My husband and I recently repeated a part of our honeymoon trip for our 40th wedding anniversary. We visited Glacier, Yellowstone, and Grand Teton National Parks. The incredible beauty of this part of God’s creation started my mind working on spiritual themes I had not expected–themes involving a place of judgment–place of glory. Join me for some thoughts on tone of the messages of Yellowstone National Park and what lessons believers and non-believers alike can learn.
2MefromHim Devotionals
Place of Judgement–Place of Glory
For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse. Romans 1:20
Pools of odorous, boiling water, roaring vents spouting steam sting the eyes. Geysers shoot super-heated water high into the air, drawing 4 million visitors every year. I have loved the weird landscape of Yellowstone National Park since I was 10 years old. However, it illustrates both a place of judgment–place of glory.
We began our trip in Glacier National Park; a day’s drive to the north, and then moved near Grand Teton National Park to the south. The contrast in scenery between the superb mountain views and the peculiar scenes of Yellowstone lent a unique perspective.
Old Faithful Geyser
Fifty years after my first visit, the awful beauty of Yellowstone still drew me to the edge of the railings. I remembered the phrase, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities–his eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen…people are without excuse.”
This corner of the earth displays God’s majesty, glory, and infinite creativity like nowhere else on earth. Glacier and Teton are renowned for soaring mountain vistas, pristine lakes, and an amazing array of wildlife. Yellowstone offers those also, but it its thermal displays hold visitors entranced.
On my 9th visit, a new question surfaced. If God’s creation reveals His invisible qualities and divine nature to all humanity. If His creation explains everything necessary to man’s understanding of an infinite God. What do these contrasts reveal about God, earth, heaven, and hell?
Yellowstone displays both the terrible signs of cataclysmic creation and the mystery of the horrible destructive power of nature. Gazing into the depths of boiling pools of foul water and steam vents, it is not difficult to see that God is serious about destruction as well as creation. If this decaying earth offers hints of the majesty of heaven, why would God not also provide clues about the reality of judgment?
Revelation 20 tells of s lake of fire, a place of judgment, just as the following chapters reveal a place of glory for believers. Learn the lesson of God’s creation well. Heaven is for people and hell for the devil and his demons. God doesn’t want to send a single person to judgment in that lake of fire. We must understand the messages of God’s creation, and share them with others. All people should have the chance to spend eternity in glory rather than torment.
The bottomless pools and vents of steam should warn us that our loving, merciful God of salvation also punishes those who reject Him. Otherwise, He would not be just. Learn the lesson of Yellowstone well. There exists both a place of judgment and a place of glory.
© Copyright, Norma Gail Thurston Holtman, September 6, 2016
About the author:
Norma Gail is the author of the contemporary Christian romance, Land of My Dreams. A women’s Bible study leader for over 21 years, her devotionals and poetry have appeared at ChristianDevotions.us, the Stitches Thru Time blog, and in “The Secret Place.” She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Romance Writers of America. Norma is a former RN who lives in the mountains of New Mexico with her husband of 40 years. They have two adult children.
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One Comment
Wonderful post and thoughts about the God’s creation. I visited Yellowstone 54 years ago and would love to go back to that part of the country,