by Victoria Heinecke

God’s creation is full of surprises.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth?
    Tell me, if you have understanding.
Who determined its measurements—surely you know!”
Job 38:4-5 English Standard Version (ESV)

When I was a child, my brother and I liked to dig in the sand on a path behind our home. We’d usually use a shovel, but the sand was soft enough to dig with our fingers. We’d carve little trenches, pour water in the trench, and watch the water take our creation to a new shape. The sand caved as the water seeped into the earth, leaving the path much the way it was when we found it.

Recently, my husband and I traveled to the Grand Canyon. I’ve never seen it before, and when I took in my first look, I gasped at the enormous wonder of it all.

As I reflected while looking at the canyon, my right-brained imagination thought of God taking his finger, and with a single stroke he carved out the canyon. Unlike the efforts of my brother and me, his work is permanent.

Seeing something as awesome as the Grand Canyon puts my humanity in perspective. When I feel as if my life is out of control, I remember that my best efforts to keep it in order pale next to God’s perfect plan for my life.

My effort to create something in the ground (the hole) will only get washed away with the first calamity (the water). God’s creation (the Grand Canyon) not only withstands the water, but changes and becomes more majestic with the passage of time.

One might think that God created the Grand Canyon over many eons. I like to think of him playing in the ground, carving with his finger.

Copyright Holy Cross Lutheran Church, Colorado Springs, Colorado