Last night, as I was sitting in the courtyard across from my house, enjoying a Guinness and watching the remnants of the sunset spill across the western sky; I was witness to a very interesting site…
Just to my right, a spider began to descend, on a silk thread, from the top rafters of the open terrace, a distance of approx. 10 feet. While my initial instinct was to step on him when he landed, I’m very glad I didn’t. As soon as he touched down, he anchored the silk thread to the stone pavement, and quickly ascended the line, gently blowing in the breeze, back up into the rafters. Upon crossing two beams, he descended again and repeated the process.
It took me a moment to realize that he was setting the anchor of a new web on the stone pavement below. Wow, I thought to myself. Spinning one end of a web, a distance of over 10 feet, was pretty aggressive for such a tiny creature. You go, little spider guy!
Over the next 45 minutes, I watched as this amazing spider quickly and methodically spun his web of nearly invisible silk, working from strand to strand, gently swaying in the cool evening air. A master craftsman, executing the plans of this construction flawlessly.
At one point, a small bug became entangled in the web. The spider quickly made his way to this hapless victim, encasing it in a cocoon of silk, then continued with his construction duties, returning occasionally to check on his future meal.
All around were the quick, faint glows of meandering fireflies… The soundtrack to this event was provided by a choir of crickets, the gentle trickle of the nearby stream, the deep bass groan of a bullfrog, answered by another in the distance, and the occasional call of an evening bird.
Every once in a while, the web would catch the evening breeze and highlight the strands against the glow of the twilight moon. In no time, the web had taken on amazing detail, each row from the center, almost geometrically precise in it’s placement from the next. A true masterpiece of nature, and all from this little spider…no larger than the eraser of a pencil.
My thoughts upon viewing this scene, was just how vast, yet intricate God’s creation is.
This spider had no knowledge or concern about such things as the oil spill in the gulf, the crisis in Korea and the Middle East, or the state of the economy. He simply was doing the one thing he was created to do…spin a web…and survive.
I think one of God’s greatest gift’s to mankind…our minds, intellect, and free will, are often our greatest downfall as well.
What if we were just to make our main focus what we were ultimately created for?
“To love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.”
This might seem like an over simplistic approach. I know jobs have to be done, and bills have to be paid, but what if we approached life through this simple, yet profound concept. Focusing all we have to do through this prism of truth. How different would my life, and the lives of those around me be? Very interesting to ponder…
God, thank you for giving me a season of peace and quite, upon which to witness this event. It’s very easy to attest to the majesty of your creation when we stand in awe of a majestic mountain range, or to feel the cool moist air billowing off of a raging sea. But sometimes, when we allow ourselves to slow down and focus, we can witness it in the small things as well.
Help me to take this to heart, as it’s just not the big things I do that reveal you in my life to those around me, but the very small things as well; A smile, a touch, a simple word of encouragement. May I slow down enough to see these opportunities all around me, knowing that if I focus on the small things, the big things in life may not seem so daunting.
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.
Thank you little spider, for catching my eye and revealing the awesomeness of God’s creation…
Just to my right, a spider began to descend, on a silk thread, from the top rafters of the open terrace, a distance of approx. 10 feet. While my initial instinct was to step on him when he landed, I’m very glad I didn’t. As soon as he touched down, he anchored the silk thread to the stone pavement, and quickly ascended the line, gently blowing in the breeze, back up into the rafters. Upon crossing two beams, he descended again and repeated the process.
It took me a moment to realize that he was setting the anchor of a new web on the stone pavement below. Wow, I thought to myself. Spinning one end of a web, a distance of over 10 feet, was pretty aggressive for such a tiny creature. You go, little spider guy!
Over the next 45 minutes, I watched as this amazing spider quickly and methodically spun his web of nearly invisible silk, working from strand to strand, gently swaying in the cool evening air. A master craftsman, executing the plans of this construction flawlessly.
At one point, a small bug became entangled in the web. The spider quickly made his way to this hapless victim, encasing it in a cocoon of silk, then continued with his construction duties, returning occasionally to check on his future meal.
All around were the quick, faint glows of meandering fireflies… The soundtrack to this event was provided by a choir of crickets, the gentle trickle of the nearby stream, the deep bass groan of a bullfrog, answered by another in the distance, and the occasional call of an evening bird.
Every once in a while, the web would catch the evening breeze and highlight the strands against the glow of the twilight moon. In no time, the web had taken on amazing detail, each row from the center, almost geometrically precise in it’s placement from the next. A true masterpiece of nature, and all from this little spider…no larger than the eraser of a pencil.
My thoughts upon viewing this scene, was just how vast, yet intricate God’s creation is.
This spider had no knowledge or concern about such things as the oil spill in the gulf, the crisis in Korea and the Middle East, or the state of the economy. He simply was doing the one thing he was created to do…spin a web…and survive.
I think one of God’s greatest gift’s to mankind…our minds, intellect, and free will, are often our greatest downfall as well.
What if we were just to make our main focus what we were ultimately created for?
“To love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbor as thyself.”
This might seem like an over simplistic approach. I know jobs have to be done, and bills have to be paid, but what if we approached life through this simple, yet profound concept. Focusing all we have to do through this prism of truth. How different would my life, and the lives of those around me be? Very interesting to ponder…
God, thank you for giving me a season of peace and quite, upon which to witness this event. It’s very easy to attest to the majesty of your creation when we stand in awe of a majestic mountain range, or to feel the cool moist air billowing off of a raging sea. But sometimes, when we allow ourselves to slow down and focus, we can witness it in the small things as well.
Help me to take this to heart, as it’s just not the big things I do that reveal you in my life to those around me, but the very small things as well; A smile, a touch, a simple word of encouragement. May I slow down enough to see these opportunities all around me, knowing that if I focus on the small things, the big things in life may not seem so daunting.
"Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.
Thank you little spider, for catching my eye and revealing the awesomeness of God’s creation…
1 comment:
David,
This is well written and so important for us to remember: Our focus should always be on God and our love for Him. We should love Him as He desires. Not as we desire.
It's funny how watching God's creation, with the simplicity of a little spider staying focused on his task, can remind us to also stay focused on the task God has given to each one of us.
I enjoyed reading this. You should write more often. I am proud of you and love you very much.
Mom
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