Creation Is An Invitation
August 19, 2026
This past week, I had the unbelievable opportunity to visit my brother, Daric, in Alaska.
My brother moved to Anchorage with his family a year ago and this was the first time I was able to make the nine hours flight from Baltimore, Maryland to see him.
We had an amazing four days together.
First, he took me on the Alaska Railroad from Anchorage to Seward. It is considered one of the most beautiful train rides in the country, and I would certainly agree.
The train follows Turnagain Arm, with the Chugach Mountains rising steeply on one side and the water stretching out on the other. It was here we saw Dall sheep grazing on the mountains.
Soon the train heads into increasingly remote country on the Kenai Peninsula, where we saw glaciers, waterfalls, mountain valleys, alpine meadows, rivers, rugged wilderness, and even icebergs.
After four hours of beautiful scenery, a painting that only God could create, we arrived in Seward, at the head of Resurrection Bay.
My brother had set up a boat tour for us with his nephew, Tony. We got on the boat and headed out into Kenai Fjords National Park, known for its massive glaciers, fjords, mountains, coastal scenery, and of course, wildlife.
My absolute favorite moment in Alaska was on that boat tour when we saw Sea Otters floating on the waters. One was eating a crab. Another was holding its offspring.
With the Sea Otters, we saw Puffins, and Mountain Goats, and the 2nd Largest Mammel on Earth, the Fin Whale. God was putting on quite the display for us.
The next day, God’s beauty and majesty and power were on display again as my brother and I drove up Hatcher’s Pass.
On our last day together, I had yet to see a Moose, so my brother an I went to Kincaid Park, encompassing 1,516 acres along the Cook Inlet in Anchorage.
We started hiking and after an hour we still had not seen a moose, but I wasn’t about to give up. My brother jokeinly said, “Why don’t you ask God to show you a moose,” so I stopped and prayed aloud a short prayer to see a moose. It was about fifteen-twenty minutes later we came upon a baby, probably a year or two old, moose and got an up-close-and-personal experience that was truly a gift from God.
Afterwards we saw two more moose. I was so blessed. But God wasn’t done!
We drove to a boat launch in Anchorage on the Cook Inlet and immediately upon driving up spotted our first Beluga Whale, and then God showed us His majesty in the sunset along the mountains and volcanos rising up to the sky across the inlet.
And as I stood there looking at that incredible scene, I couldn't help but think about how great is our God?
In just four days, I had seen mountains that seemed to reach the heavens, glaciers that have existed for thousands of years, whales weighing tens of thousands of pounds, tiny puffins flying across the water, sea otters caring for their young, a moose appearing almost immediately after I asked God to let me see one, and then, at the end of the day, a sunset that seemed to set the entire sky on fire.
And all of it said the same thing: Look at the Creator.
The Bible says in Psalm 19:1: "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands."
Creation doesn't speak with a human voice, but it speaks.
The mountains speak. The oceans speak. The animals speak. The stars speak.
And what they say is: There is a God, and He is powerful. He is majestic. He is creative. He is awesome.
Romans 1:20 says: "For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen."
God has left His fingerprints everywhere.
And maybe that's why there is something about being outside that can make us feel closer to God.
Creation is an invitation.
It is an invitation to look up instead of looking down at our phones, our schedules, our problems, our finances, and our work. Creation makes us look up at the mountains, the sunset, the stars in the night sky. And when we look up we are reminded that there is something bigger than us.
Creation invites us to lift our eyes from our circumstances and fix them on our Creator.
Psalm 121:1-2 says: “I lift my eyes to the mountains – where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth.”
Creation is an invitation.
It is an invitation to slow down in a world of constant hurry. Creation doesn’t hurry.
Perhaps one of the reasons God created such beauty is because He knew we would need reasons to stop.
Psalm 46:10 tells us, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
Creation is an invitation.
It is an invitation to worship, an invitation into God’s presence. Creation is the finger pointing toward the Creator. How many times did I feel God’s presence amidst such beauty, such marvels? How many times did I find myself throughout the four days with my brother simply saying, “Thank you, Lord. Thank you?”
How about you?
Have you ever stood at the edge of an ocean and felt small? Have you ever looked up at a mountain and been overwhelmed by its size? Have you ever stood under a sky filled with stars and thought, "How could all of this possibly be here?" Have you ever watched a sunset and simply stopped talking?
Those moments can awaken something inside us. Because creation has a way of reminding us that we are not the center of the universe. God is.
And when we step away from the noise, the schedules, the phones, the emails, the meetings, and the demands of everyday life, we sometimes become quiet enough to notice what has been there all along...God.
He has been speaking through His creation. He has been reminding us of His power. His majesty. His creativity. His goodness. And perhaps most importantly, His presence.
The amazing thing about God is that the God who created those mountains is the same God who knows your name. The God who created the whales is the same God who hears your prayers. The God who painted that sunset is the same God who cares about what you're going through today. The God whose power is displayed throughout the universe invites us into a personal relationship with Him.
That's the part of my Alaska experience that I don't want to miss.
I don't want to simply remember the mountains. I want to remember the God who made the mountains.
I don't want to simply remember the whales. I want to remember the God who created them.
I don't want to simply remember the sunset. I want to remember the God who gave me eyes to see it.
Because creation is not the destination.
Creation is an invitation.
It invites us to look beyond what has been made and worship the One who made it.
And that's why the words of that old hymn seem so appropriate:
When through the woods and forest glades I wander
And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees
When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur
And hear the brook, and feel the gentle breeze
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee
How great Thou art! How great Thou art!
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