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Going after beauty on the journey.

Beauty.

Two branches in full bloom. Different, yet the same. Flowers. Fragrance. Sweetness in the midst of darkness.

One a clock in the night in Fortaleza, Brazil. Walking along the streets in their “Red Light District”. Arrested by the beautiful fragrance in a place with so much stench. A dark street carrying a treasure.

Ten in the evening in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Visiting women on display in windows. Distracted by beauty and fragrance of a simple flower. Stopping to take it in.

Places so incredibly different, yet so much alike.

And in the midst of the fragrance I am reminded that the women are also treasures waiting to be found. Yet they were never lost by God who always sees them.

Reminded to seek after beauty and not gaze on darkness.

Transition. I’m in the midst of it and I wonder how to define it. I guess part is remembering. Remembering what has been. Processing. Thanking Him for what has passed. Remembering so that it can be released and I can step forward without the “was” holding me back and slowing me down.

Transition. I had a good week and a bit in Norway. Thankful for time with friends and family. Thankful for the beauty. Sometimes my eyes need a detox. A detox from being surrounded by everything that makes up a Red Light District that invades your sight even when you’re not looking. Norway is a good detox place with such incredibly beauty everywhere.

Beautiful beach. Walking along the beach and being reminded of huge God and little me. Reminded of the Creator who thought to put a boundary for the waves so that they wouldn’t flood the land. Reminded of a loving God whose thoughts are more numerous than the grains of the sand I am walking on. And He thinks about me. And He thinks about those I carry in my heart.

Beauty that brings delight. Beauty that refreshes the heart.

Arriving back in Kansas City. Desiring to “gaze on beauty”. Looking for beauty; beauty around me. Looking for the beauty of God. Longing to see it and let my heart become in awe of the One who is the most beautiful.

And so transition, which by definition is an in between state, becomes a leg of the journey, a bridge. And on this leg of the journey there is also purpose. There is an invitation to not look ahead for what is to come, but rather be fully in the now. Being intentional in taking in all that is available right now and living today. Remembering that at the end of the day it’s not about the destination but about the journey.

A journey seeking for beauty along the way.

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