"The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge. There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard."
		(Ps. 19:1-3)

Well, the weather has been a bit frigid so far this winter. The snowstorms seemed to correspond perfectly with our plans for trips into Sioux Falls to pick up friends and family from the airport. Now that made for some interesting travel! After the several days of bitter cold, the many inches of snow falling over all surfaces, the driving wind piling that same snow into four foot tall snow drifts in the yard; after all this, it was indeed a pleasant relief to enjoy temps in the mid 20’s, the bright shining snow and calm skies. God is good.
In the “heat of the day” of these recent days, my lovely wife and I enjoyed pleasant strolls around town. We were amazed at the glorious crystalized frost flakes from the morning fog; at the symmetrical patterns in the snow drifts, and even at the beautifying effect of the pure white snow upon an otherwise brown landscape. These are but a few of the multitude of evidences of which the Psalmist speaks in this 19th Psalm of the testimony of God concerning Himself. God shows us a glimpse of Himself in the creation which is all around us. Now we must be careful, this psalm is not saying that creation is God, nor is it saying that creation is “just like” God. Rather, in this psalm we hear King David contemplate the many ways in which creation “speaks” the words of God to all people.
God is not silent.
So far from being silent is God, that the psalm speaks of a virtual shouting whereby the word of God is declared clearly, boldly, and universally across the globe. This is called “general revelation”; that is, all of creation actively proclaims the truth about the nature of God, so much so that the wonder of God cannot be honestly denied. The Apostle Paul picks up this line of thought in the first chapter to the Romans:

For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes
are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made,
even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without
excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify
Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their
thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to
be wise, they became fools. (Rom 1:20-22)

Verse two of this 19th Psalm reminds us that this speech, or utterance, or revelation of God is continuously being set upon display. True knowledge of God is being shown. All of creation shows us something of the wonder, glory, faithfulness of our God! Every time that we witness the wonder of God, in its beauty, severity, or awesome power; it is as if we are seeing God declare to us afresh:“I am here and I have shown Myself in all of my power and glory.” The Dutch theologian, Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920) is famously remembered for his insight into God and His creation with these words:“There is not a square inch in the whole domain of our human existence over which Christ, who is Sovereign over all, does not cry, Mine!’
Often times we look upon the glory of the sunset, or the won- der of the summer skies, and see the handiwork of God. This is good, the heavens indeed declare the glory of God. But let’s not stop there, but with fresh eyes look all about us, as every facet of creation speaks clearly, and to all, the wonder of our creator God. The big picture, as well as the minutia, proclaim the wonders of the Lord.
It is easy to be overwhelmed by the added struggles of living with the cold and storms; but this is just a brief encouragement to take a closer look, and to consider what we truly learn about God, as we witness His handiwork today. Have a blessed week.

Travis Grassmid
Menno, SD