It has been way too long since I last posted. It seems that I near cloistered myself in my writing studio and hardly came up for air. Well, here I am.

I had the honor this week of having one of my essays published in Ekstasis, the literary magazine of Christianity Today. It appears in their Winter Collection.

The name of the essay is Sheltered by the Beautiful. I hope you enjoy it.

Serendipitously, my daughter Abbey had an essay published in the very same issue. Her wonderful piece is entitled Theatre of the Mind. Please take a look.

My apologies for not posting more regularly, but I confess I have been hard at work writing. The results have been good – three novels, numerous short stories and essays, and a fair amount of poetry. I look forward to sharing much more in the future, but I will leave it at that for now.

Is this a season of isolation or is it a pathway out into the wide wonder of the trails?

Whether you’re a trail runner, an avid hiker, or just quietly meandering along the forest paths looking for a bit of alone time, my guess is that you are getting out beneath the blue heaven. Does it mystify you? Does your heart leap forward savoring the beauty? Yeah, it is the same with me. It’s just wild, but I love to breath deep and gaze out far across the woodlands and the water. It makes me celebrate and almost laugh with joy.

You may enjoy my book “Laughter Near the Edge of Heaven”. I share my thoughts and reflections as a trail runner and lover of nature. Come along with me and share beauty. There is so much to see.

Available on Amazon: bit.ly/NearHeaven

Author’s website: http://www.henrylewiswriter.com

#trailrunner #nature

We face mind-bending challenges. How will we meet them? Some will lead and others will help with all their might. We must be encouragers of others, helpers and kind, spreading joy and hope, and lending a good word along the way. So, let us go together. Let us overcome the obstacles that confront us. Take heart. Be encouraged. It’s time to run hard and true.

In the midst of the storm, we can still find beauty and wonder.

On long trail runs through the forest when the miles seem to overcome me, it is then that I often stumble into the most profound beauty and wonder.

Here are my thoughts – bit.ly/NearHeaven
Author’s website – bit.ly/HenryLewisWriter

#trailrunner #nature #heaven

You have the time to see heaven.

Whether you are a trail runner, a hiker, or just love walking in the woods; if you love the wonder of creation and the beauty of the outdoors; if you love finding the fingerprints of God in the most delicate blossom in spring or the majesty of the mountains, you will enjoy this book.

Come on the journey “Sometimes when I run I discover a new world, an enchanted place for dreaming, where my imagination drifts high into the heavens and seems to brush the divine. Almost as an afterthought, I skirt the edges of eternity, and run past a thousand, sacred moments in my pursuit of lesser things.”

Amazon and worldwide – http://bit.ly/NearHeaven

Pick up a copy and find a new trail. It’s time to rock down some unknown paths and catch a fresh glimpse of heaven. Is that the sound of laughter on the wind? Yeah, I think you’re in the zone.

Author website – http://bit.ly/HenryLewisWriter

Give me a like if it makes you smile. Until then, find a trail and follow your heart. And always… Run Hard and Run True.

Thanks so much. Henry

I was on a walk with my lovely wife in Purgatory Park. One of those quiet, beautiful days. Along our walk I stopped and looked at Purgatory Creek. So lovely. I took a picture.

Recently I entered that picture in the 2019 photo contest for my local community. I think the picture just captures the moment and the place.

When I say that this is a “painterly picture” it is because I am thinking of getting my oils out and doing an oil painting of this.

Please visit the link below of my entry and give it a LIKE.

Thanks everyone!

Out on the trails for a short run. I could feel the knife edge of winter in the air. Blustery and cold. There is a change to each person, a drawing into ourselves. We sense it at this time of year and prepare for winter. We remember dead frigid chill-bone runs and dangerous glare ice. Yes, the blast cold will come. It is always so. But for now we will have taken refuge within ourselves. We prepare our hearts. The winter will teach us new things. Yes, today I could feel the knife edge of winter. But just the edge. The trail goes on.

#trailrunner #hiking #nature #leadership #project management

Northshore, Minnesota USA

You will run today. Your thoughts will drift along a thousand rivulets, your eyes wide as you gaze across an infinity in your mind. You like the solitude the run affords. You find a comfort in your thoughts along the trails. Do we see as we ought to see? Do we smell for deep forest and feel the wind against our skin? Are the dirt and rocks a mere signature left for us beneath this wide heaven? You wonder and you are overwhelmed. It cannot be measured. It is all so beautiful. So simple, yet profound.

“Sometimes our trails are made of dirt and rocks and brush and roots and cause our hearts to leap skyward in praise and worship. And sometimes our trails are woven through a string of days and through the hearts and lives of others, and leave our spirits trembling on the rim of eternity as we watch Him touch those lives through our frail words. The trails that God lays are trails laden with the fragrance of His glory, and they lead indelibly into His purposes – far above the ways of men and the pursuits of this earth. Along the trails that God prepares we walk and run into the divine unknown; a place where the Lord rules in sovereign wonder. We plan our days, yet in the end it is the Lord over it all . In this place of wonders, I find continued solace in His faithfulness, above the passing struggles of each day…. But then there was India and the trail it provided me.”

From Laughter Near the Edge of Heaven, Henry Lewis

Available on Amazon: http://bit.ly/NearHeaven

Author website: www.henrylewiswriter.com

#trailrunner #hiking #nature

When I ran places like Wutong Mountain or the Great Wall of China I was overwhelmed by the seeing. The breadth and magnitude was breathtaking and inspiring. And as I ran I thought a lot about the nature of seeing.

“The seeing is important. René Daumal, French spiritual writer and poet, once said,

‘You cannot stay on the summit forever; you have to come down again. So why bother in the first place? Just this: What is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen. There is an art of finding one’s direction in the lower regions by the memory of what one saw higher up. When one can no longer see, one can at least still know.’

When we have been in the heavens, we still know; we still have awareness of deep and holy realities there. And God is like that for us. We can see His handiwork in the mountains and in the great structures from ancient times. We can see His glory… And as we see His glory, as we know Him and draw near and allow ourselves to be vulnerable with Him, He teaches us.”

From Laughter Near the Edge of Heaven, Henry Lewis

Amazon: http://bit.ly/NearHeaven

Author website: www.henrylewiswriter.com

#trailrunner #hiking #nature

“As I made my way along yesterday morning, I was reignited with a fresh passion for Him. Sometimes just being quiet before Him can transform how we are walking and dreaming. I felt like I set my sails anew toward my heavenly home, pursuing the pearl of great price, the treasure hidden in the field that Jesus spoke about. Oh, there is work involved, hard work. But with His strength I will run this race. I’m in this for a lifetime. I have a lifetime of sunrises, and early mornings. I have a lifetime of praising heavenly musing with the Lord. If you want, you can come along. I’ll be along. We can run together on this Calvary road. I’ll be looking for you down the trail.”

Excerpt from Laughter Near the Edge of Heaven – Confessions of a Trail runner

bit.ly/NearHeaven

#trailrunner #hiking #nature