I could look at the mountains all day! The light changes, revealing new details of the range, and there is a slight haze that drifts over and away and comes back at sunset. The mountains surrounding Salt Lake City make for a beautiful vista.

I am in SLC for a church conference. My husband and I drove here from Southern Wisconsin. We had never been to Wyoming or here in SLC before. We have so enjoyed the natural beauty we saw all along the way. There were the rolling green hills of Iowa and the lush agriculture of Nebraska. In Western Nebraska and Wyoming we were climbing, some gradual climbs and some fairly steep! There were stunning bluffs rising up out of the high plains. And then we could see mountains, still capped with snow in June. We drove through part of Medicine Bow National Forest, stopping many times to walk, take photos, to enjoy the aroma of the cedar trees, and yes, to play in that snow! The natural beauty was jaw-dropping.

And then we drove through western WY into Utah and SLC. And again we were awe-struck by the beauty of it all.

One of my favorite scriptures is this:

Psalm 121

A song of ascents.

1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

3 He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—
    he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.

The majesty of the mountains and all the natural beauty and wonders we have seen on this trip can not begin to compare with the majesty of God. God who, over and over, throughout the Bible reminds us that God is always with us, caring for us, weeping with us when life is hard, laughing with us when we are filled with joy. But we are so often not with God. We take things for granted, we may forget to give thanks for what we have and what we see.

God is even with those whose hearts are filled with hate. I can not fathom how...but that is because God is infinite and we are finite. No human, even the most creative, the most intelligent, the most spiritual, can truly comprehend God. And that's where the problems begin. If only each of us spent a few more moments each day looking up, figuratively if not actually, and spent time each day with the Bible and in prayer; and if we would ponder with gratitude the beauty around us, we could begin to draw a bit closer to the Loving God who made each of us to be in relationship with God and with each other. That is how we can help make the world a better place. 

Friday Five,- Ready to Go!

On your blog or in the comments tell us about five things you do to get ready to go. What do you do to prepare yourself physically, mentally, and spiritually to be away?

Well, this is timely, Hubby and I will soon be on the road! We are going (from home in southern Wisconsin) to Salt Lake City Utah, for our church's National Annual Meeting. This was not in our plans until just a few months ago-I was offered a leadership position! It's volunteer but my conference registration and half the hotel is paid for. So I have scrambled a bit to get the travel money, and plan the vacation that we 'wrap around" the conference.

So 5 ways I get ready to go?

LISTS! Written, and in Evernote, accessible from computer or tablet. (I don't have a smartphone..i use tablet instead) And since I keep my tablet next to the bed at night, I can update during the night if that's when I remember! And the inevitable written grocery list-- since we are driving we pack 'road snacks'. And my mental list of “today grocery store, tomorrow gas up the car...”

2) Google...maps, google search for parks, motels, restaurants on the way. Hubby & I have both spent a LOT of time doing this! He's been checking out Salt Lake City, as he is on vacation while I will be “stuck” in the hotel for the meetings :) 

I am checking out possible stops along the road there and back.

3) Packing and repacking...my clothes are folded and ready. And since we leave Sunday afternoon (after church, the Deacons meeting, a potluck and handing out VBS door knockers...) I have what I will wear to church ready to go too. When we get home we will change, pack toothbrushes and the cooler...and OFF we go!

4) Getting a pizza from our fave place at home...because we rarely find a great pizza while traveling. And we will get one from our other fave place when we get home...for the same reason :) 

5) Preparing myself spiritually is the hardest right now...a person dear to me (who is only 56!) has stage 4 cancer and is getting hospice care. She lives about 45 min from us, and we will see her before we leave, and again on our way home. It is possible that she could pass away while we are gone. I probably would NOT be leaving if I had known she was terminally ill before I got the offer for the leadership position. I admit to telling God I am pretty upset right now!!

So this trip especially, I have to be open to having my plans change. That's the hardest for me, I LOVE making plans. And I can be flexible-I can change at the last minute. I may grumble, but I can do it. But I have to have that plan to start off with-- a plan from which to deviate! And I suspect that our Loving Lord has a good laugh at all my planning...as there is a much bigger plan than I or any of us, can possibly envision.

I am humbled and honored to now be part of our denominational leadership. I never planned that! And to be able to travel to new places is icing on a really great cake. I appreciate the support of my family and church to help us make this trip! I appreciate your prayers for travel mercies. And I crave prayers for comfort for our family as we face the untimely loss of a loved one, especially for her, for her children, and grandchildren.

So my biggest “plan” is savor the moment, even the planning and the re-planning. To make sure I savor the day-even a cloudy rainy day, because we are only here a short time. I will take a lot of photos on the trip, as that's how I savor, and capture those moments for remembering later on. I  love to capture images of the beauty in nature and all around us, and hopefully help others see God's beauty through my photos. 

This photo is a duck family on the river at sunset. -part of my planning the other day was to take a walk!