Look up and Love

markets on my holiday. I was walking around the markets and I saw this lady sitting in the thinker pose, you know, just staring off into the distance. And I walked up and she didn't see me for a long time until I got close to her, and then she looked up and smiled. And I said, which of the world's problems were you just solving? And she laughed and she said, oh, we're just getting ready to move house and we're moving from here on the Sunshine Coast down to Tasmania. I said, "Oh, what part of Tasmania are you living in?" And she said, "The Huon Valley." And she said, "It's so beautiful." And then I said, "Well, so you're thinking about the move and stuff?" And she said, "Oh, and just so much more, so many things." And this thought popped into my mind, something I saw on Facebook where Mike Lowe, a friend of mine, said that sometimes when his mind gets jumbled with his anger or his frustration, he has to stop himself and remember, "Stop thinking about my problems and just think about Jesus." for a little bit. Think about the person that I love who I know loves me back and that has saved me. And so he stops himself and he says, Jesus, help me to think about you for a while so that I'll stop thinking about my problems. And so I said to her, I said— and we talked for quite a while— and then I said to her, so do you have a faith? And she said, no, not really. And I said, do you have something that you love in particular, like your family or And nothing I said really gelled with her. And then she said, "No, I'm just so looking forward to moving down to the Huon Valley because it's so beautiful." And then I thought, "Oh my goodness, she loves nature." She's moving from the Sunshine Coast, which is absolutely beautiful, down to the Huon Valley, which is absolutely beautiful. And she's opening a shop that sells beautiful handmade things. And so I said to her, I said, You know, the reason I asked you about whether you had a faith is when we have something that's bigger than ourselves and we're able— something we love beyond ourselves and we're able to stop ourselves when we're looping, when we're thinking about the things that are getting us down and weighing us down and stressing us and causing anxiety, when we are able to focus up and to say, "I'm going to stop thinking about this and think about the thing that I love," right now. It helps us to recenter, helps us to be able to find our bliss and be able to relax and find ourselves again. And I said, you mentioned the Huon Valley, that you love it. You mentioned that you love living here. And I said, I think you love nature. And she said, oh, I do. I love nature so much. And I know in my heart and in my mind that nature is God's textbook. You know, he's created it for us, and it shows us His love. And so I know that if we spend time in nature, and you know this too, if you spend time in nature, it draws you closer and closer to who you feel you were meant to be. And that's because the Creator is— His identity is in us. He's created us in our image, His image, but it's also His creative powers in nature, and it re-centers us. And so I just wanted to leave this thought with you that I penned this morning. Every bend in the river, every branch in the tree, every drop of water that lands in the sea speaks of the Creator's love for you and me. Have a blessed day, and whichever of the world's problems you're trying to solve today, remember to look up and love.