The heavens are telling the glory of God;
and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
[Psalm 19:1]
I heard a podcast today which spoke of the ways in which God reveals Godself to all people. The minister spoke of two types of revelation: general revelations that are available for all people, and revelations that occur through supernatural means and may be for a specific individual or group of people. As I listened to the podcast, I felt uplifted to think about the different ways that God reveals more of the Godhead to us, even when we feel God is far away. For the next few weeks, as churches are reopening and some sense of a new normal emerges, I thought we could take a peek at what God reveals to us in different ways.
This week we consider God’s first revelation, available to all people if they only look. God’s first revelation was the act of creation. Many people feel closer to God in the natural world – on mountain tops, in valleys, by lakes, oceans and streams or even, like the psalmist, looking at a starry sky. The Psalm reminds us that all of creation is telling us about God, about God’s creativity and loving care for all life. God’s intricate care can be seen in the detail in the smallest flowers and in the vastness of the universe, but all also show the patterns behind creation.
Many hymns remind us that creation declares God’s glory. ‘All heaven declares the glory of the risen Lord’ (Noel Richards, Singing the Faith 293) is one example of a hymn that reminds us of God’s revelation. A more modern version would be ‘Creation Calls’, by Brian Doerksen, which includes the line “how could I say there is no God when all around creation calls?”
Creator God,
The heavens declare your glory.
We see the work of your hands
In the majesty of the stars and the mountains,
The delicacy of insects and flowers,
The vastness of the ocean.
We can see so much of you revealed in the world around us.
We thank you that even when you feel far away
We can see you in the world around us – and
Like creation, we praise your name.
Amen
Download a pdf of this Prayer for the Week here.
Prayer for the Week for August 2020 written by Revd Claire Rawlinson
Image: stars and mountain, photo by Casey Horner on Unsplash
