Friday, June 20, 2014

The Magic in Ordinary Days


     Job 12:7-10

But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you; And the birds of the air, and they will teach you; Or speak to the earth, and it will teach you; And the fish of the sea will explain to you. Who among all these does not know that the hand of the Lord has done this, in whose hand is the life of every living thing, And the breadth of all mankind?

      Job 37:5

God thunders marvelously with His voice; He does great things which we cannot comprehend.

       Genesis 1:24-25

Then God said, "Let the earth bring forth the living creature according to its kind: cattle and creeping thing and beast of the earth, each according to its kind"; and it was so. And God made the beast of the earth according to its kind, cattle according to its kind, and everything that creeps on the earth according to its kind. And God saw that it was good.





   There's magic in an ordinary summer evening…the lively sound of crickets, the light of fireflies sparkling like tiny floating jewels, and the warmth of a gentle breeze drifting by…add a cool glass of lemonade and you’ve made yourself the perfect summer evening. At least that’s my version of one.
    Catching fireflies never seems to go out of style. It’s one of those past times that children enjoyed a hundred years ago, and still do today. I caught myself trapping a few in the palm of my hand the other evening. I watched their soft pulsating glow before they walked to the tip of my finger and flew away. How magical, and how lovely a gift the Lord has bestowed upon us when he created them. You see, from my perspective, fireflies are more than a winged beetle known for their twilight use of bioluminescence; they are part of the grand makeup of our world created by God Himself. How thoughtful of Him to fashion such a perfect little being to “light-up” our world and give us precious childhood memories.


     The same goes for the cricket. Yes, I know they can be very annoying when they get caught in some small crevice in the house, and chirp non-stop all evening. Aaaargh. However, when they are outside it sounds, to me, like a symphony when added to the other evening birdcalls, and singing tree frogs.
     Did you know crickets chirp at different rates depending on their species and the temperature of their environment? Most species chirp at higher rates the higher the temperature is… (approximately 62 chirps a minute at 13°C in one common species; each species has its own rate). The relationship between temperature and the rate of chirping is known as Dolbear’s Law. According to this law, counting the number of chirps produced in 14 seconds by the snowy tree cricket, common in the United States, and adding 40 will approximately equal the temperature in degrees Fahrenheit. Creation is amazing!
     I’m saying all of this to make a point. Stop for a moment to listen, watch, smell, and touch nature. Our Father created all things as a gift for us, His children. Let us be forever grateful for even the seemingly insignificant things like fireflies, and songs of crickets singing. It is in those precious still moments that one can catch a tiny glimpse of heaven here on earth.


                

1 comment:

  1. I was just watching in awe last night at the amazing firefly show in our backyard last night! Did you know that they sparkle not just in yellowy green, but also in shades of red, orange, and blue? It's simply spectacular!!! I saw some red and blue...takes my breadth away at times. :-)

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