Nature Therapy

Why does David refer to the hills in this psalm? It is not as if he expects God to be living on the hill and to come down and help him. However, the hills and the mountains embody the power of God. Psalm 24:1 says, ‘The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it’. Therefore, just looking at and appreciating nature as God’s creation reminds us of God’s power and creativity. In fact, anything creative in any one of us is an offshoot of God’s creativity. It was His power that created the universe and this earth that we live on, which we so often take for granted and despoil.

The conclusion that we come to, when we look at nature, is that, if God can create all this with His power, then He surely has the power to deal with any of our problems. It puts our little worlds in perspective. God even cares and notices every detail of our lives, just as every detail of a fern or flower is perfectly created by God.

Look at how everything in the ecological cycle of nature fits perfectly to feed off and provide for every other organism. Look at how every system and cell in our bodies co-ordinates to create a perfectly functioning body. Look at how the whole universe circulates in the heavens, and how the moon does a dance with the sun to reflect its light on the other side of the earth. Look at how the sun sustains life on this globe of earth. Once we have looked, it is impossible for us to say that there is no God.

Have you ever realised that God could have made the world perfectly functional, without it being beautiful? He could have made everything grey and dull. The flowers could have been shades of grey, and the clouds could have been black. The grass could have been a sludgy brown, and the rivers and seas a dirty green. The birds need not have had all their iridescent colours, and sunrise and sunset could have been a sudden change from light to dark without beautiful inspiring rose-coloured scenes. Thus, the beauty of nature speaks to us of God’s love for us. He wants to lift our spirits by the beauty around us.

There is also a peace that calms our souls when we spend time in nature or just take the time to notice the startling blue of the sky in the middle of a city. This is because nature contains God’s presence and love, and it speaks warmth and comfort to our souls.

Prayer: Thank You, Father God, for the beauty and awesomeness of Your creation. Help us, Holy Spirit, to notice and appreciate it and to let it brighten our lives. In Jesus’ name. Amen.