TEXT: Genesis 1:1-18

Have you ever wondered how our world got here? It really is an exciting story! We can read all about it on the first pages of our Bible.

“Let there be light!” God’s voice rang with power as it echoed through empty space. Those were the words that He spoke as He began creating the heavens and the earth. As soon as God said the words, the darkness began to move. Light began to show through the darkness, lighting up the dark corners of space. It was no longer black everywhere, because God had made light. He looked at the light and called it day, and the darkness He called night. From that moment on, time began-the first day of Creation was done.

God was not through with His plan. There was water everywhere, and God wanted it divided into two places. When God spoke, the sky began to divide the water. The clouds, full of water, formed. Below them, the earth was covered with water. This was the second day of time.

On the third day, the next part of God’s creation came into being. Dry land appeared as all the waters moved into set places. God called the dry land earth, and it had just the shape God wanted. The tall mountains reached up to the sky, with deep valleys nestled in between. God put green grass on the land. He put trees, flowers, and bushes here and there.

The waters on the earth had borders now. Some of the water was put into large places to make our oceans. The tiny brooks and streams rushed over rocks toward the rivers. The wide, sweeping rivers flowed into the seas. God looked around at the land and the waters He had arranged, and He knew it was beautiful. He was happy with what He had created.

On the fourth day, God decided to make lights for the sky. He knew just what He wanted. He made the sun, big and bright, to shine each day and warm the earth beneath. He placed the silvery moon in the heavens to light the night. He made the stars also—sparkling bits of light which would brighten up the sky. God planned that the sun and moon would be there to help us tell night from day, and to give us days, weeks, and years.

God looked at all He had made by the power of His Word. He looked at the warm sunshine shining down on the lovely earth below. He was happy with what He saw. The world He had begun to create was good. It was exactly the way He wanted it.

PARENT’S CORNER

A child’s wonder at seeing the world God has made is very special. This week take time to see, really see, God’s world about you with your child. If the weather is accommodating, go for a nature walk together. Call your child’s attention to some of the wonders of God’s creation. Point out the gold in an autumn leaf, a puffy cloud in the sky, the tall tree.

When your child makes a discovery, take time to examine and appreciate the beauty he has found. Help him recognize the fact that each thing you look at together is the handiwork of God.

FAMILY DEVOTIONS