"How many are your works, Lord! In wisdom you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. There is the sea, vast and spacious, teeming with creatures beyond number – living things both large and small." Psalm 104:24-25
Going anywhere with kids is an adventure. Our family had a very busy week recently with my husband and I and all three kids being involved in Vacation Bible School, so we decided to take a trip to the tidepools in Half Moon Bay. Since the VBS theme had been about "Going Deep with Jesus," and things revolved around an ocean theme - it seemed appropriate for a great outing. We thought it would be fun to let our kids see in person some of the incredible coastline and ocean creatures. It was a beautiful day.
Our kids had been to the ocean and aquariums, but they had not seen the tidepools next to the ocean. This was an exciting time of discovery, and we explored so many things firsthand. We went at a nice leisurely pace for the kids.
We checked and calculated the times for the low tide and planned our day accordingly. And when that morning arrived - off we went. The joy and squeals on their faces was something so amazing, as they were captivated by the sights, sounds and smells of the day. It was a thrill to watch them be in awe of God’s creation. While jumping from one rock to the next, one of our kids stepped on a sea urchin and it squirted water, to which we had some loud laughter.
After about an hour, we talked about how cool it would be to see a starfish. We paused and prayed, saying something like, "God it is so neat to see your creation, touch the incredible sea life and it would be so incredible to be able to see a starfish. Amen."
So, we went about seeing clams, all sorts of sea urchins, crabs, birds, and fish. Then after a few slips on the algae and falling into the tidepools, we saw a starfish! The joy of God answering our prayer to experience more of His creation, was so sweet. Throughout our time on the beach the kids were praising God for His creation and how special all the different creatures were.
It is so refreshing to view the creation through the eyes of a child and to be amazed at how God answered our prayer for seeing not just one starfish but twenty! Then after our hike to the top of the cliff, we were getting one last view of the ocean, and someone pointed out there were whales in the distance. WOW, so to top off the day, we were able to see whales breaching. Then on our walk back we enjoyed talking about the different sea life we saw, the shells we collected, the rocks and thanked God for the incredible creativity and diversity of creatures He has created for us to enjoy.
