Amazed at nature’s beauty, we tend to ask ourselves, what is the message from the Artist to each of us? Is it not the revelation of Divine itself if we believe that God "reveals Himself in all the things that He has made" as St. Paul says?
Be it -
The beauty of flowers
The fragrance of the grass
The serenity of the deep sea
The rhythm of the flowing river
The freedom of birds
The faithfulness of the dog
The summit of the mountain
The passion of the rain
The trail of the sun
The glow of the moon
The life of the day
The stillness of the night
The grace of a falling leaf
The embrace of the gentle breeze
The thunder of the sky
The grandeur of the Universe
God shares, reveals, and teaches us something through all creatures. Through mountains – His existence, through sky - His vastness, through plants - His life, through vines – His dependence, through animals - His sensation, through children – His innocence and purity, and through us humans – God’s own Self. For as the Bible says, God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them (Gen 1:27).
Every creation is a different expression of the Creator. If we closely observe we could see that they are all in communication and are interdependent. We have only to open our eyes and hearts, to become one with that which is. The Big Truth is written in reality and nature itself before it was ever written in books by the great philosophers and spiritual leaders. One who is attuned with nature is attuned with God and life itself.
Creation itself is a temple, with the in-dwelling presence of God in each and everything. All we need to do is to sit at its lap, read, listen, feel, and understand lessons of reality. Often times we are so immersed in our busy lives and mundane tasks that we cannot pause long enough to go out into the wilderness to see where God has provided every sparrow enough to eat and to spare, and contemplate for even a few minutes the wonderful world that we live in.
Nature is an open Bible written by God, a beautiful tapestry woven with much love and care by the Master Artist Himself. Majority of Jesus’ stories and metaphors are based on nature and the day to day life examples: the fig tree, mustard seeds, salt, the birds of the air, the grass in the field, lilies, the donkey, the lost sheep, laborers working in the vineyard…
Take time to have a good look at the nature around you, for it is the very face and voice of God. Nature has its own language, the sky and land communicate in their unique way. Most of the time we are simply not patient enough, quiet enough, to pay attention to the many stories it wants to share with us; the secrets it waits to whisper in our ears and the mystery it invites us to participate in.
Oh Great Spirit, teach us the wisdom of Nature and thereby the greater knowing of You. Help us to stand in reverence as we look at the rising sun, just as much as we bow before the tabernacle in a cathedral for it is You who is present in both.