Praise the LORD from the earth, . . . Mountains and all hills; Fruit trees and all cedars.  (Psalm 148:7 & 9)

I’ve found that I have good company in my love for the creation: Colonial theologian Jonathan Edwards is considered to be America’s first true intellectual. While Edwards studied the Word of God with great fervency, he also studied almost as intensely the works of God in the creation. As a preacher and an avid naturalist, Edwards explained the meaning of the creation with these words:

“When we are delighted with flowery meadows and gentle breezes of wind, we may consider that we see only the emanations of the sweet benevolence of Jesus Christ. When we behold the fragrant rose and lily, we see His love and purity. So the green trees and fields, and singing of birds are the emanations of His infinite joy and benignity [kindness, graciousness]. The easiness and naturalness of trees and vines are shadows of His beauty and loveliness. The crystal rivers and murmuring streams are the footsteps of His favor, grace, and beauty” (Observations, p.94).

In commenting on Psalm148:9, the great English preacher Charles Haddon Spurgeon wrote:

Western red cedar

Fruit trees and forest trees, trees deciduous or evergreen, are equally full of benevolent design,and alike subserve some purpose of love; therefore, for all and by all, let the great Designer be praised. There are many species of cedar, but they all reveal the wisdom of their Maker. When kings fell them,that they may make beams for their palaces,they do but confess their obligation to the King of trees, and to the King of kings, whose trees they are. Varieties in the landscape are produced by the rising and falling of the soil, and by the many kinds of trees which adorn the land. Let all, and all alike, glorify their one Lord. When the trees clap their hands in the wind,or their leaves rustle in the gentle breath of Zephyr, they do to their best ability sing out unto the Lord (The Treasury Of David).

Would it be unthinkable to imagine these great men of God dropping to their knees if they had had the privilege of entering the awe-inspiring forests of the Pacific Northwest, where behind me as I write massive Douglas firs reach for the sky? They were the furthest thing from pantheists, but they would no doubt have felt as I do that some of the greatest “cathedrals” in the world can be found in wilderness areas far from great cities where grand church spires point to the heavens. 

As in ancient times, many today fail to distinguish between the tree and the tree’s Creator. Towering firs, cedars, spruces, and hemlocks are not part of God—that’s a pagan, pantheistic belief. Trees were not made to be worshiped—as did the Druids—but they do help us in our worship. When we walk into a forest, we are properly awed to be surrounded by all the other creatures God loves, cares for, and rejoices in. And they in turn praise Him merely by doing what He made them to do. Wherever His work is being faithfully carried out by His living creatures, wherever trees honor the Creator in whatever mysterious way they “clap their hands,” there is indeed a cathedral.  If when entering a forest you recognize its trees as fellow worshipers, it has to lift your own spirit in praise.

How long has it been since you have identified with the writer of lyrics to “How Great Thou Art”:

When through the woods
And forest glades I wander
I hear the birds
Sing sweetly in the trees;

When I look down
From lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook
And feel the gentle breeze;

Then sings my soul,
My Saviour God, to Thee,
How great Thou art!

[Hear Sandi Patty sing it on YouTube. 
Crank up the speakers!]

[Photos taken in past few days here on Orcas Island in Washington State.  Click on the photos to see them larger.]