Do you ever just have moments when you just KNOW that God is real, that you just KNOW for sure He is real....and all those doubts that sometimes plague you just fall away as though they never existed?
I love when that happens.
It seems to happen more often for me in the spring, when the world begins to bloom.
Trees that have been humbly sleeping begin to wake.
Blooms open up.
The warm air brings with it the scent of new life and new possibilities.
It always seems like at those times, the coldness and darkness of winter's doubts, insecurities, and fears begin to finally float away.
That happened for me again this morning while I had the baby out for a walk and I had some worship music on my iPod. The sun was sparkling and the blue sky was crisp. I just knew that God was watching over me.
It made me remember one of the 1st times I was ever mightily struck by the existence of God. It was on one of my favorite trips I ever took-- a youth group canoe trip. It was my little sister's youth group actually, if I remember right. I was in college, I think she was still in high school. At that point, I still saw her as "little sister" more than anything. We camped out with her friends. The canoeing part got brutal at some points-- I think we had 22 miles down a river on day one. Mainly I recall my arm muscles crying.
But on that trip my sister and I laughed so much-and passed Twinkies and snacks back and forth using our paddles--and got so far ahead of everyone else (because of my sister's massive muscles, not my puny ones)-that we could have stopped for hours before anyone else caught up. The best part, besides realizing that my little sister was,indeed, a human being and a good friend too, was when we came around a bend in the river. I can still see it. The sun was streaming through the trees and made the rivier sparkle like gold. It was breathtaking. You could practically hear the Hallelujuah Chorus break out in song it was so beautiful. And I knew, I just KNEW, that God had created that. It was unbelievable. How could you NOT know God was real after seeing such majesty?
It reminds me of Romans 1:20:
For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.
I love how God uses his creation all around me to give evidence of His realness, His love, and His closeness. Whether its something giant like a sunshiney bend in a river on a canoe trip, or in the delicate softness of the tulip petals I saw this morning.
How about you?
3 comments:
I feel closest to God when I am in nature. Many years ago my husband and I spent a week in Jasper National Park here in Canada. My thoughts were continually filled with God because of the beauty that lay all around me. This is one of the things we were created for - enjoying His creations.
I remember that trip too. It was totally fun, one of my best memories. Remember how those guys were at the end of the river and we were so scared that they might kidnap us or something. Ha. I bet they thought we were cute. ;-) That was an amazing trip and I'm glad you and I went. I think I knew then that you were the one friend I could always count on.
So many views of God's creation show the reality of Him. Here in Alaska, we get to see sun shining on the crystalized tree limbs in the winter, AMAZING pink/purple sunrises and orange/red sunsets, and forest scenery (which is especially breathtaking when the sun shines down in between branches of leaves). God is VERY creative in His artwork!
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