We walk along a forest path with warm sunlight spilling between the trees and hear the chirping of birds and insects. We feel the turning of the seasons. Silently and tranquilly, everything changes in the wonderful and powerful hands of God. Green leaves turn to red one season and white snow covers the ground in another. Pleasant rains water the thirsty earth.

Both Christian and atheist experience the goodness of God through nature. “He causes his sun to rise on the good and the evil and sends rain to the righteous as well as to the unrighteous” (Matthew 5:45).

Carefree squirrels jumping along the ground and sparrows resting on tall poles live peaceful lives. “…look at the birds of the air, they neither sow nor reap nor store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” (Matthew 6:26).

Ants get inspiration and wisdom from the God who created them. “The ants have no commander, no overseer or ruler, yet it stores its provisions in summer and gathers its food at harvest” (Proverbs 6:6–8). We have all watched neatly lined ants, working together to carry small breadcrumbs up the steps. They work together as a well-equipped team. Even if halfway up and the breadcrumbs fall, they are not discouraged. They finally succeed in reaching the top. Not only working together to hoard food, the tiny ants also build “roads,” such as those in the Amazon rainforest. They often dig grooves in tree trunks to escape storms or use gravel on flat ground as pathways. They can “design” a roundabout-like overpass, even designing and building a variety of nests, with reasoned internal layout, smooth air, constant temperature, and various facilities. Hundreds of anthills can be connected, tens of meters long. Some are like “skyscrapers” rising from the ground, up to 6 meters high, equivalent to a 300-story skyscraper for humans.

The soaring eagle rises and spreads its wings in the headwind. The small spider weaves its web that is then blown by the wind, but with motivation, it begins weaving again and again.

Staying close to nature helps us experience God as a creative inventor and artist. He uses the sky and the earth as canvases, decorating the clouds with pink and orange glow. Trees that have countless leaves have no two that are identical. Plants that grow along the roadside are not fertilized by a gardener, yet they flourish.

God’s creation has established laws. Under photosynthesis, with the help of solar energy, plants convert carbon dioxide and water into carbohydrates as nutrients for their own growth, while releasing oxygen and water to nourish all living things and the environment in which they live. It is a perfect cycle, and God’s wonderful work can be seen, even if we can’t understand the mystery.

God makes rivers in the desert and opens paths through the wilderness. His omnipotence and all-encompassing love can be experienced in nature. If we are bored, we can go to the sea and feel the peace it brings. God reminds us to rest, because “… in repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength” (Isaiah 30:15). If in our ambition, we feel we’ve lost control of our life, we can look up at the stars and realize our own finitude and insignificance. God tells us not to be complacent since “the grass withers and flowers fall, because the breath of the LORD blows on them. Surely the people are grass” (Isaiah 40:7). If we are depressed or disappointed, we can look at the rainbow in the sky after the rain. It is the sign of God’s covenant with Noah after the Great Flood. It confirms God’s faithfulness to all mankind.

Whether it is a tree that takes deep roots downward, or the diligent ant that never gives up, or lush forests, babbling streams, and smooth stones—nature can soothe our hearts and bring about an inexplicable sense of God’s steadfast love. Every day, through blooming flowers and singing birds, nature tells us that life is the best gift, and living every day without regrets is the greatest happiness. So, let us not be blind to the beauty of heaven and earth and miss out on God’s message of love and grace that it has for us. God’s glory and power can be seen through nature, “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands” (Psalm 19:1).

God has left breathtaking beauty in every corner of the world we live in, as the sculptor Rodin said, “The world doesn’t lack beauty, but it lacks the eyes to discover it.” Let us turn our eyes heavenward to see God’s beauty in nature and to experience His love!

Cindy Yang is a stay-at-home mom and freelance Christian writer. She is also a member of the news broadcasting ministry of Bread of Life Church in Seattle. Before coming to the U.S. in 2010, Cindy was a middle school teacher in China for 9 years. She likes reading, writing, cooking, and playing the piano.