Giving God Glory

 

The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth and strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry, “Glory!”

~Psalms 29:9 ESV

On my way to town I drive through fields and small patches of woods near creeks. This morning I caught sight of a deer just at the edge of a wooded area. I slowed down because I know deer will jump out in front of you and cause damage to the car and herself. But that's not the only reason I slowed. Deer and other wildlife are very common in our area but most people can't help gazing when wildlife makes itself visible. 

I slowed down to catch a few seconds of God's amazing creation and catch a breath of peace and calm. No one has to sustain the deer, or the turkey, or the bear, like farm animals. The Lord takes care of the wild things. He provides their shelter, food, and water. Without these, the deer would die or have to find a new area that provided these necessities. As I started on toward town, I thought about other things I see every day, the trees now turning autumn colors, the fog rising amidst the trees and farmland and barns, the sun rising higher and burning away the fog. Then I realized how great God is to surround us with the beauty of His creation and provide all that we ever need -- food, water, shelter. It may not be a mansion with a grand spread or gallons of sweet tea but those things are not necessary. Those may do us more harm than good. But the necessities along with the peace we find in pausing to wonder; these should cause us to cry, "Glory!" even if we're not yet in His sanctuary. 

I want to praise Him even on my way each day.

Heavenly Father, thank you for your glorious creation that is so insync that it provides all the wildlife need and all we need. Help me pause and give you glory in the midst of your creation every day. In Jesus's name. Amen

Hey Kids:

There is a game our class used to play that helped us realize how important it is for everything in the environment to be insync and how great God is to have planned the creation to be a provider for us all. The game is called "Oh, Deer!"

First we divided the class into four groups. We discussed the need for deer and all animals to have food, water and shelter

Each person was assigned a motion for their group.

• hands over stomach for food
• hands over mouth for water
• hands over head for shelter.

The last group were deer. Two lines were made across the area. The deer stood behind one line, the rest behind the second line. All the students had their backs turned to the other group.

The teacher asked the students to make their sign. The deer made the sign for one of the three things they would need. On the count of three, the deer ran across the area and chose the item that matched their sign. 

As the game progressed the deer will depleted the provision. When a deer couldn't find their need, that deer "died" as all things do when needs are not met. He became part of the habitat and became either food, water, or shelter. 

The teacher kept a graph of how the population of deer increases or decreases. At the end of 15 rounds the teacher and students discussed the results of the activity. Students could see how the ecosystem affects wildlife population.

Have fun and give God the glory for His amazing creation. 

Gail