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O God, we thank you for this earth, our home;
For the wide sky and the blessed sun,
For the salt sea and the running water,
For the everlasting hills
And the never-resting winds,
For trees and the common grass underfoot.
We thank you for our senses
By which we hear the songs of birds,
And see the splendor of the summer fields,
And taste of the autumn fruits,
And rejoice in the feel of the snow,
And smell the breath of the spring.
Grant us a heart wide open to all this beauty;
And save our souls from being so blind
That we pass unseeing
When even the common thornbush
Is aflame with your glory,
O God our creator,
Who lives and reigns for ever and ever.
Walter Rauschenbusch, 1861 –1918, New York Baptist Pastor, Social Gospel
_____________________
Praise the Lord!
I will give thanks to the Lord with my whole heart,
in the company of the upright, in the congregation.
Great are the works of the Lord,
studied by all who delight in them.
Full of splendor and majesty is his work,
and his righteousness endures forever.
prayer & verse 
One of the things I miss about New England is the sheer beauty of its landscape. I am learning how to see the beauty of the mid-west but it takes more work. I also find great delight and joy in nature and use it as a vehicle for praise. My son who tackles serious hikes in national parks said that he feels closest to God when he hikes. My legs won’t allow me the rigors of hiking but I fully can understand how impactful that is to him.
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