creation

creation - or nature - as we usually call it, has been an ever present reminder to me this summer of how cool my GOD is.  since returning home from our vacation, i have felt the urge to share these creation encounters.  so here goes...

as my faithful followers know, i'm kinda like a runner now & such.  on various runs at the river house & at camp, i came ridiculously close to some of GOD's creatures that i would not normally get to see.  one morning at camp, i almost ran over an armadillo - thinking it was a cat that would get out of the way.  but he wasn't a cat & i am the one that changed trajectory.  another early morning, as i ran through a particularly wooded area, i was feeling extra fatigued.  when i'm feeling like that - like i might not make it - i've found that i have to change my gaze from the "road ahead" to the pavement immediately in front of my feet - one step at a time.  so as i'm looking down, i happened to see something peripherally...it was a big ole deer...right there, like mere feet from my sweating, panting self.  we eyed each other for a moment & then he (more likely a she) headed off to the tree line. 

at the river house, chris & i went on a canoe ride one morning with papa.  on this adventure, we saw 2 baby alligators.  they were really not too big, but my thinking is that 'where there are babies, there is a mama!'  we also came across a good sized turtle that had gotten himself stuck in between some rocks on the shore line.  the river has been so low that i guess in his quest to reach the water, his shell got caught on the rock.  so we steered over to him & chris used his paddle to pry him loose & put him in the water.  (we call him the turtle hero.)

and then, what i think was the coolest finding actually came right to me.  we had taken the boat to the boat ramp & then i drove our car back to the house while the boys brought the boat up the river.  i went out to the dock to wait for them.  the water was still & quiet.  i stood there just taking in the peacefulness.  and then, in an instant, the moment went from nice & regular to pretty much awe-inspiring & super cool.  a manatee was right there in front of our dock.  manatees have been more prevalent in the suwannee lately, but i had never seen one up close...until now.  he was huge too - prob a good 10 or more feet.  he just swam around there for about a minute or so & then went on his way.  i tried to get some pictures, but they do not do his magnificence justice.  later that week, another manatee (smaller - 6 feet or so) came up by our dock & our whole family got to see him. 

as chris & i talked about our trip, we were reminded of just how awesome & powerful GOD's creation is.  things like: the rise & fall of the river's water level & the creatures & plants & land that this affects, the rain that brings life or destruction, the crazy amount of growth our yard can have after 3 non-mowed weeks...  i think that man is under the impression that he has nature under his control. creation is controlled by GOD & GOD alone.  man may have figured out some ways to harness it from time to time, but it's really all about doing whatever the CREATOR says. ultimately, creation longs for the return of its SAVIOR (romans 8:19-22). what an awesome example creation is for me.