How Great is our God!
This past week, Margaret Ellen and I got to go on a trip to the Northeast for our ten year anniversary. We spent some time in New York City to begin our trip. The hustle and bustle of that city is amazing! The large amount of people in such a small area of land is mind boggling. We enjoyed getting to see some of the big sites like the 9/11 memorial and the new One World Trade Center Observatory. We got to see some favorites from my childhood like the Ghostbusters fire station. It was a lot of fun getting to explore the city for a few days.
The second part of our trip could not have been more different than the first part. We went from the hustle and bustle of the city to the middle-of-nowhere Vermont. We didn’t have cell service on half of the roads we were driving on. We would see cars few and far between. All that we were really seeing was the beauty of God’s creation. The beautiful trees that were turning to beautiful colors of bright orange and yellow, and dark, yet brilliant red. Growing up in Tennessee I saw trees turn colors in the fall, yet the beauty of these trees seemed to surpass what I saw growing up. Maybe its because I haven’t lived in a climate with a true fall for over ten years now. Possibly it’s because I have a greater appreciation for it now that I am older and have missed it. No matter the reason, the beauty of the trees was simply breathtaking.
One night, I walked outside of the house we were staying at in the middle of the mountains and it was dark, but you could see the lining of the mountains. In the midst of that darkness I couldn’t help but think about how great our God is and how I often miss that in the hustle and bustle of life. We serve such an amazing God. The God who created the mountains we got to see and covered them with trees that turn the most beautiful colors this time of year. A God who not only created those mountains and those trees, but every beautiful landscape we have in our world. The sand and ocean that is here in our area. The rivers and streams, mountains, lakes, deserts, and so much more. Our God is an incredible, and yet it is so easy to get distracted by our lives and the distractions surrounding us that get in our way. May we learn to make time to take in the beauty and grandness of our God and declare how great is our God!
Joel Harper
