Today's Encouragement: Psalm 19:1-6
The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the
work of his hands.
Day after day they
pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no
sound is heard from them. Yet their
voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the
heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, like a champion
rejoicing to run his course. It rises at
one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is deprived
of its warmth.
I know it has been quite a while since I have last posted on
here, but things have been very busy, and I haven't had much time for formal
(or informal) writing. Sorry for those
of you who have constantly checked for new posts. I have been slacking on keeping up with
this.
As some of you may know, I am a member of a choir that takes
a yearly trip to a certain part of the country to show off the music program
and different choral opportunities at Lipscomb University. We travel to different churches, schools, and
venues while performing as many times as we possibly can. I just recently returned from this year's
tour, having traveled to Myrtle Beach, SC, Raleigh, NC, and Knoxville, TN. Let me just say that it was an EXTRAORDINARY
trip that God so richly blessed me with.
I got to spend 5 days with some very talented singers and to grow closer
to some of them. I made a few valuable
friendships and met a lot of great people.
Still, the greatest thing about this trip was the opportunity to grow
closer to God. How, you might ask? Well,
having to spend limitless hours on a bus was a blessing, not only because I was
surrounded by great friends and people, but because of the view I had out the
window. The hills of Tennessee and the
mountains of North Carolina along with the beaches of South Carolina were some
of the highlights. The leaves were just
starting to change, the sand and the ocean were peaceful and cool, and the
weather was sunny and gorgeous. Needless
to say, this part of God's creation is spectacular. I found myself staring out the window for a
majority of the trip just taking it all in, smiling the whole time. This experience drove me to Psalm 19, where
David is talking about how creation reveals the glory of God. I couldn't agree more with him, for I feel
that I learned more just by looking out the window than any person or book
could have taught me at the time. You
see, it is in creation that we can view the nature of God. It's definitely not the only way, yet it
certainly does a great job, and I think that God made it that way. Just examine a partly cloudy sky near the
time of sunset one evening. If you look
at the clouds, you can see brushstrokes of color seeping through a deep blue
canvas of sky. The sun is radiant and
puts forth all sorts of color that no man can truly capture on paper or by
camera. Power is streaked across the sky
in shades of red and orange and yellow.
The trees and surrounding vegetation seem to disappear in shadows as the
sun nearly sets. And yet, while one
could find it depressing that this miraculous sight only lasts for a few
minutes, we are left with the hope that the same course of action will occur
again in 24 hours. So, what can we learn
about God in such a brief yet beautiful part of the day? Well, instead of
suggesting one or two, I should just challenge you to observe such a sight
yourself. In fact, this can be done at
any part of the day really. Just absorb
your surroundings when you look outdoors or take a walk around the block. What can something as simple as a bird flying
across the sky tell us about the nature of God?
How can a tree in flowering bloom inspire us to learn more about the God
who created it? Think about it next time
you're about. If you do take the time to
observe creation for everything that it is, you will see how marvelously
planned out it is. It's unique, complex,
and incomprehensible; definitely something that couldn't have appeared out of
thin air. And, after observing it, don't
forget to remember the God that created it all, and thank Him for His great
masterpiece. He is gracious to let us
live in this beautiful world, even in a fallen condition called sin, and that
is definitely something to smile about. :)
