Canada, part III: What the mountains remind us

For more Canada-related posts in this mini series, see Canada, part I: Senses // Canada, part II: Places and things

If you haven't noticed anything else about the photos from Canada, you can tell, it was beautiful.

But the admiration of a creative work is hollow if it does not recognize the artist, right?  Looking up, the mountains towering over us literally point up to God. Admiring creation without mentioning the Creator is a sort of empty, unfulfilled worship. After all, we were created to worship, not to just look at beautiful things. An honestly, the true enjoyment is in the worship, in the moments when we cannot help thinking, I'm in awe and my heart is full for having experienced this.

Turning away from the mountains for a moment, consider the beauty of us, people, His creation. He makes good things. He is no stranger to beautiful, good, and wild things. Creation reveal attributes of the Creator. The Canadian Rockies in their rugged splendor reveal a Creator that is fully beautiful, fully good, and fully wild.

“Safe?” said Mr Beaver; “Don’t you hear what Mrs Beaver tells you? Who said anything about safe? ‘Course he isn’t safe. But he’s good. He’s the King, I tell you.” CS Lewis, The Lion, the Witch & The Wardrobe

I felt a bit unsettled when we returned to Austin because I hadn't yet fully considered and thanked and praised the master behind glimpses of the most beauty I've ever seen.  We cannot escape the eternity-mindedness of our hearts (every single one of us!)—not even in our admiring of a landscape.

Why does this matter in day-to-day life, when I'm back in Austin, working shifts at the hospital, grocery shopping, filling the car with gas, and partaking in the all the routine and tame aspects of life?  If I know that God is a God who moves mountains with care and precision, can I trust that He will move Nicholas and I through our life with that same care and precision? Yes.

Life is and will be hard and decisions and heartbreak and dissonance are real, but I can acknowledge His skill and power and strength when He made the mountains and I can trust He is still just as skilled and powerful and strong today. As followers of Christ we are in good and mighty hands.

P.S.—I wasn't sure where to put that picture of me and Nicholas. But I can say that this trip made me ever more thankful for a forever adventure buddy who I can stand next to, both of us in awe of the creation of our amazing God.