“By the word of the LORD, the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth, all their host.” Ps 33:6

Recently, I had the opportunity to visit a National Monument in Idaho called “Craters of the Moon.”  This park is a huge lava field, over 700 thousand acres in area, with cinder cones and rifts from an eruption which scientists date as having occurred approximately 2,000 years ago.  Far from any inhabited area, this vast field of black rock stretches out from one end of the horizon to the other.

Remarkably, even on this desolate landscape, life is abundant.  Little mammals scurry among the rocks, and wildflowers and sagebrush spread over the black surface of the park.  My wife and I camped overnight, and we were rewarded after dark with a spectacular view of the Milky Way, with countless stars filling the night sky.

When I observe these wonders, I am reminded of how awesome and mighty is our God, the Creator of all things.  He brought forth the lava from the deep places of the Earth, and He created plants and animals that can thrive in these desolate fields of igneous rock.  Indeed, He created all the stars and planets of the night sky, only a small fraction of which are visible to the naked eye, even on a cloudless night in the wilderness.

In this present age of scientific discovery, people sometimes imagine there is no problem that cannot be solved by the ingenuity of man.  This hubris, however, is quickly dissolved with a single glance upward at the night sky filled with the vastness of the stars.  God created all of this from nothing.  Man’s accomplishments and ambitions cannot approach the wonder of God’s creative power.

I recommend reading Psalm 33 in its entirety after you finish this email.  The message there is clear, and it is of great encouragement to all who trust in the Lord.  Almighty God, who created the heavens above and the earth below, is our refuge and our strength.  Moreover, we can rejoice, because we have trusted in His holy name.