October 26

Today is the kind of day that would be best enjoyed sitting outside on the grass, with the leaves blowing down from the trees. Being inside feels like a crime: the short walks between classes were the best parts of the day. The trees are balls of orange and yellow, and the air is crisp but the sun is warm. People walk around in sweaters, with smiles on their faces. Silent wonder envelops afternoons like this. Hillsdale is teaching me to feel it; I'm learning to see God's glory in the sunshine and the leaves, the clouds and the air.

Dr. Jackson said the other day that we must confront the world not primarily as a mystery to be figured out, but simply as a mystery. Of course, we are always learning new things about life and about living well, but we will never fully grasp the greatest things in life. Jackson said life is a mystery to be experienced, just as God's love is not simply a thought, but is also something that ought to be experienced. God's glory is the same way, I think. My weak human mind can't possibly grasp the extent and the scope of God's glory that is displayed in so many ways around me, but I wasn't made to perfectly understand it. I was made to delight in, to enjoy, and to be satisfied in His glory. As I delight and as I wonder (through my studies, and through everyday life), more knowledge comes, and causes me to further enjoy God's goodness.

This is what I glory in, this brings wonder to my soul: "He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power." (Hebrews 1:3) This Lord died for my sins, that I might spend eternity with him. Oh that everyday would be filled with deeper wonder, and deeper joy in the knowledge of His sacrifice so that by His mercy I might know grace unmeasured, vast and deep.