I’m really lucky and get to travel to Hawaii for work a couple of times a year. In my free time on those trips, I try to find opportunities to indulge in one of my favorite hobbies – surfing.

One of my favorite spots to surf in Hawaii is a break off Waikiki Beach on Oahu called “Canoes.” It is crowded and filled with tourists and is named “Canoes” because of the outrigger canoes that often surf the waves there right next to the people on regular surfboards. I’ve had to dodge more than a few of those canoes in my time in the water there.

It is a bit of a crazy scene but there is also something special about it. The warm, crystal-clear water, the gentle breeze, the long, easy-to-ride waves and Diamond Head watching over it all in the background. It’s really a classic Hawaii setting.

On my trip this last April I was fortunate to carve out a couple of hours in the water there.

A couple of weeks before the trip I read a blog post by John Eldredge where he talked about how God creates scenes filled with the things we love just for us, to draw us to him. In the post he says,

“Every wonderful thing in your life is a gift from God, an expression of his heart towards you.”

Warm, sunny weather and water – especially the ocean – have always resonated deeply with me. Add a tropical climate, good waves and make the water warm and it is about as close to heaven on earth to me as you can get.

As I sat on my board at Canoes in April, waiting for my next wave, I realized it is was one of those God-created scenes Eldredge was referring to. I felt like God was saying, “I made you, I know you and I created this moment just for you.”

Then it hit me that surfing- especially in Hawaii – makes me feel so close to God that it is like a dance with him.

When I’m in the ocean I’m immersed in beautifully warm water, basking underneath sunny, clear blue skies. He creates each wave, which is dynamic and unique. Each one he sends towards me is a gift, a new invitation to move with him and I ride them in response to the movement he creates. It is an incredibly intimate experience!

Eldredge suggests that noticing these loving expressions of God is a key to our ability to connect with him and receive him.

I admit they too often pass me by and I don’t notice them. It seems like it takes something epic like surfing in Hawaii to wake me up to their existence. Maybe you can relate.

These loving expressions occur in the everyday too. We just need practice tuning into them.

Eldredge has some suggestions for how to start.

“Start with something you love. The laughter of your child. Sunlight on the ocean. Your beloved dog. A favorite song; music itself. Perhaps a photo. A favorite spot—your garden, the cliffs at the sea, the family cabin. Someone dear to you. We begin with the things we love; this is the way back, the path home. For we don’t always draw the connection—God made these specifically for you, and gave you the heart to love them.”

How is God trying to draw you back today? What are the things he has specifically made for you? I hope you’ll to join me in this endeavor to notice these good, God-curated things all around us and connect with our creator on a deeper level.