The Endless Surprises in God’s Creation

Discovering Endless Surprises in God’s Creation

Webster’s dictionary defines the word “surprise” as a “feeling of wonder or astonishment.”1

How about the endless surprises in God’s creation?

There’s so much to discover!

You could spend hours learning about the amazing animals inhabiting our planet.

Take the Long-wattled Umbrellabird, for example.

Endless surprises in God's creation

The Long-wattled Umbrellabird2

Personally, I’ve had interesting hairdos before, but this little guy takes the cake.

Is anyone else seeing an Elvis impersonator here?

Besides the little pompadour “umbrella” on the bird’s head, they also sport a feather-duster-like waddle from their necks.

Quite the unique-looking bird.

Don’t tell me that God does not have a sense of humor.

Found in some of the humid regions of South America, the Umbrellabird enjoys eating fruit and the occasional lizard.

I delight in God’s creation, don’t you?

Delight in God's creation

The oceans teem with life; the forests are full of His creatures; pastures and mountains are the habitations for His handiwork. Storks among the firs, badgers among the rocks, young lions in the bush, and goats in the mountains (Psalm 104:17-22)—all these things silently testify to the wonders of God’s creative mind, the glory of His wondrous skills, and the beauty of all that He has made. – Stuart Briscoe, Author and Bible Teacher.3

Each and every creature, every plant, every inch of land, and every depth of the seas – all tell a unique story of God’s perfectly-created design.

And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.Genesis 1:31, (NASB).4

God’s Extraordinary Creation and its Endless Surprises

As humans, we can barely comprehend the complexities of our world.

We’re constantly discovering and learning new things.

And, the more we learn, the more we realize just how marvelous God’s creation and its endless surprises really are.

 

Evolutionary philosophy holds that ingenious biological features were invented by the unknowing, uncaring, purposeless laws of nature, but it is clear that they were instead engineered by our wise, benevolent, and powerful Creator. Nature has never been observed inventing these kinds of complex structures, each well-suited to its task, and there is not even a theoretical, realistic step-by-step evolutionary explanation for how they could have developed. Thus, in the same way that we infer a painter from a painting, or an engineer from an engine, we infer a Creator from a creation.The Institute for Creation Research.5

Every living thing, no matter how insignificant it may seem, has a part to play in God’s grand design.

Thank You God for all that You do and for all that You have done.

The fact that we are living witnesses to His works is extremely humbling.

# # #


1 “Surprise”. (n.d.). In Websters1913.com. Retrieved from Websters 1913 Dictionary

2 “Cotingidae – Cephalopterus penduliger” photo by Hectonichus, own work, CC BY-SA 3.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0>, via Wikimedia Commons, the free media repository. 15 September, 2010. Accessed and retrieved January 27, 2024.

3Stuart Briscoe quotation courtesy of TellingTheTruth.org. From “Everything Beautiful.” n.d., Web. 26 November, 2023. Accessed January 29, 2024. Retrieved from https://www.tellingthetruth.org/read/individual-post/read/2023/11/26/everything-beautiful

4Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation

5Quotation courtesy of The Institute For Creation Research. From “God’s Design is an Engineering Wonder”, n.d., Web.  Accessed 27th January, 2024. Retrieved from God’s Design.

Share

God’s Indescribable Gift

God’s Indescribable Gift  – Merry Christmas 2023

God's indescribable gift

In Christ alone my Hope is found

Here at Delight in God, we want to wish you and your loved ones Joy and Happiness this Christmas, and throughout the New Year.

God’s indescribable gift to us is Jesus!

He is timeless – not just for one celebrated day, but a precious and historical truth whom we can embrace throughout the new year.

For a Child will be born to us, a Son will be given to us;
And the government will rest on His shoulders;
And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.Isaiah 9:6, (NASB).

Glory to God in the highest!

May we always reflect His glory to a lost world.

Poet M.S Lowndes expresses this beautifully in the following Christmas poem.


The Lord’s Light Within

Lord, we reflect with thankful hearts
On the wonder of your birth
The love you expressed when you left
Your glory to come to earth

For your life was like a beacon, Lord
Shining brightly in the night
Filling the world with the radiance of
The Father’s glorious light

And we, too, long to have inside
Your light for others to see
The beautiful reflection of your grace
And the wonder of your majesty

For as your life indwells our hearts,
We can shine wherever we are
And arise to take hold of each new day
With your light ablaze in our hearts

So rekindle the flame within us, Lord
So it will not flicker nor dim
Ignite us with the light of your love,
So you will shine brightly within

© By M.S.Lowndes

 

From our home to yours, Merry Christmas!

 # # #


1 Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Poetry courtesy of M.S. Lowndes. “The Lord’s Light Within.” [online post]. From Heavensinspirations.com, ©M.S. Lowndes, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED, n.d. Web. Accessed December 15, 2023. https://www.heavensinspirations.com/lords-light-within.html

Share

Happy Thanksgiving 2023

 

Wishing You a Very Happy Thanksgiving 2023

Happy Thanksgiving 2023

Can you believe it’s Thanksgiving 2023 already?

It seems like time always flies at the end of the year.

I just wanted to take this opportunity to say “thank you.”

My heart is overflowing with appreciation for all of you who have visited my blog, Delight in God, through the years.

It means a lot to me that you have followed me on my faith journey.

Whether it’s celebrating in God’s blessings, or working through the trials that He allows in our lives, we can know that our Father will lead and guide us – always to a greater good.

I am so thankful we have a loving God who cares about us.

We deserve His wrath, and yet He gave us His Son to pay the price for our sins so that repentant sinners will have eternal life.

Who would demonstrate such incomprehensible love like that for you and me?

Only a Holy Sovereign God, who deserves ALL of our praise.

On this Thanksgiving Day 2023, we give thanks to the One who created all things.

In closing, I wanted to share this encouragement from the psalmist in Psalm 146:

1Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, my soul!
2I will praise the Lord while I live;
I will sing praises to my God while I have my being.Psalm 146:1-2, (NASB).

# # # 


1 Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Share

Sing For Joy

To Sing For Joy – God-Exalting Reverence 

Occasionally on Delight-in-God.com, I like to share beautiful spirit-lifting music with you.

The song today is not only worshipful, I want to sing for joy every time I hear it!

I’ve listened to “Precious Jesus” dozens of times by now and it never gets old.

You might want to turn up the sound on your speakers for this one.

Jesus!

He is precious to God, a beloved cornerstone, described as such in 1 Peter 2:4-5 . . . 

Sing for Joy to our precious Savior

We, as Christians, are the living stones of God’s church.

His Son Jesus, our precious Savior, took the weight of our sins upon Himself and, through Him, we have eternal life.

Spurgeon writes, “He is preciousness, He is an honor, He is everything that is glorious to you. You can never think highly enough of Him, or speak well enough concerning Him. All the world beside may disallow Him, but unto you He is precious.” – as quoted in Precept Austin.org.2

To Sing for Joy – A Call to Worship!

What does the Bible say about singing?

Actually, singing is mentioned a lot in God’s Word.

Here’s just one example in Book of Psalms . . . 

Psalm 95:1-2 says:

1Come, let’s sing for joy to the Lord,
Let’s shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.
2Let’s come before His presence with a song of thanksgiving,
Let’s shout joyfully to Him in songs with instruments.3

Together in churches across the nation we gather on Sundays to praise God by the reading of His word and through our singing.

When we sing for joy with a song like this, we are shining the light of our Savior to a dying world in need of Hope.

“Hope” –  as in the confident expectation of our precious Lord’s return.

As beautiful as this song is, can you imagine how heaven will sound?!

# # # 


Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

2 Precept Austin quotation is from the 1 Peter 2:7-8 Commentary, [2022] Courtesy of Precept Austin, Subheading, “The Preciousness of Belief” Web. Accessed 12 September, 2023.

3 Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

Share

Designed By The Almighty – The Dumbo Octopus

The Dumbo Octopus – Designed By The Almighty

Now I’ve seen everything!

Who ever thought an octopus could be described as “cute”?

Meet the Dumbo Octopus.

With its flappy ears (flippers, actually) and big soulful eyes, this little creature has captured the fancy of those who are lucky enough to see one up close.

 

And how about that name, “Dumbo Octopus.”

It does kind of look like “Dumbo” the Elephant from the Walt Disney film of long ago.

I never cease to delight in what God has created!

To know that every animal is designed by the Almighty, not by random chance or an accident, is humbling indeed.

This little one has a long scientific name that seems almost bigger than he is.

 “Grimpoteuthis”

When you pronounce it, it sounds like this:  “Grimp oh tooth this.”

Designed by the Almighty

 The Dumbo Octopus – NOAA Ocean Exploration1

The Dumbo Octopus can reach lengths of about 12 inches long.

They like to eat worms and other wiggly things that swim in the deep along the ocean floor (Helminstine).2

In the Bible, Psalm 104 (attributed to David) conveys the many wonders of the world that God created, including under the sea.

All glory to God!Psalm 104

Deep Dive

According to the Institute For Creation Research, a Dumbo Octopus was spotted swimming at a depth of about 21 thousand feet.

Now that’s deep!

It should be appreciated that the Dumbo Octopus has no high-tech submersible to house and protect it in those depths. It only has what its Creator gave it—the innate ability to thrive at those great depths.James, J.S. Johnson, Institute For Creation Research.4

How humbling it is when we realize that the wonders and complexities of the creation around us lead us right to our Creator God.

# # #


1Photo courtesy of the NOAA Office of Ocean Exploration and Research, 2019 Southeastern U.S. Deep-sea Exploration. November 19, 2019. Online Image. NOAA Photo Gallery. Retrieved from https://www.flickr.com/photos/oceanexplorergov/49203817176/in/photolist-2hXYqBs-2jsp69y-vcXdBp-nxFUAS-HaDW8D-GKstCA-M6NLAN-LHdtjs-LuNYZ-zfR4-8daU8S-zfR3-2jp5RY1-5HWhs1-atvdh1-5vWZVP-BgJv-2eDnx8-2eDnzk-9brE82-4xkYfi-4momfm-2eDnyK-2WdjX2-2jsRGjG-2jq7LFb-2jqvgwC-2joUX8d-4xkYwZ-aFTer8-2eDnwi-9vVvpb-eShSAu-ndWySt-6jrqSG-BByY-4Lrt8W-75wewg-4LnfFi-KfebxD-ajdhaL-2joHca9-4LnfEg-2jpw7nX-s2sNUH-4d4ANn-7MgSUu-6obpVp-4jLdhE-2jqbSpy

2 Quotation from Anne Marie Helmenstine (Ph.D., Biomedical Sciences) – science writer, educator, and consultant. “All About Grimpoteuthis, the Dumbo Octopus.” Courtesy of ThoughtCo. July 13, 2019. Web. Accessed 31, July, 2022. Retrieved from: https://www.thoughtco.com/grimpoteuthis-dumbo-octopus-4160927

3 Scripture quotation is from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation.

4 Quotation courtesy of The Institute For Creation Research. By James. J.S. Johnson, J.D., TH.D. From “Like Father, Like Son, in the Deepest Deep”, June 23, 2020. para. 10. Web. Accessed 29 July, 2022. Retrieved from https://www.icr.org/article/like-father-like-son-in-the-deepest-deep

Share
1 2 3