For the Beauty of the Earth, LBW 561 and ELW 879
1 For the beauty of the earth,
For the beauty of the skies,
For the love which from our birth
Over and around us lies:
Refrain
Christ, our Lord, to you we raise
This our sacrifice of praise.
2 For the wonder of each hour
Of the day and of the night,
Hill and vale and tree and flow'r,
Sun and moon and stars of light:
Refrain
3 For the joy of ear and eye,
For the heart and mind's delight,
For the mystic harmony
Linking sense to sound and sight:
Refrain
4 For the joy of human love,
Brother, sister, parent, child,
Friends on earth and friends above;
For all gentle thoughts and mild:
Refrain
5 For yourself, best gift divine
To the world so freely giv'n;
Agent of God's grand design,
Peace on earth and joy in heav'n:
Refrain
Devotion
My favorite picture from our 2006 vacation is of my husband and our son, Corban, sitting side-by-side on the shores of Yellowstone Lake. You do not see their faces, only their backs and the direction to which they gaze. The still blue waters and the majesty of the mountains hold their attention.
Many people find themselves gravitating towards these places, not knowing the Creator, but being drawn into the wonderment of the work of the Father and gazing at the beauty of the earth. Yet these amazing views of creation are only half of the picture, for the other half of the picture is the Father’s Son, Jesus Christ. Hopefully, there is someone who can sit alongside an awed vacationer and introduce them to the Son. “Christ our Lord, to you we raise this our sacrifice of praise.”
Prayer
Living God, we thank you for your gift of creation, but most of all, we thank you for the gift of your Son, Jesus Christ. Amen.