Z – Zephyrs, Breezes from God {26 Surprising Ways to Encounter God, A-Z}
“The Spirit of God has made me,
and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
Job 33:4
Z—Zephyr
What is a zephyr?
A zephyr is a light breeze. On a hot day with stagnant air, you’ll notice even a small wind because it feels good. Same with a cold day; even a little wind can make you feel even colder.
But most days? The zephyrs blow right past us. We don’t even notice them.
God often is like a gentle breeze. If we’re not particularly warm or especially cold—life is running smoothly for us—we may not notice God breathing alongside us.
But in moments of extremity, we notice his winds.
And if we’re aware, we can notice his movement even in times of relative stillness.
God is always acting, moving, shifting the atmosphere.
- Zephyrs keep our lives from growing stagnant.
- Zephyrs stir us to move in new directions.
- Zephyrs cool us down and warm us up and remind us we’re not the ones in control after all.
I pray that you’ve felt God’s zephyrs blowing through your life these past 31 days. I have.
And I pray in the future we’ll live slow enough and sensitive enough to feel God’s movements—whether light or blustery—as he moves around us.
Try This
Notice the physical air around you. Hot? Cold? Calm? Breezy?
Take a deep breath, breathing in not only physical air, but God’s Spirit as well. Count your in-breaths and out-breaths for the next ten breaths, thanking God for the fresh spiritual winds he’s blowing your way.
Learn More
- Need to Catch Your Breath?
Use the wind to remind you to breathe in God’s grace. And breathe out his praise. - 5 Things I Learned from My Year of Deep Breathing
Ironically, in my year of Deep Breathing, both my parents took their last breaths. - Bill Nye the Science Guy on Wind
Watch this 2-minute video on how air gets pushed around.
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How have you felt God blowing around you lately? Please share in the comments.
We’re done! Thanks for reading 26 Surprising Ways to Encounter God. See the index of all the posts here.
- Week in Review and What’s Next {26 Surprising Ways to Encounter God, A-Z}
- On the Blog – October 2016
Are you excited that this is the last day of the month? I sure am! It was a fun 31 day writing challenge, but I’m looking forward to once or twice a week posting moving forward! 🙂
Yes, I am excited that this is the 31st! 🙂 You, too? I’ve got one more post I want to write for this week, then I’m back to maybe 2-3 times a week as well. We did it!
I’m glad I stopped by from #momentsofhope today! What a great way to feel God’s presence right where I am! And I love the call to take a few deep breaths focusing on God! We need more of that everyday. Looking forward to checking out the other 25 ways to encounter God!
Thanks, Nicole. I have to be reminded from time to time to just stop and breathe in God. Otherwise, it’s so easy to just go on with our day without pausing.
So wonderful to think of the movement of the Spirit as a zephyr! Unseen, except in His impact and the results!
Yes, Michele—unseen except in impact and results! Love that.
Ah yes… you are speaking my language here, friend! Breathing in… encountering God… two of my favorite things! Now that 31Days is over, maybe I can carve out some time and journey with you through all of the A-Zways to encounter God! (I wrote a 31 Days series on this a few years ago myself! I love this whole concept and I know we all need the reminder that it’s easier than we often think!)
Thanks, Karrilee. Glad we understand each other’s language. I love making connections between our physical worlds and spiritual worlds. I just have to be reminded to be intentional about it. I didn’t know you wrote a 31 Days series on this as well. I enjoyed writing this month, but am also ready to take a little break, at least from the dailiness of writing. 🙂
This is lovely, Lisa. I was thinking about breath this morning as I worked to get the fire in the wood stove going. Fire is so sensitive to air. Thanks for the lovely images.
Great connection between fire and air, Kelly. There are so many connections in the natural world that we can use in our spiritual lives. I love how God planted these here for us to explore!
Awesome post and series, Lisa. Truly a breath of God’s fresh air… make that a zephyr. Well done.
Thank you, Floyd. Finished for the month! 🙂 Taking a deep breath myself.
What a lovely ending to the 31 days, Lisa. 🙂 I’m praying with you that “in the future we’ll live slow enough and sensitive enough to feel God’s movements—whether light or blustery—as he moves around us.” Congratulations on finishing this series! I admire your determination and perseverance! Blessings and hugs to you!
Thank you, Trudy! I’ll receive your blessings and hugs. It was a fun series to write and experiment with, but I admit I’m glad it’s October 31 now. 😉 I do pray that God continues to give us all fresh encounters!
What a refreshing post! So glad I stopped by through #raralinkup. Great tip to ‘use the wind to remind you to breathe in God’s grace. And breathe out his praise.’ Thanks!
Thanks, Carlie. I went for a walk today and thought of this, too. The winds were very blustery, 20mph! Lots of grace. 🙂
Dear Lisa
I like breathing (I suppose we all do :D). For years I’ve used breathing exercises for relaxation and recently I suppose I’ve kind of Christianised those exercises. It makes God feel very immediate.
I love your Zephyr idea. Often if I am in a grim mood I will be hit by a sudden upward mood swing that seems to come from nowhere. From now on I’ll think of them as Zephyrs. God blowing a kiss.
I have really enjoyed your series! Lots of good ideas. My October has a few more days to go yet 😉
David
Thanks, David. “God blowing a kiss” – that’s a good way to look at those sweet atmosphere changes!
We have been in such a hot dry spell here in the south. it was 85 yesterday and we haven’t had rain since before Labor Day, but today, it was cooler. And yes, I noticed the breeze… it was light, cool and refreshing. Just like God’s presence!! Thanks for the reminder to look for Him!
We are in a drought in Alabama, too, and it’s started to feel so strange to never see rain! And still so hot. So those breezes are even more special when they do come. God definitely wants us to be reminded of him in all situations, and I’m looking forward to a good drenching of his grace hopefully soon. 🙂
Whoo Hoo! You did it! And you did it well, faithful servant! 🙂 A beautiful month of hope, Lisa ♥
Blessings and smiles,
Lori
Thanks, Lori. I admit I was glad when October 31 got here and the month of writing every day was over. 🙂
Yes, I feel God’s zephyr, but I’m not sure yet where it’s blowing me to (or maybe I’m in denial that I can move in that direction). Thank you for the reminder that it’s my job to MOVE.
Sometimes it is hard to determine the direction where the Spirit is wanting to take us. In those times I wish I could be like a dandelion and let him take full charge of every part of my life without me fighting him….