I know it's highly unorthodox to speak of God screaming. If there is a God, doesn't He just whisper on the wind or float around in silence, perceived only through some form of mental telepathy? In my life I have experienced His presence and communication in many ways...but I am no mystic so sometimes, He screams. No, it isn't audible to the human ear but to the mind, it is deafening. "I AM HERE. I AM REAL. I MADE YOU. I LOVE YOU. YOU HAVE A FUTURE WITH ME".
A few years ago we took a trip to Zion National Park and could not wait to hike back into the cliffs. Day one was drizzly but my husband and kids found a hidden pool and jumped in. Behind them a sheered rock wall imposed, exposing layers of  earth that would go unseen were it not for a catastrophic event. Something had happened in that place long, long ago to crack the massive wall and carry it away. So of course, being creationists, we discussed the flood. To us, the formation was a divine scream. It was a one of those life moments even my clown fish memory won't forget...I hope. As we returned to the parking lot, a double rainbow (God's sign of promise after the flood), vibrant and complete, arched itself over the very spot we had just been. Coincidence? Not to me!
This is one story in an endless train of stories from my life of God's clear communication:  "I AM HERE. I AM REAL. I MADE YOU. I LOVE YOU. YOU HAVE A FUTURE WITH ME". Yet, there have been long desperate stretches of His silence too, so it is with understanding and not ignorance that I write. In these times, I have clung to His Word; waiting and hoping for the scream to come again.
Genesis is the perfect book to study when wrestling with the issue of believing in or hearing from God. God first spoke through creation...then His presence...then His messengers...then His people...Then His Word and through it all, His Son. So much God talk in one book!
All of the research in the world and throughout history
cannot disprove God
If you begin
by hearing His voice.
"In the beginning, God..." Genesis1:1

Seven. A crow, a woodpecker, and at least five other birds interrupted my quiet yesterday with declarations that they too made it through the winter. Does it mean youth is fading when you start counting bird calls? Beginnings and the number seven and color exploding from broken and tangled limbs...it all made me want to study Genesis.
"In the beginning God..."- The great human saga had a point of initiation. There was an act that kicked off time and the initiator was God.
Kings and peasants, politicians and scientists, no-names and big names, artists and musicians have spent  millennials arguing for and against Him. No matter,
"Before the mountains were born or you gave birth to the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God." Psalm 90:2
Knowing and believing the truth of this verse, must start at the beginning.

Show-off!

Finally, a hint of pink on my earliest blooming tree...
A few years ago we lived by a park. It was a time when I had to discipline myself to celebrate the evidence of God's goodness around me and walks in the park gave me inspiration. I wrote this little poem:

I love the park in spring,
when petal-strewn paths
are pinkified
and I
meander mystified
by God
in nature glorified
I love the park in spring.

Romans 1:20-21a "For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks..."

There is a good God showing off every day. He, through creation, says "Look at me! Watch this...aren't I amazing?"  He should; because He is.  The evidence of His ways of thinking, feeling and acting are always perfectly designed and timed. They may take a little more looking to find on some days but when you do, it's divine.
Yes, God is a show-off. And we are the lucky ones.
Look for Him today, offer thanks and then go help someone else enjoy the show.

Lift off...

I'm a beggar. There was a time when I didn't dare beg God for anything (except maybe forgiveness) and then a friend said: "You don't know all that God wants to give you...why not ask?" so I was inspired to pray for a house, and God said, "yes". That was about all it took for me to form a new theology: "Ask".
The asking commenced.
Over the years I've asked God for anything and everything from beating my husband at backgammon (because it would do him good to lose), to reconciled marriages of friends, to miracles of physical and spiritual healing. But sadly I find myself begging Him for money to a shameful excess. That's how money is; there are always new reasons to need it. This week was no exception. We just could not make those records work. Thinking about money weighed me down all week!
Until this morning.
A milky mist had settled around us in the wee hours and I awoke to white in every direction.
It gave the illusion that the house had lost its grip on earth during the night.
It was "other-worldly".
It made me think of Heaven.
Remember Heaven... that place God promised to bring us when our soul loses its' grip on earth? ( John 14:2) Remember how He promised that all that belongs to His son, we will also enjoy? ( Romans 8:17) Remember how He warned us that what we pour our resources into now, affects what we will enjoy in the future? (Matt. 6:19) I think perhaps much of my begging comes from trying too hard to make the here and the now as heavenly as possible.  1 Pt. 2:11 (The Message) "Friends, this world is not your home, so don't make yourselves cozy in it."
Randy Alcorn writes in his book, The Teasure Principle : "God wants people so filled with a vision for eternity that they wouldn't dream of not investing their money, time, and prayers where they will matter most. He who lays up treasures on earth spends his life backing away from his treasures and has reason to despair. He who lays up treasures in Heaven is daily moving toward them and has reason to rejoice."

"For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of faith; take hold of the eternal life to which you were called..." 1 Timothy 6:10-12a

How do I "take hold"? One way is letting go of the green stuff!

Why "Finding Daphne"?

"Finding Daphne" comes from my own story of victory with the Lord. Everyone fights battles, whether internal or external. And the battles are all a part of the process of discovering who God is, who we are, and the relationship between us. Because I believe life's lasting victories only come through Christ, I write to share God as my champion. I have won by being won. Hopefully, through my shared thoughts and experiences, others are encouraged; encouraged to stop fleeing and stop fighting the One who always wins.

With this post, I am initiated into the "blogger" family, having defected from tumblr! You may read past posts for a while on: jcarnuccio@tumblr.com