God is vaster, stronger than we can imagine; the towering mountains and crashing waves of the sea that break over the shore are details to him. 

He can increase the wind or fling stars into the dark; he can turn the very mountains to dust, the dawn into day and back again into night.

I love to sit by the sea and hear the billows, to stride over the mountains and smell the scent of heather, to taste the cool air. I love to watch the coming of night, and then to stir to life again in the grey morning. 

Each of these experiences tells me of God’s all-embracing care, the rhythm of nature he created, the greatness of life itself. His light enlarges my mind, his plenty stirs my heart. And there is the special central joy that he reveals his purposes of love to us human beings. His winds refresh me; his footprints shape my life. 

His designs are grand, yet he cares generously and tenderly for us. He is in the heights and the depths. He is present everywhere, even though I do not see him. The hope of the return of daylight after the night is a certain illustration: the darkness is only temporary.

Prayer: God who made the mountains, the stars and the surging seas, teach me to discern your presence in the world’s rhythms—and in my own. Amen