“The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours out speech,
and night to night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words,
whose voice is not heard.
Their voice goes out through all the earth,
and their words to the end of the world.
In them he has set a tent for the sun,
which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber,
and, like a strong man, runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens,
and its circuit to the end of them,
and there is nothing hidden from its heat.” Psalm 19:1-6
“The Mighty One, God the Lord,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth.
Our God comes; he does not keep silence;
before him is a devouring fire,
around him a mighty tempest.
He calls to the heavens above
and to the earth, that he may judge his people:
‘Gather to me my faithful ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!
The heavens declare his righteousness,
for God himself is judge!’
‘Hear, O my people, and I will speak;
O Israel, I will testify against you.
I am God, your God.'” Psalm 50:1-7
After a long day weighted with rain that pelted into a night split with lightning, dark morning brings an ink sky spotted with unruly clouds that part to present Orion, regal as ever, ready for hunt. The drumbeat of rain is replaced by squeaking thrumping frogs and cricket chirp. Spinning earth, changing weather moods. Dawn turns day blows into afternoon, and another thunderstorm rumbles, advances over the expanse of water, roiling and streaking blue grey against the pristine clear of green edged in white frill.
Behold God’s power and beauty! Hear the clarion call of His glory, handiwork, order, judgment, and righteousness! There is much to hear and learn if we would just hush. God Almighty has given us several senses to observe and absorb His creative majesty, eternal qualities, and marvelous ways, but wagging tongues and fretting, flickering screens and flirty-with-frenzy eyes distract us from taking it all in. How well do we listen? How would reminders of these attributes help assuage the impulse to express insulting opinion, or enable us to release the stresses of urgent, or throes of irritation or bitterness? When will we contemplate God’s magnificence spread before us? (Psalm 46:1; Romans 1:19-20; James 1:19)
“O worship the King all-glorious above,
O gratefully sing his power and his love:
our shield and defender, the Ancient of Days,
pavilioned in splendor and girded with praise.
O tell of his might and sing of his grace,
whose robe is the light, whose canopy space.
His chariots of wrath the deep thunderclouds form,
and dark is his path on the wings of the storm.
Your bountiful care, what tongue can recite?
It breathes in the air, it shines in the light;
it streams from the hills, it descends to the plain,
and sweetly distills in the dew and the rain.” ~Robert Grant (1833)
O God, my God, please attune me to listen to all Your Spirit tells me this day, and to hold and sing of a higher view of You because of it.
As the rain and snow 