We stood in the mist on a wooden walkway, facing the Devil’s Throat at Iguazu Falls, straddling Argentina and Brazil.
“Mucho agua,” I shouted above the thundering cascade to a young stranger in my tour group. (Much water was all the Spanish I could come up with.)
He laughed. “Si, señorita. Mucho agua!”
My words were inadequate to describe Iguazu Falls, one of the natural wonders of the world, where raging waters drop hundreds of feet and shoot mist high into the sky, creating rainbows above the jungle.
My classmate, Marta, and I—on summer break from college in Buenos Aires—had wandered through the park on the Argentine side the day before. My breath was snatched away by the surprising sight of butterflies in neon-blues and unimaginable combinations of patterns and colors. We spotted bright, noisy parrots in the branches above us. Iguanas stuck out their red tongues. Toucans flew from tree to tree. Spiders wove intricate webs that withstood winds and spray. Amazing views greeted us as we hiked the curving catwalk along the falls.
The next day, Marta was not feeling well and urged me to cross the border to the Brazilian side without her. On the tour bus, I discovered no one else spoke English. That’s why my amazement was reduced to only two words: mucho agua.
The roar of the waters. The heat of the January day. The nearness of the wildlife. And in the midst of it all—wonder. My limited Spanish vocabulary matched the insufficiency of my words to praise the Creator, but my heart was singing joyfully, O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder…
The Bible is packed with references to the beauty of our natural surroundings. The six days of creation described in the first chapter of Genesis. Job. Psalms. Jesus’ teaching referring to birds and flowers. The water of life and the tree of life in the last chapter of Revelation. Our Creator made it all. He is great. And He is over all His creation.
Ever find yourself speechless at a sunset, the delicate design of flowers, bugs, trees, mountains, waterfalls, or people? Ask God to open your eyes and ears to His beauty. Then let your lips worship the Maker.
(Photo courtesy of pixabay.)
(For more devotions, visit Christian Devotions.)
M J George enjoys watching neighborhood birds splash around in the birdbath just outside the window where she writes in Indiana.