Greetings from Hiawassee, Georgia, my hometown! First let me say that we are thankful for this time of vacation that the church has allowed my family to take. It has already been a time of relaxation and rejuvenation. Second, we were blessed by God with a safe and enjoyable trip down here to Georgia. The kids all did well the whole way down. Along the way, the kids kept looking for the mountains, which they knew were the sure sign that we were not far from our destination.
We took an unplanned stop in Chattanooga, Tennessee, on Monday morning. I thought it would be nice to take everyone to the top of Lookout Mountain in order to take in the view of God’s creation. While we were up there, we decided to visit Ruby Falls, a 145 foot waterfall that is in a cavern 1,120 feet below the peak of Lookout Mountain. These falls were unknown until the late 1920s, when a man named Leo Lambert was drilling a shaft down to access an already known cave and by chance accessed this unknown one. He and his partner immediately began exploring the new cavern, spending 17 hours on this initial expedition. They crawled through an area only 18 inches high and 5 feet wide, discovering many awe-inspiring formations and ultimately the magnificent waterfall. Lambert returned with his wife, Ruby, and she also made the long crawl through the narrow passage to the waterfall (as our tour guide pointed out, if we men could get our wives to crawl for six hours – one way! – through an underground hole in a mountain, we had better name it for her!). In the years since, many things have been learned about this beautiful place, but one thing remains unknown: where all the water comes from. Geologists have attempted to locate its source several times, including putting dye in the ponds and streams on Lookout Mountain…none has ever shown up in the falls.
As Aryn and I walked with the kids, we too were continuously in awe of God’s amazing creation. I was continually being reminded by the Holy Spirit of Colossians 1:16: “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.” For many years, these falls were “unseen” by anyone, yet they had been formed by the Creator as a witness to His power, creativity, beauty, majesty, and, in a word that has been overused today, awesomeness. As we stood at the base of those falls, some things were absolutely clear. This was no accident. This place did not form by chance. You could almost hear the rocks and water cry out in praise to the One who created them and held them together. There was a distinct feeling of astonishment in knowing that God had created this place not only for His glory, but for our enjoyment as well. While we acknowledge the beauty of such places, are we as awestruck by the rest of creation? As we drive by the acres of farmland around south central Michigan, as we drive over the rivers, as we view the rolling landscape, do we recognize it is here for our enjoyment and to help draw our praise to the Sovereign Creator? Or does our familiarity with it dull our senses? Let’s view His creation with fresh eyes, and allow our wonder to transform into the glorification of His name. Just something to think about…
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