All of CreationSample

The Wonder of Creation

What’s your earliest memory in nature? For me, I was wrist-deep in dirt, sitting uphill from a creek lined with oaks and willows. With my mom’s garden shovel, I scooped up dirt and molded it into an anthill, then sprinkled grass into the nearby hole to make a bed for grasshoppers. It was an ant and grasshopper duplex.

Even from a young age, I was filled with the wonder of creation. Everything I saw and touched was made by God, from the rocks I picked out to the grasshoppers I caught between my fingers. I took great pleasure in my responsibility to care for the critters in my yard as I built them homes.

God has built us a remarkable home, this planet Earth. We can see creation in a lot of ways: from something to use up like money to nice scenery as we go about our days. I want to show you a different way to see creation. It’s not a new view. In fact, it’s an ancient way of seeing and interacting with nature that’s part of the long history of the Christian faith.

This reading plan is an invitation to connect with nature, wonder at the world, and worship its Maker in a biblical way. I hope that after reading it, you’ll have even more love in your heart for God’s creation. I also hope you’ll learn to see nature as the complicated jumble of beauty that it is and that you’ll want to treat it with the kindness we were designed to show.

Prayer:

Loving Lord of heaven and earth, Thank You for the detail, care, and love You put into creating planet Earth. Thank You for sharing this living work of art, a beautiful masterpiece, with us and giving us the eyes, ears, and minds to study and delight in all of creation with You. Remind us to appreciate creation’s gifts with gratitude and a gentle touch. Help us do our part in our own ways to keep the earth alive and well for right now and for the future.

Please give us the Holy Spirit to renew our minds so we see the world as You do. Show us where Your earth is broken, lead us to those who lack necessities like food and water, and help us work together as a community of faith to heal and restore. We celebrate Your awesome works—from the vast oceans and forests to the tiny planktons and bugs—and want to work alongside You and in worship of You. Fill the earth with the knowledge of Your glory and the hope of the promised new heaven and new earth through Your Son, Jesus. In His wonderful name we pray, Amen.