The Power of a Moment

Moment by Moment life happens. I pray that we never miss out on the power of a moment.

It was a moment that I knew would quickly be gone. Another half mile and two curves later and the picturesque scene on the Lord’s canvas outside of my driver’s window would only be visible in the eye of my mind. Knowing that I am totally inadequate at verbalizing the awesome beauty of God’s handiwork that lay just to my left and with the love of my life playing the part of Sleeping Beauty to perfection in the passenger seat, I did what I knew I wasn’t supposed to do…I reached for my phone, pointed it toward the wonder of the waking world, and snapped away in hopes that one or two of the pictures would turn out somewhat acceptably.

It was a moment. But oh, in that moment…My thoughts raced through the myriad of still-fresh memories of moments from the previous week. It had been a week of ministering to others and being ministered to by others. It had been a week of firsts and a week of lasts. It had been a week of mountain top moments and valley experiences. Each can be recalled in a mental photograph that captures the emotion of each moment. As the world woke up that morning and I was reminded of the goodness of the Living God, I asked along with the Psalmist, What is man that You are mindful of him? (Psalm 8:3-6) for I know me…and the fact that the Lord of Heaven would use me to execute His work on this round ball of dirt and water that we call Earth is humbling to say the least. Below are just a handful of the moments forever etched into the hard drive of my mind from the week that preceded the moment atop this post.

• There was the moment when my buddy’s daughter came over the radio saying she had just shot a big buck. The quivering voice of excitement still lingers in my ears! That’s good stuff right there!
• There was the moment of my guest – on his first hunting trip out of state – seeing scenery he had never seen. The gaze of wonder he displayed on his face is carved into my memory.
• There were the moments of extreme lows and highs that were vividly displayed through the facial expressions of my friend’s better half when she missed and then later connected on the very same day. Sometimes words are not necessary!
• There was the moment that I predicted – with only a doe tag in my pocket, a big buck walked by at a mere 15 yards. It was absolutely hilarious because there was nothing I could do but video the event as he strolled on by.
• There was the moment in which a laid back day suddenly wasn’t because the truck decided to break down in the middle of the pasture. A leisurely drive turned into a grease and cow manure infested conundrum!

There were the quiet moments spent with the Lord. There were the conversations about the God that created all the world we were enjoying. The were the high fives and celebratory shouts and posing for pictures. There were campfire moments. There were moments of contemplating all I was thankful for during Thanksgiving week. There were the moments of refreshment rushing into the soul as the Lord gently blew a breeze of reassurance over burdened shoulders. Moments…Moments that make up the whole of the experience the week provided.

Such is the routine of life. Moment by Moment life happens. I pray that we never miss out on the power of a moment. It may be a moment we anticipate for a long time, or it may be a moment that is suddenly thrust upon us, but either way, let us enjoy life’s little moments! As I close this out, let me ask you to do as Paul encouraged the church a Philippi so long ago, and train your mind to dwell upon those moments that are good, lovely, and worthy of praise (Philippians 4:8). Allow a sunrise or sunset to captivate your soul and bring you back to some of life’s precious moments that you’ve had in the past, and we’ll compare stories of the power of a moment whenever we cross paths next…In the Great Outdoors!