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Yesterday in the adult community group Sunday morning Bible study, one of the participants raised an interesting point. He was reflecting on the volcano in Iceland currently spewing ash and debris high into the atmosphere and said he was struck by all the comments in the public media about how "Mother Nature" was really acting up. He lamented how so few were associating the volcano with God and God's activity in His creation and instead were referring to the pagan notion of Mother Nature.
Mother Nature or Father God? It's a huge question, of course, and the answer indicates our worldview of reality. From the beginning, people have been drawn to worship the creation rather than the Creator. It's the essence of all pagan religions and Paul mentions it as the fundamental basis of God's judgement against humanity "because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator..." (Romans 1:25). It's a very big deal, then, whether we look at a volcano and think, "Oh, goodness, there goes Mother Nature again!" or "Dear Father, what are You teaching us in this eruption, how shall we respond, and what do we need to know about our lives before You?"
When I view the volcano (or any such event) through the lens of Scripture's revelation of God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I begin to see it as a way to teach me my utter dependence upon God, my inability to mend the brokenness of my sin, and a wonderful opportunity to help others in the name of Christ.
Mother Nature or Father God? Our answer says so much.
Pastor Mark
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