The glory of God in creation

Summer is over in Alaska, but it is not too cold to spend the day outside enjoying this wonderful corner of God's world. On Monday our family took a short hike to a viewing deck built over a small stream in which there were salmon preparing to spawn. Then, we drove to an mountainside overlooking Anchorage to pick some berries.

As I thought about our day, I was again struck with the thought of how privileged we are to live in a place of such beauty. When David meditated on the Creation around him, he proclaimed, "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork" (Psalm 19:1). We got to see some of God's marvelous handiwork that day.



The salmon we observed did their part in declaring to us the glory of God. If this red salmon could talk, he'd have an amazing story to tell. He was hatched here in these waters a few years ago, along with 4,000 of his brothers and sisters. Only about 40 of them made it to the ocean, the rest dying of disease and predators. Of those 40, only 4 survive to begin the trek back to their freshwater home in the mountains. 2 are caught along the way, by a bear, an eagle, or a happy dipnetter. The other two arrive safely back to the place they were born; there they will spawn and soon die.

How do these fish come back to the exact place where they began life as eggs buried in the gravel stream bed? Nobody knows. But whatever the scientific explanation may be, this instinct is a testimony to the wisdom and greatness of their Creator. When God appeared to Job and humbled him, he did so by demanding him to explain the mysterious workings of such creatures as the mountain goats, donkeys, and oxen. If Job had lived in Alaska, God would have challenged him to explain how the salmon come back to spawn. The wonder of Creation declares the wisdom and majesty of the Creator.

God not only glorifies himself through his creatures, but he teaches us by them. Proverbs 6:6 says, "Go to the ant, O sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise." I believe there are countless similar lessons in creation, if we are able to discern them. While picking berries, we discovered there were two types to be found: blueberries and blackberries. The blueberries are sweeter and tastier than the blackberries. But they are more scarce and collecting them took much more time and effort. It was easy to pick to the blackberries, but they were not as pleasant to eat.

Isn't it a rule that the best things in life are the more difficult to obtain? The sweetest pleasures, the deepest joys, the most lasting satisfaction, are all hard-won. The pleasure of a day off after a hard work of week is usually much greater than just another day in a three-week vacation. In the spiritual realm, the same holds true. True joy, peace, and blessedness are found only in the often arduous path of following Christ. God is a God of delight and pleasure: "...in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:11). But this fullness of joy and eternal joy is no "easy pickings." To attain it requires a life of self-denying discipleship.

God's world has much to say about God, if we are willing to listen.