Subtle Reminders

About eight months ago I saw a spark of red flash across our kitchen window. I followed the color, and found a cardinal perched on our roof. Since then, the cardinals have multiplied, and we have begun seeing blue jays in our backyard as well. On an almost daily basis, I find myself spending a minute or two watching these beautiful, seemingly out of place birds hop and fly around our home. I take in those minutes as quiet reminders that God can create beauty that stands out, that is free, and that’s always there, regardless of whether we stop to appreciate it.

God uses creation to demonstrate His covenant with us in the biblical text as well. After He instructs Noah and Noah’s sons to be fruitful and multiply in Genesis 9, God says in verses 12-17, “‘This is the symbol of the covenant that I am drawing up between me and you and every living thing with you, on behalf of every future generation. I have placed my bow (qeshet) in the clouds; it will be the symbol of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow appears in the clouds, I will remember the covenant between me and you and every living being among all the creatures. Floodwaters will never again destroy all creatures. The bow will be in the clouds, and upon seeing it I will remember the enduring covenant between God and every living being of all the earth’s creatures.’ God said to Noah, ‘This is the symbol of the covenant that I have set up between me and all creatures on earth.'”

God uses an element of creation as a reminder to His people and all creatures of the covenant He created with Noah. This text shows the deep love and connection between God and us, God and all living creatures, and God and creation itself.

God has the power to intercede in so many ways to give us strength and hope. At times God speaks through someone to give us a word of encouragement, other times His Word gives us the guidance for decisions we ought to make, and still in other quiet moments, God gives us subtle reminders of His continued love and presence.

May we find those moments today. Whether through a rainbow, or a cardinal, or Scripture, or even a kind word, may we find ourselves remembering God’s enduring covenant with us and with creation. May we celebrate the promise that not only will God never again destroy creation, but also that God will never leave us nor forsake us. And may we pause to notice, even in those subtle moments, that we are surrounded by the presence and the love of God.