This Fawn
John Miller
07/18/22
- Windstream Mail
R E F L E C T I O N S
Thoughts on nature and the Christian faith - 7/18/22
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"For we have already charged that all, both Jews
and Greeks, are under sin, as it is written: No one
is righteous, no, not one" - Rom. 3:9-10
I first photographed this fawn shortly after its birth when it was barely able to walk. Since its early days of innocence, it is now doing quite well on its own. It is still incredibly cute, but has lost much of its innocence. The world has taught it many hard lessons already. It has learned what to fear and what to avoid. It has learned that its mother can no longer be relied upon for food. It has learned of heat and storms and pestering flies and attacking dogs. It has learned that the world can be a very dangerous place. And it has learned that in order to survive it must become less trusting, less naive, and more assertive. This world, it has found, is no Garden of Eden. But it once was. So what happened? What distorted and corrupted all that was so good? The blame falls directly on mankind. We, who were created in the image of God, have so skewed that image that it is now barely recognizable. Our fall from grace has not only affected us, but all creation as well. This is a hard thing to admit about ourselves, but is a necessary thing to admit before any restoration can occur. We are good at pointing fingers in our efforts to assign blame, but the truth is that the enemy is found when we look in the mirror. We are all under the destructive weight of sin. None of us are righteous. None of us deserve grace. But the amazing fact is, that is what we receive in Christ. One day, all of this chaos will be replaced by beauty and order. One day all wrong will be set right. And then we will be able to apologize to all of the natural world and the Creator of the natural world for what we have done. But this restoration can only be found by those who trust in Christ alone. Misplaced trust won't do. - John | | |
