Be Vigilant for Gradual

I’m sad to say that when I started this post a few weeks ago, I had no idea what the days ahead held, Covid being one. Tim and I have recovered and are back in the world again. But, the sickness did keep me down long enough that I missed getting my August post out early/mid-month. Instead, I’m posting on the heels of the end of the month! Then, when I did get back to writing, I had a lot to say. LOL! So, I am doing this post in two parts. 

This spring and summer have been the most vibrant green ever. I mean, even the yellow-green hues have been showing off. And don’t even get me started about driving under the canopies of greenery here in the mountains right now. I finally have a vehicle with a sunroof, and that might not be the best decision for me because I’m constantly looking out the sunroof at God’s paintings instead of focusing on the highway. Watch out if you see me coming!  

Back in the spring, I drove the kiddos and even a few of my colleagues crazy talking about the splendor of the trees. In fact, one student said, “Mrs. Woody! Enough! It’s a tree!” Now, he did say those words in humor while at the same time making the point I should move on from the tree discussion. Then, one morning, a colleague was so excited to share with me that she had seen a pretty tree. She said all spring, she had listened to me bragging about the beauty of the trees and that some trees were phenomenal while others were just mediocre. And then, she saw one! 

At the end of May, I went for my yearly eye exam, and that’s when I learned the trees really weren’t any more vibrant this year than they had been in the past. The Covid days were hard on my family. My husband, Tim, caught Covid in January 2021; of course, he shared. Covid was not as rough on me as it was on Tim. He ended up with an embolism in his lung. My focus from mid-January to May that year was on helping him recover. 

By then, I had begun to notice my eyes weren’t as well as they had been. Driving in the rain during the day was a struggle, and it was almost impossible to drive at night because the lines were nearly invisible. I went to see my optometrist, thinking I needed the prescription changed in my glasses. Never in a million years did I expect her to diagnose me with Adult Macular Degeneration (AMD). 

There isn’t a cure for AMD, but several medical studies support a vitamin regimen showing promising results. My optometrist immediately started me on the vitamins in 2021, and I am ecstatic to report they are working! I had no idea my improved eyesight this past spring was the reason for seeing beautifully hand-painted trees and gorgeous green grass. I just thought, WOW, God is really showing off this season. I didn’t fully comprehend just how much He was showing off. 

Hunter S. Thompson said the famous quote, “You can’t miss what you never had.” And for a while now, people have debated which side of the quote they feel the strongest about. Did I miss the beauty of boldness in colors? Yes. Did I know I was missing it? No. I didn’t recognize that things were dull and drab until the bright colors returned. I think slipping in my walk with God is like that sometimes. Life happens, and I often get caught up in doing this or that, running here or there, and before I know it, I’m missing the moments with God where I soak Him in, read His word, and drink from His Spirit. I might not even realize I’m missing it until I return to it.

Unlike AMD, there is a cure for when my relationship with God slips. It’s called getting back on my knees, sitting in His presence, and studying His word. It’s about having a relationship with the One who wants to have a relationship with me. Gradual is sly. It will sneak up in any shape or form if I’m not on guard, and it will slowly steal me away from God. The vibrant colors I no longer saw happened gradually, like how my walk with God can slip gradually, too. I pray I will be more vigilant for gradual because Peter warns in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.”

1. Goodreads. Goodreads, Accessed August 30, 2023. https://doi.org/https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/244661-you-can-t-miss-what-you-never-had#:~:text=Quote%20by%20Hunter%20S.%20Thompson%3A%20%E2%80%9CYou%20can%27t%20miss,%E2%80%95%20Hunter%20S.%20Thompson%2C%20Polo%20Is%20My%20Life.