Noticing God
Last week my family and I traveled with some good friends to Niagara Falls for vacation. For the past four summers we have traveled with our friends in their RV to different places around the country. I usually take two weeks of vacation in the summertime and my wife Nikki always wants one week at the beach and I usually help plan the RV trip. I don’t enjoy the beach so the RV trip is my chance for us to see other parts of the country. My two daughters and I have never been to Niagara Falls so we were excited. It was very impressive to see. Each day we crossed the boarder to the Canadian side. We had a pass that gave us lots of experiences and views of the falls. We took the boat that takes you right to the base of the falls, tunnels behind the falls, white water walk to see the class 6 rapids, and an aero car that takes you over the whirlpool. I also had the opportunity to zip line to the falls! Each view of the falls was different and breathtaking.
One of those is me zip-lining!
One of the reasons I like to visit different parts of the country is that I am in awe of God’s creation. I often experience God in nature and notice God’s presence there. I believe God is everywhere and if we are paying attention we can experience God anywhere. But most of the time I’m not paying attention and just busy with life. I’m thinking about where we need to go next or the next thing on my to do list. But when I take time to slow down like I do on vacation I can’t help but to be in awe of the creativity of God. Standing beside Niagara Falls and seeing the massive amount of water flowing over them, hearing the loud roar, and feeling the mist on my face, I can see, hear, and feel the power of God. Being in nature like that is one of the times when I feel close to God.
Being in nature is just one of the ways I experience God. Serving and worshipping alongside our youth and adults in our community and in places like Haiti is another. Watching my two daughters grow and learn new things is yet another. The important thing is not where we experience God or feel most close to God but that we do have times when we are paying attention to God’s work around us. We need to take time away from our busy lives and notice God and give thanks. Where do you experience God?
