A few of you know me from my early blogging days where I challenged myself to read through the Bible in a year and record my journey. Others of you know me from my very brief time in the Navy, where I found great purpose in encouraging others through God's Word and through worship. I had always kept that part of my blogging adventure separate from my lifestyle blog, but looking back that really hasn't made any sense. If you know me irl, you know I'm a flawed human being who loves Jesus and hates the crazy set of world circumstances currently dominating our newsfeeds.
Studying Promises From the Wilderness
The goal for lilmissbearpaw Blog is to be a light and an encouragement in the midst of all the crazy this world has to offer, so Friday's I'm dedicating to studying the adventurers and wanderers of the Bible to discover God's promises for us from the wilderness!
I think you'll be surprised how many of the people in the Bible, us travel-loving people can relate to. Maybe it will even give you a few ideas for your next vacation.
"Reflections of God's Glory"
Silence is extremely distracting to me, my brain will wander off without me if I'm not occupying my ears while I work. A solution I've found to this problem is listening to podcasts. On one of these podcasts a few weeks ago, don't ask me which one, the guest made this incredible point that Creation is a reflection of God's glory which includes each one of us. I don't know why I hadn't thought of it that way before, but as I contemplated what this person had so eloquently pointed out, it dawned on me that, that is why I feel so much closer to God when I'm out hiking a mountain or floating a river or even taking a long drive through Wyoming. Taking in the beauty of Creation, the reflection of God's glory soothes my world-weary soul!
"The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of His hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard." Psalm 19: 1-3 (NIV)
This never ceases to amaze me! If you've ever gone camping in Wyoming, far from all the light pollution of the cities, you know exactly what the Psalm means about the heavens declaring the glory of God and the night displaying knowledge. All around you, the sky is lit like the day shining with far-off jewels beyond our imagining.
What is even more incredible to me is that God gave His creation as a gift to humankind at the very beginning of time.
"So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. Then God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it; have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over every living thing that moves on the earth." And God said, "See, I have given you every herb that yields seed which is on the face of all the earth, and every tree whose fruit yields seed; to you it shall be for food."" Genesis 1:27-29
Imagine being the first man or woman on the earth everything bright, beautiful, and unblemished. Think of the smell of a garden after it rains, the feel of cool sand between your toes, or the light from the sun playing through the branches of trees in an orchard. Imagine having all of that to yourself with your loved one; no alarm going off to call you to work; no worry about disease or death; the entire world at your fingertips!
I'm sure you know the rest of the story, but if not look up Genesis chapter 3. Things took a dark turn after Adam and Eve's failure to obey God. Creation suddenly wasn't quite right anymore, but it was still God's wonderful gift to His children and His purpose for them to be fruitful and have dominion over it did not change.
That means, you and I today are still the inheritors of this gift! Travelers know more than most how amazing the gift of Creation is from the highest mountains to the most barren deserts we want to explore them all!
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