365 Days of Praise Challenge-Day 283

Off to a late start again... We got up this morning, looked at the time and scrambled into some clothes and headed down to Memorial Park for the hot air balloon launching for the Labor Day Weekend Annual Balloon Classic. We have come many times but it is still neat to be able to walk around and through all the balloons that are being filled with hot air and rising. Our favorites were the one with the snow leapord pictured on it and the one with the cross. There is something magical about seeing a hot air balloon lifting off up into the sky. Smokey the Bear balloon was new this year and very appropriate after the horrible Waldo Canyon fire we all were witness to. Like those hot air balloons, the Lord wants us to lift our eyes to Him and help lift the spirits of others. The balloon with the cross picture will always remind me of this.

Psalm 121: 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills-- where does my help come from?

365 Days of Praise Challenge-Day 59

I had this great analogy the other day when I was contemplating that word "reflection". I am not sure how this came into my mind but it started with a regular balloon and has grown into a big hot air balloon. Let me explain. We are the balloons. God breathes into the regular balloon and the more breath of God going into the balloon (us), the more we are filled with the spirit of God and rising towards Him. The hot air balloons really work well with this analogy. Have you ever seen hot air balloons take off? We have an annual hot air balloon festival in COS every labor day weekend and have loved seeing 20 some hot air balloons take off into the sky all at the same time. Hot air balloons have a big lighter so to speak that when clicked will create the flame and heat the air making the balloon rise. That flame is the Holy Spirit and the point is this just like they have to click the 'lighter' to ignite the flame, we have to 'click' the Holy Spirit every day, hour, minute. When we ignite the Holy Spirit, we are filled with that breath of God and are lifted higher and higher. I can't wait to create a scrapbook page about this!!! It's going to be so colorful and amazing. Thank you Lord for this wonderfully amazing visual analogy that you brought to me of how your Holy Spirit works in us.
Genesis 2:7 ...the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.