“To see takes time, like to have a friend takes time.”

Since I am writing this from New Mexico, I should open today's blogging with Georgia O'Keeffe's "Red Canna." Sotheby's Auction House in New York sold "A Street" and "Calla Lillies on Red" for nearly $19.5 million combined on Wednesday.

In today's Brain Pickings blog Maria Popova explains that to Georgia,

Painting these close-ups was a way of learning to look, a way of removing the blinders with which we gallop through the world, slowing down, shedding our notions and concepts of things, and taking things in as they really are.

Read more here and see another painting by O'Keeffe.

"There is always infinitely more happening than what we see."

At A Holy Experience Ann Voskamp writes,

There are things happening that you see and so much more happening that you don’t and we could all stop saying it right now: “It is what it is.”

Because all is not as it seems. It is more. There is always infinitely more happening than what we see.

Read more here.

Too busy to notice?

Matt Brown writes today at A Holy Experience about how God could be doing many things in our lives, but we are only aware of two or three of them.

Isn’t this what Christmas teaches us more than anything?

That: God’s greatest mercies often come in the most unexpected packages.

The Christmas child born in the forgotten little town far away from the hustle and bustle of the earth’s important empires.

Even the little inn didn’t have a room, so He entered the world among the farm animals. And there was very little fanfare.

Yes, some angels did sing, but only some lowly shepherds and their sheep were around to catch a glimpse of the most historic and earth-shattering day in all of eternity.

Yes, some wise men sought Him and brought the Christmas child gifts based off their ancient foretelling and the path of the stars. There were hints along the way, but you couldn’t see it without looking.

The announcement was there, but you had to catch it. You had to care.

What if instead of worrying about the 10,000 things we have to do this Christmas season, we spent it looking for more of the 10,000 things God is already doing in our lives?

There are endless treasures (Ephesians 3:8) that have come to us in the Christmas child, but how often are we too busy to notice?

God wants us to have faith in His nearness, and that He will reward us when we earnestly seek Him (Hebrews 11:6).

Our eyes are so bleak sometimes. We all struggle with some degree of spiritual blindness.

Paul tell us, “Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.” (1 Corinthians 13:12)

Maybe this is why we will never stop worshiping the Christmas child in heaven – not to robotically follow along, not because singing is the only thing to do, but because the veil will be removed, and we will finally see…finally see God for the all-glorious, unbelievably infinite, soul-overwhelming Being that He is.

My friend Rich Langton explains, “God doesn’t just do good, He’s the definition of good. Everything we think of as good ultimately reflects Him!”

This is what it means to see – to become aware of God and His goodness and astonishing working all around us so that the things of this world grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace.

Seeing changes everything. We need God to open our eyes.

This is what the advent season is all about.

Looking with anticipation toward the Christmas child, and asking our Father in heaven to clear our foggy eyes so we can see some more…

“I pray your hearts will be flooded with light —

so you can understand the confident hope He has given to those He called.” (Ephesians 1:18)

Blinders

Seth Godin writes,

My friend Alan came over to dinner the other night. Unbeknownst to me, he had a few plastic scorpions in his pocket (a reminder of a recent adventure).

I saw a plastic scorpion on the bowl of nuts, but I didn't see it, I just moved it aside and went ahead preparing dinner. A few minutes later, I saw a second plastic scorpion on the counter, but again, I didn't actually see it, didn't pause or consider it, I just moved on. It took until the third plastic scorpion before I said, "huh."

This is one reason we feel the need to yell 'surprise' at a surprise party. Because we all have blinders on.

The people who are the very best at noticing what's happening notice it because they're looking.

"You can see a lot just by looking."

"S" words that lead to a life fully lived

Ann Voskamp has been using some "s" words the last two days in her blog. Today it is the Greek word sozo. Go here to see what it means.

Yesterday she started with the "s" word see. Are we seeing the gifts of God's grace moment to moment in our days?

The next "s" word was savor.

Seeing then slows into the savoring. Only when you slow and savor the moments, do you taste and see that the Lord is good.

If you don’t slow to count the gifts in the moments, God in the moments — when exactly will you taste and see that the Lord is good?

Whatever is going to happen this year — and who knows what is up ahead and how we need to be prepared — it is guaranteed to come down to this:

The enemy of your soul only has two battle plans. 1. Blind you to who God is. 2. And blind you to who you are.

The third "s" word was share.

Real seeing and savoring, it always widens into the sharing. Because ultimately?

Real gratitude cannot be contained — it can only be shared.

Real thanks giving always means giving expression to the thanks – on the lips, on a page, in a community, with your hands, your feet, your life.

There is no thanksgiving without thanksliving – it’s just thanksnothing.

Sharing the thanks — sharing the gifts — this is what divides the sorrow, multiplies the joy.

Let's see, savor, and share God's gifts today!