When I told everyone that I was leaving the bright lights of Austin for the quiet nights of Hermleigh, TX, people mostly had the same reaction… “There’s not much to do there, is there?”

In fact, when I told my boss that I was leaving to pastor the First Baptist Church of Hermleigh, the only part of that statement that made sense was the fact that I was leaving the insurance industry to follow my true calling in life.

Austin has a population of around a million people, has professional and Division 1 college sports, concerts galore (live music capital of the world), shopping, lifestyle and a robust parks system.

Hermleigh…

Well, let me tell you what Hermleigh has…

STARS!…

You can’t see the stars in Austin for all the city lights… but in Hermleigh, where there are no city lights, and where the town sleeps well, you can see the entire Milky Way. And, since we have an Allsups, you can buy a Milky Way candy bar so you can eat a Milky Way while gazing at the Milky Way. But… I digress.

You can’t beat the night sky in Hermleigh. It costs nothing to gaze at the wonder of it all. And the longer you gaze, the more impressive it becomes.

During the day, the Texas sky puts on a show, with some of the most amazing cloud shows known to man, while you can watch the storms and showers develop from afar off.

You see, the beautiful thing about Hermleigh is that you can afford to stop and give yourself time to take in the glory of God’s creation.

In Psalm 19:1-3, David writes, “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth his handywork. ² Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night sheweth knowledge. ³ There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard.”

God’s glory is shown through the heavens above. This is literally referring to the sky above us. As you gaze into the clouds, and as you take in the power and magnificence of the storms that roll through, you are seeing the power and magnificence of God on full display.

The firmament is the night sky. These are the stars, the planets visible with the unaided eye from our backyards. As you gaze into the Milky Way, seeing more stars and seeing deeper into the universe the longer you look, you are seeing the handywork of God.

When you consider how it all works together… how the weather works in a perfect harmony to provide rain, sun, wind, and varying temperatures… when you see the perfection of it all, you see the clear evidence of the existence of God.

When you consider how perfectly the universe is made, how gravity works perfectly to keep the planets and stars properly aligned to sustain life on our planet, you see evidence of God’s perfection.

This divine evidence is clearly understood by all cultures, all peoples, and all nations. There is no place on earth where the language of creation is not clearly heard.

Now, anytime I write about the existence of God, and the irrefutable evidence of His existence in creation, I receive an email or a comment from an atheist who blasts me for my “superstition” and “believing in an imaginary friend.”

Okay… so be it… you can believe what you want to believe…

But…

When you consider how the creation works so well in harmony with itself, can you think of any other instance where such order happens by chance? Can you think of any other circumstance where order happens without the intentional guidance of an engineer?

Without design, and without intention, there is chaos. So, given the order of the environment and universe in which we live, it is obvious that there is design and intention, which necessitates a creator.

And a creation of the magnitude in which we live requires a divine creator.

So, yes, when I stop and take in the creation around me, whether it’s the vastness of the South Plains, the magnificent views of the mountains, the beauty of the oceans, or the glory of the heavens, I see the glory of my God Who created Heaven and Earth.

So, my advice is… stop and smell the roses. Take some time to enjoy the creation around you. If need-be, take up the hobby of digital photography on your phone. It will help you to see things differently, to see your surroundings as you’ve never seen them before.

And as you do, be thankful to God, and admire His glory.