In the Still of the Night

This past weekend, my Honey and I made a point of stepping outside our routine, our norm, our typical way of doing things and God blessed us for it. I think we, people in general, get so busy and caught up in our chaotic worlds that we do not stop along the road of life to either smell the roses or truly rest.

        When eating dinner on the front deck on Saturday, my Honey said he was really enjoying the breeze and how pleasant it was out there. I suggested we sleep out on the deck. He normally shoots down that suggestion. I, however, have a treasure trove of good childhood memories of lying in a bed on the sleeping porch of my grandparent’s home on the bay. It was (still is) a house built on stilts for those little issues of flooding during hurricanes. I loved falling to sleep to the howl of the wind. To me, there is something primitive and basic to it that appeals to the core of me. I still prefer to have wind blowing over me even if it has to come from a fan. So I suggest from time to time, when the weather is conducive, that we take advantage of our elevated deck and sleep outside. I was pleasantly surprised when he agreed.   

        We set up our little tent in the waning light of dusk and moved a memory foam mattress into it for a comfy bed. The wind was strong (I was a happy camper about that!) and we had the window covers down so it flowed through the tent with ease. It was awesome.

        The best part was we walked away from doing the same old thing we always do and God treated us to a mini-adventure. No phones, no TV, nothing electronic whatsoever. It was beautiful. We took only our books and a personal mini book light to read by. Lying in the tent listening to the wind and the occasional coyote in the valley, it’s easy to revel in a oneness with God. Without our usual distractions to numb the mind and dissolve nature in the glow of TV, you appreciate the full moon and the One who created it.

        I felt closer to my husband in that little tent than I have in a long time. We were sharing an experience that had significant meaning to me. Nothing else could have meant more. No, it was no big deal or an exotic location or fancy meal or expensive hotel in the tropics. It was quiet time to simply ‘be’ together without interference from the world and her distractions. It felt like a blessing to me. In the stillness of the night under His canopy, God’s blessing was real and palpable.We enjoyed it so much, we left the tent up and did it again on Sunday night. Double portion of blessings!

Psalm 46:10He says, “Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”