Seeing Creation

John Muir once wrote, “We live in ‘creation’s dawn.’ The morning stars still sing together, and the world, though made, is still being made and becomes more beautiful every day.”  I have long loved this quote.  Recently I ran across a hymn that echoes Muir’s thoughts.  It’s called “The First Day of Creation” and was written by Thomas H. Troeger.  Here are the words: “The first day of creation is dawning in the soul, upon the deep God hovers where fear and chaos roll. The inward dark is parting. The seas make room for land. Great shorelines are emerging a new world is at hand!  Yet God is recreating more than our inner world: look up beyond the planets where galaxies are swirled. Look out and see how often surprising love is shown. Christ is at work reshaping both stars and hearts of stone.  All life in Christ is compassed by that transforming grace which spins new worlds and wonders in every time and place. O Twirler of the stardust, O Light no darkness rims, your new creation pulses with worship, praise and hymns.”

I find comfort in the thought that each new day the Creator is at work both in the world and in our hearts.  Every sunrise is a reminder that God remains active in our lives.  Every day the Maker of heaven and earth is creating, preserving and sustaining the world and all who dwell therein.  God did not create the world and then back away. No, God continues the work of creation to this very day.

I suspect this is a message many need to hear today.  2020 has been a wild and rocky ride for most of us.  So much in our lives has been turned upside down.  The deadly pandemic caused by Covid-19 has resulted in a great deal of fear, anxiety, and stress.  Some may wonder if God has forsaken us.  The good news is that our Maker is still very much with us and makes this known with the gift of each new day. Lamentations 3:22-23 says “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.  They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

This Thanksgiving I will give thanks for God’s faithfulness—a faithfulness revealed each day in God’s ongoing work of Creation and in God’s work in the lives of people like you and me.  I will likewise give thanks that “God hovers where fear and chaos roll” and that “Christ is at work reshaping both stars and hearts of stone.”  Even in 2020 we still have so very much to be thankful for.

Happy Thanksgiving!

–Chuck

The Covid-19 pandemic has taken a toll on all of us.  For many people of faith it has affected their ability to gather for worship.  Early on our government authorities were urging us not to congregate.  Those requests have largely passed and many churches are now meeting again.  But it’s not the same.  We’re encouraged to continue to practice social distancing and wear masks while in the sanctuary.  We have been asked not to sing.  We worship but it doesn’t feel quite right.  Even with places of worship resuming services a lot of people have elected to stay home and experience church on television or Facebook Live services.  I think all of us long for the day things will return to some sense of normalcy.  In the meantime, Covid-19 will continue to hinder our corporate gatherings of worship.

The pandemic need not, however, hinder our private expressions of worship.  We may worship God anytime and anyplace we choose.  We may or may not be able to go to church but there is another “church” that is always accessible—nature.  I was reminded of this recently when I read a selection from one of William Barclay’s books.  In it he writes: “To Jesus the whole world was full of signs, the corn in the field, the leaven in the loaf, the scarlet anemones on the hillside all spoke to him of God.  He did not think that God had to break in from outside the world; he knew that God was already in the world for anyone who had eyes to see.  The sign of truly religion persons is not that they come to Church to find God but that they find God everywhere; not that they make a great deal of sacred places but that they sanctify common places.”

John Muir once told his readers that “No wilderness in the world is so desolate as to be without divine ministers.  God’s love covers all the earth as the sky covers it, and also fills it in every pore.  And this love has voices heard by all who have ears to hear.”  These words remind us that by stepping outside, or perhaps just looking out the window, we can find ourselves at church.

The Bible makes it clear that God is revealed through Creation.  In nature we find a vast sanctuary where we can commune with God and offer our Creator our heartfelt worship.  I walk outdoors every day and use this time to pray and worship God.  I don’t have to worry about social distancing or wearing a mask.  I can even sing out loud if I want.  Each day when I return from my walk I feel like I’ve been to church and there is a sense in which I have.

I hope you’ll take advantage of God’s other sanctuary and use it to bring you closer to the Holy One.  The restrictions that have come with the current pandemic cannot prevent us from sanctifying common places.  Not now.  Not ever.

–Chuck

In a very short period of time our whole world has changed.  The COVID-19 pandemic has certainly altered our daily lives.  We now find ourselves in survival mode.  We have been forced to take drastic actions just to stay safe.  I hope that you are doing what is necessary to avoid the virus.  Washing one’s hands, practicing social distancing and self-quarantining should go a long way in helping one to stay safe.  Our goal, however, should not just be staying safe; we should strive for wellness too.  Our mental, emotional and spiritual health are just as important as physical health.  I hope you are doing what is needed to stay healthy in each of these areas.

For a lot of us getting outdoors and experiencing the beauty and wonders of God’s Creation plays an instrumental role in maintaining holistic health.  A couple of weeks ago I did a photo trip to the Everglades and this did wonders for my health.  I’m glad I got to go when I did as many national and state parks are now closing as a result of the coronavirus crisis.  It may be a while before we are able to find refuge and solace in these places once again.

What are we to do in the meantime?  This is a great time to start paying more attention to what we have right around us.  From our own yards and neighborhoods we can still observe the sun and moon, the clouds overhead, the birds flying around, the trees budding and the flowers blooming.  What we find close to home might not be as dramatic or beautiful as what we find in national and state parks but there is still so much to see, hear, smell and touch.  My friend, Rob Sheppard, is currently in the midst of a project where he is using his iPhone to record a picture each day of some natural wonder around him.  Even though he is not able to go far right now, he’s still producing beautiful images of nature and posting them daily on Facebook.  I think that’s a wonderful idea.

As I continue to take walks in my neighborhood I’m trying to pay closer attention to the natural world around me.  Doing so is good for my mental and emotional health.  It is also good for my spiritual health.  I’m currently reading Richard Rohr’s book, The Universal Christ.  Throughout the book are reminders that God reveals Himself through the natural world.  At one point he writes, “When you look your dog in the face…I truly believe you are seeing another incarnation of the Divine Presence, the Christ.  When you look at any other person, a flower, a honeybee, a mountain—anything—you are seeing the incarnation of God’s love for you and the universe you call home.”   Who among us does not need to experience an “incarnation of God’s love” at this time?  Well, the truth of the matter is such incarnations are all around us.  I urge you to look for them and to find comfort in them.  Doing so may just be what we need to get through these trying times.

–Chuck