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In the Beginning...

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2, NIV)
Stepping outside with my dogs, wind swirled around me, gentle and cool—a perceptible reminder that Autumn was nearing. My dogs sniff around leaves that have already fallen, changed in color to a golden hue. Beneath our feet the uneven hard ground, softened by thick grass, spreads out before us. My dogs, like little cows or goats, nibble tips off the ends of the grass blades as they walk. The sky above me is azure intermittently marked by puffs of white-cotton clouds. The butterfly bushes I planted last year are in full bloom and surrounded by bees and butterflies. My marigolds have not fared quite as well having the buds chewed off by the resident groundhog who lives beneath our front porch. Thistles have sprung up in the tight spaces between all the plants in my garden just to remind me that life on earth is not my creation. I have let them grow to feed the Chickadees and Finches. This is the slice of earth I live upon. It is old, created long, long before me. It has been filled up, but once upon a time it was formless and empty; it was dark—devoid of sun and devoid of life. Yet amid this darkness, there was heaven and the Spirit of God—there was hope and guidance amid the dark and formless.

As I walk my dogs, I am drawn to thinking about beginnings—both that of Earth and of the many beginnings in my life. When I think of the beginnings of Earth I think of God’s majesty; God’s glory. I think about how right from the very start, the Holy Spirit was present. And in these great beginnings, God created something from nothing.

When I think of the beginnings in my life they start with just a kernel of an idea or thought, with Logos. Whether it is a blog post or a relationship, the beginnings are murky, dark, and deep with no form. They are guided by the Spirit—at least if I am listening right. In this God creates through me. God is perpetually creating through us and on earth. It is just the beginning…
Heavenly Father guide me to listen to your Holy Spirit as I venture forward in my beginnings, whether it is the first step I take in the day or the first word I speak. In Jesus’s name, Amen

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