I am sitting on the porch swing at The Outer Banks overlooking the dunes and the sea as I write. It is early morning, and as I sip my mug of freshly brewed coffee I find myself enchanted by the sky. We had a downpour of rain earlier this morning and some grey clouds linger on the horizon. Those before me are edged with a brilliant light from the sun. A little further up the beach an almost screen-like veil of thin grey clouds hangs in the sky, dimly lit by sunlight from behind. Still further up the coast elongated wisps of grey rain clouds are interspersed in a pale blue sky. It is an awesome sight, and inspirational too.

I find myself singing softly, “This is my Father’s world, I rest me in the thought of rocks and trees, of skies and seas; His hand the wonders wrought.” Psalm 147, verse 8 says “Sing out your thanks to the LORD; sing praises to God…He covers the heavens with clouds ,[and] provides rain” (New Living Translation). 

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And God said, ‘Let there be space between the waters, to separate water from water. And so it was. God made this space to separate the waters above from the waters below. And God called the space ‘sky.’ And God said, Let the waters beneath the sky be gathered into one place so dry ground may appear. And so it was. God named the dry ground ‘land’ and the water ‘seas.’ And God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:1,6-8a, 9-10, NLT).

Indeed, “of skies and seas; His hand the wonders wrought.” I never cease to be amazed at God’s creative artistry, its beauty and variety. How about you?

Dr. Darryl E. Maxwell, Retired Baptist Pastor