The grandeur of God is there, if you just look. At least, that is how it has been for me. I have never struggled to see the beauty of the earth as God’s creation and doing. The twinkle of the stars and the whistle of the wind testify to me that there is a creator. I can see God through nature. He created a paradise on earth. Some beauty has been diminished, but little things, no matter where you live, testify that there is a God. To me, that’s the sun, the stars, the mountains, the long empty roads, and the towering trees.
The sun wakes each day.
That fact is no surprise to anyone, although some locations have less sunshine than others. The sun rising is the one thing that never seems to stop. You go to sleep to a quiet, dark night. Hours later, it is the morning and the sun comes out again. It is a constant, steady cycle. Some days, I’m sure there are those of us who wish the sun wouldn’t come out for once, that the night would last a little longer. Yet there are also those who cannot wait for the night to end and for the sunshine of day to illuminate their life.
The stars, oh the stars..
I don’t see the stars every night, nor do I commonly see them in their full, unblocked light. But I know that they are there. I have camped and I have laid watching them. I have gotten home and looked up at the sky in awe and pondering before I head into my house. Living in a city full of streetlights, homes, and cars, I don’t often see the stars as clearly as I would like, but it makes me treasure them even more. I can have faith that they are there, waiting for me to come find them in a small town, late at night. They whisper to me of my smallness in a world so grand. I see creation in their beauty.
Mountains rise and fall.
When I first moved to a town situated in the valley of a mountain, I felt trapped. It seemed that the mountains were caving in around me. As I have grown to explore and climb them, I have begun to view mountains as a ladder that I can climb, a journey to a higher, exalted destination. I stand below them caressing their slopes with my eyes. I hike them, yearning for the peak to come closer. I stand on them, seeing my town laid out below. What was once a trap now gives me perspective, and wings to fly. I can change my view. I can see that there is a purpose in what is around me.
Empty roads that seem to never end.
You have large, steep mountains, and on the other hand, you have empty roads and long, sprawling land. There is beauty in both. Small towns and empty roads have a beauty and a reverence. Cities are so busy and beautiful, but those rural, quiet towns have their own beauty. They have those long, empty roads with room to walk, run, drive, but mostly, to think. The empty blue sky with wispy clouds and the long, faded road allow for quiet and long hours of thinking. A place like that shows me that this world isn’t so crowded after all, and that there is room for all of us to grow and learn.
The towering trees of a forest.
Forests seem to be equated with mystery and darkness, but for me, they have been synonymous with those long, empty roads. Below towering trees is again room for thinking, but there is also room for listening, listening to the branches shake and the birds chirp. A glimpse of a deer or a squirrel reminds me that I am not alone. The trees themselves tell me that there is a creator. Something made them, made them to be a provider of shade and shelter, of solitude and rest. The trees create homes and oxygen, they give us our shelter and our breath. Joseph Smith himself sought refuge in the woods.
Oh, the sun, the stars, the mountains, the deserts, and the trees all tell me that there is a creator. There is a creator who made me and them, and you. There is beauty all around. We have a paradise on earth that testifies of God.
Lauren is studying Journalism at Brigham Young University and considers the East Coast home. She has a passion for writing, photography, skiing, hiking, and traveling. She enjoys studying German and is married to her best friend.
