Creation's Testimony

My family and I feel extremely lucky to live within a short driving distance from the Wichita Mountain Wildlife Refuge. The refuge offers scenic drives, hiking, picnicking, camping, wildlife (up close and personal), and a plethora of plant life native to southwestern Oklahoma for everyone to enjoy. The spring is probably my favorite time to go. The dull winter browns of the plains morph into a fairy tale backdrop of beautiful greens patched with sheets of wildflowers bedazzled with butterflies flitting along the tops of them. Taking advantage of the tender new shoots are buffalo, longhorn, deer, and elk guardedly showing off their newly arrived offspring. Prairie dog pups play chase and practice their yips under mama’s watchful eye as she fills her hungry belly after a long, cold, winter. I love feeling the warmth of the sun as much as they do, smelling the sweetness in the air from the newly sprouting grasses and wildflowers, and listening to the sounds of whippoorwills and meadowlarks along with the bounty of other native birds welcoming back the spring.

Even though I prefer the spring, each season offers its own distinct elements of beauty to the refuge. Summer boasts new varieties of grasses shooting up above the now lusher greens from spring; cacti dot the landscape and sport blooms of purple, pink, and yellow; a big sky seems to go on forever and becomes an everchanging canvas of swirls and colors; and ducks and geese accompanied by an egret or two settle into their respective lakes full of fish and turtles happy to be warm again. You might even see the occasional beaver working diligently on his dam or an otter playfully frisking about in the water. Crowning the end of long, sundrenched days are evenings that offer beautiful sunsets rich in reds, oranges, pinks, and purples; a beautiful beginning to a star-filled night which might surprise you with a falling star or two.

In autumn, the trees become a colorful forest of reds, yellows, oranges, and greens, the perfect backdrop for a leisurely drive on a sunny Sunday afternoon. The cooler weather offers respite from the heat of summer and the opportunity for a nice hike and a night around the campfire if you’re inclined to camping out. Squirrels can be seen frantically gathering nuts and geese flying overhead honking their hellos as they migrate in from colder regions in the north. Photographers can be spotted snapping photos of families, wildlife, or waiting patiently for the perfect sunset shot.

Winter on the refuge brings shades of brown, mirror lakes, and clear night skies. An occasional ice or snowstorm creates a mystical landscape accented by steamy lakes. If you turn off your car engine and stand outside, you can feel the beautiful quietness that blankets the entire refuge.

We don’t go as often as we’d like but we go as often as we can. We enjoy taking a drive or a hike if time allows. There are some people (usually out-of-staters) who mock our mountains stating they are mere hills. After visiting the Rockies, Smokies, and Tetons, I would have to agree. But though they are smaller in stature, they are still beautiful to me. I especially think so on my drive home from school in the evenings when the sun is setting behind them. The sky glows with the warm hues of the sunset and the mountains are silhouetted a deep purple against them. What painter or photographer can capture the true beauty of that sunset? What sculptor can capture the detail and magnitude of those mountains? What landscaper can recreate the beauty of the wildflowers that grow there? God has created this world and all its beauty for us to enjoy. We don’t have to go to an art gallery to see grand works of art. We can merely step outside.

Psalm 19: 1-6 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them hath he set a tabernacle for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoiceth as a strong man to run a race. His going forth is from the end of the heaven, and his circuit unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.”

This Psalm is a beautifully written tribute describing how creation declares God’s existence, knowledge, and power. What an encouragement! Our faith can be reaffirmed by merely looking around and seeing the magnitude and order of everything He has created.

There is a video titled “Cosmic Eye” that has circulated around Facebook. It opens with photo of a young woman lying on the grass. The camera slowly begins to zoom out 10 centimeters from her face all the way out into the atmosphere and on into space until it reaches 100 million lightyears away. It quickly begins to zoom back in slowing down as it passes through the pupil of the young lady’s eye and reaches 1 femtometer. It shows us the diversity, vastness, and systematization of creation from the near tiniest measurement to one of the largest. What a testament to God’s imagination and creativity!

Job 12:7-9 But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: Or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee.

Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this?

One of our favorite T.V. series to binge watch is “Our Planet”. We are continually amazed by the number and variety of communities within just one ecosystem; how all those communities and ecosystems work together; and how much they depend upon each other for survival.

The more we learn about our world, the stronger the body of evidence proving God’s existence and almighty power. It boggles the mind very quickly but is utterly marvelous!

Hebrews 11:3 Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.

All things were created (framed) by God speaking it (word of God) into existence from nothing (things which are seen not made of things which appear). The first chapter of Genesis gives us an overview of creation but I dare say that no book could contain every plant, animal, and organism created let alone the atmospheres, stars, planets, weather, landforms, and so on (and on) included in all creation. Mankind is STILL discovering things today!

This beautiful, everchanging canvas we call creation cries out its testimony of God’s very existence! Only He can imagine and create such diversity and beauty!

Please take a few moments every day to find and enjoy this beautiful creation God has given us, whether it’s a trip to the refuge, a nearby national park, or just outside your door. Be absorbed by the beauty He has created for us; admire His craftmanship; and let your heart and mind be filled with the peace in knowing that God is our personal creator as well. You, yourself are God’s creation. What He has created, He loves, cherishes, and nourishes.

*May God bless!

PS. Photos below were taken by David Ashenfelter at the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28sqs5H5hao