Old Testament: Ezekiel 19 & 20
Poetry: Psalm 98
New Testament: Revelation 13
Have you ever been hiking in the mountains? Have you heard the crisp cool breeze filtering through the branches of the towering evergreens? The sweet melodies of birds and the rushing mountain stream?
I appreciate that in this Psalm the beauty of God’s creation is intertwined with praising the creator. The psalmist paints a picture for us of the mountains and the rivers singing together for joy. From the creation we can observe the majesty and power of its creator.
This past spring I had the opportunity to hike in the Carpathian mountains of Romania. I did not know that this grueling 12 hour hike was something I was embarking on until the morning of. It was cold, the hike was steep and in some places slick from the packed snow melt. I didn’t know when this hike was going to end as that was a secret my group’s leaders kept a mystery. And all we had to drink was warm sparkling water. At times it felt as though my legs would give out and that I was going to lose strength. But I had to just keep trusting my leaders and asking God for the strength to keep going. It was difficult.
But then we reached the summit. The snow capped peaks and majestic towering mountains surrounded us on almost every side. It was beautiful. From the heights I saw a new perspective than what I had seen prior to the hike. I could see new parts of God’s creation and praise him for the opportunity to explore it.
This is what this Psalm reminds me of. Sometimes after we go through those difficult times in life, we see why we had to climb steep mountain sides. For, without the difficult climb we would not now see the beauty of God’s handiwork. Because of this blessing to see the wonderful things that God has done, we can, as the psalmist writes, “sing to the LORD a new song”.
-Hannah Deane
Reflection Questions
- What do you love about God’s creation?
- What helps keep you going through the difficult “climbs” and times?
- What difficult “climbs” have you gone through that now allow you to “Sing a new song”? How was the new song different from the old song?
Seek Grow Love 