Sunset Season

So… A new season is upon us!  Spring happened a couple of days ago whether we felt it or not; Siberian Season is finally over and in comes….  Sunset Season!  Sunset Season begins when the weather finally turns warm enough to stand outside and raise a glass or two to toast the beauty in the sky as the sun dips below the horizon.  Of course, we can watch a sunset from any window all winter long, but to stand in the great outdoors and see the entire sky lit up with the colors of flames astounds the soul bigger and better than any window view.


I say bring it on!  It's time for Sunset Season to officially begin!



I'm anticipating many many beautiful sunsets in 2014.

Aren't we all?


















My brother built the longest dock on Clear Lake to catch the last rays of sunsets…
















Some friends of ours built a tower that reaches into the sky to view the vast Iowa vista of greens and sunset golds...





Other friends built a huge porch deck (twice the size of their living room) to view the sun dipping into their cornfields…
















Other friends decked out their dock on Lake Okoboji with outdoor living room furniture to watch sunsets while we sip the house speciality Manhattans ...

John and I have rented log cabins high in the mountains to view the sun setting behind the continental divide…



And popped to the back of a cruise boat to see the sunset dip into the sea…

Haven't we all tried to capture all that magnificent light on our teeny tiny phones and sent that photo to all our friends…

And haven't we all 'liked' each others' sunset pics because we all know how it feels to experience that beauty and otherness…

Magnificent, glory-filled skies deserve our standing ovation.




There is always that feeling of awe that that sky full of beauty generates, a throbbing of the soul..






An absolute know that there must be Someone Who

has way more power than anything,

can create more beauty than anyone,

and must be in control of all creation

to be able to load the skies with that kind of exploding color and light.






We all know we have experienced the artwork of Someone:  God Almighty.

He reveals Himself to us in all kinds of ways and through all kinds of people and situations, but a sure-proof way of getting our attention is to light the heavens with glory:

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky proclaims the work of His hands."  Ps. 19:1

God as Creator has revealed Himself in that sky and in the throbbing of your soul as you look at it.  He is wooing you to Himself, speaking to you and showing His love for you.

                     
                   You were meant to notice and be wooed.



God tells His intentions for the Israelites in Hosea 2:14 that are meant for you and me as well.  Choose one of these six translations that speaks to you:

(Complete Jewish Bible translation)  "But now I am going to woo her ... I will speak to her heart."

(Common English Bible translation)  "Therefore, I will charm her... and speak tenderly to her heart."

(God's Word translation)  "That is why I'm going to win her back... I will speak tenderly to her."

(New King James Version)  "Therefore, behold, I will allure her... and speak comfort to her."

(Holman Christian Standard translation)  "Therefore, I am going to persuade her... and speak tenderly to her."

And perhaps this is my favorite translation from the Message Bible:


"And now, here's what I'm going to do: I'm going to start all over again. I'm taking her back…. to where we had our first date, and I'll court her."

Let yourself be wooed

           be charmed

           be won

           be allured

           be persuaded

           be courted




God Himself is after you.  

You were meant to notice Him.

Follow your heart throb 

              and experience God Almighty.