You make springs gush forth in the valleys. They flow between the hills. They give drink to every beast of the field. They wild donkeys quench their thirst. Beside them the birds of heaven dwell. They sing among the branches. From Your lofty abode, You water the mountains. The earth is satisfied with the fruit of Your work. You cause grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate, that he may bring forth food from the earth and wine to gladden the heart of man, oil to make his face shine and bread to strengthen man's heart. The trees of the Lord are watered abundantly, the cedars of Lebanon that He planted. In them the birds build their nests. The stork has her home in the fir trees. The high mountains are for the wild goats. The rocks are a refuge for the rock badger. (Verses 10-16)
Adam stood up and took his first few God-given breaths. His surroundings were lush with vegetation. The mighty trees that banked the flowing river were heavy with luscious fruit that scented the dewy air with sweetness. The woman by his side was beautiful beyond belief. "Ah-ha!" he'd cried. "Finally bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh. I am not alone!" Hand in hand the lovers walked with the God of their creation learning the garden and its secrets. Mountains arose in the distance, rocky crags glistening in the sunshine. Streams flowed swiftly from their heights into valleys painted rich emerald green. Moving on the slopes were goats and gnus, badgers and skunks, elk and deer, horses and wild dogs. A menagerie of brilliance. "How did you come up with these?" Adam must have asked his God. Giggles of glee arose in the man as he watched a gopher burrow beneath the ground and a serpent slither out of sight. Monkeys swung from tree to tree calling loudly to each other in a language only they understood. The activity swirled under, around, above and beneath the new man and woman. A showcase of newly minted Earth.
I remember the first time I took Heather, our first born, to the zoo. I'd grown accustomed to elephants, zebras, gorillas and yak. Knew the smell of the zoo as well as the circus where watching lions and tigers as they yawned their boredom or jumped through hoops had become less wonderful for me. But with Heather, I saw them all for the first time as she jumped up and down with the apes (she would make gorilla faces for months afterward), squealed at the lumbering elephants, and marveled at the barking seals. A wonderland of animals almost too marvelous to comprehend. Butterflies and hummingbirds, flamingos and parrots painted by God in carnival colors. And again, the question, "How did you come up with these, Father?" Too distinct in design to be random. Too specific in purpose to be unplanned. What a mind my Father has!
Unforgotten. The tiniest to the greatest of His specific beasts are cared for by the winds and rains, sunlight and starshine of His earth. God takes care to feed His little birds and cloak the hillsides with glory (Matthew 6). The ecosystem is a masterfully planned to restore and reconstitute itself. Each element of creation is intentional and interdependent. Order doesn't just happen. We don't throw pieces of a watch up into the air and wait for them to create a time piece. Someone thinks how to design and produce a watch. We don't question that. So why the questions about God's creation?
As created beings ourselves, we've been made in His image. Out of all the animals in God's famous zoo, we are specially designed to know and yearn for Him. But we are a bunch of smarty pants. The minds God bestowed on us are a double-edged sword. And just as Adam and Eve in the garden, we've listened to the world tell us just how brilliant we are. So much so that we don't need God. And, quite frankly, we don't want Him butting in on our business.We can explain away the rhinoceros and the emu. And our brilliant explanation? Oh, they just happened. And God would chuckle if the conclusion weren't so absurd and self-destroying. All creation is designed to point to Him. And we have turned the finger the other direction. In our hubris. To our shame. And our God would pour out on us without measure His grace, love, guidance and salvation. He wills to make our faces shine with an abundance of oil and our hearts to sing with new wine. It is still His desire to walk with us in the garden, talking about our day, examining our lives, wondering at His goodness. God still wants to provide for us as surely as He feeds the wild goats on the hillside and the dolphins in the sea.
Look around at His global zoo today. The world is open to us to marvel at the ocean and its depths or the mountains and their heights. Landscapes extravagantly created and sustained by their Designer. Watch ants march and butterflies flit, puppies snuggle and cats prowl, eagles soar and fish jump, deer pose and skunks scurry. Take it in. It's made for your delight in and worship of God.
For the beauty of the earth, for the glory of the skies, for the love which from our birth over and around us lies, Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the wonder of each hour of the day and of the night, hill and vale, and tree and flow'r, sun and moon and stars of light; Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of human love, brother, sister, parent, child, friends on earth, and friends above, for all gentle thoughts and mild, Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of ear and eye, for the heart and mind's delight, for the mystic harmony linking sense to sound and sight, Lord of all, to Thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
For Thyself, best Gift Divine! To our race so freely giv'n; for that great, great love of Thine, peace on earth and joy in heaven, Lord of all to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise!
Folliott S. Pierpoint
And the congregation said: "Amen!"
Adam stood up and took his first few God-given breaths. His surroundings were lush with vegetation. The mighty trees that banked the flowing river were heavy with luscious fruit that scented the dewy air with sweetness. The woman by his side was beautiful beyond belief. "Ah-ha!" he'd cried. "Finally bone of my bone and flesh of my flesh. I am not alone!" Hand in hand the lovers walked with the God of their creation learning the garden and its secrets. Mountains arose in the distance, rocky crags glistening in the sunshine. Streams flowed swiftly from their heights into valleys painted rich emerald green. Moving on the slopes were goats and gnus, badgers and skunks, elk and deer, horses and wild dogs. A menagerie of brilliance. "How did you come up with these?" Adam must have asked his God. Giggles of glee arose in the man as he watched a gopher burrow beneath the ground and a serpent slither out of sight. Monkeys swung from tree to tree calling loudly to each other in a language only they understood. The activity swirled under, around, above and beneath the new man and woman. A showcase of newly minted Earth.
I remember the first time I took Heather, our first born, to the zoo. I'd grown accustomed to elephants, zebras, gorillas and yak. Knew the smell of the zoo as well as the circus where watching lions and tigers as they yawned their boredom or jumped through hoops had become less wonderful for me. But with Heather, I saw them all for the first time as she jumped up and down with the apes (she would make gorilla faces for months afterward), squealed at the lumbering elephants, and marveled at the barking seals. A wonderland of animals almost too marvelous to comprehend. Butterflies and hummingbirds, flamingos and parrots painted by God in carnival colors. And again, the question, "How did you come up with these, Father?" Too distinct in design to be random. Too specific in purpose to be unplanned. What a mind my Father has!
Unforgotten. The tiniest to the greatest of His specific beasts are cared for by the winds and rains, sunlight and starshine of His earth. God takes care to feed His little birds and cloak the hillsides with glory (Matthew 6). The ecosystem is a masterfully planned to restore and reconstitute itself. Each element of creation is intentional and interdependent. Order doesn't just happen. We don't throw pieces of a watch up into the air and wait for them to create a time piece. Someone thinks how to design and produce a watch. We don't question that. So why the questions about God's creation?
As created beings ourselves, we've been made in His image. Out of all the animals in God's famous zoo, we are specially designed to know and yearn for Him. But we are a bunch of smarty pants. The minds God bestowed on us are a double-edged sword. And just as Adam and Eve in the garden, we've listened to the world tell us just how brilliant we are. So much so that we don't need God. And, quite frankly, we don't want Him butting in on our business.We can explain away the rhinoceros and the emu. And our brilliant explanation? Oh, they just happened. And God would chuckle if the conclusion weren't so absurd and self-destroying. All creation is designed to point to Him. And we have turned the finger the other direction. In our hubris. To our shame. And our God would pour out on us without measure His grace, love, guidance and salvation. He wills to make our faces shine with an abundance of oil and our hearts to sing with new wine. It is still His desire to walk with us in the garden, talking about our day, examining our lives, wondering at His goodness. God still wants to provide for us as surely as He feeds the wild goats on the hillside and the dolphins in the sea.
Look around at His global zoo today. The world is open to us to marvel at the ocean and its depths or the mountains and their heights. Landscapes extravagantly created and sustained by their Designer. Watch ants march and butterflies flit, puppies snuggle and cats prowl, eagles soar and fish jump, deer pose and skunks scurry. Take it in. It's made for your delight in and worship of God.
For the beauty of the earth, for the glory of the skies, for the love which from our birth over and around us lies, Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the wonder of each hour of the day and of the night, hill and vale, and tree and flow'r, sun and moon and stars of light; Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of human love, brother, sister, parent, child, friends on earth, and friends above, for all gentle thoughts and mild, Lord of all, to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise.
For the joy of ear and eye, for the heart and mind's delight, for the mystic harmony linking sense to sound and sight, Lord of all, to Thee we raise this our hymn of grateful praise.
For Thyself, best Gift Divine! To our race so freely giv'n; for that great, great love of Thine, peace on earth and joy in heaven, Lord of all to Thee we raise, this our hymn of grateful praise!
Folliott S. Pierpoint
And the congregation said: "Amen!"
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