Is Being Awestruck Contagious?

Yes, I believe it's true. I had evidence of it this morning. The K-6 school day begins pretty early in these parts, and anyone who knows me knows that I'm not fond of waking my children at 5:30 a.m. to be ready and on the road to school by 6:45 a.m. Today, it was very nearly impossible to get the kids up and at 'em, but I did, and we were only running a few minutes behind. I hadn't given God even the semblance of a "good morning," and when I neglect Him this way, He finds a way to get my attention. This particular morning was no different except that my eldest child, Kailey, got to witness it. We were driving to her school after dropping off her brother and sister at their school. The road is hilly and winds through the countryside, and has a great view of the eastern sky when the trees are robbed of their leaves. The sun was beginning to come up, but clouds were closing in and doing their best to blot it out. Or so I thought. God had other plans for the clouds and sun this morning, and He was going to show me just what He had in mind. I rounded a curve, glanced to my right, and saw the most incredible hues of pinks, blues, oranges, and purples lighting up those clouds, the sun itself not quite visible except for the blood orange-red at the horizon. The purple was like nothing I'd seen before at that time of day, as I'd only really seen that color in the sky at twilight. I gasped audibly, alarming Kailey, who thought there must be a deer trying to sacrifice itself on the hood of my truck. She looked at me, tears in my eyes, my face lit by the sunrise, and I told her to look. She gasped and looked back at me, tears in her eyes, and said, "God's so awesome." She took the words right out of my mouth.

I dropped her off at school, and drove south toward work, spying that ever-changing sunrise as I drove. He got my attention, and floored me in the process. He knows just how to do it, too. I've been convinced all day that He created that sunrise just for me this morning, and no one will be able to convince me otherwise. He wanted my praise at that exact moment. He wanted me to remind me of how mighty I know He is, and He wanted me to proclaim it. Proclaim it not just for myself, but for Kailey, too. He affords me opportunities to teach my children about Him, to show them that He's more than the stories they read in the Bible or hear in church on Sunday. To show them how He moves me, how He's real for me and can be for them, too. How, when one least expects it, He announces his presence. In the past, He's had to tap me pretty hard on the shoulder to get my attention. Today, however, He got my attention with the silence of a sunrise. How does He get your attention?