On a Sunday afternoon (and often during the week), I like to stop and wile away some time sitting on my deck.

We live in a little home on the side of a hill that looks over a valley (which is being filled ever increasingly with new homes) and across to mountain ranges.

It’s a pretty sweet view and as I simply sit, I find that looking over to the distant mountains and up to the kaleidoscope of colours in the sky, I feel such peace and contentment.

I am able to breathe and take it all in and enjoy the moment. Before long, I find my thoughts drifting. I start to process all the things that are weighing on my mind. I unpack my worries, my mistakes, my burdens. I speak them out quietly, under my breath, almost as a prayer, and then I begin to find clarity and solutions in the solitude.

I figure out what is important and what is insignificant. I analyse the positives and negatives of decisions that need to be made. I sometimes get answers in the gentle breeze that floats past or the specific bird song that resounds above the others, almost like a God whisper.

In other words, I guess what I do out here in this little spot on me deck is a form of meditation. (See pg 147 & 148 of Timothy Keller’s book – Prayer)

This deck has seen conversations and cuddles; food preparation & consumption; journal writing, book writing and readings; pedicures, manicures and hairdos; candles, marshmallows and drinks; scorching sun, blustering wind, icy hail, furious rain and gentle breezes; tears & laughter; heartache, pain & sorrow; joy, peace & love. If the deck could write a book, oh the stories it could tell.

There’s just something about this environment, the nature that surrounds and/or the view above the houses and the noise that does something for me. It’s my special place, my haven, my solitude, my home.

It’s where God meets with me and I commune with Him. Where I have learnt to stop and capture a breath, a whisper, a moment that has the potential to change everything. It’s my safe place, my peace.

Do you have such a place where you go to meet with God? Where do you feel closest to Him and in His presence? What are your thoughts on meditation? When was the last time you just stopped and took a moment to breathe, process and enjoy your surroundings?