Risen & Rooted

I’ve always loved the outdoors, and recently wondered….why is it just so peaceful to be outdoors? Why is there no place like being deep in the woods among the trees, or at the beach watching the waves?

I think I have a better picture of why….

Being out in nature is the physical, direct display of obedience to God! It is seeing God in action! Our memory verse at home this week is Matthew 8:27 – “…..even the wind and sea obey Him.”

That seems like such a small phrase, but Oh the reality of its meaning. When I took the time to meditate on that…..it’s just mind blowing. Watching nature in action – a tree growing fruit, the end and flow of the waves on the shore, the wind – soft and breezy through the trees or blowing strong enough to lift a house from its foundation…All of these things are done AT THE COMMAND OF GOD! In Psalms 19:1-3, He says: “The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament sheweth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. That eclipse yesterday? The sun and moon were obeying the orders of the Creator Himself and we got to watch it with our own two eyes!

For the skeptics, the pessimists, the cynic, who dare to chalk these things up to “natural” occurrences I say: THERE IS NO NATURAL WITHOUT THE SUPERNATURAL! John 1:1-4 says:
1   In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
2   The same was in the beginning with God.
3   All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made.
4   In him was life; and the life was the light of men.

Acts 17:28 says:
For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.

God created and is the originator of all things, even what we call natural occurring. After all, He is the God of order, the Founder of time. Everything happens on His schedule….every season, every storm, the bloom of each flower, the fall of each leaf, the call of the birds to fly south for the winter or the inclination of the eagle to build her nest on high. To be among these things is to see peace in action. To witness the obedience of nature is to witness peace in abundance. We do not see much of that in the chaotic, busy worlds we have built for ourselves. Only when we escape to nature, do we see even the strength and resilience that peace brings. Supernatural nature takes a licking and keeps on ticking. Forest fires, floods, the prey on the weakest of species. Even with the interference of man, nature continues to obey….day after day century after century.

It is no wonder that we are drawn to it….to witness the very glory of Almighty God.