Mountaintops and Sunsets
Driving up the steep mountain pass, I gazed out the window, trying to soak up every ounce of scenery even though it passed by at fifty miles an hour. A red barn rested quietly and brilliantly in a field of soft, untouched snow. Steep rock faces and cliffs towered over the road as it snaked its way up the mountain pass. A frozen waterfall tumbled over the mountainside as if time had stopped still.
Over Christmas break, my family and I went snow skiing at Wolf Creek in Colorado. We drove up the mountain pass to reach the ski slopes every day, and every day the scenery amazed us. I feel as if I could drive that thirty-minute pass every day and never grow tired of the surrounding beauty.
All day long on the ski slopes, we were encompassed by the majesty of vast mountain ranges made of sharp, rugged mountain faces. I kept thinking about how God's Word often portrays creation as praising God. Psalm 96:11-13 says,
"Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
Let all creation rejoice before the LORD, for he comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his faithfulness."
Psalm 148 speaks of the sun, moon, stars, skies, winds, snow, clouds, oceans, sea creatures, hills, tress, and wild animals all praising God. One of my favorites is Isaiah 55:12, which says, "The mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands."
I used to wonder how creation (inanimate objects) could praise God, but in the midst of His brilliant creation in Colorado, my understanding became clearer. From the mountain top when I felt like I was on top of the world, I could see the heights of all the mountains and the pointy tops of all the tress. In that moment, the Lord reminded me to not just look, but to listen, and I began to hear the mountains bursting into song and the trees clapping their hands.
We were enveloped in the inspiring glory of creation. God's creation. The masterpiece that the Lord spoke into existence through Jesus Christ. All things were created by Him and for Him.
Creation proclaims God's greatness, and we are surrounded by it every day. So many times, we ask and expect God to do out-of-the-ordinary things for us, but we fail to notice the amazing work that shouts His praise all the time. We pray to see a miracle, not realizing that we are surrounded by exploding miracles every day - sunrises, the formation and movement of the clouds, the nourishment of the rain on the earth, the blooming of flowers, the sparkling of the stars.
Don't miss out on the miracle around you. You may live on the vast plains, in the rugged mountains, or in a yard of trees. Even if you live in a high-rise building in the middle of a city, you have a spectacular view of the sky. Take notice of creation as an assembly of worshippers pointing to the Lord. But don't just look; stop to listen as well. May you hear their song and sing along.
Over Christmas break, my family and I went snow skiing at Wolf Creek in Colorado. We drove up the mountain pass to reach the ski slopes every day, and every day the scenery amazed us. I feel as if I could drive that thirty-minute pass every day and never grow tired of the surrounding beauty.
All day long on the ski slopes, we were encompassed by the majesty of vast mountain ranges made of sharp, rugged mountain faces. I kept thinking about how God's Word often portrays creation as praising God. Psalm 96:11-13 says,
"Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad;
let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them;
let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
Let all creation rejoice before the LORD, for he comes,
he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness
and the peoples in his faithfulness."
Psalm 148 speaks of the sun, moon, stars, skies, winds, snow, clouds, oceans, sea creatures, hills, tress, and wild animals all praising God. One of my favorites is Isaiah 55:12, which says, "The mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands."
I used to wonder how creation (inanimate objects) could praise God, but in the midst of His brilliant creation in Colorado, my understanding became clearer. From the mountain top when I felt like I was on top of the world, I could see the heights of all the mountains and the pointy tops of all the tress. In that moment, the Lord reminded me to not just look, but to listen, and I began to hear the mountains bursting into song and the trees clapping their hands.
My mother noticed that the mountain tops and evergreen treetops all point to the heavens, which is where we think of as the dwelling of God. "It was like all those trees were an assembly raising their hands and pointing to the Lord," she said. That evening, as we drove back down the mountain pass, God surprised us and blew us away with the most amazing sunset we have ever seen - panoramic with dynamic clouds and bursting colors. The very sky to which that assembly of trees and mountains pointed now exploded in glorious beauty, all declaring the grandeur of God.
Creation proclaims God's greatness, and we are surrounded by it every day. So many times, we ask and expect God to do out-of-the-ordinary things for us, but we fail to notice the amazing work that shouts His praise all the time. We pray to see a miracle, not realizing that we are surrounded by exploding miracles every day - sunrises, the formation and movement of the clouds, the nourishment of the rain on the earth, the blooming of flowers, the sparkling of the stars.
Don't miss out on the miracle around you. You may live on the vast plains, in the rugged mountains, or in a yard of trees. Even if you live in a high-rise building in the middle of a city, you have a spectacular view of the sky. Take notice of creation as an assembly of worshippers pointing to the Lord. But don't just look; stop to listen as well. May you hear their song and sing along.
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