ALL OF NATURE DECLARES // snippets

I was looking back to posts from Spring 2011, when I was in a season of learning. I was in grad school in Seattle, but I was also in a metaphorical school of learning about God's faithfulness and love. I was gleaning many lessons from nature and wrote this post, that I have re-read and updated, to summarize why I believed this to be a beautiful way that God shows us more of Himself. Grab a cup of tea and sit with me as I stroll down memory lane and share snippets of why it is important we look to nature to show us a whisper of the Creator. 

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I spent almost an hour walking along a beautiful trail in Kent, Washington area, which is filled with rustic barns and green pastures -- my kinda place! I wondered as I wandered about the beauty of the Creator's masterpiece and verses filled my mind as I passed blooming flowers, quiet ponds, lusch grass fields, melodious sonnets of birds high in the green trees, and lazy horses basking in the sunlight. There is just so much peace and joy in these sounds and sights. Jane Austen writes in Mansfield Park: "To sit in the shade on a fine day and look upon verdure is the most perfect refreshment."  

The Creator provides for His beloved creation.
In the book of Matthew, the flowers of the fields are regarded as being adorned more majestically than all of King Solomon's splendor. Remember Solomon? Visitors to his glorious palace could not even remark on half of all the beauty within his kindgdom. Yet, the best-dressed characters in his kingdom had to be the brilliantly colored flowers in the fields, untouched my man, but cared for by the ultimate Gardener.   

"The richness of [the flower's] crimson petals outshone anything in Solomon's closet. It's velvety feel smoother than Solomon's silk, and the splash of gold in its center was purer than his crown. The intricate design of the flower surpassed the abilities of the royal tailors 
... the lily's fragrance sweeter than Solomon's perfume.

The same God who dresses the flowers and feeds the birds knows our needs too. He knows when we're money-short and bone-tired. He knows when we need food and rainment … The billions of flowers blooming around the globe are preachers with a single message: "Don't worry! God cares for our needs."

[Robert J. Morgan in My All in All devotional]

Creation may wither away, but the Creator will never fade away or fail us.
"The grass withers and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever."
[Isaiah 40:8]. Those 'glorious flowers' I just mentioned? In the dead of a dry autumn, they eventually wither away. Does this mean that the Creator was unfaithful in keeping them alive? Does it give less value to the flowers of the fields? It means that creation was not made to last forever. But one thing will remain: the Truth of God's Word; His love demonstrated on a wooden cross that would forever remind us that Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. And when we accept this Truth, we will not wither or fade because of His life in us. We can hold onto the words of the Bible with a firm grip, knowing that the words will bring life in any season.

"God writes the gospel not in the Bible alone, but on trees and flowers and clouds and stars."[Martin Luther]

Creation glorifies and worships the Creator by fulfilling its individual purpose He's assigned to it.

Rick Warren wrote in A Purpose Driven Life: "The way a person can bring glory to God is to fulfill his God-ordained purpose on earth, just as nature does the same by fulfilling its purpose." We often categorize worship as singing songs to God, but this is just a small portion of the meaning of worship. Fulfilling His purposes for your life is worship; joyfully and humbly answering His call upon your life is a lifesong that is sweeter than any musical note can produce.

Creation sings a worship song of God's goodness. It is shouting out a proclamation of praise to the Creator God:

The flowers of the field adorned in beauty teach us not to worry

The rushing waterfalls going lower and lower teach us humility and surrender.

The birds of the air teach us that there is always a reason to sing.

The brilliant hues of a rainbow remind us of God's faithfulness in His promises.

The yellow daffodils bring hope after winter that spring will surely follow.

"How many stanzas in the springtime breeze?

How plenty the raindrops? As He doth please.

There is no meter and there is no rhyme,

Yet God's poems always read in perfect time."

[Astrid Alauda, "Poems on Nature"]

What have you learned from nature recently? What parts of creation echo God's love, goodness, faithfulness, sovereignty, or anything else that has encouraged you?

 my beloved trail in Kent that I would visit frequently