This is the view of Matanuska Glacier from the Long Rifle Lodge dining room where we had lunch last week in Alaska. It is just off the Glenn Highway between Palmer and Glennallen.
Reflection
What do mountain goats, glaciers, constellations, and rain showers have in common?
They all point us to the greatness and goodness of God. This has been on my mind as I have spent the last week in Alaska—the land of the midnight sun (at least it is in the summer). The scenery is stunning. The word I use to describe what I see and experience in Alaska is “vast.” It is Montana or Colorado on steroids.
Yet you do not have to travel to Alaska to witness the greatness and goodness of God in creation. You can see it in your city park, your neighborhood, or in your back yard.
When we think about God’s creation as a witness to his greatness and goodness, it is helpful to remember that Scripture presents God as both Creator and Redeemer. These categories are paired together in at least two places in the Bible. First, Psalm 103 celebrates God as Redeemer, while Psalm 104 celebrates him as Creator. Then, the vision of heaven’s throne room in Revelation 4-5 reverses the order. In Revelation 4, God receives worship because is Creator. In Revelation 5, he receives worship because he is the Redeemer.
There is much we could say about this pairing, including the way that it encompasses the entire story of the Bible. As Creator, God created human beings to showcase his goodness and greatness, and he fashioned a good place for them to live and carry out this mission. However, three chapters into the story, human beings rebelled against God, and the result was the fall of human beings and creation into bondage. At present, both creation and human beings await redemption—that is, liberation from bondage (see Romans 8:18-25).
But for today, I simply want to note that God as Creator is a huge category in Scripture when it comes to thinking about who God is and what he has done. Here are three ways the reality of God as Creator shapes the way we respond and relate to him.
First, the reality that God is Creator leads us to praise him.
Psalm 104 begins, Praise the LORD, my soul. Then it proceeds to celebrate God as the one who has created and sustains life on the earth. This praise certainly pertains to God’s power (see verses 2-9), but it also stems from his provision to all creatures great and small—including human beings (see verses 10-30). How can we not see God’s wisdom in the creatures he has made (verse 24) and in the way he sustains them? All of this is cause for life-long praise (verses 33-35).
Second, the reality that God is Creator holds us accountable to worship him.
Romans 1:20 is clear that 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. Tragically, though, many human beings have resisted him. Romans 1:21 continues: For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. As a result, people have exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised (1:25).
I had the opportunity to take a boat ride in Prince William Sound last week near Whittier, Alaska. One of the highlights was watching glaciers—mammoth, slow-moving rivers of ice. Occasionally, I saw huge chunks of ice fall into the water with a roar. This “calving” (as it is called) testifies to the power and existence of God! To be sure, we need more than God’s “general revelation” through nature to know him. His “special revelation” (his Word) reveals our sin problem and need for redemption. Yet glaciers and maple leaves and sunsets and cicadas (we’ve seen plenty of those in the Midwest this summer) and constellations testify to God’s power and existence. Such a God deserves our worship!
Third, the reality that God is Creator re-orients us when we are tempted to doubt his power or his goodness.
This idea comes from the book of Job. When Job questions God’s justice, God responds (finally!) in chapters 38 and following by directing Job to his creation. God asks Job to consider lightening, frost, Orion’s belt (a constellation), the wild ox, the ostrich, and so on. Carol Newsom, in The Book of Job: A Conquest of Moral Imaginations, says that contemplating God’s creation “is what God requires of Job as the starting point for a new moral understanding.” Furthermore, she observes that “the morning stars’ cry of joy (38:7) is the recognition of the intrinsic value that God speaks of as ‘goodness’ in Genesis 1.” Do you need evidence of the goodness of God? Look no further than your flower garden, the tree in your front yard, or the bunny rabbits that hop along the bushes in your back yard.
As the old saying goes, take time to stop and smell the roses. God’s creation is marvelous in so many ways. Whenever we view it, spend time in it (hiking, kayaking, etc.), or work it (trimming trees, planting vegetables, etc.), may we respond by saying, “God, how great you are! Lord, you alone are worthy of my worship! And God, I confess that you are good and powerful even in the tough moments of my life.”
Personal Update
Tonight we fly home from Alaska. All the direct flights from Anchorage to O’Hare (Chicago) are red-eye flights. So we are scheduled to leave Anchorage at 9:45 p.m. (local time) and arrive at O’Hare at 7:00 a.m. It’s a six-hour flight. We’ve had a great time in Alaska visiting family, as well as viewing scenic mountains and glaciers. We enjoyed having my brother, Dave, join us as well. He and I spent the last three days fly fishing a creek near Talkeetna, Alaska with Eric Johns—a former student in the Doctor of Ministry program at Western Seminary. Eric is a pastor in Fairbanks, Alaska, and a fine outdoorsman. The fishing was good.
By the way, Talkeetna is a fun little town to visit. It’s Alaska’s version of West Yellowstone, Montana or Galena, Illinois. And it’s quirky in a delightful way. For example, someone introduced me to the mayor of Talkeetna. She looked at me and then walked away without saying a word. I wasn’t offended, though. That’s what you expect from a cat. Yes, the mayor of Talkeetna is a cat that hangs out at Nagley’s Store on East Main Street!
Grandkids Corner
Our grandson Miles (9) wants to play basketball in the NBA when he grows up. However, I am pleased that he is being realistic about his future. A couple weeks ago, he announced that he has other career plans if it doesn’t work to play in the NBA. Here is the story. Recently, at “Exploration Day” at his grade school, Miles was fascinated with making balloon animals. He is good at working with his hands, so his parents got him a balloon pump. Miles has been making balloon animals and hats ever since. He is in the photos below with a “hat” that he made.
Anyway, Miles told us that if he does not make the NBA, he is going to be a balloon guy at Wrigley Field. So, if you go to a Cubs game in a dozen years or so and see a young guy making balloons for kids at a stand outside the stadium, stop and say “hi” to our grandson.
Thanks for reading. Have a good weekend!