Moving towards the hope that was foretold.

Why do we not know the country whose citizens we are? because we have wandered so far away that we have forgotten it. But the Lord Christ, the king of the land, came down to us, and drove forgetfulness from our heart. God took to Himself our flesh so that He might be our way back.


Augustine.

Friday, July 16, 2010

The shape of things.

One of my favorite things to do is look down at the earth from an airplane window.  The topography fascinates me.  You can see the way mountains rise out of the plains; canyons carved into the land drain into rivers and valleys.  God made an amazing world and I love His creation.

But it is flawed.  As incredible as creation is, it is fallen.

From the book, 'Heaven', by Randy Alcorn:

"We have never seen the Earth as God made it.  Our planet as we know it is a shadowy, halftone image of the original.  But it does whet our appetites for the New Earth, doesn't it?  If the present Earth, so diminished by the Curse, is at times so beautiful and wonderful; if our bodies, so diminished by the Curse, are at times overcome with a sense of the Earth's beauty; then how magnificent will the New Earth be?  And what will it be like to experience the New Earth in something else we have never known:  perfect bodies?"

I love being in the world we have and it constantly reminds me of the Creator.


Psalm 19

For the director of music. A psalm of David.
 1 The heavens declare the glory of God; 
       the skies proclaim the work of his hands.


But I am also constantly aware that it is broken and not what it was intended to be.  Just like me.  In God's time, that will all be put right.  The same sin that causes me to fall and fail; that curse that Adam brought down on me brought down creation along with it.

Christ's resurrection has broken that curse, but it has yet to be realized.  There will come a time when it will all be made right again, both the Earth and I.  I can only imagine what it will be like, as I catch fleeting glimpses and shadows of the beauty to come.

Until that time, I will make do with looking out of airplane windows.

1 comment:

  1. I like Psalm 8 v3
    When I consider your heavens ...... what is man that you are mindful of him ......?
    I find that very comforting on a clear camping night :0)

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