I have to admit, I was intrigued by CitySalt’s recent series entitled Wonder. The miracle of life on this planet in all its forms and facets has always been a source of amazement to me. It has also been a vital affirmation for my faith.
When I was in undergrad at the U of O in the 70’s, seeking a science degree, I was at a crossroads with my faith. To say that I ran into skepticism in the University Science community is very much an understatement. Animosity and ridicule were the order of the day for those that professed a relationship with Jesus Christ in that arena. It was indeed a challenge for anyone choosing to navigate through that environment and still stay true to faith in the living God.
The turning point for me came after Geology class during my junior year where the professor was expounding on the attributes of a miraculous substance composed of Hydrogen and Oxygen that we call water. The professor explained how water molecules orient themselves upon freezing so that they expand. This is remarkable because virtually every other molecular compound does the opposite. If water behaved like every other substance and contracted upon freezing… Ice would sink to the bottom of the oceans which would cause the oceans to fill up with that ice… and life on this planet could not exist as we know it. As the class ended, I approached the professor and asked him why. “Why is water the only compound to behave this way?” His answer: “We don’t know.”
Could it be a coincidence that this miraculous substance is absolutely vital for our existence? Is it just happenstance that approximately 70% of the earth’s surface and our own bodies are made up of water? I think not. To me this was confirmation that the divine hand of our creator brought all of this about. God’s miracles of creation are truly without end; how this earth is positioned in the solar system, the miraculous ways that our bodies develop and function, the incredible diversity of life around us. I could go on and on but it is suffice to say that as my understanding of the intricacies of nature grows, the more I realize that this creation simply could not have happened by random chance.
The other part of this wonder equation is how our divine creator loves us and seeks an intimate relationship with us. How wonderful and amazing it is that the creator of the universe values us enough to make this life possible and also allows us an opportunity to know Him. In our culture it is very much a challenge not to get bogged down by all the minutia and details of our daily lives. We need to make a living… need to take care of our families and our homes… to nurture the physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual components of our lives. But to be born again, means to learn to look at the world around us with that child like sense of wonder and feel that awe at the miracle of creation. I pray that I never lose that sense of miraculous wonder for the astonishing and beautiful gift we have been given to experience a life filled with the miracles of God’s Love.
John 3:1-5
3 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.