The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

- Psalm 19:1

As a middle schooler, I didn’t know God the way I know him now.

I didn’t go to church. I didn’t read the Bible or know what it said about God. But, nature often told me in unspoken words about who God was. In fact, I have a distinct memory of being convinced by the skies that there was a God. 

I was sleeping out under the stars in my friend, Tara’s, backyard. Now, this was RURAL Kansas people. So, although we were in a “yard”, her yard backed up to a corn field in the boonies. I know Kansas may have shortcomings like being flat and void of people and cities; but, that’s the perfect recipe for sky watching. So, there we were eating junk food, talking about boys, and staying up waaaaay too late. When Tara finally nodded off well into the night, I found that I couldn’t sleep for all the stars. I was completely overwhelmed. They were amazing, innumerable, expansive... I just stared and contemplated. I thought, “Each tiny point of light represents another star, or a planet, or a solar system, or galaxy.” There were all these other worlds that I couldn’t even begin to fathom. I felt the truth of my own smallness and the vastness of everything else. At that moment, I remember very clearly being struck by the idea that there had to be a God. How else could this immense "everything" come to be and work so perfectly? And, as I laid there in my little sleeping bag, I found myself talking to God, like he was real and he could hear me. I just remember thanking him for making me and telling him that I wanted to know more about him.

Now, there were lots of ups and downs between that night and the one where I finally gave my life to Christ in college. I went through doubts and anger, lots of learning and seeking, and failing and trying. But, I always look back on that moment in time as a gift from God. He was bringing me along, showing me who he was and helping me to see my need for him.

- What about you? Do you have a moment when God stepped into your story to convince you that he was real?

- How does nature speak to you about who God is?