It’s been more cloudy than sunny this winter on our tiny island. And it’s been surprisingly refreshing. Because it’s not until that skies are shadowed that you truly appreciate the daily sunshine. Isn’t it funny how that works? That you get used to the good things, and even the best things, kind of forgetting their benefits.

I read an interesting quote this morning as I dig into the idea of the kind of Galatians-5:1-liberty-freedom that comes with a relationship with Jesus. It’s the kind of freedom from trip-ups and distractions and pressures that are “so blinding to the mental vision that it does not discern the majesty of Christ.”

Like those cloudy, tropical skies that mask the sunshine. I’ve been wrestling with the idea of pressure lately. Maybe it’s part of why I’ve been hibernating these last weeks – I’m feeling the pressure of the social media game that nobody has put on me but myself. And it’s so blinding my vision that I’m not discerning the majesty of Christ that comes with simple conversations like this. Like the ones I’ve been having the last few early mornings on the lanai with a dear friend who’s here visiting. The kind that say “hi, I’m still here and this is what God is up to in my life – right in the here and now.” The kind that get right into the deep and honest places.

The kind that sees a break in the clouds and His majesty shining through. Because the LORD is Spirit. And where the Spirit of the LORD is, there is freedom.” (2 Corinthians 3:17)