Today my heart is easily stirred by beauty.
A miniscule rainbow held in a tiny drop of water suspended in the grass below.
A robin flying overhead, then dropping down for a bit of lunch in the back yard.
Treetops softly swaying in the slight breeze, singing into the subtle wind.
Peonies filling my nose with their fragrant song.
A soft rabbit munching on clover.
Sunbeams warming my face.
Each thing of beauty touches my heart in a different way, causing me to pause and say “Thank you” to its amazing Creator.
My heart wasn’t alway so easily stirred. There were years where any sort of stirring was tamped down tightly, not allowed to be free.
Fear told me that allowing the stirring freedom would cause me to be overcome. I would be undone, unable to be put back together again. I fought for control, and my heart became a mountain of granite.
Granite doesn’t stir, even when hurricane-force winds howl around it.
Granite doesn’t stir, even under torrential rainfall.
Granite doesn’t feel. Granite just is.
In fighting away the fear, the hurt, the anger, and the disappointment, I ended up losing the joy, the peace, the patience, the kindness, and the connection to others. I was locked tightly behind the walls of protection I had built for myself.
I felt nothing. I just existed.
But one day a bright, warm light made its way through a crack in my wall. My heart hear the sound of its Creator, and began to beat again in the warmth of his voice. His love softened the granite-hard rock, and miraculously I began to feel.
I felt unending unconditional love. I felt safety and peace beyond what my mind could fathom. I felt joy beyond what any circumstances could explain.
The walls of protection I had built began crumbling. God had begun a new work in me, as He had promised long before I was born.
And I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit in you. I will take out your stony, stubborn heart and give you a tender, responsive heart.
Ezekiel 36:26 NLT
And today? Today my heart is easily stirred by beauty.
This post is part of the Five Minute Friday link-up, where Kate encourages us to set a timer and write for five minutes. Check it out, and join in the fun!
Confession: I took longer than five minutes to write this–Covid brain is slowing me down a bit, but it feels good to write.
Lauri Hawley 
You have written a lovely post. I can’t wait for winter weather to end and spring to begin
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you. I am so feeling the same! I go out every morning now to search for signs of flowers peeking out of the soil in my garden. Soon and very soon! 🌼
LikeLike
Wow! That was so lovely. I can’t wait for it to stop snowing and Spring weather to come. I will take time to enjoy the beauty all around me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, there is plenty to appreciate in the waiting! 😊
LikeLike
It is so easy to overlook the beauty around us. I love having pretty flowers in front of my house so I can be greeted with beauty after being out in the “hustle and bustle” of every day.
LikeLiked by 1 person
They do have a quieting effect, don’t they? 🌸
LikeLike
Laurie, this is such a beautiful post. Thank you for sharing. Blessings.
FMF#19
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for your encouraging words. 😊
LikeLiked by 1 person
Such a beautiful testimony! Thank you for sharing! 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you! 😊
LikeLike
This is a beautiful post! I love how God gently dismantles our walls of protection to allow us to feel and live and be stirred by beauty! Visiting from FMF #17
LikeLiked by 1 person
Yes, he’s so gentle and kind to us.
LikeLike
This is such a beautiful post! I really relate to trying to break through the stony heart to find one that is stirred toward nature and my Creator. I’ve been there and it’s a cycle I’m spinning in now. It’s so much easier to see the beauty in nature and to be stirred when we get outside on our own! Thanks for the reminder 🙂
LikeLiked by 1 person
I’m glad it helped. 😌 I went back outside after writing, and discovered even more treasures…a Baltimore Oriole pair, and leaves shimmering in the sunlight as if they’d been dipped in gold. There’s so much to see!
LikeLike