Morning

Oh the deliciousness of a Satruday mornine lie in

the light weight of summer bedding

the heaviness of the dog snuggled by my side

the way the after dawn light

fills the room

and welcomes me gently to a new day

I relax into the decadence of a morning

not ruled by an agenda or a to list

allowing me the time and space

to breathe freely

and melt into the softness of the sheets

I sigh in gratitude

these occasional mornings are delightful

rest for a weary mind and soul

time apart from reality

this, I think, must be an earthly glimpse

of the vast heavenly kingdom

awaiting us all

Dawn M. Switzer

July 2023

God the Strength of My Heart

 Oh Lord, 

it feels as if I spend my days looking at my inadequacies;

the gap between 

where I am and where You made me to be

is so vast that I cannot see the way through

the dark and the deep.

I am frozen in my humanity.

Then I remember, 

You are my strength and song.

You call to me.

You show me the way.

You give me the stepping stones, 

one by one, 

to the end of my days.

Amen

A reflection on Joyce Rupp's "Fragments of Your Ancient Name" - August 6

little pieces

a reflection on Matthew 7:3

little pieces of dust
big pieces of wood
dust to dust, ashes to ashes
we all live with the dust and the wood

which do I pay attention to?
which do I focus on first?
the wood in my own eye
my flaws, my sin
is invisible until I purposefully stop to examine,
to assess, and then
to ask forgiveness
“The unexamined life is not worth living”
but taking stock, really looking
is hard
so much easier on the ego to point out
look at the dust you are carrying
yet where does that get any of us?

I can only look at life through my
own lens
of experience, not yours
mind your own beeswax – perhaps

 
but rather than withdrawing or judging
what if I seek to understand –
listen, ask questions, open space
for your story to be told
 
we all have a story that needs to be told
and, just maybe, when we tell our stories
stories with chapters of dust
and chapters of wood
we will see each other clearly
whole, human, children of God

in our bones

 

in our bones

A reflection on Shine – A Christmas Blessing by Jan Richardson

  

I feel it in my bones,

she would say,

when change was coming

and she was right

I feel it in my bones ~

an expression of deep-rooted knowledge

certainty

truths held close

treasured

 

Your light has come

Is coming

Will come

 

The light will bear itself into our bones

 

if we open our hearts

if we only say “yes”

with the certainty of faith

that it will be so

 

Come, Emmanuel

God with us

God with me

I feel it in my bones

and it is so

 

  

Dawn M. Switzer

December 28-29, 2022

Why did you....

 Sometimes I'm asked, "why did you put that photo with that scripture?" Some of my choices are obvious, and some are more obscure. Sometimes I have an immediate idea of what photo to use or go shoot when I choose the verse, and sometimes I scroll through photos to see what speaks to me from my (large) library of photos. 

I always hope in my choices to make you think a bit about the verse, the photo, and how it applies in your life ~ a starting point for meditation or prayer. If you ever wonder, please reach out.

For instance, yesterday's post was this:

NOVEMBER 20, 2022

The Lord of Heaven's Armies is here among us...

   -Psalm 45:7a      (NLT)

The photo is of our veranda through a dirty sliding glass door in the early morning. It is full of shadow and light; the dark of night giving way to the light of day. There's a hint of a sunburst in the upper portion of the photo. Ordinary items such as the chaise lounges and potted plants are seen. The lattice post provides space for the light to filter through. There's a glimpse of the sliding glass door on the left.

"The Lord of Heaven's Armies is here among us..." yes ~ in the shadows, in the darkness, in the light, in the dirty, in the ordinary, in the inside and the outside; among all of us. "The Lord of Heaven's Armies is here among us..." May we be like the lattice and let the Lord's light shine through.

Announcing....

The God Speaks in the little things ~ 30 days with the Psalms "zine" (book) is here!!! This project is a long time coming and I'm super excited to share it with you. I've taken 30 Psalm verses and 30 photos, paired them together, organized them, and created this zine. As with everything I've done with God Speaks in the little things, it was a leap of faith. 

The zines are for sale through me personally, and will be on my photography website next week. I will be at the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles convention this Friday & Saturday ~ November 11 & 12 ~ as an exhibitor. I hope to expand the reach of God Speaks and sell the books. The zines are $10 each, tax included.

I truly believe that God Speaks to us in various ways, but the everyday moments are where we can always hear God's voice & feel God's presence, if we slow down.

listen... & walk with him in the everyday

If you'd like to purchase a zine, please let me know. 

And thank you for your continued support.

Pumpkin Spice and Everything Nice

 I know many people push the reset button in January. New year, time to make adjustments. I think of Fall that way! Maybe it reminds me of "back to school" ~ all the new school supplies and clothes. Yep, I liked school. Fall always felt like a new start. That's where I've been focusing the last couple of weeks. I took a sabbatical from doing the God Speaks Daily Inspiration; we traveled to Gold Beach, OR (a beautiful, peaceful place); I went on a scrap retreat with friends.

I enjoyed my time away, but am so happy to return. I won't say I'm completely refreshed; I think I've had a good start. I'm going to continue on this reset journey throughout the Fall. Finding those things that make me & my soul happy and doing more of those. Trying not to turn my planner into a jumble of  appointments most days of the week. Creating a flow of life that celebrates the things that mean something ~ a lot ~ to me. Family, friends, Jesus, nature, creativity... not necessarily in that order. Want to join me for  a "back to school" Fall? Let's meet over a pumpkin spice latte & talk about it!