This week, I had the privilege of visiting Akagera national park in Rwanda. We left at 4am, to arrive early to have the best possibility to see the animals. They are more likely to be out in the cool of the morning or evening, going down to a waterhole for a drink. Everyone is looking for the ‘big five’ – lions, leopards, elephants, rhinos and buffalo!
Akagera park is in north eastern Rwanda, is 433 square miles wide, and consists of diverse habitats, including the Kagera river, lakes, swamps and savannah plains. It has an amazing variety of aminals, and over 400 different types of birds!
It is an extraordinary place to visit. Guides take you through the landscape on bumpy dust tracks in your vehicle- you round a corner and see hippos and crocodiles in the river, then giraffes walk across in front of you, and an elephant peers at you through the bushes. It does feel like the garden of Eden! There are so many birds with exotic hues and amazing songs. Stunning.
You can be travelling for a while, and just enjoy the views. Then suddenly you see a different species. The vehicle stops, the binoculars are out, and the debate starts. What kind of bird is that? Seeing a malachite kingfisher or a fish eagle is such a magnificent sight. And it is an exciting process just not knowing what you will see next.
Towards the end of the most memorable of days, we gathered on the plain, and watched zebra, waterbucks, buffalo, impala and lions. Surprisingly they were all sharing the same space very harmoniously. It might only have lasted for a few minutes, but they were all together and at peace.
It reminded me of the vision in Isaiah 11 of God’s holy mountain, where it says in verse 6
‘The wolf will live with the lamb,
the leopard will lie down with the goat,
the calf and the lion and the yearling together;
and a little child will lead them.’
It is a vision of perfect harmony, when old fears, animosities and cruelties have melted away in the perfect presence of God, and all creatures and people are at peace.
Standing on the plain in this gorgeous place, it was a moment of stillness in the vastness of the landscape to experience the magnificence of God. It was pure worship, with a sense of the possibilities of revelation and hope, that one day the world can be a better place, a place where there is forgiveness, redemption and reconciliation. It is God’s gift to us, if only we will embrace it.
Creator God, what an imagination You have to have fashioned so many amimals and birds, each with a striking and unique design and personality. Thank you for quiet moments when we have an opportinity to consider Your creation, the work of Your hands. We are in awe of Your majesty and inventiveness. As your creatures we rebel and often live in strife and conflict, but You came Lord Jesus to give up Your life for us, to bring possibilities of reconciliation with You and with one another. May we leave behind jealousies and resentments, and choose to live in harmony and peace. May your holy spirit inspire us through moments of deep communion with nature, to see how You would like us to live, and to glimpse a foretaste of heaven. And may this inspire us to be peacemakers on earth, for Jesus sake, Amen..
An umbrella of healing love 