That Which Teaches Us to Take Off Our Shoes

Elizabeth Barrett Browning once wrote:

                Earth’s crammed with heaven,

                And every bush afire with God;

                But only he who sees takes off his shoes;

                The rest sit around it and pluck blackberries.

Many of us went up to Mt. St. Helens on Saturday. We joined with others who were awed by its beauty and stilled by the memory of what happened on May 18, 1980.

“The mountain peaks belong to him.” (Psalm 95:4)

Thirty-five years ago, the Lord saw fit to send one of those mountain peaks into the valley beneath it and awaken the world to the awesomeness of His power.

Mt. St. Helens 35 years following the eruption

Our God is often quiet.

His mountain peaks are a still place.

But “earth’s crammed with heaven and every bush afire with God,” Elizabeth Barrett Browning once said--whether His world stands in silent beauty or is awakened by a merciful, powerful Hand.

Whether we’re standing in awe at the evidence of God’s creative hand or walking the path of life He chose for us, we can either be those who pick blackberries around such a sight or see it as an opportunity to remove our shoes.

“We are walking on privately owned land.” – Edward Welch

“In Him we live and move and have our being.” – Acts 17:28

This world and our lives along with it are owned and ruled by a quiet yet powerful Hand.

His children—the ones who see the Creator behind the creation—take off their shoes.