Christ Our Shepherd Lenten Devotion Series 2023
Possibilities: Connecting with Nature
March 13, 2023
This Lenten devotional comes from Caroline Burnett.
Heavenly Father,
I pray that Your Holy Spirit will inspire the words written for this devotional, causing others to see You more clearly, love You more deeply, and surrender more fully, all to the glory of Your most precious name.
My first thought when I chose “Connecting with Nature” was:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through Him all things were made; without Him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. (John 1:1-5)(NIV).
“All” things were created by Jesus, the Word. All the animals, birds, the oceans, the clouds, sun, moon, etc. were all created by God. And we were created by Him.
“Because the equinox marks the arrival of spring in the northern hemisphere, Easter is traditionally celebrated with symbols of nature’s rebirth. Flowering plants, baby chicks and bunnies, and eggs represent new life”. It is amazing to watch nature, to see the incredible precision, the perfection, the ingenuity of all the animals, the oceans not crossing their boundaries, the sun rising and falling, the moon and stars giving us light at night. But Easter is more than about bunnies, or chicks.
Easter represents “new life” for us. Christ was crucified, died, buried. He rose again in victory over death. Christ died on the cross that was meant for us since “we have all sinned and fallen short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23); and “the wages of sin is death but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 6:23). He demonstrated His love for us in that, while we were still sinners, He died for us (Romans 5:8). He took our place on the cross, that we might have life. When we accept Jesus’ invitation of eternal life, we are given a new life; we have been re-born, not from flesh but from the Spirit for if we are not born of the spirit, we cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:5, 3).
Lord, You have blessed us with all of Your creation. You feed the birds, You water the grass, but most amazingly, You have blessed us with life. Jesus, You lived to die, that we might have life. You are the Light of the world. May Your light overcome the darkness that is in us. May You help us to die to ourselves and live for You this Easter, for Your glory, Your honor, and Your praise. All this we pray in Your beautiful name. Amen.
