There’s a sense in which I believe our common evangelical talk about having a personal relationship with the Creator and Sustainer of the universe sometimes makes Him far too small and us too big. We are understandably taken with personal relationships. Most of our time is spent with people or in human settings where everything we are in a relationship with is human or a human artifact: spouses, children, office mates, homes, buildings, cars, phones, iPods, TVs, and so forth. All of these things we can manipulate and manage—and manage them to our own advantage as much as we can. Even the last thing we do at night is manipulate the comfort of our beds and bedrooms in order to get “a good night’s rest”—only to come back to consciousness and start the human relationship thing all over again. Day after day after day with little variation.
That’s why I feel it’s so important to become more intimate with the natural world. While we can manipulate some things there—often negatively—we cannot manage the natural processes: they are under God’s administration. And if we find ourselves uncomfortable with that reality (as probably most of us often are) we really need the wild. We tend to forget that much of our feeling of control is actually an illusion that will fade—especially when we come face to face with our mortality or even threats to our mortality (hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, wildfires, and so forth). We’re neither in control of the natural world nor in the natural world, and that’s why we and our children need to get more in touch with the natural world. We need to experience the wild and get away from human artifacts where we can actually see God in His greatness—not as our pal, but as the Lord of the cosmos.
If the importance I grant the natural world here seems a little radical, do this exercise: read the book of Job. Most of the book is a story about Job and his relationship with his friends. Job has in fact come face to face with his mortality, his children have been tragically killed, and all his money and possessions have become meaningless. And his friends react sort of like people today sitting around in our churches and small groups trying to explain to someone who is suffering how God works and what we are supposed to do to get God to make things all right again—to stop our suffering and perhaps help us recoup our losses. But in the biblical story, God does not make a great benefactor’s appearance, and Job is not relieved of his suffering and loss.
If we were writing the script of this narrative, we’d have God come in on cue, say “amen” to all our wise and helpful advice, and then make things right for Job because he followed his counselors’ formulas for getting what he wanted from God. But that’s not what happened. Instead, God appeared—and rather sternly. God called all their friendly, relational chatter nothing but “words without knowledge.” Then God made clear to Job exactly what it means to understand that both our destiny and our world are in the hands of the Creator and Sustainer of the universe (read chapters 38-42:6). God reviewed for Job not the reason for his suffering, but the evidence that He, God, is beyond our management: In marvelous Hebrew poetry, Job’s Maker highlights the fearful wonders of the creation for the humbled patriarch to be certain that he will never again think he is in control or that his community of friends have God pegged.
If for nothing else, then, we need to experience the natural world to remind us that God is not a friend to be manipulated, but is our Creator: maker of wonders we cannot truly fathom with powers that are beyond our grasp. Simply put, experiencing the wild helps remind us that though He loves and cares for us—Person to person—He is still to be honored as the Lord of the cosmos—of all that is real and significant.
Let’s not forget that the great outdoors is a cathedral—not where nature is worshiped but where we actually join nature “in manifold witness to [His] great mercy and love.” http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/g/i/gisthyf.htm
See you outdoors,
Dean
October 26th, 2008 at 2:31 am
Wonderful thoughts here, and it makes me regret all the years we’ve downplayed going to wonderful places, because we felt we couldn’t afford it. In reality it looks like we can’t afford not to. Especially for our children.
Thanks, Dean.
October 27th, 2008 at 7:38 am
This reminds me of another outdoorsman, President Teddy Roosevelt, and when he and naturalist William Beebe would step out of the White House and observe the night sky, the president would turn to Beebe and say that they could go to bed now, he was small enough.
The creation does have that kind of effect on us. I can hike miles, and when i look at a map of where I am, where I’ve come from and where I’m going, I realize that although I tend to believe I have really gone a long way, I’ve barely moved when considering the vastness of some of our forests, and mountains. In this age of technology and space exploration, we do tend to think we’re big, but what an illusion.
October 27th, 2008 at 9:09 am
O where have all the Teddies gone?!
October 27th, 2008 at 11:40 am
A friend made this comment to me offline:
You make some very good points in “Our Relationship with the Creator.” It reminds one that “Aslan is not a tame Lion.” A few weeks ago I discussed the concept of mathematical infinity with the class to help them see just how far above us and our attributes is God with His attributes. Seeing what He has done in nature also leads us to view God more correctly (to the extent we can do that) in my opinion.
One might argue that God did make ” a great benefactor’s appearance,” as He “increased all that Job had twofold” (Job 42:10-17). You may have been writing of Job’s grief at the loss of his family, and there is no direct indication as to whether or not God removed Job’s grief. Job’s fortunes, however, were restored and he was given a new family by God.
[We are] confident that, in the light of Job’s restoration and of his expectation that he would see his deceased children again (19:26), God removed Job’s grief along with the restoration of his other family
relationships and his possessions.
Dean Ohlman says:
As these very appropriate comments make clear, Job is not an easy book to understand. The passage referred to is one of the most amazing early biblical references to our own future physical resurrection: “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that in the end He will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I will see God” (Job 19:25-27 NIV). So in spite of his suffering, Job had faith in God. And God did eventually bless him with a life even more grand than what he had lost.
This too is a grand affirmation of Romans 8:28: “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose” (NIV). However, we also know from Hebrews 11 that many whom God called according to His purpose suffered horribly and were not rewarded or given comfort in this life—but only had the promise of something “better” in the life to come.
Probably more than anything the circumstances of Job’s encounter with God teaches us that we must not presume upon our Creator and make claims that we know exactly how and why He does what He does. He is the Lord of the universe who will neither be manipulated by us nor fully understood in His purposes and His actions.
Getting to know the awesome wonders of the natural world is at least beneficial to us this way: Through them we come to know how small we are—and how big He is!
Teddy Roosevelt had it right! Wouldn’t it be grand to know that all our governmental leaders followed his example?
October 27th, 2008 at 12:39 pm
Wow, I have to say I find fault with the relationship issue. It is all about a relationship with God and in that knowing we understand we do not have a clue totally about all that He is. Then the next stage is loving others as He has loved us.
Yes nature is but a glimpse of the beauty that He has given us to enjoy which shows exactly have much He loves us but I will never put nature above God or my relationship with Him. The wonder of God’s creation is manifested so wonderfully in a human being and while treating nature with respect it does not replace the respect that needs to be given to each other.
I believe nature is a way God shows His love and we show our love to Him by bringing Glory to His name by our lives. We can enjoy all that he has given us by being good stewards of creation but not at the cost of a human being (grandchildren for example)I bet they would rather have a hug than anything else.
October 27th, 2008 at 3:28 pm
To Poohpity:
The problem with a blog like this is that sometimes in the cause of brevity it’s hard to say all you’d like to say. This musing was one of those that I would like to have had be twice as long—to sufficiently make my point.
Sorry I created an impression with you that I somehow was making a relationship with the natural world more important than our relationship with God or with other people.
The primary point of the post was to reiterate the lesson of Job—that God is not One we can manage or manipulate like so many of the other things we interact with in our lives. I think that we often look at God like Job’s “comforters” did: having confidence that we have all the answers about His works and His ways. God used a review of His power and glory in the natural world to humble both Job and his friends. (Job 38-42)
We need that same sort of humbling in regard to our own easy answers about God—and we often get that when come face to face with the phenomenal power and greatness of His creation.
Being exposed to the wonders of creation should duly make us small and God big. When we are mostly exposed to things we can manipulate and manage, we often make ourselves big and God small.
Does that clarify things at all?
October 27th, 2008 at 6:55 pm
While in Africa I asked God, “How can you allow such suffering?”, only to be reminded of the story of Job and who was I to question God. In His infinite wisdom, He said so that you can go and be my heart, hands and feet. It is really an extravagance to me to be able to travel around the world or the United States just to see nature when I see the faces of so many in pain, grieving, hungry, in sorrow and sick. That is what I was alluding to in my post about relationships, I hope that clarifies where I was coming from.
Do not get me wrong, I so often wondered just with the color of blue in the morning sky how can one capture it with any medium or a picture. One day it will all be gone but the lives touched in the name of our God will last for an eternity.
October 28th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Poohpity, thanks for joining this discussion, your remarks on “Been Thinking About” are always appreciated.
One of the points this blog is trying to make (Dean, correct me if I’m out of bounds) is that the natural world that our Lord has created and sustains shouts God’s glory, without the slightest rebellion. We certainly don’t put nature on a level with human souls, but allow God’s creation to motivate us to praise and worship Him. When we have our relationship with God in focus, we are better prepared to minister to those you mentioned. Jesus said this: The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me. (Mark 14:7) He put our relationship with Him as our top priority. He could have mentioned those suffering from all kinds of maladys as well. In the forests, mountains, around a quiet stream away from most of the worldly distractions, There is a sense of real worship for many of us. Not of the trees, etc., but worship of the One who put the trees there. When our hearts have been absorbed with Him, we can become better at ministry than without it. As Dean has said, nature is a kind of a cathedral, a real worship center.