“For since death came through a human being, the resurrection of the dead has also come through a human being; for as all die in Adam, so all will be made alive in Christ” (1 Cor. 15:21-22).

Gracious God,

Looking out the window at the two sandhill cranes on our front yard, rejoicing in their grace and beauty, about that “all” in Paul’s letter…

You repeatedly rejoiced in the goodness of your creation (Genesis 1), and elsewhere Paul writes “For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the children of God; for the creation was subjected to futility, not of its own will but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to decay and will obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Rom. 8:19-21).

We’ve made it to Easter and are celebrating Jesus’ resurrection. I really hope those two cranes get to share in that. Bluntly, it sure seems like it would be a shabby general resurrection if it were just about us humans—without all the fellow creatures that are integral to our humanity. And if getting the cranes means also getting the mosquitos, that’s OK.

So please, as you make good on that “See, I am making all things new” (Rev. 21:5), remember the joy you experienced in all the days of this world’s creation.

Tom