WRITTEN BY TIM LABRECHE
When is the last time you felt fully alive?
The question was recently asked of me and I instantly knew what my answer was. It was a warm summer day in Canada a few years ago. We were vacationing in New Richmond, Quebec, a place that has familial ties for my bride. It’s incredibly beautiful there. The entire area is filled with trees, boulders, hills, valleys, rivers and was a small drive from the cliffs of the Atlantic Ocean. One afternoon we hiked to a place deep within the forest nicknamed “Paradise Pool.” There was a river that cut through the forest and this specific location was ideal for a swimming hole. The water in the river was crystal clear. You could clearly see the rocks on the bottom of the riverbed a good 20 feet down. I stayed in that water as long as I could soaking up my surroundings. The water slowly glided past me. The riverbed was lined and filled with boulders. The pine trees were as far as the eye could see and towering over us. For me, this was “fully alive”. I was in the middle of God’s creation. Everything around me was designed and created by the Creator to reflect His glory!
Paradise Pool 
My bald head in Paradise Pool 
Oh, Canada!
Did you know that God’s creation is in constant praise to its Creator!?!! The swaying of the trees, the rustling of the water, the songs of the birds… all of God’s creation sings out in praise to the one who brought it into being. Psalm 96:11-12 reads,
Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad; let the sea resound, and all that is in it.
Let the fields be jubilant, and everything in them; let all the trees of the forest sing for joy.
Psalm 96:11-12
In Psalm 148, creation is instructed to sing praise to our God in heaven. But if you read it, it’s not just the trees and rocks that are to cry out. ALL of God’s creations sings it’s praise to their creator including lightning, snow, hail, and clouds! EVERYTHING is to give praise to their God in heaven! (Makes you look at thunderstorms a bit different, doesn’t it?)
Not only does God’s creation sing out in praise to our Maker, but it also points back and brings glory to our Father in Heaven as well. Both Numbers 14:21 and Habakkuk 2:14 tell us that the glory of the Lord covers the entire earth like the waters cover the sea. What does that mean? It means it wholly covers it, every single space. Do you know any part of the sea that doesn’t have water? Of course not! Moving from the sea to the sky, to me, the beauty of a sunrise is an example of God’s unending favor and forgiveness anew every day. A sunset reminds us that He has brought us through another day, often filled with heartache, trials, and tribulation. The tree above my patio? It reminds me that God is my protection from the heat of the enemy’s attacks. All of creation sings it’s praises and gives glory to our God in Heaven!
- I would encourage you to take some time and think about how God’s creation reflects His glory. Take a few moments and read Psalm 148. Read it again. Do you get a sense of how we are all instructed to bring Him praise?
- In what ways do you see God’s creation bringing glory to our Heavenly Father? I mentioned a few above. What about you? What do you think?
- When you have the time, I would encourage you to take the time to watch this video. It’s about a 9-minute video, but it’s a beautiful example of God’s creation singing out to its Creator.
