“The LORD God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it.” – Genesis 2:15

On Monday of this week, our family dog, Dinah, passed away. Dinah was 17 years old, so none of my five children have ever known a life where she is not around. I shed a lot of tears this week. But after a while, I began to ask myself, “why?” Why was I so heartbroken over a simple animal? Dinah was an incredible dog. She was smart, faithful, and deeply desired to please me. The reason I loved her so dearly is because she taught me so much about unconditional love. It was truly a privilege to care for her all these years.

This is one of the incredible aspects of God’s amazing creation. So often when we speak of the beauty of creation, we are simply referring to the stunning visual beauty of nature. However, the beauty of God’s creation goes so much deeper than this. The perfect, ballet-like movement of the solar system is beautiful. The intimate interplay between the bees and the flowers is beautiful. The way a mother bear cares for and protects her young is beautiful. The sheer majesty of the mountains is beautiful. And the faithfulness and love shown by a family dog is beautiful.

The true beauty of creation is that it reveals God to us. Everything from His power to His love. This is why He set us, mankind, in the middle of this beautiful creation and charged us with the care of it. By doing so we know more about the incredible God who created it all. So today, marvel at the mountains, look at the intricacies of a flower, or simply take a moment and pet “man’s best friend.” And as you do, worship the God who reveals Himself through them.

Father, thank You for the incredible privilege of participating in the care of Your beautiful creation. Help us to see You daily in every aspect of the amazing world You have made.

In Christ’s Service,
Pastor Shane Cannon <><