Issue 26 Creation HopeBlog | Creation comes in all shapes and sizes
Creation comes in all shapes and sizes
Author: Andy PeckPost Date: 13.03.21
Striding out across the local countryside was the unexpected bonus of my Covid-19 lockdown. After refreshing our map reading skills and stress-testing our wet weather gear, my wife and I surprised ourselves by clocking up more than 100 miles a month last spring and summer. I saw more of middle England than I had in the previous 20 years.
I’m not alone. According to the Ramblers Association, over one in f ive of us walk for recreation in any four week period. That’s more than twice the next most popular form of exercise, swimming.
Along with the many walkers, ramblers and hardy hikers fanning out over Britain, I’ve enjoyed getting up close and personal with creation. It’s restored my soul as I’ve been led by still waters and in places where sheep safely graze. When we escape to the country, we feel the stress draining away, problems and pandemics are less overwhelming, and our thoughts turn to the transcendent.
For believers and unbelievers alike, why does the countryside lift our spirits so much? Surely it is the perspective that something bigger than ourselves is at work and that creation reveals a pattern of order, structure and rhythm.
