let the sea roar, and all that fills it;
let the field exult, and everything in it!
Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy
before the Lord, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.
He will judge the world in righteousness,
and the peoples in his faithfulness. Psalm 96.11-13
The sun peeks in glorious amber streaks between layers of dark clouds as it rises in the east, and I am awestruck at the contrast. My camera at home, I temporarily mourn my inability to capture the moment - a gift, perhaps, that I might give my full attention to wonder. Does not the light of God's presence shine brighter and more vivid when it breaks through storm clouds of circumstance?
I tell my husband that I’m a photographer that I might capture these glimpses of glory in nature to remember when I struggle to see past pain and suffering, but it's the uncovering of God’s fingerprints in the least likeliest places that motivates my photography most.
We, you and I, declare something good and beautiful because it fulfills our needs and desires, but this world was created by God for His glory and pleasure, and He already declared it good. Is it not possible that the wildflower seeds blown by the wind to grow in places we will never see were created for God's praise and pleasure alone?
We long to leave home so we can delight in majestic mountains, foreign wonders, and the sun's splendor as it rises and sets over the sea's vast horizon, but like sunlight breaking through dark clouds, maybe we're overlooking the fingerprints of God and the brightest and most vivid glimpses of his glory in nature in the ditches and dark places right where we live.
