Last Monday, cities all over the country were virtually paralyzed by twenty inches of snow. Amazing! We travel in space; we are connected to the world electronically. In seconds we can send messages to one another and we have almost mastered the art of communication without human intercession.

But we have not yet figured out a way to control the forces of nature. The Supreme Architect, who soars above us all, has not ceded that power to the humans he has created and doubtless for good reason.

The Creator can be likened to a skilled mechanic who has devised a machine with various components which he knows more fully than anyone else, and can make changes which will not harm his machine, which will in fact make it simpler and more effective. Some might say that changes are unnecessary, but the inventor must have the freedom to make alterations in his own way, drawing from his greater experience and knowledge.

The Supreme Architect has created the world and shaped it from nothing. He has organized nature step by step beginning from the time when there was only a great expanse of matter. Little worlds emerged from varying parts of space, all revolving around the sun, but life and light did not exist.

At his command there was light, as it was said, and it was morning and it was evening, and the light moved in turn from world to world. Then there was air and after that the liquefied elements formed the rivers and the lakes and the oceans. The solid elements became mountains and hills and valleys and beaches spewing forth trees and shrubs and all kinds of plants, so well designed that they could propagate their species by seeds, roots or other methods, all to provide for creatures of a higher order.

The inventiveness of the Maker is all around us – the blushing rose and the snow-white lily nestled among the self-effacing violets; the carnations which perfume the fields of Asia. Elsewhere the pansy and the daisy dot the landscape; the corn waves in the fields and the fruits are protected by their huge leaves from the blistering sun at noon. When the sun sets, there is a silvery moon which sails across the heavens.

With all this would it have been dayenu?

The earth was further prepared to receive another order of creatures. The songs of birds were heard in the woods and brilliant feathers flashed through the trees in the forest. The rivers became home to the elegant swans and the oceans housed the mighty whales. Insects swarmed and crawled and darted about, each with a purpose and a specific reason.

Time came for more beings and many animals appeared; the majestic lion and the noble elephant. The deer filled the impenetrable forests of the north and the cows grazed placidly in the meadows. The rams skipped and the goats leaped over peaks in the mountains in solitude, broken by the flight of an occasional eagle.

So many countries with varying climates and temperatures, and animals germane to each, adapting to the locale in which they find themselves. The coat of the bear thickens as the cold of winter deepens. The camel stores water for the long trek across the desert.

Of course the greatest miracle is the diversity of human beings, the differing races and the adaptation of these beings contingent on where they are placed originally and to where they may eventually migrate. To recap, there was land and water and animals and birds and insects, and human beings were the apex of the creation. From the earth’s dust a human form arose, life was breathed into clay and man emerged a creature of the earth sparked by an endless soul.

Nature prevails and the earth’s existence continues by the will of its maker. As David said, regarding the power of the Lord, “I will praise thee, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made, marvelous are thy works and that my soul knoweth right well.”(Psalm139:14)

Yes, we are at a wonderful time in our civilization, but we must not lose sight of the greatest technologist of all. In truth the earth does not stand still when our computers are down or when traffic comes to a halt. The ability to initiate the events, which lead to these happenings, rests with a much higher power who could make the earth stand still. Sometimes it takes a blizzard to restore our perspective regarding our role in the universe, especially after hours spent shoveling snow, while wishing for a little of the divine intervention that so long ago made a path by parting the waters.