Read: Psalm 104:1-15
You cause the grass to grow for the livestock and plants for man to cultivate. (v. 14)
Summer had changed into fall. Months had passed from that fateful day in May, and as I slowly rode my bicycle along the jutted, pockmarked bike path, evidence of the flood remained starkly visible. A refrigerator still lay smashed into a large oak tree. A porch, long separated from its former house, now lay nestled and abandoned in wild-growing shrubbery. Here a rooftop on the forest ground, there a picnic table hanging precipitously from a treetop.
Yet in the midst of chaos, I saw it! There it was! New grass growing between the rungs of a partially buried ladder. A flower shooting its welcoming golden head through the twisted heap of asphalt. And animal tracks from the forest creatures clearly enjoying the bountiful meal from the massive, up-ended tree.
God is constantly bringing forth richness in the midst of ruin; creation is ever springing forth from chaos; and new life is often birthed from that which seems to be lifeless. The Tittabawassee River has now returned to its natural size. Where two lakes used to be, vast swaths of brown mud are quickly filling in with wild greenery.
“May the glory of the LORD endure forever; may the LORD rejoice in his works” (v. 31). Despite the unexpected, the destructive and even the horrific, may we remember that the grass will always grow again. —Tammy DeRuyter
As you pray, ask him for eyes to see, sometimes even in the midst of destruction and despair, the wondrous beauty of our world!
About the Author
Tammy DeRuyter is a former stockbroker turned student of theology and history. She holds master’s degrees in both from Fuller Theological Seminary and Central Michigan University. Married for more than 25 years to Michael, an ordained RCA pastor, they have three emerging, young adult children ages 20, 21, and 22—the youngest of whom was adopted at 11.
