An Oasis in the Desert
Expect the Unexpected Blessings of Joy this Season.
Awaken to a new season of Joy and Believe and Live Your Dreams …
My husband and I recently went for a weekend getaway to the southern California desert. If you have never been, there is nothing quite like being surrounded in the majestic canvas of the desert’s winter season. We left behind a cloudy sky and a light drizzle of rain on the coast to be welcomed by the snow-capped mountains and rugged hillsides dazzled in golden sunlight against a backdrop of pink and violet hues.
As soon as we arrived at our destination, we put our travel bags away and put on our walking gear to venture out on an afternoon hike to capture the early winter sunset. As we navigated through the rugged terrain on narrow hillside paths, we found ourselves at a plateau where we stopped to breathe deeply and embrace the beautiful 180 degrees vista of desert hills and valley landscape framed by the snow-capped mountains in the distance. The soft afternoon sun was washed with soft blues and light grays, giving one’s soul a God-given moment of gracious peace. This was a precious moment in time, as if a dream we had envisioned in our hearts was heard by our Heavenly Father and created -- beyond our expectations.
As we headed back to our location, taking in the quiet peacefulness of the sun setting, we began to whisper with excitement about tomorrow’s outing.
When we arrived at our room, the sun was dimming behind a beautiful hillside, casting spindles of orange cotton. I unbundled my outerwear, put on my favorite wrap and made a cup of tea to spend some time sketching and journaling the experiences of the day.
These words were put on my heart:
“One Day, we may choose to awaken to the calling from our Heavenly Father. He calls us to open our hearts and rediscover who he created us to be: beings surrounded by blessings and love in a joyous life. If we choose to awaken to this calling, a miraculous transformation will take place in our hearts and lives. As we choose to grow in this glorious transformation of God’s love, everything will begin to change around us as the eyes to our hearts open with a new optical vision of God’s everlasting love, compassion and kindness.”
After awakening to another masterpiece of a painting cast across the mountains and valley, we packed up our bags for a new adventure of unexpected discoveries and joy.
When we arrived at the gate of the state park, the ranger greeted us with a recommendation for a path that would lead us to running waterfalls, due to the recent rains. It was a perfect day for our hike with comfortably cool weather and the sun guiding us on our way. The first trek of our hike took us out through the valley floor and rocky red-colored hillsides with snow-capped mountains standing in a shield of majestic protection.
We came around the corner of our first trail and were greeted by an oasis of large date trees. We were both awe struck with this unexpected surprise. What a glorious blessing from God. We continued on with our hike through the Oasis and discovered the Seven Sisters waterfall guiding our way to the final point of our destination. We discovered a beautiful cove surrounded by more trees, plants and wildlife. A melody of sounds encircled us as we took in this gifted blessing from God.
As we sat basking in the afternoon sun with streaks of clouds dancing across the sky, I began to think that if we just open our eyes to our hearts we will see a greater day filled with cascading blessings from the heavens above.
We reached our way back to the entrance of the parking lot and turned around to take one last look at the landscape, with the afternoon sun changing the colors of the hills from soft reds to gentle greens and golds. We peered out a little further to see if we could get one last glimpse of the Oasis. Just seeing the tops of a few of the trees, we turned and looked at each other with big smiles of joy, thanking God for our unexpected surprise.
“Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty?” Job 11:7 (NIV)
When we arrived at the location where we were staying, we set out of the car and took one last look at the striking sunset painting that appeared before our eyes, as if created just for our enjoyment by our Heavenly Father. We settled in for the evening and I sipped on a cup of hot tea with my favorite wrap draped over my shoulders and began to pen my thoughts in my journal.
The next morning, we were awoken by another surprise of soft sunlight reflections on the landscape casting beautiful soft pastel hues around the room. After a leisurely breakfast, we packed up our car for the return home. The valley alight, my husband turned to me and said, “My dream came true. You see, I have always dreamed of sharing the rich treasures of the desert with you. And, our Heavenly Father knew of the dreams on my heart and created this amazing time for us to enjoy the winter desert, with the added unexpected surprise of discovering the Oasis together.”
We both looked at each other with smiles from ear to ear and peacefully gave thanks to God for our treasured time to experience the unexpected blessings of His love and joy.
Every day, we welcome in the unexpected miracles and joyous moments that God creates for us.
Maybe it is time for us to adjust our optics to our hearts. Let in God’s love and see how your vision increases tenfold as you begin to live a joyous life beyond your imagination.
“So we are convinced that every detail of our lives is continually woven together to fit into God’s perfect plan of bringing good into our lives, for we are his lovers who have been called to fulfill his designed purpose.” Romans 8:28 TPT
