Driving home one crisp and clear Monday morning, I looked up from the traffic to view an astonishing sight! The hills were alive with masses of green flora! “…He is like brightness after the rain that brings grass to the earth.” II Sam. 23:4 I live at the top of a valley and we have been in a drought for years. The hillsides on both sides are either vibrant green or latent brown. When green, the vegetation is thick and the variation of colors is almost more than the eye can bear in beauty. When brown, it is as if the earth has closed its doors and left the ground dead, blanketed in weeds and dust.
“We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of
childbirth right up to the present time.” Romans 8: 22 (NIV)
The dry earth lies in wait. It is dormant as the season’s come and go. It patiently waits for the Creator to open the floodgates of heaven with rain to saturate the soil once again. “He provides rain for the earth and sends water on the countryside". Job 5: 10 After months of “dry bones” the response to the nurturing dewdrops of the night past had been instant! The blades of grass were standing straight up and immediately beginning to show signs of new life. “The earth had burst into jubilant song… Psalms 98:4 ♫The hills are alive with the sound of music ♬ and covered in a magnificent lush green hue again!
I was so fascinated; my inclination was to burst into song!
“He calls forth songs of joy.” Psa.65: 8
“The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it…” Psa.24: 1I All creation obeys God! I was thinking what a difference this world would be if the “human” world, like the flora world, would instantly respond to the initial promptings of the Creator. What if we would immediately stand up tall with an eager response and dedicated conviction to be and do whatever our Creator asks of us? We would change our world, as we know it! Wouldn’t we?
When God speaks to you, what is your response?
Is it instant obedience or is it a contrived excuse?
Kim, our youngest daughter with Megan, our granddaughter,
Climbed to the top for a clear view of the green valley…
~Jackie Johnson - I am a former tribal missionary to the Kuna Indians on the Colombian border in Central America. Fluent in several languages, my husband and I currently pastor a Spanish-speaking church in Southern California. My passion is discipling and equipping dedicated young women for life, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. I am the mother of two daughters and the grandmother of three Princesses and four young Knights.
