​Did you know that in some huge cave there are glowing worms that let down glowing slime to catch flying insects and then they suck up their slime and eat the bug!? How crazy is that!? Or that lobsters migrate in a straight line in the ocean. Wouldn't you just love to see that? And did you know that songs sing? Check this out, a sound track of whales and stars singing How Great is Our God.

Ever since I can remember I have been a very curious person, mostly involving why people do what they do. I remember wondering when I was little why people stayed in between the lines on the road while driving. My mom explained it to me, but I just couldn't understand why people would be so obedient to such a passive and insignificant line on the road.

Curiosity is such a beautiful gift from God. A gift to help us know Him better and make Him known. But it can be used selfishly, to feed the flesh, to build reputation, to get what you want. It can also be stifled and thought to be a bad thing.

Oh that we would be people that use our God-given curiosity to drive us to seek out the Lord and His Word. That we would pursue seeing His glory, His heart and character in the seemingly small and seemingly huge things of His creation.  Asking questions like, "God, what does this show me about you?"

Like one of the students involved in our ministry just put together a whole talk on how pandemics are a picture of the gospel. It was amazing! I would have never have made that connection but it is such a beautiful one!

It's not too late to join the journey and join us in seeing God transform our hearts and minds as we behold Him and reflect on everything in life being about Him, not us. If you blog, feel free to link up your blog posts talking about how it's just not about us here.

And whether you blog or not, join the experience and post your thoughts and insights on social media using #NotAboutMeNovember and please tag @laurakrokos and @missionalwomen so we can encourage you. 

Laura, the founder of Missional Women is married and has six kids, two of whom are adopted. Laura and her husband have been missionaries since 2002 and serve with Master Plan Ministries where she is the Women's Development Coordinator. Laura has authored 5 books, including an award winning 12 week Bible Study on First Samuel, Beholding Him, Becoming Missional, Reach; How to Use Your Social Media Influence for the Glory of God, A Devotional Journey through Judges, and Discover God's Calling for Your Life. Most recently her resource for Bible studies, The Connect Cards was released by Cru Press. You can find her on facebook, twitter, pinterest, youtube, instagram, periscope, blab and her author site.
If you'd like to read more from this contributor, type her name in the search box on the top right.

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This post is part of the series The Story of the Stars. Check out the series here.

Whenever I see the scales like is depicted in Libra, I tend to think about the judicial system. Scales go back to ancient times as a picture of justice because weight doesn't lie. Justice seeks to have balance between the wrong committed compared to judgement needed, or even against the good in someone's life. I think often when people consider their life they think of it as a balance between their good outweighing their bad. But the scales of Libra tell a different story. 
 
When you look at the constellation of Libra, there is a triangle at the top of the scale. The top star (Zuben el Genubi) of the scale is known as "the balance", "the purchase" or "the price deficient". The star on the left corner (Zuben el Chamali) of this triangle is known as "the price that covers" or "the atonement". The star on the right corner (Mulu-Izi) is known as "man on fire".  
 
What are the star names telling us? There is price that covers and a price that doesn't. There isn't an in-between. You are either covered by the price or you are a "man on fire" - destined for eternity in hell.  
Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." And Romans 3:23 says, "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." 
 
Well, wait a minute, how can you say that? Doesn't God LOVE us? Doesn't God WANT all to be saved?  
 
Yes and Yes!! Let me explain... better yet why don't we let Jesus explain. 
 
In John 14:6 Jesus says, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." 
 
What do you think Jesus is saying there? Is He saying, "Well, as long as you're generally a good person you should be fine" or "As long as you believe in something you get to me"? No. He says, "You want to go to heaven? You want to be with the God who loves you, created you, knows you better than anyone else? You need to know me." Which is very just of Him to do and say! First, because Jesus IS God and lived a completely sinless life AND took on YOUR sin – I think He has say on how HIS sacrifice should be used. Second, if you believed in something different from the One God of the Universe, and you went to be with Him for all of eternity you would be saying, "Hey! I didn't sign up for this!"  
 
Jesus' sacrifice and invitation for eternal life is inclusively exclusive. This invitation is extended to all humanity, but not all take it.  
 
"But God proves His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us! ... Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all men, because all sinned. ... And the gift is not like the one man's sin, because from one sin came the judgment, resulting in condemnation, but from many trespasses came the gift, resulting in justification. … For just as through one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so also through the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous." Romans 5: 8, 12, 16, 19 
 
And the decans show an even more to this story! 
Crux – the cross, now the southern cross since we can't see in the western hemisphere 
Lupus – the victim (victim who controls his own death, or killed on behalf of Centaurus) 
Corona – the crown 
 
What I LOVE about these decans is that they come together easiest out of all the other constellations and can be explained in one verse! I put the verse before so you can have a more complete picture. 
 
"Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance the race that lies before us, keeping our eyes on Jesus, the source and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him endured a cross and despised the shame and has sat down at the right hand of God's throne. " Hebrews 12:1-2 
 
What is the price of having your sin covered? The perfect life of Jesus sacrificed on a cross and resurrection from the dead. He is IT! And He offers himself freely as a gift, so all can come to this saving knowledge. So how can one receive this gift? 
 
"If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. One believes with the heart, resulting in righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, resulting in salvation. Now the Scripture says, 'Everyone who believes on Him will not be put to shame,' for there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, since the same Lord of all is rich to all who call on Him. 'For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'" Romans 10:9-13 
 
If you realize that you truly are a sinner, that you are not and will not be a good enough person on your own, and realize that Jesus Christ is our only provision for our sin, then you can talk to God by faith. Here is an example of what to say: 
 
Lord Jesus, I realize that I am not a naturally good person. I know I am not perfect. I know that my sin keeps me from knowing you personally. But I want to know you! I see what you did on the cross for me, and I want you in my life not only to save me from hell but to have you as Lord of my life and have a new life with you. Thank you for all that you've done and for the eternal life that you promise to give! I'm ready to follow you. 
 
If that describes the desire of your heart, then go ahead! Talk to God. Take that step to a new life with Christ! ​

​
​Leah works with Master Plan Ministries at Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO. Other than watching college students' lives change, she enjoys getting her mind blown by God and His Word, watching sci fi, baking cupcakes, and spending time with her hunky husband. 

Have you ever been misunderstood? It’s frustrating, right? That’s because in every person there is a need and dare I say deep desire to be known. Have you ever thought about why? Because God wants to be known and when He made people, He made them with many of the characteristics He has. And because God wants us to know Him, it shouldn’t surprise us that God made the story of the stars to tell us about Him.

So we are going to tell you His story. In His story you can pick up at any place and get a glimpse of Him but we are going to start at the big climax where God shows in a crazy big way how much He wants to be known. So much so that He would leave the perfection of heaven to be born as a baby to reveal who He is to the world. We are going to start at Virgo.
 
Virgo is the constellation of a virgin and like all the constellations has 3 decans which support and continue the story of the main constellation.
 
So Virgo is a virgin holding wheat in her left hand and a branch in her right hand.
The star on her left hand is named Spica which in Latin and Hebrew means the promised seed, the seed of the One who comes.

In Genesis 15: 5-6 when God was talking to Abram about his descendants He takes him outside and said, “Look at the sky and recount the stars, if you are able to recount them.” Then He said to him, “Your offspring (the Hebrew word Zerah, seed), will be that.”

The star on her shoulder is named Zavijaveh which means beautiful Lord. And the star in her right hand holding the branch is Vindemiatrix means shoot, son, branch who comes. It’s also known as Murredin which means, The Sent One, shall come down, who shall have dominion..
So what we have so far is a virgin holding the seed of one who comes, the beautiful Lord.
 
Another star is Al Tzemech which means branch and is the exact word used uniquely of the Messiah in Isa. 42
Jer. 23:5,6
33:15
Zech. 3:8
6:12
 
Get this, Isaiah 11:1-3: Out of the stump of David’s family will grow a shoot— yes, a new Branch bearing fruit from the old root. And the Spirit of the Lord will rest on him— the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord…
 
Here's the decans, the constellations associated with the virgin and bring more depth to the story.
Coma. A woman who is holding a baby. It contains a star called Coma conveniently positioned upon the baby.  This star means; “The desired one”.  Coma is, in Egyptian, Sheznu, the Desired Son.  It is actually depicted as a woman with an infant. And what is a woman with an infant doing in the sign of the virgin?
 
Then we have Boötes. The second decan in the constellation of Virgo is a Shepherd named from ancient star maps, Boötes.  If we further break down the meaning of Boötes we discover that the first two letters-Bo-mean “the coming one”.  (These are the words once uttered by John the Baptist “but there stands one among you, one you know not; He it is, who coming after me whose shoes I am not worthy to untie ). Boötes, the Coming One, includes the principal stars of Arcturus, He comes; Al Katuropos, the branch that is trodden under foot; Mirac, preserver, guarding; Muphride, he who separates; Nekkar, the Pierced One.
 
So far we have a virgin holding the beautiful Lord, the One who comes. A woman holding a baby called the desired one, a shepherd whose name means coming one, the branch, the pieced one who will be trodden upon in order to separate and preserve or guard.
 
Lets look at
Centaurus, the centaur, who is a half-man half-horse creature; the Despised One.
 The third and final decan in this constellation of the virgin is a figure depicted as a half-man half-horse called Centaurus.  So in keeping consistent with the main constellation and its decans, this is shows us the dual nature of Christ as “Son of God” and “Son of Man”. He was both 100% God and 100% man.  

 The brightest star in the fore–foot has come down to us by the ancient name of "Toliman" which "the one which was, which is, and which is to come, the Almighty" [Revelation 1:8].
Another name for this constellation or decan in ancient Hebrew is "Asmeath", which means the sin–offering, Isaiah 53:10 tells us it was the Lord’s good plan to crush him and cause him grief. Yet when his life is made an offering for sin, he will have many descendants. He will enjoy a long life, and the Lord’s good plan will prosper in his hands.

The Greek name of this decan is "Cheiron", which means "the pierced" or "who pierces".
The star Tsemech, the one that is the same word used to describe the Messiah, is a double star and is positioned directly above the constellation named Crux, or cross, or as we know it, the southern cross. This positioning prophesies exactly, the method of death of the despised sin offering, and exactly how, he will destroy the enemy.
 
So in Virgo, we see the promised seed, the man whose name is THE BRANCH, in Coma, we see the promised seed in the form of a son, the desired one, born of a virgin, and nourished and growing strong, filled with the Spirit and wisdom of God. In Centaurus, we see the man having two natures (God and man), the despised sin offering, the pierced one, positioned above the cross, showing the method of His death to come.

God wants to be known so much that He would give up the perfection of heaven, put on skin to live as a despised one. He was 100% God and 100% man, was born of a virgin and humbled Himself to become a man, live a perfect life and then be declared guilty for something He didn’t do. He humbled Himself and went through life as we do to make a way for us to know Him. A King, giving up His throne that we could become His bride.

John 12:24 Jesus refers to Himself as the Seed that needs to die in order to bring life. He could have killed all of the soldiers with one word, yet He remained on the cross because He was the only way for us  to be forgiven of sin and made right before the Creator.

Without God in the flesh coming as Jesus the Messiah, there would be no rescue from our sin, no forgiveness of sin and no redemption of awful.

So now in this time period we look back on what the Father did through Christ, but a long long time ago they looked forward to the One who would come. This was the plan from the beginning-to rescue and redeem those who put their trust in Him.

What about you? If you stood before the Father and He asked you if you were innocent or guilty what would you have to say? Guilty right? You’re not perfect just like I’m not. We have fallen short of Gods standard of perfection. So there’s no “I’m a good person” Since there’s only two options. Perfect or not. So if you recognize you’re not perfect and you put your trust in Jesus Christ who lived the perfect life you can stand right before the Creator, the Father, the Great I AM.
​
Who is your faith in? Who or what are you trusting to make you right before the perfect One? If you want to put your trust in Christ, the One who came, you can just tell Him by saying something like, God, I’m sorry I’ve messed up. Please forgive me and I give my life to You.
​

I do most of my online work at night when the kids are in bed. But sometimes I just get too brain dead that writing just seems impossible. The other night was one of those nights. So I looked on amazon prime to see if there were any good movies. I looked under the animal planet type movies (because really they just fascinate me) and see one about plants. At first I'm thinking, "Wow, that's gotta be boring." But then I remember how many times I've been humbled by learning things I thought I knew so much about but turns out I didn't. So I start watching a show about plants. Don't judge. ;)  

Once again I was humbled and got to hear from God in His still small voice. By means of the tobacco plant no less. (Hey, He can use a donkey, surely He can use a tobacco plant.)

So here's what I learned. The wild tobacco plant seed needs wildfire to germinate and grow. (Much like the great Sequoia trees I wrote about not too long ago, Trees and the Suffering and Beauty of God.) Once they germinate they grow and have to be ready for anything because every part of them is attacked by a specialist that feeds on that particular part of the plant. 

But the wild tobacco is ready. It has a secret chemical weapon. When a herbivore attacks, it ramps up a toxin, nicotine. The nicotine poisons anything that has a muscle. So, now it's survived and not being eaten by bugs anymore. However here comes Mr. Caterpillar who has no muscles. This secret chemical weapon doesn't work on him. Now he's being eaten alive and chances are if nothing happens the entire plant will be devoured in a couple days by Mr. chubby Caterpillar. 

But as we know there are wild tobacco plants. They haven't all been eaten alive. Are you curious why? Well, because it has yet another secret weapon. When Mr. Caterpillar's saliva gets on the leaves the plants releases an odor which is picked up by the very bugs that eat caterpillars. Basically the plant sends out secret SOS smells and calls in reinforcements. Within hours Mr. Big Eyed Bug comes along and gobbles up Mr. Caterpillar. 

And if that weren't enough, the plant also makes little lollipop looking things called a tricomb. The caterpillar eats these yummy little treats and 20 minutes later the secret weapon kicks in and Mr. Caterpillar himself now emits a very appetizing smell to Mr. Bug. 

Pretty amazing right. But there's even more secret weapons!

Here comes Mrs. Hawk Moth gathering nectar from the flower of the plant. But moths also lay up to 200 eggs which grow into tobacco eating caterpillars. So if little tobacco plant happens to get too many little Hawk Moth eggs on it, it changes the shape of it's flower from short and open to tall and narrow. Now Mrs. Hawk Moth can't get the pollen and along comes Mrs. Hummingbird whose beak fits perfectly inside the long flower. 

This little wildflower of the field has at least three defense mechanisms tailor fit for it's different predators. 

So I hope you're wondering how in the world this relates to us. Because now we are getting to the good part!

Before the fall these little plants didn't need any of these amazing mechanisms. There was no blood shed and animals didn't eat each other. But here we have a plant without a brain that has defense mechanisms. So why would God gives this little flower so many defense mechanisms if it had no need to defend itself?

The fall didn't surprise or catch God off guard. And it wasn't His plan B. God knew what would happen and provided for Mr. Wild Tobacco Flower long before he ever even existed. Perhaps the tobacco plant could have wondered why it needed an odor releasing mechanism. Perhaps it felt stifled with a part of it going unused (though we know for a season).

The flowers of the field show us that God knows, He really really knows. And not only does He know what is needed long before we ever saw the need, He provides. Just like long before the wild tobacco plant needed to have a way to ward off enemies He provided, long long ago He knew what you needed and set out to provide for you, to act on your behalf. And abundantly.

Sin and brokenness hasn't hindered His plan for your life. After all, no plan of His can be thwarted as Job tells us.

He cares enough to help a plant fight against a caterpillar, sure He cares much more for you, a valuable being created in His image. 

"Learn how the wildflowers of the field grow: they don't labor or spin thread (They don't even have a brain, let alone ability to provide for themselves). Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these! (Could you imagine Solomon's soldiers having releasing odors chemical weapons).  If that's how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won't He do much more for you-you of little faith? So don't worry, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear?' For the idolaters eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you." Matthew 6:28-33 (italics mine)

The wildflowers of the field show us God is a much better provider than we ever give Him credit for.

My friend Sara and Naghmeh remind me of Sequoia trees. Sara had a baby girl, Grace, die in her womb at 30 weeks from a heart defect. She gave birth to her little girl and never got to see her first smile, first dance or any other first. Sara loves Jesus with everything she has, and from this awful experience in their life the Lord has magnified Himself. (You can see how on her blog.)

Naghmeh is Pastor Saeed's wife. I heard an interview of her talking about what happened and is currently happening with her husband. This awful experience of her husband being in prison for his faith, leaving her to raise her two young children alone, is allowing incredible beauty to be shown.

So trees. You may be wondering what Sara and Naghmeh have in common with trees. Well, did you know the Jack Pine has resin-filled cones. It's like they are glued shut until fire melts the resin and allows the cone to pop open and release the seeds. And not only the Jack Pine, but also the Redwood or Sequoia. These amazingly beautiful trees grow to nearly 300 feet tall. As I was imagining and talking about this with my kids, we looked up at the beautiful, big tree in our back yard that is 50 feet high. Then imagined five more it's size on top of it. That is huge! Their cones contain up to 200 seeds which can take up to two years to mature. Then the little seeds sit in the cone and wait for fire. 

Fire is so often seen as a bad thing. But fire is the way the forest is continually regenerated. It consumes dead, decaying vegetation and clears the way for new growth. And when fires are continually suppressed it can be dangerous. And the only way these trees could have a reliance on fire is if God designed them that way from the beginning. Which shows He designed these trees before the fall with their unseen beauty unless there was fire. 


God is not taken off guard by destruction, pain and sorrow. He knew sin would enter the picture and made provision for beauty to come from it years and years and years beforehand. God allows awful to happen not to show how strong we are, but to show how incredible He is. If there was never sin, there would be no need of the cross. There would be no way for God's forgiving, redeeming, restoring nature to be seen. Everything the Lord allows to happen is for the purpose of showing the world what He is like, a grand, ultimate-can't get better than that purpose.

Fire has come into Sara and Naghmeh's life but it has produced the beauty of a Sequoia tree, a beauty only seen because of the painful trial. God's character and heart is made known to the many around them because of what these precious ladies have and are going through. Though we and those around us will have suffering in this life, we can be encouraged because it is not for nothing. There is beauty that will come from it and a part of God's character revealed that otherwise wouldn't be. These ladies are revealing the character of God is ways not many get to. 

"...Now for a short time you have had to be distressed by various trials so that the genuineness of your faith-more valuable than gold, which perishes though refined by fire-may result in praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ." 1 Peter 1:6-7

Laura, the creator and host of Missional Women is married and has four kids, two of whom are adopted. Laura and her husband have been missionaries to college students for 11 years serving with Master Plan Ministries. Laura is the Women's Development Coordinator and has discipled over 150 girls, led over 30 Bible studies and speaks to college and women's groups. Laura has authored 5 books, including an award winning 12 week Bible Study on First Samuel, Beholding Him, Becoming Missional, Reach; How to Use Your Social Media Influence for the Glory of God, and A Devotional Journey through Judges, a devotional to accompany the free online Bible study at TheBookofJudges.com. You can find her on facebook,twitter, pinterest, youtube, instagram and her author site.

If you'd like to read more from this contributor, type her name in the search box on the top right.

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Creation reveals the glory/character of God, we just need to be discoverers to see it. So let's look at bears. Bears nurse their baby bears for five months, yet they don’t drink a drop of water. Not one drop. How in the world is that possible? Their fat breaks down into water and they have little  factories that turn their urine into proteins to nourish body while feeding the baby.

Another interesting thing about bears is that they only lose 20% of their strength during five  months of hibernation. If we were to lay down for five months we would lose 90% of our strength. 90%! So how does this happen? How are they sustained through the 'don't lose it, you'll lose it' principle? Well, during hibernation bears go into violent chills and tense up which causes them to keep their muscle strength. This is very important since they will need to be strong enough to gather food or possibly fight after waking from hibernation.

Bears show us that God is wise enough to know how to sustain us even when it seems impossible. He knows exactly what is needed in order for us to have all we need to walk out the good plan He has for us. Surely if the Lord built the bear to be sustained without a drop of water by building a urine recycling factory inside the bear and while feeding their babies, and sustain their muscle strength during hibernation, He can sustain us through thick and thin. 

Laura, the creator and host of Missional Women is married and has five kids, two of whom are adopted. Laura and her husband have been missionaries to college students for 12 years serving with Master Plan Ministries. Laura is the Women's Development Coordinator and has discipled over 150 girls, led over 30 Bible studies and speaks to college and women's groups. Laura has authored 5 books, including an award winning 12 week Bible Study on First Samuel, Beholding Him, Becoming Missional, Reach; How to Use Your Social Media Influence for the Glory of God, and A Devotional Journey through Judges, a devotional to accompany the free online Bible study at TheBookofJudges.com. You can find her on facebook,twitter, pinterest, youtube, instagram and her author
site. 

If you'd like to read more from this contributor, type her name in the search box on the top right.

Sharing this over at these awesome blogs

Yesterday, I attended an outdoor church service.  We got up before the break of dawn and gathered together under the open sky.  The clouds created a fluffy blanket that covered the blue expanse and created a gloomy atmosphere.  The dewy chill of early day lingered, and I grew cold.  

Just as the call to worship began, the most amazing thing happened.  The sky parted, and the sun peeked through – light and warmth reached out to us.  God Himself seemed to be smiling in agreement. 

I love “God glimpses” like that.   If you are paying attention, creation will remind you of who God is.   He is clearly visible through His handiwork. 

4 Aspects of God Evident through Creation: 

God’s Presence :  Your Creator God is present with you at all times and in all places. 
“The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands. Day to day pours forth speech, And night to night reveals knowledge. there is no speech, nor are there words; Their voice is not heard. Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their utterances to the end of the world. In them He has placed a tent for the sun, Which is as a bridegroom coming out of his chamber; It rejoices as a strong man to run his course. Its rising is from one end of the heavens, And its circuit to the other end of them; And there is nothing hidden from its heat” Psalms 19:1-6

God’s Power : Your Creator God is able to do the impossible simply by speaking a word. 
“By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, And by the breath of His mouth all their host. He gathers the waters of the sea together as a heap; He lays up the deeps in storehouses. Let all the earth fear the Lord; Let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him. For He spoke, and it was done; He commanded, and it stood fast” (Psalms 33:6-9). 

God’s Protection : Your Creator God surrounds you with His care. 
“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.  He will not let your foot slip—He who watches over you will not slumber; indeed, he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalms 121:1-4). 

God’s Provision:  Your Creator God has an unending supply to meet your every need.  
“And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God” (2 Corinthians 9:8-11). 

As you step outside this week, ask God to give you a glimpse of His glory through His creation.  His fingerprints are visible through His handiwork great and small.  As you look and listen and lean into Him, you will see His beauty on display. 

Lyli Dunbar loves teaching.  For 17 years, she mentored teenagers in the Christian school setting, and now she has serves as Associate Director of Curriculum at Trinity International University Florida. Lyli married her Prince Charming in her 40’s and has a heart for encouraging young couples and singles in God’s waiting room.  She enjoys road trips with her husband, connecting with women through Bible study, and reading way too many books. Lyli writes about life lessons and faith on herpersonal blog. You may also connect with her on Facebook,Twitter, and Pinterest.

It’s a city neighborhood filled with concrete and high-rise apartments that I call home these days.  To the casual observer it might be called ugly with a penchant towards the bland uniformity of communism that shades its past. 

But I am not a casual observer. 

I am a missionary called to this street and community and city and country. 

I am a woman of purpose in who dwells the One by whom and for whom ALL things are made.

And for about twenty minutes each day I pound that concrete and I connect with He who ‘upholds all things by the word of His power’.  

These fall days have filled those 20 minutes with the glory of His creation.  He touches my mind and heart with the mystery of His higher ways.  I am overwhelmed by beauty that is as poignant as it is transcendent.

Through His glory revealed I touch eternity. 

And from that touch I am sent back to the here and now to be a bearer of hope in a neighborhood filled with concrete and gray.

In every place I have called home I have sought and found a sacred route where I can behold the glory of God in His creation.  In the words of the prophet Jeremiah :

“You shall seek me and find me when you seek me with all of your heart.” {29:13}

And this is what separates a God-centered enjoyment of creation from a human-centered pursuit of creation.

As I am overcome by a majestic sunset, I receive it as a gift from the God of the Universe.  It reminds me of His love and His beauty and it is a promise.  The promise awaits perfect and complete fulfillment at the end of all things when I will worship the Only Perfect God forever and ever.

Instead of becoming restless with a desire to get closer to the beauty of this created world, I recognize the love and pursuit of the One who asks for every element of my life.

The busyness and poopy diapers and slobber that fill a lot of these days don’t look the same after I have connected with the God of the Universe through His creation.  The long hours my husband spends away from home as a worker in a plentiful harvest have more meaning.  The thousands of miles that now separate us from so many loved ones are filled with purpose. I see the glory supremely manifested in God’s Son, resurrected and reigning, with a greater sense of its infinite worth. 

As a Christ-follower, beholding the glory of God in creation transforms the concrete in my neighborhood.  The unique colors brushed across the sky through clouds in perfect position, peel back a layer of Heaven where God will be my perfect delight.  Then, as I look again at the gray sidewalk and apartment buildings, I see beyond their dull colors to the eternal souls made not for the non-descript shade of concrete but the exquisite hue of a matchless sunset. 

This is how the creation continually reveals the God of salvation, redemption and eternal life.  As you and I clarify what that beauty calls us to in the here-and-now we have an apologetic that reflects from the core of our being before a watching, searching, restless and gray-tinted world.

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Abby is a small-town loving, big city adventurer.  She and her husband have worked with high school students most of their lives!  Since their internship in Budapest, Hungary in 2005-2006, they have been working with the ministry of CRU.  In May of this year, they moved to Hungary answering God's call to work long-term with the students of Central and Eastern Europe.  Abby loves to laugh, especially at herself, has a passion for God and making Him known and is ever learning how to do that with three small children, ages 5, 3 and one month.  She wouldn't trade the journey for anything!  She blogs regularly at Fan the Flame  

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“God created the universe and the Big Bang theory is wrong for stating otherwise.” 
“Only uneducated, ignorant people could believe the Universe was made by an invisible God.” 
Being a college student studying science at a secular university, I have heard just about every argument about what brought us here. How did what started as nothing all of the sudden decide to become the roses, the oceans, hummingbirds, and me? Today, there are two opinions that have emerged above the rest I’d like to share with you: the Genesis creation account and the Big Bang theory. 

When you think about God’s attributes, what attributes come to mind first? His love, grace, justice, power … the list goes on, right? What about God’s order or His organization? Everything from the cell in your eye helping you read this to the grandness of the earth’s rotation of the sun and beyond is ordered! God is a God of order. His plan for everything in creation was built on order. Many of His plans involved His final creation, mankind, to be carried out. I’m still studying through the book of Genesis and I would love to share with you what He’s taught me thus far. Genesis offers lots of amazing stories of God exemplifying this characteristic:

Genesis 1- God created a universe that was built on order. Out of the formless, He brought everything we see today. Water and land came before creatures, which needed both to survive and reproduce.