My husband Ron’s retirement came with a special perk for me as well – a two-week cruise/land tour to Alaska. While cruising the deep blue sea we sat in on a talk by the ship’s naturalist. He endeared himself to the crowd by injecting humor into his scientific discussion of the natural resources of Alaska. I waited in hopeful anticipation for his explanation of “in the beginning”.  But then, much to my disappointment, all I heard was a Big Bang Theory.

After witnessing many of Alaska’s wonders, I’ve decided it takes more faith to believe a big bang initiated the intricate creations of this world than to accept the alternative “theory” of a supreme being. The words of Job say it best:

“But ask the animals, and they will teach you,

or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you;

or speak to the earth, and it will teach you,

or let the fish in the sea inform you.

Which of all these does not know

that the hand of the Lord has done this?

In his hand is the life of every creature

and the breath of all mankind.” (Job 12:7-10)

Take the humpback whales for instance. Small groups of them travel together in search of food. After a school of fish is located, the leader whale uses his voice to signal the others. (Our boat captain put a microphone in the water so we could eavesdrop.) He, the whale – not the captain, then dives beneath the fish and blows water through his spout to push the unsuspecting fish upward. His hungry friends also take the plunge and all surge toward the surface with mouths wide open. This phenomenon is called bubble net feeding. While whale watching, we were told to watch the birds. The birds kept their eyes on the whales listening for the leader whale’s signal. (I’m not sure, but I think I saw a few of them smacking their beaks as they prepared for their fish feast.) As the whales made their dives, at least a hundred birds gathered, ready to snatch an easy meal. Big bang? I think not.

Not all of Alaska’s wonders are creatures; some are mountains, valleys, lakes, streams, tundra, and glaciers. One of the largest Alaskan glaciers is Hubbard Glacier. Ships can get no closer than a half mile and that’s exactly how close our ship got. As we approached, our naturalist shared some interesting facts, like the reason the baby blue glacier has dark gray stripes. It seems years ago volcanoes in the Aleutian Islands erupted billows of ash into the air. This ash floated to Alaska and settled on the glacier. More ice was formed on top of the ash causing the steak to appear.

However, the best glacier moment came when the naturalist on the intercom informed us that the captain would turn the ship in a circle so that all of us on our stateroom balconies could get a good look. At first everyone oohed and aaahed at the massive chunk, but then as the ship turned and the naturalist got quiet so did everyone else. Awe struck quickly. You could have heard a pin plink into the icy cold water. I filmed the site with my iPhone, but then stuck it in my pocket to soak in the moment. Remembering a song on one of my playlists, I pulled my phone out, scrolled to the song, and let it play quietly. That moment ranks as one of my all-time favorite worship experiences.

I wanted to share my glacier-whale moments with you, so I put together a little 3-minute video to give you a hint of what I experiencedI’m guest blogging today at Lean Into Jesus Ministry, so please click this link to travel there for the video. I promise you’ll be inspired by God’s magnificent creation. Give thanks today to the One who simply spoke the world into creation – He had no reason to bang.

 

Donna Jackson

www.perfectionroad.com

#donnajacksonblogs