These past few mornings we've been greeted by an outdoor winter wonderland. The correct name for this phenomenon is "hoar frost". I'll just call it God's handiwork. This is one of my favorite displays of His glory - each little branch, leaf, or blade of grass coated with beautiful white ice crystals. It reminds me of how my Great Big God cares about tiny little me and all the details of my life.
And how awesome is it to wake up after the first big snowfall of the year? There's always a month or so of brown - the splendor of the autumn leaves is no more, the grass is dying, it's cold - and then God works his magic... The gently falling snow (I like it when it falls in great big wet snowflakes) is like God's purifying of our lives - taking what is dead and dirty and covering us with His righteousness. All of a sudden it's marvelous outside! The cold isn't quite so cold when there's snow to play in. Looking out across the yard and seeing a blanket so smooth and white - nothing like it! Even a good old-fashioned Minnesota blizzard has it's advantages - can you say "snow day"? Snuggled up by a warm fire drinking hot cocoa...
Another one of my favorite things is to lay on the ground on a quiet, cloudless summer night and stare up at the stars. The vastness of the universe is just incredible, yet my God holds it all in the palm of His hand! You can get dizzy just contemplating it. "When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him?" Psalm 8:3-4 When I was younger, I always searched for the big and little dipper. How fun that God would arrange the stars that way! I miss this...it's just not the same in town...
And THUNDER! It frightened me as a child. Now I delight in it. It's a declaration of the power and strength of God! "Do you have an arm like God's, and can your voice thunder like his?" Job 40:9 This huge, loud powerful noise - sometimes a rumble, sometimes a crack - I feel it in my chest. It's thrilling! God is to be feared (respected), yet that fearful God has my back! It's the safety of knowing the Source of all power and strength is on my side. I tremble at His glory, and yet He is my Refuge.
A rainbow...I was at Target this summer and while going through the checkout; everyone was abuzz about the rainbow outside. Grown men, children, young and old... When I walked outside, people were stopped dead in their tracks admiring the full double rainbow in the sky. The pavement wet, the smell of rain (another one of my favorites) in the air, the sky still dark beyond the rainbow, but the sun was coming out! Everyone stopped to revel in the work of God's hand. "Like the appearance of a rainbow in the clouds on a rainy day, so was the radiance around Him." Ezekiel 1:28 Hope, joy, peace...in the midst of trial.
The list could go on and on... Sunsets - Oh the beauty! Mountains - How grand! Animals - How diverse! The trickle of water over the rocks in a forest stream...the roar of a great waterfall...the ocean waves rhythmically going in and out...the sound of birds chirping in the morning...a gentle breeze...winds that rock huge oak trees...the color in a wild flower meadow...white fluffy clouds floating across the sky...menacing storm clouds rolling and twisting...the warmth of the sun on your face...the stillness of -20 degrees...the sizzle and heat waves of 105 degrees...all declaring the glory of God! Mightier than the thunder of the great waters, mightier than the breakers of the sea - the LORD on high is mighty. What is your favorite thing about creation? How does it declare the glory of God to you?
For the LORD is the great God,
the great King above all gods.
In His hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to Him.
The sea is His, for He made it,
and His hands formed the dry land.
Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
for He is our God
and we are the people of His pasture,
the flock under His care.
Today, if you hear His voice,
do not harden your hearts...
Psalm 95:3-8
the great King above all gods.
In His hand are the depths of the earth,
and the mountain peaks belong to Him.
The sea is His, for He made it,
and His hands formed the dry land.
Come, let us bow down in worship,
let us kneel before the LORD our Maker;
for He is our God
and we are the people of His pasture,
the flock under His care.
Today, if you hear His voice,
do not harden your hearts...
Psalm 95:3-8
One of my favorites is a sunset over a calm Minnesota lake during the summer time (made even better with no mosquitos). To me it speaks of God's still small voice and the peace that only He can give!
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the "no mosquito" thing... :o)
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