Six Photos that will Move you from Wonder to Worship
We invited our audience to submit photos of God's creation that have moved them from wonder and worship. Here are our six contest winners and their stories.
Image provided by David Buller
We recently asked our audience the question: “What parts of God’s creation move you from wonder to worship?” We received over a hundred responses, along with beautiful pictures capturing these moments. From picturesque landscapes of mountains, plants, and waterfalls to striking close-ups of animals, the night sky and even a volcanic eruption, your photos and stories showed us that there are no shortage of things in nature to wonder about.
As Christians, we don’t have to stop at wonder. Our wonder and curiosity about nature can lead us to worship the Creator of it all. At BioLogos we believe that God reveals himself through both Scripture and Nature. Indeed, Creation displays and declares the glory of God, and Christ truly is all and in all!
We selected six winners from all the submissions to our recent “Wonder to Worship” photo contest. We also asked our audience to help vote. Below are the six entry winners, along with a brief description of the story behind their photos.
1. Mushrooms
Photographer: Stephen Schaffner, Massachusetts
Photo Description: These mushrooms were in a state park in Vermont where my wife and I stopped for lunch. This image, like many photos of small things, reminds me that there are whole worlds around us that we seldom notice, worlds of growth and beauty and of struggle and decay, to which I matter hardly at all. Photographing them makes the world seem bigger, and makes me feel smaller.
Image by Stephen Schaffner
2. Petunia and Hummingbird
Photographer: Mary Georgeson, Trussville, AL
Photo Description: This photo was taken on my back deck where God’s wonderful creation and provisions never cease to amaze me. The hummingbird visits our feeder but also enjoys the flowers on my deck.
Image by Mary Georgeson
3. Volcanic Eruption
Photographer: Bill Newsome, Woodside, CA
Photo Description: Being close to the Fagradalsfjall volcanic eruption in Iceland was one of the two most awe-inspiring natural encounters I have ever had. It was a multi-sensory experience—visual, auditory, olfactory, somatosensory and…spiritual. The hairs on the back of my neck tingled, and I immediately grasped why volcanos have evoked awe, wonder and worship since ancient times. As a scientist, the raw emotional awe was intensified by my understanding of the spectacle in front of me—the primordial earth recreating and replenishing itself before my eyes, pulsing out new crust for the thin planetary biosphere in which all of life (that we know of!) was created. As the Psalmist pithily puts it, we are indeed “fearfully and wonderfully” made.
Image by Bill Newsome
4. Imitator Salamander
Photographer: J.M. Erikson
Photo Description: In life, few moments exist in a vivid color you can only attribute to God. However, in pre-school God gave me a moment like that with a small copperhead. Since then his calling for me has always seemed clear: become a herpetologist. I currently research salamanders staying faithful to that calling and this Imitator Salamander (Desmognathus imitator) was one of my favorite finds from spending a summer in the Salamander Capitol of the World: The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Image by J.M. Erikson
5. Summer Flowers
Photographer: Sue Lowber, San Juan Islands, WA State
Photo Description: Roche Harbor gardens, on San Juan Island. I was taken with the intricacy in detail and the variety of colors; love His paintbrush!
Image by Sue Lowber
6. Lee Abbey Sunset
Photographer: David Faulkner, UK
Photo Description: I took this at the Lee Abbey Christian community in Devon, England, during a week’s conference on ‘Resilient Faith.’ The beauty of the sunset over a beautiful landscape spoke to me of the glory of God.
Image by David Faulkner
