“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
    and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
    for those who love him.” – 1 Corinthians 2:9

I ran toward the edge of the hill through the soft grass, leaning into the breeze, feeling it against my face, fresh and invigorating, drinking in the oxygen. A tinge of excitement pulsed through my body, every nerve ending anticipating the moment. Suddenly the ground dropped off quickly in front of me and I threw out my arms, lifting effortlessly into the sweet weightlessness of flight, soaring out and up, over the fields, over my home, over the school, over the town, out beyond the harbor, off toward the white cliffs of Dover…

When I woke up I could feel myself smiling. This is a dream I could get used to.

No limits!

We all know I love the birds who visit our garden at Maul-Hall. I think it’s a mixture of their incredible beauty, their consummate grace, and the fact that the little guys are so difficult to photograph. The birds swoop in, take a quick look around, and then take off the moment they see a camera. I need a telephoto lens, a steady hand, and the good fortune to be near a window with my Nikon nearby when the opportunity presents itself.

Then there’s the whole flying thing. Of all the super-hero or extra-human capabilities I ever dreamed of, flying always comes in at number one. The dream, the one I described at the start of this post, has been around since I was a small boy. Not often, but persistent. Yes, once in a while I dream of falling, but mostly I soar – it’s the most wonderful idea imaginable.

Sometimes I wonder if such a dream is partially a memory from before I was born or maybe some kind of prescience as to what is to come? I wonder if I will be able to fly? I wonder if the dimension we inhabit in eternity will even involve gravity?

I have so many questions.

For today, heading up Capital Boulevard to WFPC for morning worship (9:00 and 11:15) my adoration of God is in part shaped by my deep realization that life is always bursting with spectacular possibilities we have not yet imagined and that my comprehension of what it means to be so loved is multiplied every day because of God’s reaching into this world and into my life.

• “No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
      and no mind has imagined
  what God has prepared
      for those who love him.”

And if all of that involves a little personal flight time, then so much the better – DEREK