Oh, Say Can You See
“I see the turning of a leaf dancing in the autumn sun, And brilliant shades of crimson glowing when the day is done.” – Hazelmarie Mattie Elliot
As I drive down highways or walk down my driveway, I am beginning to see the evidences of autumn. We have shortened the name of this special season to fall. This is a season with much to see. It seems to come in gradually but then leave so quickly. There is so much to see and ponder of what God has provided for us in this season.
We rush around in our busy lives and sometimes do not take the time to see and understand this glorious God, our Creator, and all He has given us to behold. “Oh LORD, how manifest are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all; the earth is full of Your riches.” (Psalm 104:24) It seems to me that when we walk down the paths of our lives, we are looking and seeing things before us. But do we (I include myself) really “see” Who God is? Do we know this Creator Who has created all of this autumn for us to glorify Him? We must realize there are different ways to see; and not just with our eyes.
In John 20:1-10, we are given a scene just after Jesus has been crucified and laid in the tomb. Mary Magdalene comes early and sees that the stone covering the tomb is rolled away. She runs to Peter and the other disciple (whom we believe to be John). She is all excited wondering where her Savior’s body has been taken. Peter and John run together to the tomb. John outruns Peter, and, when he arrives, he stoops down looking into the tomb. He saw the linen clothes lying there (no Jesus). John simply “saw” with his eyes: he noticed. He did not go in. Peter was following him and entered the tomb. When he entered, he “saw” the linen clothes lying there and no Jesus. The word used in the original means he looked and starred. Our English word “theater” is derived from this word. Then in verse 8: “Then went in the other disciple (John) who came first to the tomb, and he saw and believed.” The second time John saw, the lights came on, and he believed that Christ had risen from the tomb. This man they had followed had died on the cross for their sins. Oh to go from noticing, starring, observing to understanding is the glorious power of Jesus Christ.
You know what I see? I see a world around us starring and noticing but not understanding the God of the universe. It’s not Mother Nature. It’s not a Big Bang theory. It is Genesis 1:1: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” If we understand the Gospel and Who God is, we have the glorious privilege of understanding Who this Creator is. Every leaf changing color, every cool breeze, every beautiful changing autumn sun is, by the grace of God, a time to see with understanding and glorify the Lord in it. Psalm 19:1 says, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork.”
“Oh say – can you see”?
Pam Cavanaugh
