When Heaven Breaks Through

Posted on June 9, 2014 by Pastor Dave

We just returned from a trip to Oregon and after we got unpacked had enough time before dark (which this time of year is about 10:30 here) to go for a walk. The sunset and cloud configurations were really magnificent. We spent a very busy couple weeks with family, attending games, working on yards, preparing food for a graduation party (our grandson, Alec, graduated from a Christian high school in Lebanon) and it was nice to just relax and enjoy the beauty God creates for us–an opportunity for worship. We also took time to wander around our place and witness all the changes in just two weeks:  our vegetable garden had really taken off (although the deer got in and helped themselves to some of it!), the grass is badly in need of mowing, some trees were blooming and gave off a wonderful fragrance, and one of our resident deer proudly paraded by us with her brand new spotted fawn. 

     In the midst of the busyness and stresses of life, there are evidences of beauty all around us, glimpses of God’s goodness and mercy and beauty if we just pause and observe. They are like places in the walls of God’s creation where “heaven breaks through” if we only take the time to stop and reflect upon God’s love for us, and what better way to do that than to “stop and smell the roses.”  Before we left for Oregon we were hurrying to get caught up on our yard and garden. I was mowing out in our little fruit orchard and the aroma from the apple blossoms caused me to just stop and take it all in. I even went to get my wife to come and enjoy it with me. It reminded me of how God desires that we bear fruit for Him and how that must be a beautiful “aroma” to Him when we do.
     We also like to eat lunch out on our deck and watch the hummingbirds dart in and out from our feeder, demonstrating their amazing abilities of flight, which sometimes takes them whizzing right by our heads. We also have a  flower garden in the back with a little fountain and pond which the birds love. It is a joy to just watch them taking baths or searching for insects in the garden.
     While at our daughter and son-in-law’s place in Albany, Oregon, we worked hard to get their yard looking nice for a graduation party, but would take moments to just sit on the swing and look at the little lake which is below their property, watching the ducks, herons, red-winged black birds and listening to the many melodies they produced. As we worked on landscaping we also “got” to see a couple large, very beautiful garter snakes and found one baby bull snake. In the evening we would listen to the many frogs as they communicated back and forth around the lake.
     We live in a very messed up world, our own country included, but God is still on the throne orchestrating the events which carry out His purposes. In the midst of the ravages caused by our sinfulness, we can still see the glimpses of His mighty hand. We can still observe the wonderful works of our majestic, all-powerful God. Sometimes in life we must hurry, but we need to stop more often and notice all the wonders of our God, the places in this universe where “heaven breaks through” in the miracle of a sunrise or a sunset or in a spring thunderstorm. We need to stop and listen to a birds singing, or pause look at the beautiful flowers God has made and smell the fragrance of the lilac bush or the apple tree. I believe these are just little glimpses of the eternity that awaits us in the world that God will remake, removing all the devastations caused by sin.
     As David wrote in the Psalms: “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands” (Psa. 19:1). “O LORD, how many are Thy works! In wisdom Thou hast made them all; The earth is full of Thy possessions” (Psa. 8:24).
 
     Be sure and take time today –and every day– to notice the many places where “heaven breaks through” and God demonstrates His glory. Worship isn’t just what we do in church on Sunday, it is enjoying God and what He has made, and praising Him for it, each and every day.
 
            Forever His,
                Pastor Dave
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About Pastor Dave

Until my retirement 2 years ago, I pastored an independent Bible church in Northwest Montana for nearly 38 years. During that time I also helped establish a Christian school, and a Bible Camp. I am married and have children and grandchildren. The Wisdom of the Week devotional is an outgrowth of my desire to share what God is doing in my life and in our world, and to challenge you to be a part.
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