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Psalm 36:5-10

Before Christmas my wife said to me that she wanted to "be in nature". It didn't matter to her if we were at a beach, in a park, or on a mountain trail; she just wanted to be in nature. "I feel the need to be with God." was  the only reason she gave for making that statement.

Soon after Christmas the Young Adults of our church had a sleep over (or non-sleepover) and she was able to join a group as they hiked a trail to watch the sun rise. I stayed back to watch a couple of our kids who decided to sleep in. She called me from the entrance to the trail and told me she was able to do a part of the hike, but she wasn't able to complete it.

I asked her if she was okay, if that was enough to satisfy her need to be with nature and she said it was. She was outdoors, in nice weather, on a trail with the sun peaking over the horizon. She was surrounded by the sound of birds, the feel of a cool breeze blowing against her face, and people she enjoyed being with. To her, that was more than enough.

I get the feeling that today's Psalmist had a similar experience. For no particular reason I believe the Psalmist to be a shepherd sitting on a hillside watching over his flock. As he watches the sheep graze, or laze, I imagine his eyes taking in the beauty of the day. Clear blue skies, gentle wisps of pure white clouds, perhaps the glimpse of sunlight as it sparkles off the endless ripples of a faraway lake begin to fill the shepherds senses.

As he continues to take in the beauty of the day he hears the songs of nearby birds mix with the bleating of his sheep and suddenly he feels his spirit renewed, as though whatever burdens the shepherd may have been carrying is gone, taken away by God's special gifts. The shepherd as well as the sheep, the birds, the trees, the grass, the sky, the hillside, and all other parts of creation in which the shepherd was a part of had been taken away, delivered, from all that could harm them simply because for a moment, one brief moment, they became one - a single entity known as creation.

If only that moment could last.