A Thousand Hills – Europe Journal Part 5

I’ll never forget the beauty of the Irish countryside. I tried to describe it with words in my journal and pictures on my phone, but it’s too beautiful to capture. Here are two entries I wrote while at the cottage in Ireland, transcribed exactly as I wrote them while in the middle of that indescribable Irish countryside…

Saturday evening, June 17

As we drove past herds of cows today, Psalm 50:10 came to mind and has been in my head ever since:

“I own the cattle on a thousands hills.”

The surrounding passages give the context of how everything belongs to God. The psalmist talks about how the wicked give their sacrifices, but their heart is not right. Therefore, the sacrifices do not matter. God asks why do they even bother to feign godliness when they are evil in their ways. He says thanksgiving is the way to honor Him – because He doesn’t need our stuff. The heart is what i’s all about.

So tonight, I give thanks. I’m thankful that God owns the cattle on a thousand hills – even the ones here in Ireland. I’m thankful for this opportunity He’s given to me. And I’m thankful that He loves me and doesn’t give up on me when I try to hide behind my sacrifices.

Sunday morning, June 18

“The earth is the Lord’s and the fulness thereof.” – Psalm 24:1

This verse echoes through my mind this morning as I look out over the Irish countryside. I sit on the back patio while everyone finishes getting ready to leave for a day of adventures, and I can see over a hundred cows in the pasture behind the cottage. Other cottages are dots in the distance, and I can even see a mountain range.

Everything is free – oh, so green! – and lush, bursting with life and purpose and awareness of its creative design. I can try, but pictures can’t do it justice. Words can’t do it justice. It is the Lord’s, every last bit of it. He owns the cattle on a thousand hills.