It was early in the morning, and the sun was already glaring down. I hit the trail that initially wound its way through a wooded area. Cotton seeds floated in the air. Birds chirped. A few people on roller blades passed me. And more than one bug made its presence known. But I strolled along at a slow pace, just taking it all in. I made my way through the woods and caught a beautiful glimpse of the lake as I rounded a corner. The water was completely still and I saw a tree that had grown several feet offshore, in the lake itself. It didn’t have many leaves and the branches were split in such a fashion as to make it look like a person raising two hands to the heavens. I didn’t have my camera that day, but it sort of looked like the one in this picture.
I was overwhelmed with the idea that the tree was pointing to its Creator in praise. In fact, I felt like I got to see a living example of Psalm 148 that says in part: “Praise the LORD from the earth, you great sea creatures and all deeps, fire and hail, snow and mist, stormy wind fulfilling his word! Mountains and all hills, fruit trees and all cedars! Beasts and all livestock, creeping things and flying birds! Kings of the earth and all peoples, princes and all rulers of the earth! Young men and maidens together, old men and children! Let them praise the name of the LORD, for his name alone is exalted; his majesty is above earth and heaven.”
I stood and watched in awe—feeling quite small on one hand in comparison to a big God. But on the other hand, feeling closer to him than I had in a long time because I felt like he let me in on a secret—something that would have been easy to miss if I hadn’t been paying attention. The rest of my day didn’t turn out they way I had planned, but that hardly seemed to matter.
All sorts of situations and people have inspired me and I’m thinking that it might be fun to write about more of them. I bet you’ll be able to relate in some fashion and maybe you could even start a series on your own blog about little things that have inspired you in big ways. I’d love to read such posts if you decide to write them. But sure to leave links to them in the comments section.
