Daily Encounter: A Week-day Devotional by a staff of ACTS International.

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

"From one man he [God] made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. 'For in him we live and move and have our being.' As some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'"³

As we noted yesterday, one doesn't need to be a scientist to see and feel the greatness of creation all around us. Vacationing on Kangaroo Island in South Australia, I marveled at the wonders of nature—the grandeur of rolling hills, the brilliance of spring flowers, the majesty of cliffs rising from the sea with the waves crashing rhythmically against them and pounding lonely, deserted beaches.

I watched a sea gull, beautiful and agile, swooping over the waves, tipping its beak into the water to pluck a tasty meal from the sea. I marveled at the grace of a huge pelican, stretching his wings to a span of eight to ten feet as he soared effortlessly above me.

So many marvels to see: a playful porpoise dodging beneath the bow of our boat, gliding with ease through the crystal clear water; a curious fur seal, popping out of the sea in answer to a child's call; a kangaroo bounding across a distant field; and a koala high in a eucalyptus tree. Later, a million stars shone above to dance in chorus with a brilliant full moon and mirror their beauty in a now calm sea.

I have stood breathless at the sight of millions of gallons of water plunging over the Niagara Falls, and speechless at the splendor of the Grand Canyon. I have walked in amazement in the Yosemite Valley where mountains of granite seem to reach up out of nowhere to stab the sky in unparalleled artistic beauty.

"Did all this happen by chance?" I ask myself. For me it would take more faith to believe that than to believe that our world and universe were created by a Master Designer whose power and greatness are beyond human understanding.

Besides revealing himself through creation, God has also shown himself through the human soul. (To see how be sure to read tomorrow's Daily Encounter.)

Suggested prayer: "Dear God, thank you that you have revealed yourself to mankind in varied ways. Open the eyes of my blindness so that I can see with my spirit all that you are and have done for me. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully, in Jesus' name, amen."

For help to find and know God, read, "How to Be Sure You're a Real Christian . . . without having to be religious" at: www.actsweb.org/christian.

3. Acts 17:26-28 (NIV).

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