I could look at the mountains all day! The light changes, revealing new details of the range, and there is a slight haze that drifts over and away and comes back at sunset. The mountains surrounding Salt Lake City make for a beautiful vista.

I am in SLC for a church conference. My husband and I drove here from Southern Wisconsin. We had never been to Wyoming or here in SLC before. We have so enjoyed the natural beauty we saw all along the way. There were the rolling green hills of Iowa and the lush agriculture of Nebraska. In Western Nebraska and Wyoming we were climbing, some gradual climbs and some fairly steep! There were stunning bluffs rising up out of the high plains. And then we could see mountains, still capped with snow in June. We drove through part of Medicine Bow National Forest, stopping many times to walk, take photos, to enjoy the aroma of the cedar trees, and yes, to play in that snow! The natural beauty was jaw-dropping.

And then we drove through western WY into Utah and SLC. And again we were awe-struck by the beauty of it all.

One of my favorite scriptures is this:

Psalm 121

A song of ascents.

1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

3 He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
    will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—
    he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.

The majesty of the mountains and all the natural beauty and wonders we have seen on this trip can not begin to compare with the majesty of God. God who, over and over, throughout the Bible reminds us that God is always with us, caring for us, weeping with us when life is hard, laughing with us when we are filled with joy. But we are so often not with God. We take things for granted, we may forget to give thanks for what we have and what we see.

God is even with those whose hearts are filled with hate. I can not fathom how...but that is because God is infinite and we are finite. No human, even the most creative, the most intelligent, the most spiritual, can truly comprehend God. And that's where the problems begin. If only each of us spent a few more moments each day looking up, figuratively if not actually, and spent time each day with the Bible and in prayer; and if we would ponder with gratitude the beauty around us, we could begin to draw a bit closer to the Loving God who made each of us to be in relationship with God and with each other. That is how we can help make the world a better place.