In the Venn diagram of The Christian Nerd’s content this post is going to be a little more personal.
This week I am in the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains on a retreat for the pastoral staff from our church. In the past when our team got away it was to work on our vision and different projects. We called them retreats but it was more like working in the mountains.
Last year, though, we scheduled an actual retreat full of silence, solitude and naps. We recognized the need to quiet our souls and come before God without an agenda or need to plan. I loved the time last year and I am thoroughly enjoying our time this year.
During our time of solitude I had an opportunity to sit in the shade of a giant tree while watching four deer graze in a meadow. I don’t mind solitude but I can often be distracted by different thoughts or singing the Doctor Who theme in my head. The deer helped keep me from getting distracted, though. I enjoyed watching the deer praise God simply by being deer. They didn’t have to sing a song or try to praise God; they simply praised God by being deer.
As I was watching the deer, it also struck me that God knows their birthdays. There’s no reason anyone should know the birthdays of four random, wild deer. Yet God knows their birthdays, he knows them and he can distinguish them from every other deer that has ever grazed in every meadow. And if God knows them that well, then how much better does he know us? Like Jesus says in Matthew 6, if God loves those deer that much, then how much more does he love us?
It was a simple moment, with some simple deer that reminded me of a simple truth about God: he loves us. And while it may have been simple, that doesn’t make it any less impactful. Sometimes the simplest truths about God are the most astounding.
What simple truths about God astound you?
Leave a Comment