Joy, Laughter, and Lift Off!
"The seas have lifted up, O Lord, the seas have lifted up their voice, the seas have lifted up their pounding waves." Psalm 93:3 (NIV)
Last Saturday was a day of pure joy. For the first time in what seemed like a year (it was actually only two months!) my two oldest granddaughters, Julia (8) and Caroline (6) came to visit for the day. Caroline loves all things flowers and my hydrangeas and gardenias were in full bloom. We grabbed a basket and some garden shears and headed to the yard to cut flowers and take pictures. We brought the flowers inside and I found some extra vases. The girls enjoyed helping me make some small arrangements to take home and then headed back outside.
Our house is on a circle so it's a good place for riding bikes. Caroline and Julia began riding their bicycles. It wasn't long before two neighborhood children joined them with scooters and skates. The sounds of children's laughter and joy filled both the air and my soul. Weeks of quarantine, politics, deaths, riots, protests, stress, anxiety, and fear had taken its toll. Sitting in my swing, watching those children play was medicine for my anxious mind and heart.
Together the children asked if they could have a picnic lunch. I spread a tablecloth on a back deck table and fixed plates of sandwiches and fruit. After lunch, the children resumed their playing while I prepared and baked a fresh apple pie. Apple pie is one of Caroline's favorite foods. Her Mama describes Caroline as a "comfort creature." She likes warm compresses, bubble baths, and comfy pjs. With apple pie, Caroline usually declares, "Ummmmm! Mia, this tastes like apple cider!"
Julia had actually asked me to teach her how to make an apple pie. It's really easy if you follow the recipe for Perfect Apple Pie on the Pillsbury Pie Crust box! The kids were still playing on the circle and Bruce told me to "give it up" on the baking lesson. A little disappointed because I had planned to teach flower arranging and baking to the next generation in one day, I went ahead and made our apple pie while the girls played outside.
About 2PM Julia and Caroline came inside and asked if we could watch the manned SpaceX launch. We gathered around the tv and watched the countdown, unsure if the scheduled launch would actually take place. While we waited I told the girls my "where was Mia when the first man landed on the moon" story. My sister and I were actually laying on rafts in Logan Martin Lake when Mama called us in to watch Neal Armstrong on a grainy black and white tv. The girls happily ate apple pie and ice cream while we counted down to launch.
As the launch count down reached under a minute, the girls got really excited. Quite honestly, Bruce and I did too. The countdown continued: 10, 9, 8... Julia got more excited and counted louder 7,6,5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and then "Lift off! We have lift off!"
All eyes were glued to the images on the screen. And as we watched, the reporters showed the footage of all the people on the ground at the Kennedy Center watching too. All eyes were up straining to view the space rocket as long as possible. But unlike our 1969 black and white grainy image, the images displayed from the SpaceX launch were crystal clear. We had a view out the capsule's front window to see what Astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley were viewing. We watched two separations and one Falcon 9 rocket recovery on a drone ship. And much like the 1969 landing on the moon, I will always remember where I was and what I was doing when America re-entered manned space missions.
My "Eyes Up" 2020 sacred echo continued with the SpaceX launch, but it didn't end there. I've been reading through the Psalms this summer and I've been stunned to see the number of times the words "lift up" are recorded there. The Hebrew word for "lift up" is "nasa." Here are just a few examples:
We will lift up our banners in the name of the Lord. Psalm 20:5 (NIV)
Lift up your heads , O you gates; be lifted up..that the King of Glory may come in. Psalm 24:7, 9 (NIV)
I lift up my hands toward your Most Holy Place. Psalm 28:2 (NIV)
In your name I will lift up my hands. Psalm 63:3 (NIV)
I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord. Psalm 116:13 (NIV)
I lift up my eyes to the hills- where does my help come from? Psalm 121:1 (NIV)
But one of my two favorite "lift up/nasa" verses was today's verse Psalm 93:3. Three times in one verse the Psalmist remembers how the ocean's waves have lifted up their voice to the Lord. I was excited to see the lift up sacred echo, but I had to stop and ask, "How does the sea do that?" The unknown Psalmist answers my question with the next verse, "Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea- the Lord on high is majesty. Each crash of the seas' waves is meant to remind us of God's majesty and might.
And my favorite lift up verse? Psalm 146:8 "The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down." God has His own lifting up- nasa- for those who humbly worship Him. Read through the Psalms, look for the 'lift up' sacred echo, and remember to keep you eyes up.
Eyes up! For our good and God's glory.
Amen and Amen,
Donna