One evening, as the sun was setting, little Emma sat by the old lake with her Grandad. This was something they would often do and it was special because Grandad always told her stories. The sky was painted with beautiful shades of orange and pink, and the stars were just beginning to twinkle.
“Grandad,” Emma asked, “how did everything in the world come to be?”
Grandad smiled and said, “Well, Emma, let me tell you a wonderful story about how God created1 everything.”
“Long, long ago, before there was anything, there was only God. He decided to create the world.”
“On the first day, God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light2. He called the light day and the darkness night.”
Emma’s eyes widened with wonder. “Wow, Grandad! What happened next?”
“On the second day,” Grandad continued, “God made the sky and separated the waters above from the waters below3. On the third day, He gathered the waters together so dry land appeared, and He made plants and trees grow on the land4.”
Emma imagined the green grass and tall trees. “That sounds beautiful, Grandad!”
“It was,” Grandad agreed.
“On the fourth day, God made the sun, the moon, and the stars to light up the sky5. On the fifth day, He filled the waters with fish and the sky with birds6. And on the sixth day, God made all the animals that live on the land7.”
“And on the seventh day, God rested and enjoyed all that He had made8. He saw that it was very good.”
“But His most special creation was humans. He made a man9 and a woman10 and gave them the responsibility to take care of His creation.” Emma smiled. “God made us too, Grandad?”
“Yes, He did,” Grandad said, hugging her.
Emma looked up at the stars. “God’s creation is amazing, Grandad. Thank you for telling me the story.”
Grandad nodded. “Always remember, Emma, that we are part of God’s wonderful creation, and it’s our job to take care of it.”
But Grandad wasn’t done with his story just yet.
“Now, my little explorer, there’s something truly special about that seventh day,” Grandad added. “As God rested, the world began to breathe and come to life11. The flowers started to bloom in a burst of colour, the trees began to dance with the breeze, and the animals started to sing their songs of joy.”
Emma’s eyes sparkled with imagination. She could see the flowers swaying, the trees whispering secrets, and the animals celebrating harmoniously. The whole world seemed like a grand, orchestrated symphony.
“And every evening,” Grandad said, “when the sun sets and paints the sky with those beautiful shades of orange and pink, it’s like a reminder of that peaceful seventh day. It’s God’s way of telling us to pause, appreciate, and take care of the world He created.”
Emma snuggled closer to her Grandad, feeling a warm sense of love and belonging. She gazed at the twinkling stars and whispered, “I promise, Grandad, I’ll always take care of God’s creation.”
Grandad’s eyes twinkled with pride. “I know you will, Emma. And remember, you are never alone. The stars, the trees, the animals – they are all part of our family, and they will always be there to remind you of God’s love.”
With that, Emma closed her eyes, feeling the magic of the evening wrapping around her like a cosy blanket. As she drifted off to sleep in her Grandad’s arms, she dreamed of a world full of wonder, love, and endless possibilities.
In that peaceful moment by the old lake, under the watchful eyes of the stars, Emma knew that she was a cherished part of a greater story – a story of creation, love, and the promise of always finding beauty in the world around her, a world that God had created just for us. (Genesis 1:1 – 2:25 NIV)
Peace be with you – Muz.
A Psalm of the Creation by Rev Tim Yau
I lift up my voice, for the trees and the skies,
For the birds that all sing, and the clouds that arise.
The mountains stand tall, and the rivers they flow,
All made by Your hands, all life You bestow.
The sun shines so bright, giving light from on high,
The moon glows by night, like a lamp in the sky.
The stars twinkle and gleam, in their wide cosmic dance,
Each one like a jewel, crafted not by chance.
I thank You, O Lord, for each creature and thing,
The forests that whisper, the bees that all sting.
For fish in the oceans and the ants on the ground,
For the life that surrounds us, Your love does abound.
But listen, dear people, to the earth’s quiet call,
The oceans are rising, the forests may fall.
We are stewards, not owners, of all that we see,
God’s creation is precious, for you and for me!
So let us give thanks, and be careful, be wise,
To protect what God made, under bright, watchful skies.
For the earth is the Lord’s, and its fullness within,
From the smallest of birds to the great mountain’s grin!
Credit: Rev Tim Yau – https://www.facebook.com/revtim.yau.5 (Reproduced with permission). A Psalm in the Style of “The Lorax” by Dr. Seuss. Written to celebrate the Season of Creation for our Eco course ‘Tenants of the King’.
- In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2 NIV) ↩︎
- And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. God saw that the light was good, and he separated the light from the darkness. God called the light “day,” and the darkness he called “night.” And there was evening, and there was morning – the first day. (Genesis 1:3-5 NIV) ↩︎
- And God said, “Let there be a vault between the waters to separate water from water.” So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so. God called the vault “sky.” And there was evening, and there was morning – the second day. ↩︎
- And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so. God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good. Then God said, “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.” And it was so. The land produced vegetation: plants bearing seed according to their kinds and trees bearing fruit with seed in it according to their kinds. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning – the third day. (Genesis 1:9-13 NIV) ↩︎
- And God said, “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.” And it was so. God made two great lights – the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars. God set them in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth, to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good. And there was evening, and there was morning – the fourth day. (Genesis 1:14-19 NIV) ↩︎
- And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” So God created the great creatures of the sea and every living thing with which the water teems and that moves about in it, according to their kinds, and every winged bird according to its kind. And God saw that it was good. God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the water in the seas, and let the birds increase on the earth.” And there was evening, and there was morning – the fifth day. (Genesis 1:20-23 NIV) ↩︎
- Then God said, “I give you every seed-bearing plant on the face of the whole earth and every tree that has fruit with seed in it. They will be yours for food. And to all the beasts of the earth and all the birds in the sky and all the creatures that move along the ground – everything that has the breath of life in it – I give every green plant for food. ” And it was so. God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning – the sixth day. (Genesis 1:29-31 NIV) ↩︎
- By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done. (Genesis 2:2-3 NIV) ↩︎
- Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. (Genesis 2:7 NIV) ↩︎
- So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, “This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called ‘woman,’ for she was taken out of man. (Genesis 2:21-23 NIV) ↩︎
- Now no shrub had yet appeared on the earth and no plant had yet sprung up, for the LORD God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no one to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground. (Genesis 2:5-6 NIV) ↩︎
