Nature's Calling: A Walk with God

By Michael Knapp

Come with me on an extraordinary journey… A journey of enlightenment through God’s glorious creation where we will learn how intricately intertwined we are with nature. From there, we will travel through the darkness, discovering the cause of our fall from God’s grace and an understanding of the reason behind the great chasm. God’s amazing plan to bridge the chasm, a pathway for our salvation, is then revealed, leading us to an undeniable confidence in our ultimate destination. With this knowledge and understanding, we can all finally sit around the campfire and enjoy several devotions that were inspired by God while hiking breathtaking trails from all over the United States.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Jul 14, 2021
• ISBN: 9781638141273

Michael Knapp

Michael Knapp is a historian of radical democracy, Cofounder of the Campaign Tatort Kurdistan and member of NavDem Berlin. His research focuses on the Kurdish issue and the construction of alternatives to capitalist modernity. His research has taken him to the Middle East, where he has studied the Kurdish Liberation Struggle and the PKK.

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Nature's Calling

A Walk with God

Michael Knapp

ISBN 978-1-63814-126-6 (Paperback)

ISBN 978-1-63814-127-3 (Digital)

Copyright © 2021 Michael Knapp

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

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www.covenantbooks.com

Table of Contents

Devotionals

One Year Bible Reading Plan

About the Author

I often wonder why the human heart is so drawn to nature. What causes that feeling of being at home in the mountains or the sense of belonging while hiking in the forest? What makes someone yearn to take that weekend trip to the lake or plan all year for the one week they spend on the beach just watching the ocean? Besides nature, the one thing all of these have in common is the desire for the human soul to find peace. Nature, by God's glorious design, has the innate ability to calm a weary soul and bring peace to a troubled heart. When the chaos of this world and the turmoil of daily living become overwhelming, it is the call of nature that drives us to seek healing. But what is it about nature that provides the healing power to the heart and soul? Certainly, there is the physical beauty that nature provides. The majestic mountain peaks rising above the ethereal forests or the mighty ocean waves crashing against the sandy white beaches paint a picture in the mind of sheer awesomeness and wonder. But beauty is only the outward part of the equation. Humans are both physical and spiritual beings, so while the physical beauty of nature can affect our physical well-being, what is it about nature that calms our soul? The answer can be found in the biblical beginning with the account of God's creation of nature and his formation of man.

Before we delve into creation, let's first talk about God. For most of us, the concept of God is not something foreign. As a matter of fact, on the one hand, the belief in God is oftentimes casually accepted by the majority of people. True faith in God's existence and his creation, on the other hand, is not. Even for those of us who claim to have faith, there are questions we ask that seem to undermine our proclamation of faith. The very first question often asked is gleaned from the first sentence in the Bible. More specifically, the first four words in the Bible. Who would have thought four simple words could raise so many questions and doubts between believers and nonbelievers alike? Genesis 1:1: In the beginning God… It seems simple enough, except for that nagging question that everyone seems to ask. Where did God come from? It seems without that bit of information, nonbelievers have the perfect excuse for not believing, and believers have that shred of doubt that tests the very faith of who they believe in.

Over the years I have heard many answers to that very question ranging from You should never question the Bible to Just accept it by faith and even Does it really matter? As an analytic thinker with a prove to me with science mentality, accepting something by faith was difficult for me in my early years as a believer. I wanted more. I wanted proof. To simply believe because someone or some book says so seemed too easy and too childlike. It wasn't until much later in my walk with God that I truly understood the importance of having childlike faith as it related to my relationship with God. So early in my walk with God, I struggled with the concept of wanting to have faith and believe what the Bible says is true about God and the nagging question of Where did God come from? By allowing that simple question to fester in my mind, it created a shred of doubt as to what I even believed. I began to doubt the existence of God.

Then one day, in typical God fashion, a simple message from a sermon brought to light not only the truth I had been searching for, but also the proof of God's existence in a rather unconventional way. The pastor began by telling a story of a man walking through the woods. As the man reached the edge of the woods, he saw a flower-filled meadow. In the center of the meadow was a tree stump, and as the man approached the stump, he observed on the stump a magnificently crafted pocket watch. The solid-gold casing glistened as the sun reflected off its surface. Intricate carvings covering the case could only have been made by a master craftsman. The precious jewels used for the inner workings allowed for the smoothest operation imaginable. Twelve diamonds located on the watch face sparkled brilliantly, creating a heavenly glow. The man could not believe his luck in finding such a priceless, perfectly made watch in such a strange and remote place. How did it get here? the man thought. The pastor went on to ask these questions. Would it have been easier for the man to believe the elements comprising this watch just happened to randomly come together at this location and in such perfect order that they created this magnificent watch, or that a master craftsman designed, created, and left the watch on the stump to be found? Such a simple story with such a profound meaning! To doubt the existence of a divine, intelligent creator would confirm someone believes the complexities existing in nature and in the creation of human beings are mere products of the random compilations of elements forming everything in existence. Having a common-sense approach to life in general, this philosophy has none in my opinion. The pieces simply do not fit. It would take more faith to believe that a random collection of elements could create something as complex as a human being than it would to simply believe in a divine, intelligent creator. This was a turning point in my walk with God and my faith in knowing God is real and his creation is perfect.

Mankind, or let me get even more personal, I am too perfectly made and nature is too perfectly made to be some random conglomeration of elements left up to sheer happenstance of chance. I find it extremely difficult understanding how a nonbeliever can accept the perfectness and complexity of creation as something that just happened by chance.

This brings us full circle back to the question that made me not only doubt my personal beliefs, but also question if God even existed. Where did God come from? By finally understanding and truly believing that God was real, the question of where he came from just didn't matter. The truth is God does exist. The proof of it is everywhere and in everything around us. We simply need to open our eyes and allow God's glorious creation to inspire us and call our hearts to the plan he has for each and every one of us. With the knowledge that God does exist, it is easy to accept the account of creation and even easier to have a real relationship with someone I have no doubt is real.

In the beginning God…created the heavens and the earth. For those of you who believe in the big bang theory, it is okay because so do I. The big bang was simply God's voice speaking into existence everything out of nothing. The word of God tells us that the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of the Lord hovered over the waters. The Bible goes on to demonstrate God's power and authority when it gives the account of creation. Each stage of creation is prefaced by the words, God said. The ability to simply speak things into existence is, well, undefinable. There are no words in any language to explain it. An example of such power would seem to make any ordinary person afraid; however, when you truly know God and have a relationship with him, there is no fear. There is a reverence, there is a respect, and there is a peace that passes all understanding. And most of all, there is an unconditional love that comes from God the Father to his creation. You cannot buy it. You cannot earn it. You cannot even justify it. God's unconditional love is given freely by him with our acknowledgement of the love he first gave to us at creation and then completed when he gave his one and only son, Jesus Christ, as the ultimate sacrifice for our disobedience and sin.

The story of creation explains just how intertwined mankind and nature are. I truly believe God in his infinite wisdom and divine knowledge interlaced mankind and nature for a specific purpose. I also believe you too will see and understand the purpose as we go on this incredible journey together. It is impossible to get the full scope of the interconnectivity of mankind and nature unless you know the story of creation. For those of you who know the story, please bear with me (you may learn something new), and for those of you who do not, sit back, relax, and enjoy the ride.

Genesis 1 verses 3–5 describe the creation of light and darkness. God said, Let there be light, and there was light. He saw that the light was good. It is amazing to me that from the very beginning of creation God references the light to being good. The verses go on to say he separated the light from the darkness and called the light day and the darkness night. He makes no mention of the darkness being good. There are many, many references in the Bible between good and evil being compared to light and dark. I do not believe it a coincidence that God did not call darkness good when he created it. We will get in to that a bit deeper later in our adventure through creation. There was evening and there was morning—the first day.

Genesis 1 verses 6–8 describe God's creation of the sky. God said, Let there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water. God made the expanse, separating the water under the expanse and the water over the expanse, calling it sky. Before you start to scratch your head and say huh? let me explain. The expanse, or sky, is the atmosphere that separates the waters on the earth and the water above the earth or, in other words, the clouds. There was evening and there was morning—the second day. If you think it has been exciting so far, just wait; it gets better, I promise.

Genesis 1 verses 9–13 explain the manner in which God began to sculpt the topography of the earth with the waterways and the land masses. The Bible goes on to describe the formation of botanical life. God said, Let the waters under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear, and it was so. I just love that statement. And it was so… My goose bumps get goose bumps when I imagine God simply speaking something into existence, and it was so. The scripture continues and says God called the dry ground land, and the gathered waters he called seas. And God saw that it was good. Let's stop for a second. Did you get that? And God saw that it was good. Once again, God is telling us that his creation was good! Verse 11 goes on to say, then God said, ‘Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.' And you guessed it, it was so. And again, God saw that his creation of these plants and trees was good. God's description of his creation of nature is that it is good. Is there any wonder then why we as human beings are so drawn to nature? We are naturally drawn to those things in our lives that are good. At least those of us with common sense are. Have you noticed God did not say that his seas were beautiful or his mountains were majestic or even that his trees were magnificent? No, he simply said they were good. An interesting statement that I believe has much deeper meaning then the obvious physical attributes of God's creation of nature. After all, we all know—believer and nonbeliever alike—how beautiful the seas are and how majestic the mountains are rising above the horizon and how magnificent a forest of trees can be. So what about nature being good has such a powerful tug on the human heart? Let us continue our journey and see where we end up. It was evening and it was morning—the third day.

Genesis 1 verses 14–19 talk about the formation of the sun, moon, and stars. God said, Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth. And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars in the heavens. God set them in the expanse to give light to the world and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. What I find totally fascinating is that much credit is given to ancient civilizations for discovering how to keep track of the sun, moon, and stars for celestial events, but if you read the account of the creation of the sun, moon, and stars the way I read it, I believe someone else should be given the credit.

God himself stated (let's just say well before these civilizations existed), Let them serve as signs to mark sacred times and days and years. I believe God himself not only discovered, but also created a way for mankind to keep track of celestial events and track the days and years. Once again God describes his creation of light as being good. I am not the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I do know that if God mentions light being good on two separate occasions, maybe I should look a little deeper. I do not believe any of us has to pretend and say we were not afraid of the dark when we were younger. Maybe some of us are still afraid of the dark even though we are older. Why is that, do you suppose? Is it the fear of the unknown because we fear what we cannot see? I think for some of us it is ingrained in our beings to fear the unknown, but for others the fear of darkness is much, much deeper. I do not believe it is a coincidence that God compares light to good and dark to evil. When sin entered the world through mankind's disobedience to God, it brought with it darkness incomparable to that of simply being void of light. The darkness sin brought was a darkness of the heart. We as human beings can still carry that darkness in our hearts and feel the fear it brings with it. Sometimes this fear can be crippling and destroy lives altogether. But there is hope. Just as God created the light to separate day and night, he created the light of the world to separate us from the darkness of sin in our hearts. By God allowing his son to be sacrificed for our sin, he created a remedy for the darkness of the sin we have in our hearts: a bridge over the chasm that separates a holy God and a sinful human heart. By believing that Jesus Christ died for our sins and accepting him as our savior, we are free from the darkness of sin in our hearts and we have nothing to fear. Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty, there is freedom, and there is peace. The light of the world exposes the darkness of sin and drives it from its dwelling place. Yikes, I am so far ahead of myself, but I had to get that out. Hold those last comments for a while, and they will come full circle. And there was evening and there was morning—the fourth day.

The first four days of creation were nothing short of miraculous; after all, speaking things into existence is not something that happens every day. The chronology of God's creation speaks volumes to his perfect will and plan. God knew the order in which creation must be made in order for all things to exist in unity one with the other. First, he created the heavens and the earth, placing everything in perfect harmony. Next was the creation of day and night, light and darkness. This is the ideal cycle for living beings that God would create to live, work, and rest. Third was the creation of plants and trees from which God would provide nourishment for the life he would soon create. And finally, on the fourth day God set the sun and the moon in place. The location of the moon to the earth and the earth to the sun allows for a perfect symbiotic relationship for supporting life. The warmth of the sun so precisely positioned to earth is essential to life. Any closer and everything burns up, and any farther everything freezes. The moon and its gravitational pull stabilize the earth's orbit around the sun and helps regulate the ocean's tides. Without the moon the earth would wobble on its axis, creating massive environmental changes throughout the earth. Can you honestly believe that all of this perfection just happened by chance? The first four days of creation were all preparations for what was about to come, God's creation of living things.

Genesis 1 verses 20–23, depict God's account of his creation of living creatures in the water and the birds of the air. God said, Let the waters teem with living creatures and let birds fly above the earth across the expanse of the sky. God created the great creatures of the sea and every living and moving thing with which the water teems according to their kinds and every winged bird according to their kind. God saw that it was good. God thought so highly of his creation of the living creatures of the water and the birds of the air the Bible tells us in verse 22 he blessed them. Not only did he bless them, the verse goes on to say that he communicated with them as well. He told the creatures of the water and the birds of the air to be fruitful and increase in numbers. Evolutionists believe that life began in the water. Their theory basically states that a one-celled organism spontaneously formed and gradually evolved into the land animals and ultimately human beings. About the only thing they have correct in their theory is the order in which life was created, as you will see as we continue our journey. We see in Genesis 1 verses 20–23 that life did begin in the water because that is the order in which God chose to create it; however, it was not a one-celled organism but living creatures. It never ceases to amaze me how the Bible continues to prove science. Why do people continue to doubt the word of God when it continues to prove science over and over again, yet the Bible has not or will not ever be disproved by science? There was evening and there was morning—the fifth day.

Genesis 1 verses 24–31, God's culmination of his creation documents the creation of the animals that dwell on the earth and, ultimately, his creation of mankind. God said, Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: livestock, creatures that move along the ground and wild animals. And it was so. God made the wild animals, the livestock, and all creatures that move along the ground each according to their kinds, and God saw that it was good. I have read this passage of scripture dozens of times over the years and yet did not fully see the importance it plays in understanding the deep connection God purposely made in all his living beings. God said, Let the land produce living creatures… When you take that statement literally, you have to ask yourself, how can living flesh come from the land? The answer is simpler than one might think even if you discard the fact that a God who can create everything out of nothing could easily create life out of dirt. When God created the heavens and the earth, he also created all the 118 elements known to exist. All matter, that which has breath and that which does not, is made at the molecular level using some combination of these elements. These elements are bound together with such perfection, creating all that exists on earth and in the heavens. So in essence, life is made of dirt, and dirt is made of life. Before you think this is some sort of metaphysical New Age mumbo jumbo, let me assure you it is not. It is divine creation at its very core. Only a divine creator could take a mere 118 elements and design a way to so intricately combine them to create everything that is. Remember the pocket watch on the tree stump? Compare that to the even greater astronomical impossibility that the elements could randomly come together in such perfect harmony to create the complexities of life itself. Can you honestly convince yourself that life and everything you see in nature just happened by the random conglomeration of elements in such perfect order? I cannot. There is one and only one logical explanation: a divine creator, God.

We have journeyed through God's incredible creation plan, only to find ourselves at God's last and—some would say—most glorious creation, mankind. I would like to interject a personal thought to the most glorious creation statement by saying that I would agree we are God's most glorious creation; however, we are also God's most difficult creation. The word difficult does not describe how hard it was for God to create mankind, but more so how mankind has made it difficult on God. Anyone who has had a disobedient child knows exactly what I am speaking about. To imagine a god that loves his creation so much, that he would allow his one-and-only son to be sacrificed, only to have his creation, specifically mankind, turn their backs on him and not even acknowledge his existence is simply heartbreaking. Anyway, I will explain that in