was.
And he had it right!
I followed his example and spent a few minutes praying.

I looked for him again Saturday and he was still there, in the "right" position. 

Sunday after church I almost missed him because he had moved. I slowed down to look closer-and there he was. I stopped to take his picture again.

As I leaned forward to get a better shot, I was startled. Something else was hidden in that fern. A small dark cat jumped out from its perch on the bench seat. He or she had been covered by the fern's fronds. 








I looked again this morning.
He is gone.
If I hadn't taken a second look Friday I would have missed his visit.
It was a gift.
It has made me do some thinking.

Hidden things.
We think we know what is right in front of us.
But sometimes we are clueless.

Sometimes we miss them because we are in a hurry.
Some living things, like that stray cat,
(which you can see if you look very closely toward the bottom of this picture-there where the fronds look like they have been stripped, left of center) end up in our space, destroying our things, not out of malicious intent, but because they are seeking a place to feel safe so they can rest.



May I slow down enough to be aware of and search out hidden things.
May I cease judging.
May I remember that prone is a perfect posture for prayer.
May I approach people I notice "hiding" with gentleness, kindness and compassion so they don't feel threatened.
May I remember that just because I cannot see wounds and scars in other's lives that does not mean they are not there.
May I speak and act so that my space is a safe place for others to take refuge.

And may I never, ever take for granted that there are prayers lifted in secret, hidden places over me and my family. May I be ever thankful for the safe places God has provided for me over the years to take refuge and rest in. May I never lose my sense of awe that He loves me and has made me His. I can hide in Him and be secure. You can too.

"You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word." 

Psalm 119:114