Psalm 104:1-23
We are back to the Psalms today, but Fred wants to extend his “vacation”, so it looks like you are still stuck with me. Sorry about that.
Psalm 104 begins with the same refrain we heard in Psalm 103: Bless the LORD, O my soul! It goes on to extol the LORD as the Creator, as the One Who set the earth on its foundations (Ps 104:5), the One Who formed the seas, the mountains, the valleys (Ps 104:6-9). He is the One Who waters the earth, Who gives life to all the plants and animals and mankind (Ps 104:10-18). He is the One Who orders day and night and seasons by the sun and the moon (Ps 104:19-23). He is the One responsible for all we see.
I grew up in Iowa. It’s one of those places with “big sky” because there isn’t much blocking the view from horizon to horizon — unless you happen to be standing in a cornfield with the corn at full height, in which case you can’t see anything! The night sky there is tremendous, with views of stars, planets, the Milky Way, and even the northern lights on occasion. But I spent most of my adult life in Northern Virginia, just outside Washington, D.C., a place that is most definitely not “big sky”, and the light pollution from the city blots out all but the brightest stars. There it is easy to neglect to look up, because it seems like there isn’t much to see. And the culture of the nation’s capital reinforces that notion with its focus on earthly things, particularly power and wealth.
It is easy to get so focused on the man-made, on modern technology, or human achievements, or entertainment, or whatever, that we forget about the wonders of creation. On the other hand, there are those who do indeed see the natural world, but — unwilling to acknowledge God — become enthralled with nature itself. (See Rom. 1:25.) Let’s not make either mistake. Open your eyes. Go outside. Look around. Marvel at the structure, the order, the beauty, the grandeur of nature. Then worship its — and your — Creator!