Very good

Day One

God spoke, and a beam of light shot through the void — His first creation illustrating the focus of everything that would follow… a Light of the World breaking through the darkness. He made light so His Light would shine brighter.

Day Two

God spoke, and substances appeared — air and water. He breathed into existence the breath in our lungs. The air from which He would send manna. The sky that would swirl into a storm while the Creator slept in a boat. He made the sky so He could calm it. And He made the water, so that in a few hundred years, air and water would be all there was again — air and water and a man named Noah. He made the water that Moses would part and the water that would shipwreck Paul. He made water that His cousin would stand in to baptise and that He would call Peter out upon. He made water so He could walk on it.

Day Three

God spoke, and the world became earth. No longer just liquid and gas, creation now contained a new state of matter: solid. He sowed billions of grains of sand along shores that would later remind Abraham of his descendants — hot sand that His children would wander through for years. He crafted rock to describe His disciple and His Son — rock, which He would use to save those same children wandering in the desert. He laid down grass as a cushion for curious followers watching His Son do wonders. And He planted trees that would pose a problem for Eve, provide a hideaway for Zacchaeus, and grow leaves that would pave the way for His triumphant entry. He made land so He could redeem it.

Day Four

God spoke, and the Earth started turning. Seconds ticked and turned into minutes and days and years. He invented time that would mark 950 years for Noah and only 33 for His Son — time that would be measured according to that Son’s appearance. He made time so He could reset it. Like ornaments, He hung the sun, moon, and stars. He knew one of those stars would later guide wise men to Egypt, and He knew just when the sun would darken and cast the Earth in a shadow in the darkest hour. He made space so He could speak through it.

He invented time that would mark 950 years for Noah and only 33 for His Son

Day Five

God spoke, and creatures began to swim and soar. He made fish that would provide a career for His followers — jobs His Son would one day call them to abandon for something greater. He knew that fish would not just be a means to an end but would serve as His props in one miracle after another. He made fish so He could fish for men. Birds darted through the sky — ravens that would bring food to Elijah. Roosters that would crow when Peter said I don’t know Him. Doves that would signal peace after the storm. Sparrows that would show us our value. He made birds so He could soar above clouds with them.

Day Six

God spoke, and the Earth rumbled with life and sounds and snarls. Snakes that slithered would one day be crushed forever. He made animals with legs and strength and majesty to help declare His own — a donkey to ride on and camels too large to fit through the eye of a needle. He made lions and lambs vastly different to one day have a friendship and reveal the fullness of His nature — strength and gentleness. He made animals so He could show Himself through them. Then He made people. He made a man to rule the animals and later rule groups and cities and nations. He made a woman to help and to love and to sustain for years upon years. He made people to change everything. He made people so He could become one.

Day Seven

God rested, and the Earth sighed and kept turning, and the sun kept shining, and plants kept growing, and oceans kept rolling. God rested and birds kept flying, and beasts kept grazing, and people kept living. And they kept on living. God rested and gave us something to wait for, to yearn for, to hope for. And we are still in that space of rest — of not quite there yet. Of waiting for something great. He rested so we could learn to rest in Him.

And now the heavens tell about the glory of God. The skies show that His hands created them. Now the animals point to His majesty and humility, the oceans to His splendour, people to His love. He created with purpose, foreknowledge, and wisdom of all that was to come. Every invention we craft from land, every moment of time we waste, every good meal we enjoy, He knew. He knew the story before it began.

He knew and said, It is very good.