God] is the Maker of the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south. He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted (Job 9:9-10)
Can you bind the beautiful Pleiades? Can you loose the cords of Orion? Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear with its cubs? ( Job 38:31-31),
One of the many negative aspects of modern urban living is that we are not exposed to the stars night after night. What a misfortune it is that the lights of the night we see from Los Angeles to Tokyo to Sydney to Frankfort to London are flashing Coke and Sony signs and MacDonald’s golden arches. Our children can name dozens of commercial products by their lighted signs before they can even read, but my guess is that not one in a hundred could find the constellations Orion or the Pleiades, let alone give them a name. Indeed, how many adults could identify the Pleiades if exposed to a night sky dark enough to actually see that striking cluster of stars? [In fact, my spell checker couldn't even find it!]
Pleiades
How many know the stars called “the Bear and its cubs”? In Latin their names are Ursa Major and Ursa Minor, meaning Great Bear and Little Bear and are commonly referred to as the Big Dipper and the Little Dipper. And how many know that the brightest star in the Little Dipper is named Polaris—the Pole Star or the North Star—because it is almost directly above the North Pole and has served for millennia as the most important navigational light in the Northern Hemisphere?
Even as near in time as the mid-twentieth century, the majority of people in North America could see most visible stars on a clear night. On a midsummer’s night the kids in my neighborhood would, like thousands of kids around the country, lie on our backs and chant in unison, “Star light, star bright/The first star I see tonight;/I wish I may, I wish I might,/Have the wish I wish tonight.” And in our young souls, we would silently ponder deep thoughts about the wonders of the heavens and God.
Living in light-polluted Grand Rapids with cloud cover well over 40% of our days, I seldom see the Milky Way, and I miss it. What’s truly sad to me, however, is that most children these days don’t even know what the Milky Way is and are almost stunned when they happen to be exposed to it the first few times. Contrast that with the awe-inspiring aspect children experienced almost every cloudless night before the Industrial Revolution and global urbanization.
Milky Way from Death Valley
Our souls need the stars. We need to be reminded of the vastness of the cosmos and the smallness of Earth. We need them to show us the greatness of our Creator. When we see how grand the universe is, as Job and his “comforters” did, and realize that we are as dust—yet so loved by the Creator/Savior that He chose to walk the earth with us, we cannot cease but to be humbled by the One who “performs wonders that cannot be fathomed, miracles that cannot be counted.”
[He]did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:5-7 NASB).
[Tokyo MacDonald's sign source: nickburcher]
[Star photos from Wikipedia]
It wasn’t long before I had to stop the car to observe a mass motion that had totally arrested my attention: butterflies—as far as I could see—dancing in the air above alfalfa fields on both sides of the road. It seemed they were virtually attacking the newly emerged violet blossoms of this common crop. It was a good thing there was no traffic on the narrow gravel road, because I was mesmerized by the sulfur and monarch butterflies whose colors had been “neonized” by the late afternoon sun. In my alley between those two feeding frenzies I said a few wow’s to myself—and to my Creator. And I thought again how much I love where I live. This was just the latest reason.
here too. Truly “He has caused His wonders to be remembered.” Memories of outdoor South Carolina are still fresh after 34 years: discovering wild 
you cannot gain joy from God’s creation, and it is as close as the outdoors just beyond your back door. Spider webs gleaming with pearls of dew on your patio chairs in the morning, “horsetail” 
I believe it’s significant that in the Genesis creation account the first fact mentioned about the trees of the garden was that they were “pleasing to the eye” (Gen. 2:9). For this reason I’m convinced that the beauty we see and sense in the natural world is one of the most important evidences of God’s divine nature.
fragrant leaf smoke. I understand why cities now have ordinances against leaf burning, but I still miss that old fall ritual. Marge and I will sometimes take a fall drive into the country and deliberately slow down and open the windows whenever we find that bluish leaf smoke wafting through the cool air—just to create some nostalgia.
Like autumn leaves, our bodies bear the marks of our mortality. But do we disrespect and neglect our bodies in the present because they will be replaced by incorruptible bodies in the future? In the following pages, educator and naturalist Dean Ohlman helps us to see that as we care for our own bodies, we also have reason to care for the world around us. Both are products of God’s handiwork, both require our faithful stewardship, and both share the promise of future restoration.
Why would anyone write about something as common and as unwelcome as dirt? It’s for good reason that we sweep our floors, wipe our shoes, and wash our soiled clothes. There are, however, other ways of looking at the stuff of which the Bible says God made Adam. In the following pages, RBC writer and naturalist Dean Ohlman does what he so skillfully did in earlier booklets about the wonder of trees and of water. Dean compels us to dig a little deeper into the nature and significance of the good earth that was valued far more by his grandfather’s generation than by most of us today.
In these times of industrial and commercial expansion, wilderness regions are often seen as low-rent real estate. Some see undeveloped land as untapped potential waiting for a developer’s big idea and investors’ money. But not RBC research writer and naturalist Dean Ohlman. With a weathered face, hiking boots, and a sun-shielding hat, Dean’s searching eyes scan rocks, weeds, soil, and whatever moves or doesn’t move in the rustling leaves and grass. There’s wonder and significance in the regions of our world that many of us have looked at without ever really seeing. I hope you find this booklet as inspiring as I have.
A world without trees would be a vastly different place. Neighborhoods without trees, fields without woods, and continents without forests would mean the end of life as we know it. As RBC staff writer Dean Ohlman points out in the following pages, in a world without trees the Bible would also be a different book. Beginning in Genesis we find the story of trees that define the spiritual nature of our existence and survival. May the wisdom of these pages renew our ability to see the wonder and significance of one of God’s great gifts to us.
Science labels the stuff H2O. It’s so common we hardly pay attention to it—until it loses its balance: raging floods, searing drought, stifling humidity, paralyzing blizzards. Reflecting the light of a setting sun or flowing gently through a mountain meadow, water gives us great delight. Seldom, however, do we consider the unseen properties of water that make it the one thing that gives the earth its uniqueness among all the other planets in our solar system—and even the newly discovered planets farther out in space. In this booklet, RBC writer Dean Ohlman urges us to contemplate at a far deeper level the significance of water to the human body—and to the soul.
Dr. Paul Brand, writer of God’s Forever Feast, lived through all but the first 14 years of the 20th century. During those years, many of them spent as a missionary doctor in India, he was able to witness the hand of the Creator working to heal the disease-wracked bodies of lepers. But because he was also fascinated by birds, plants, and ecology, Dr. Brand was able to observe the Creator’s hand at work in the natural world. In this booklet, an excerpt from his book, he draws an extended analogy between the natural gift of good soil and our spiritual growth and nourishment as followers of Christ. Enjoy this delightful devotional study.
This special evangelistic edition of Our Daily Bread is designed for those who love the outdoor sports of hunting and fishing. Our Daily Bread Outdoor Edition includes devotional thoughts written by a variety of authors, and features two well-known outdoor journalists, Tracy Breen and Charles Alsheimer. 