Sacred Sense from a Second Look

By Phyllis Clark Nichols

Don't wait for burning bushes and flashes of light. God is present when you take that second look.

 

Do you ever wonder if God is there, really there? Do you ever wish God would show up and speak to you like He did to Moses or Mary? Is it possible that God is present and active in your life and you don't recognize Him? God shows up, but sometimes He shows up in unexpected places and in unexpected ways. God is present in the miraculous, and He is present in the ordinary. Through these vignettes and scripture readings, you will become more aware of His activity in your everyday-walking-around life. This devotional book will lead you to experience God and gain His sacred sense by taking a second look at your moments and your encounters where He is present. And as you begin to experience Him and see His activity throughout your day, your awareness of His presence will bring you a new focus on His goodness and blessings.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Phyllis Clark Nichols
• Release date: Jun 29, 2021
• ISBN: 9781736915738

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

Have you ever wished that God would just show up and speak to you? I know I have. I’ve wanted to be like Moses and hear and see God in a burning bush. Or to be like Mary when Jesus appeared to her at the Resurrection. I could go on with the Bible characters like Noah, Abraham, Elijah, and Paul who heard God’s voice. I have longed for that kind of experience.

One thing I have learned along the way is that God still shows up, maybe not like He did in Bible times, but often in ways and in places where we don’t expect Him. I have been grateful for guidance to help me know that God is present if I but look and listen for Him.

A number of years ago, my husband and I were out at Laity Lodge, a Christian retreat center in the Texas Hill Country. The Bible study leader challenged us to choose a God-Alert, something that would always remind us that God is near and that He is active in our lives. My theologian husband chose the wind, thinking of the Greek word pneuma, meaning the wind of God’s Spirit.

But I needed something a bit more concrete, so I chose the cardinal. I’ve always been fascinated by that winged, crimson bird. Maybe I like them because they’re so red and red is my favorite color, or maybe because he just stands out among all the other birds. Since I chose the cardinal as my God-Alert, we have bought feeders and special food to entice these songbirds. Bill even planted a rose garden after we learned they prefer building nests in thorny branches. These scarlet creatures have rewarded me with their presence for years. Knowing my fascination with these birds, my friends and family have gifted me with quite a collection of cardinals—hand-carved, wooden ones, porcelain ones, and glass ones. They are perched all around our home. And then there are the ones Bill painted for me!

I hope you’ll look carefully at the front cover of this book. It comes from an original oil painting Bill did for me as a gift. I cherish that painting of those two lovebirds sitting together on that limb. Cardinals mate for life, you know. But I hope you’ll take a real second look, for Bill painted the face of Jesus in the tree foliage. Once you see Jesus, you cannot unsee Him. That has such significance for me in this painting. But to see His face in the trees or to sense His presence in the dailiness of your days both require a second and deeper look.

My red-feathered friend is my God-Alert. I don’t think of the bird as God’s herald, or as an angel, or as a messenger from someone in heaven. I simply look at him as a reminder of God’s presence and activity in my life. I can tell you that little geysers of joy have sprung up from my heart at times when a cardinal came pecking on the studio window, like a tap on my shoulder reminding me that my Father is near. And even when I can’t see the cardinal, I hear and recognize his multiple melodies. I’m so grateful that God is still present, even when I can’t see Him, and I’m grateful that often His love is visible and audible to me through the lives of His other children.

The God-Alert led me to another practice, a practice of taking a second look at the ordinary scenes of my life. I confess I have often been so busy and absorbed that I would not have even noticed the cardinal unless he lit on my shoulder, and I certainly wouldn’t have taken the time to ponder an experience. But I have slowly learned that our days are made up of moments and scenes, and many of them can teach us something about ourselves, our relationships with others, and our relationship to God if we but take the time to look. And then there are those mesmerizing moments where we just soak up, enjoy, and take delight in the beauty of God’s creation.

In this book, I share vignettes from my life as a follower of Christ, as a wife, mother, grandmother, writer, nature-lover, traveler, and observer of people. Some of these readings describe an encounter I had with another person like my granddaughter, or Rosa, whom I met in the aisle at Sally’s Beauty Supply. Others are observations from God’s wonderful creation, sometimes in an exotic place, but most often from right out our back door in the Texas Hill Country. But these are scenes where I took a second look and discovered some sacred sense.

What is sacred sense? Sacred is a word that comes from the Latin word sacer and means something that is consecrated and dedicated to divine things. Something that is described as sacred is special or set apart, something that would require awe or reverence from the observer. Sacred is a word usually describing objects, places, or events and is sometimes used interchangeably with the word holy.

Sacred sense for me is that kind of observing, meditating, and pondering which is associated with God’s way, His Word, and His Truth. Sacred sense brings focus and balance, beauty, meaning, instruction, affirmation, inspiration, and a keen awareness of God’s presence and activity in His world. I hope you know God is present, always present. But the question is this—are you aware of His presence? Are you even looking for Him?

You’ll read the word ponder or pondering often in this devotional book because I like to ponder. I like to consider ordinary things more deeply and thoroughly. It’s almost a form of meditation for me. I wish I could tell you that every time I ponder something, I get a new revelation or a nugget of truth. I don’t. But just taking the time to really examine and reflect is usually meaningful or restful to my busy mind. Much of what you will read in this book comes from my journal entries as I pondered some meaningful experience.

I don’t know about you, but in this crazy world, I need reminders that help me focus on what is real, what is important, and what is eternal. Now I challenge you to choose a God-Alert – something to keep you focused and balanced, always reminding you of God’s great, deep, and wide love for us all. And my prayer is that as you read these reflections, you will begin to look at moments in your day differently. I hope you’ll take time for that second look and do a little pondering for yourself. It’s good for your soul. And I hope you’ll grab a notebook or a journal where you can record your thoughts, meditations, and sacred sense. More than anything, my prayer is that you will become keenly aware of God’s presence in the ordinary, and in that awareness, you will draw closer to the One who made you, who loves you more than you can imagine, and who wants you to see, hear, and know Him.

Happy pondering,

Phyllis

Sacred Sense

for Ordinary Days

DO YOU EVER WISH GOD WOULD JUST SPEAK TO YOU?

Do you ever wish God would just speak to you? I mean, so clearly speak to you that you’d know it was God with not even the shadow of a doubt. I do. And one morning I got my wish and my prayer answered.

Bill and I were having our morning devotional and prayer time, and I was telling God all about some things as though He didn’t actually already know about them. Confessionally, I was doing a whole lot of complaining about the state of the world, and God might have even understood that I thought He should be doing a better job.

Now as an aside so you’ll understand the rest of the story—I determined several months prior that I had nothing to offer in the political conversation that has kidnapped social media. I had become deeply saddened over some of the rhetoric from friends on both sides of the issues. I heard their frustration, and I felt my own. And honestly, a lot of my conversation with God on this particular morning was related to those issues.

God’s Word speaks to the issues of borders, boundaries, leadership, and responsibility. It also speaks to us about welcoming strangers. And Jesus Himself told us to go, to go into all the world. So how do we reconcile all that in an imperfect world? I truly was wrestling with these issues, trying to find some balance.

That’s when God spoke. Did I audibly hear His voice like Paul? No. Did He write a message on the wall like He did for Daniel? No. But He spoke so clearly to me through an urgent email from a friend, a retired nurse who does mission work in a village in Uganda. She was reaching out to find sponsors for a hundred Ugandan children who would be unable to start school the next week because they had no money and no sponsors.

It was as though God was saying to me, I’ll listen to your frustration, Phyllis. I’ll even listen when you tell me about the need for compassion in the world. But now would you listen to me? These are all my children, and I’m still in control. My work is being done, and I have plans. I’m inviting you to be a part of some of those plans for a few of my children in Uganda. You could work with Me to change their lives and their futures if you’re willing to be compassionate. Why don’t you be an agent of change?

It was so clear. I had no need to think or pray about this. God had already answered my prayer. I headed straight for Bill out in his workshop. (We always discuss things that involve money.) It took him even less time with his answer that we should help.

I do not write this to make you think I’m some super-spiritual person who’s got it all figured out. If you could have heard my private conversation with God that morning, you’d know differently. But I write just in case you might be thinking some of the same thoughts I’ve had lately, and you wonder what you can do to make a difference. There are ways—one life at a time—like the life of Abdu, who had been unable to attend school for the last year. His mother had cancer, and because his mother had become a Christian, they had been turned away by other family members. Abdu is just one boy in a village far, far away.

But there are other boys and girls far and near, hungry ones, orphaned ones, whose lives you could change. It is likely I’ll never meet Abdu or know what becomes of his life, but I’d like to think I might meet him in heaven one day and we’d recognize each other.

I’m praying God will tap you on the shoulder like He did to me. And I’m praying you’ll recognize His voice and cooperate with Him in His work in the world. Turning your frustration and sense of helplessness into action, compassionate action, is a good thing for the Abdus of the world and for yourself. You can BE an agent of change.

From the Sacred Word

There will always be some in the land who are poor. That is why I am commanding you to share freely with the poor and with other Israelites in need.

(Deuteronomy 15:11 NLT)

I have never coveted anyone’s silver or gold or fine clothes. You know that these hands of mine have worked to supply my own needs and even the needs of those who were with me. And I have been a constant example of how you can help those in need by working hard. You should remember the words of the Lord Jesus: ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’

(Acts 20:33-35 NLT)

You must each decide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. For God loves a person who gives cheerfully.

(2 Corinthians