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The Language of Rivers and Stars: How Nature Speaks of the Glories of God
Experience God and the gift of his creation in a deeper way as you use God’s word to understand what he is saying to us through his world.For many of us, being in the great outdoors surrounded by the beauty of nature helps us to feel peaceful and connected to God.
Seth Lewis helps us to experience God and the beauty of creation in an even deeper way by giving us a biblical understanding of what God is saying to us through the world he’s created for us. As we view the plants, the animals, the skies, the earth, the seas and everything else God has created through the lens of his word, we will experience heartfelt joy as we worship him for who he is and what he has made.
So take the time to slow down and enjoy the gift of God’s world as you interpret it through the gift of God’s word. These reflections can be used devotionally.
Seth Lewis helps us to experience God and the beauty of creation in an even deeper way by giving us a biblical understanding of what God is saying to us through the world he’s created for us. As we view the plants, the animals, the skies, the earth, the seas and everything else God has created through the lens of his word, we will experience heartfelt joy as we worship him for who he is and what he has made.
So take the time to slow down and enjoy the gift of God’s world as you interpret it through the gift of God’s word. These reflections can be used devotionally.
145 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 1, 2025
87 people are currently reading
838 people want to read
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August 4, 2025
“Nature gave the word ‘glory’ a meaning for me. I still do not know where else I could have found one.” —C.S. Lewis
If you are not already a nature lover, this book just might turn you into one. And if you already feel the wonder when you sit in nature, this book is going to strike all the right chords!
I knew the Bible talked about a variety of nature-related things, but I feel like this book illuminated a lot of those passages (and more) for me in a new way.
If you’ve heard of the Rosetta Stone, you might know that it was discovered in 1799 and broke open the Egyptian hieroglyphics for understanding. The stone showed the same message in hieroglyph and Greek (and another language) side by side. Because we (not me) knew the Greek, then we (not me) could understand the hieroglyphic script.
Brilliantly, Seth Lewis applies that understanding to the reality of God’s creation. He says God has two languages: nature and his Word. Our Rosetta Stone, the Word who became flesh, is Jesus.
Psalm 19:1-4 tells us that nature is speaking to us, constantly pouring out speech. Romans 1:18 says that God’s attributes can be clearly seen in his creation. We can understand a lot about God by looking at nature. But because we have Jesus and God’s Word, we can interpret it correctly.
Why do we experience awe and wonder at the roaring waterfalls, majestic mountains, the infinite stars, the unique array of creatures? Because we were created to. We are the only created things that notice and are mesmerized by its beauty.
“God could have started speaking to us only with words like ‘I am powerful, and I can provide for you’…what is power? What is provision? By making a sun for us, God gave us the ability to understand what he means when he says these words.”
In this wonderful little book, Seth takes the seven days of Creation (including the day of rest) and looks at how each thing God created communicates something to us about who God is and who we are. (There are more than seven chapters because he focuses in on multiple things from certain days.)
For each chapter he talks about a personal experience he had with the particular thing in nature and then he has three sections: discover, interpret, and respond. Discover reveals some really interesting or amazing things about the topic, more like scientific facts; interpret looks at what the Bible says and what truths are revealed; respond is the application, the ‘what do we do with this information’.
“[God’s creation] communicates truth and calls for a response— to glorify God, give him thanks and seek him.”
As human beings we are also unique in that God has given us the ability to respond and communicate with him about his creation. Plants and animals aren’t crafting songs about its beauty or replicating the sunsets with watercolors or sharing the wonder of the mountains with their friends. And they aren’t thanking God for his creativity and glory and provision. We can.
I won’t tell you all the takeaways from each day of creation— because I think you should read the book for yourself— but I will give you a little taste with a few that I particularly liked.
When he talked about light he commented how people will often say to ‘find the light inside yourself.’ But he points to lightening bugs and bio-luminescent creatures and says that if God wanted to create us with light inside us, he could have. But he didn’t.
“Which means that the physical reality we need to interpret is not actually our inner light. It’s our inner darkness. What is God saying to us by making us rely on light as an external rather than an internal reality? (Ps 19; 119:130; Jn 8:12)”
He explains photons a little bit which is just a wild thing to think about in and of itself but he continues, “To have light, you must open your eyes. You must receive what is given from another source… Jesus came as the source of all true light."
God also communicates this to us by creating the sun— the source of light— and the moon— the reflector of the light. We were made to receive and reflect the light from him.
In another chapter he talks about seeds:
“Seeds hold a power that we, with all our progress and technology, have not been able to replicate: the power of life.”
“He placed the most precious gift of all— life itself— in the smallest, most unimpressive of packages and scattered it everywhere…”
“his glorious eternal kingdom begins and grows like a seed (Mt 13:31-32) All of its growth comes through a message, scattered in the world like seed sown in a field, with the power to grow in the soil of our hearts and to bear abundant fruit…”
“This seed will break your heart. Its roots will push down and slowly shatter the rocky places inside you— your selfishness, your pride and anger and lust and greed and vanity. And as it grows down, it will also grow up, sending shoots into the air and filling them with the aromatic flowers and delicious fruits of God’s Spirit (Gal 5:22-23)… This is how we receive true spiritual life and how we grow: we come to him and remain in him. (Jn 15:5)”
I noticed some overlap in this chapter with the book I’m reading about growing in Gratefulness (Gratitude) and the theme of that book incorporates a lot of analogies and language around planting and roots and growth and cultivating. There is a lot to reap from this chapter and it’s really applicable to navigating life in God’s economy.
“How does the outdoors move us so deeply and have such power to make us feel more alive, more connected, more rested and content than any technology or device we’ve been able to invent—even though it is so often wild, unpredictable and threatening? Nature stirs us with sunsets, calms us with steady waves and terrifies us with power. We hear it. We feel it. We sense it communicating, and something inside of us responds naturally. Innately. Even if we don’t understand the language. This conversation—between us and the world—happens whether we want it to or not.”
Recommendation
“If all of creation is the orchestra of praise, then we are the choir. We are the tongue, the voice of all things, the directors of music, the soloists and singers, the poets and scribes.”
Of course I would recommend this book. Come get your sheet music and join the choir, listen to the orchestra of praise God has given in creation.
I could see myself revisiting this book every summer (when I’m in nature most) and sharing these things with my kids.
Seth Lewis articulates so well things we probably sense every day but don’t know what to do with. He reveals our Rosetta Stone and connects us to the source to interpret what God has made plain. It will make you feel awe, and thankfulness, and stability, and hope.
Even the storms and droughts tell us truths we need to know.
Seriously. Pick up this book!
**Received a copy via Good Book Company in exchange for an honest review**
Book Review Blog | Facebook | Pinterest | StoryGraph
If you are not already a nature lover, this book just might turn you into one. And if you already feel the wonder when you sit in nature, this book is going to strike all the right chords!
I knew the Bible talked about a variety of nature-related things, but I feel like this book illuminated a lot of those passages (and more) for me in a new way.
If you’ve heard of the Rosetta Stone, you might know that it was discovered in 1799 and broke open the Egyptian hieroglyphics for understanding. The stone showed the same message in hieroglyph and Greek (and another language) side by side. Because we (not me) knew the Greek, then we (not me) could understand the hieroglyphic script.
Brilliantly, Seth Lewis applies that understanding to the reality of God’s creation. He says God has two languages: nature and his Word. Our Rosetta Stone, the Word who became flesh, is Jesus.
Psalm 19:1-4 tells us that nature is speaking to us, constantly pouring out speech. Romans 1:18 says that God’s attributes can be clearly seen in his creation. We can understand a lot about God by looking at nature. But because we have Jesus and God’s Word, we can interpret it correctly.
“God did not have to speak to us. He communicates because he wants to reveal himself. He gave us his word and his world to invite us to know and relate to him. He gave this invitation in two languages, and the completeness and clarity of the language of Scripture has not diminished our need to hear God’s voice in his creation as well. Scripture itself is filled with references to God’s world— from mountains and stars to sparrows and wild flowers and the morning mist that evaporates in the rising sunshine. God never intended for us to choose one language and ignore the other.”
Why do we experience awe and wonder at the roaring waterfalls, majestic mountains, the infinite stars, the unique array of creatures? Because we were created to. We are the only created things that notice and are mesmerized by its beauty.
“God could have started speaking to us only with words like ‘I am powerful, and I can provide for you’…what is power? What is provision? By making a sun for us, God gave us the ability to understand what he means when he says these words.”
In this wonderful little book, Seth takes the seven days of Creation (including the day of rest) and looks at how each thing God created communicates something to us about who God is and who we are. (There are more than seven chapters because he focuses in on multiple things from certain days.)
For each chapter he talks about a personal experience he had with the particular thing in nature and then he has three sections: discover, interpret, and respond. Discover reveals some really interesting or amazing things about the topic, more like scientific facts; interpret looks at what the Bible says and what truths are revealed; respond is the application, the ‘what do we do with this information’.
“[God’s creation] communicates truth and calls for a response— to glorify God, give him thanks and seek him.”
As human beings we are also unique in that God has given us the ability to respond and communicate with him about his creation. Plants and animals aren’t crafting songs about its beauty or replicating the sunsets with watercolors or sharing the wonder of the mountains with their friends. And they aren’t thanking God for his creativity and glory and provision. We can.
I won’t tell you all the takeaways from each day of creation— because I think you should read the book for yourself— but I will give you a little taste with a few that I particularly liked.
When he talked about light he commented how people will often say to ‘find the light inside yourself.’ But he points to lightening bugs and bio-luminescent creatures and says that if God wanted to create us with light inside us, he could have. But he didn’t.
“Which means that the physical reality we need to interpret is not actually our inner light. It’s our inner darkness. What is God saying to us by making us rely on light as an external rather than an internal reality? (Ps 19; 119:130; Jn 8:12)”
He explains photons a little bit which is just a wild thing to think about in and of itself but he continues, “To have light, you must open your eyes. You must receive what is given from another source… Jesus came as the source of all true light."
God also communicates this to us by creating the sun— the source of light— and the moon— the reflector of the light. We were made to receive and reflect the light from him.
In another chapter he talks about seeds:
“Seeds hold a power that we, with all our progress and technology, have not been able to replicate: the power of life.”
“He placed the most precious gift of all— life itself— in the smallest, most unimpressive of packages and scattered it everywhere…”
“his glorious eternal kingdom begins and grows like a seed (Mt 13:31-32) All of its growth comes through a message, scattered in the world like seed sown in a field, with the power to grow in the soil of our hearts and to bear abundant fruit…”
“This seed will break your heart. Its roots will push down and slowly shatter the rocky places inside you— your selfishness, your pride and anger and lust and greed and vanity. And as it grows down, it will also grow up, sending shoots into the air and filling them with the aromatic flowers and delicious fruits of God’s Spirit (Gal 5:22-23)… This is how we receive true spiritual life and how we grow: we come to him and remain in him. (Jn 15:5)”
I noticed some overlap in this chapter with the book I’m reading about growing in Gratefulness (Gratitude) and the theme of that book incorporates a lot of analogies and language around planting and roots and growth and cultivating. There is a lot to reap from this chapter and it’s really applicable to navigating life in God’s economy.
“How does the outdoors move us so deeply and have such power to make us feel more alive, more connected, more rested and content than any technology or device we’ve been able to invent—even though it is so often wild, unpredictable and threatening? Nature stirs us with sunsets, calms us with steady waves and terrifies us with power. We hear it. We feel it. We sense it communicating, and something inside of us responds naturally. Innately. Even if we don’t understand the language. This conversation—between us and the world—happens whether we want it to or not.”
Recommendation
“If all of creation is the orchestra of praise, then we are the choir. We are the tongue, the voice of all things, the directors of music, the soloists and singers, the poets and scribes.”
Of course I would recommend this book. Come get your sheet music and join the choir, listen to the orchestra of praise God has given in creation.
I could see myself revisiting this book every summer (when I’m in nature most) and sharing these things with my kids.
Seth Lewis articulates so well things we probably sense every day but don’t know what to do with. He reveals our Rosetta Stone and connects us to the source to interpret what God has made plain. It will make you feel awe, and thankfulness, and stability, and hope.
Even the storms and droughts tell us truths we need to know.
Seriously. Pick up this book!
**Received a copy via Good Book Company in exchange for an honest review**
Book Review Blog | Facebook | Pinterest | StoryGraph
April 18, 2025
I know they say not to judge a book by the cover, but I totally did with this one. I immediately was interested because of the gorgeous cover! And to my great delight, the content inside lived up to the beautiful cover! This book was so beautifully written with stories throughout and interesting mentions of incredible things in nature that God has created. I learned about several new things I didn't know about the earth that left me amazed by our God, like the bioluminecient plankton in Ireland. So incredible! What I loved about this book, is that the author gets you to stop and marvel at God's handiwork and then tells you how nature speaks to us about God. This book was Scripture saturated as well.
Part 1 shows how everything speaks about God
Part 2 works through each day of creation and how things like light and creatures of the sea speak go us about God.
"God's universe is not just endless creativity. It communicates truth and calls for a response- to glorify God, give him thanks and seek him."
Definitely reccomend this book. It is as good as its cover!
Part 1 shows how everything speaks about God
Part 2 works through each day of creation and how things like light and creatures of the sea speak go us about God.
"God's universe is not just endless creativity. It communicates truth and calls for a response- to glorify God, give him thanks and seek him."
Definitely reccomend this book. It is as good as its cover!
July 16, 2025
I would 100% recommend this to anyone, especially those who enjoy the outdoors. I read this as I was traveling through Banff National Park in Canada and it taught me to savor every moment of the trip even more. I would even go so far as to say this book changes how I experience my “ordinary” every day life! Just walking outside is now an experience that brings me closer to God because His creation is declaring His glory all around me.
July 1, 2025
“Every detail is purposeful, written with God’s hand, to say something to you.”
“This world was made for wandering, and your soul was made for wonder.”
💭 My Thoughts:
I absolutely loved this contemplative read. It read like an invitation to slow down and see the natural world the way God intended… not just as a backdrop, but as a means through which He communicates with us.
It made me think of the example of a child who’s lagging behind on a trail, captivated by the smallest stone or snail, while the rest of the family presses ahead. (Doesn’t every family have that one child? 😏) My knee jerk reaction is often to tell that child to hurry up but really, that child has it right: God has placed so much beauty all around us. We need only to stop and look.
“Have you ever considered that the reason why we feel so connected in nature is because that’s what nature is specifically designed to do? It is made to connect us to our Maker.”
The author’s writing and descriptions are so immersive and detailed! He shares personal stories and experiences interwoven with Scripture, making the book theologically deep yet easy to read and digest. (Also—it’s only a little over 150 pages!) It’s a great fit for both new and seasoned believers.
If you already love nature, this will deepen that love. If you’re not really an “outdoorsy” person, you’ll be encouraged by how much intention God put into the world—just for you! You won’t look at nature the same way again.
The book is split into two parts:
The first section explores how creation speaks—how it draws us in, and how we can listen and respond.
The second walks through each day of creation in Genesis, highlighting the meaning and purpose behind each part of the world.
🌼 Bonus: Each chapter opens with a beautiful literary or biblical quote, which I loved.
🌲 Enjoy some nature pictures I have taken over the last couple of years.
Thank you @thegoodbookcompanyusa for sending me this lovely book to read and review!
December 28, 2025
Beautifully heartfelt and gentle reminder of how nature reflects the glory of God.
October 17, 2025
Astounding. This book is so amazing. I am recommending this to everyone.
June 21, 2025
“This world was made for wandering, and your soul was made for wonder.”
Slow down and pay attention to nature!! All things ordinary or extraordinary pour forth speech and revelation knowledge about our creator. This book forced me to slow down and take in the very miracles that are before my eyes everyday. It is beautiful and poetic. Not only does Seth Lewis walk through the creation story in a new way, but he incorporates facts about the world that are sure to leave the reader in awe. He also reminds us of our unique role in praising God. All creation declares his glory, but we are the only ones who can put it into words. “All creation is speaking. Will you?”
Slow down and pay attention to nature!! All things ordinary or extraordinary pour forth speech and revelation knowledge about our creator. This book forced me to slow down and take in the very miracles that are before my eyes everyday. It is beautiful and poetic. Not only does Seth Lewis walk through the creation story in a new way, but he incorporates facts about the world that are sure to leave the reader in awe. He also reminds us of our unique role in praising God. All creation declares his glory, but we are the only ones who can put it into words. “All creation is speaking. Will you?”
August 1, 2025
The prose flowed like a river.
I enjoyed this book’s lyrical writing. It helped me slow down and appreciate God’s creation—not because it told me to, but because it showed me how. And what a fitting epigraph for the final chapter:
“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful; for beauty is God’s handwriting—a wayside sacrament; welcome it in every fair face, every fair sky, every fair flower, and thank Him for it, who is the Fountain of all loveliness, and drink it in simply and earnestly with all your eyes; it is a charmed draught, a cup of blessing.”
— Charles Kingsley
I enjoyed this book’s lyrical writing. It helped me slow down and appreciate God’s creation—not because it told me to, but because it showed me how. And what a fitting epigraph for the final chapter:
“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful; for beauty is God’s handwriting—a wayside sacrament; welcome it in every fair face, every fair sky, every fair flower, and thank Him for it, who is the Fountain of all loveliness, and drink it in simply and earnestly with all your eyes; it is a charmed draught, a cup of blessing.”
— Charles Kingsley
November 7, 2025
I really enjoyed this book.
It is a superb exploration of how you can wonder at creation and learn more of God.
The author inspires us to enjoy creation, but teaches us how to use the Bible as our guidebook.
Superb!
It is a superb exploration of how you can wonder at creation and learn more of God.
The author inspires us to enjoy creation, but teaches us how to use the Bible as our guidebook.
Superb!
May 17, 2025
Seth’s style of writing is short and profound. He was very enjoyable to read in his first book and this one is no different! I am grateful for his addition he brings to helping people encounter God! Keep them coming Seth!
June 21, 2025
Beautiful, poetic, inspiring, and refreshing. A collection of thoughts on what God is saying to us through nature. As a nature lover and a believer, this was a delight.
September 24, 2025
I love the cover of this book. I’ll admit it. I judged the book by it. And the title. The illustration is linocut style, a night scene with rivers and trees and swirling spheres…For me it holds mystery and depth and beauty.
Ooo! I’ve never gone on about a cover so much in any review! Least of all a Christian book review.
“The Language of Rivers and Stars” is a solid little book. Its premise - thesis? - is that God has spoken in his word and in his creation. His word is, for the biblically literate, comprehensible and able to be shaped into confession, doctrine, sermon and teaching. It is his special revelation in which we see the story of salvation, culminating in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
Lewis’ book contends that there is more to the general revelation of Scripture than a big arrow pointing to special revelation. He calls us to ponder the nature of creation and what in creation resonates with the more fully articulated special revelation. If you like, Lewis wants to get the support act to join the headliner on the same stage, sing the same song and get shredding - together.
There’s a pattern to this book once the author establishes the notion of God’s revelation in creation in Part 1. Part 2 takes the elements of each creation day and ponders how, rather than being synonymous arrows to the Bible, they might actually be unique physical prompts that push us into distinct aspects of biblical truth. For instance, the creation of light and our observation and appreciation of light pushes us to consider Jesus, the Light of the world, his words to his followers about being light of the world, walking in the light, responding and growing in the light of God’s truth, shunning the darkness.
Lewis does this with his walk-through of creation, taking the Genesis account and overlaying it onto truths that are articulated in scripture, that are part of the Jesus-following, Spirit-led life. It’s something that might have tempted the author to draw a long bow. Lewis walks the orthodox path and has many helpful reflections.
Books land in our lives differently depending on our age, the season in which we find ourselves, the things we do or don’t know or are pondering at any given time…I’ve read books that have nearly overwhelmed me with their power only to return to those same books later and scratch my head with a little disappointment and ask, “What was it that so captured me before…and why not this time..?”
So I should say this is a really good book. It does what it says on the wrapper - gives us a readable and practical and biblical reflection on the language of rivers and stars.
I mentioned the cover because I was hoping for a similarly vivid experience from the text. My expectations were for a more poetic, meditative, creatively invigorating approach. That’s always risky - it seems many wave off the bible as they skew off into the hidden valleys of mysticism. I wouldn’t wish that for this book. I was just hoping for something a little more poetic, arresting, disarming. It ended up a bit straighter than I anticipated.
Which, for most, will do any reader absolutely no harm. It might just be a place and time issue. And I’m 61 - I’m sure an older age makes for a tougher audience. I’ve just seen more and heard more and read more and it can be harder to cut through.
So it’s a fine, readable little book (it is little - around 160 pages) which will do you no harm and most likely help you consider how you might reflect on God as you encounter his creation. I was just hoping for a little more awe. A little less proposition, a little more poetry. A bit more colour, in idea and delivery. (A bit more “The Message” and a little less NIV.)
But others will read it and find the truths in it invigorating, refreshing and true. God bless them. May it be so for many.
Ooo! I’ve never gone on about a cover so much in any review! Least of all a Christian book review.
“The Language of Rivers and Stars” is a solid little book. Its premise - thesis? - is that God has spoken in his word and in his creation. His word is, for the biblically literate, comprehensible and able to be shaped into confession, doctrine, sermon and teaching. It is his special revelation in which we see the story of salvation, culminating in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.
Lewis’ book contends that there is more to the general revelation of Scripture than a big arrow pointing to special revelation. He calls us to ponder the nature of creation and what in creation resonates with the more fully articulated special revelation. If you like, Lewis wants to get the support act to join the headliner on the same stage, sing the same song and get shredding - together.
There’s a pattern to this book once the author establishes the notion of God’s revelation in creation in Part 1. Part 2 takes the elements of each creation day and ponders how, rather than being synonymous arrows to the Bible, they might actually be unique physical prompts that push us into distinct aspects of biblical truth. For instance, the creation of light and our observation and appreciation of light pushes us to consider Jesus, the Light of the world, his words to his followers about being light of the world, walking in the light, responding and growing in the light of God’s truth, shunning the darkness.
Lewis does this with his walk-through of creation, taking the Genesis account and overlaying it onto truths that are articulated in scripture, that are part of the Jesus-following, Spirit-led life. It’s something that might have tempted the author to draw a long bow. Lewis walks the orthodox path and has many helpful reflections.
Books land in our lives differently depending on our age, the season in which we find ourselves, the things we do or don’t know or are pondering at any given time…I’ve read books that have nearly overwhelmed me with their power only to return to those same books later and scratch my head with a little disappointment and ask, “What was it that so captured me before…and why not this time..?”
So I should say this is a really good book. It does what it says on the wrapper - gives us a readable and practical and biblical reflection on the language of rivers and stars.
I mentioned the cover because I was hoping for a similarly vivid experience from the text. My expectations were for a more poetic, meditative, creatively invigorating approach. That’s always risky - it seems many wave off the bible as they skew off into the hidden valleys of mysticism. I wouldn’t wish that for this book. I was just hoping for something a little more poetic, arresting, disarming. It ended up a bit straighter than I anticipated.
Which, for most, will do any reader absolutely no harm. It might just be a place and time issue. And I’m 61 - I’m sure an older age makes for a tougher audience. I’ve just seen more and heard more and read more and it can be harder to cut through.
So it’s a fine, readable little book (it is little - around 160 pages) which will do you no harm and most likely help you consider how you might reflect on God as you encounter his creation. I was just hoping for a little more awe. A little less proposition, a little more poetry. A bit more colour, in idea and delivery. (A bit more “The Message” and a little less NIV.)
But others will read it and find the truths in it invigorating, refreshing and true. God bless them. May it be so for many.
June 16, 2025
Seth rightly points out that for many people, being in the natural world, surrounded by beauty, is often a way for us to feel a peace and connection to God, the Creator. So his aim in this book is to help the reader experience the beauty of creation in a deeper way, offering a biblical understanding of what God is saying to us through the world He has created.
Seth has a poetic style of writing that glides along, effortlessly explaining and unfolding the logic and theology, highlighting the beauty of the created world and the reason why we inherently relate to it. He describes the created world as God's language, His equivalent to words, written for us like beautiful prose or perfect poetry.
He weaves in Scripture to highlight that God's words, Scripture, and nature share a common language.
Seth has a lovely use of language, his words paint pictures of the beauty of creation, showing us why we are inspired by all that God has created for us to enjoy. The language of creation speaks loudly to us, telling us how much God wants us to be in relationship with Him. That is the purpose. So that we will draw near, lean in and embrace. So that we will know Him close.
One section of the book offers a chapter on each of the seven days of the Genesis creation account, which could also work well to be read as a daily devotional or even a study series for a home group or discussion group.
See https://www.robseabrook.com/category/... for more reviews of Christian books.
Seth has a poetic style of writing that glides along, effortlessly explaining and unfolding the logic and theology, highlighting the beauty of the created world and the reason why we inherently relate to it. He describes the created world as God's language, His equivalent to words, written for us like beautiful prose or perfect poetry.
He weaves in Scripture to highlight that God's words, Scripture, and nature share a common language.
Seth has a lovely use of language, his words paint pictures of the beauty of creation, showing us why we are inspired by all that God has created for us to enjoy. The language of creation speaks loudly to us, telling us how much God wants us to be in relationship with Him. That is the purpose. So that we will draw near, lean in and embrace. So that we will know Him close.
One section of the book offers a chapter on each of the seven days of the Genesis creation account, which could also work well to be read as a daily devotional or even a study series for a home group or discussion group.
See https://www.robseabrook.com/category/... for more reviews of Christian books.
August 22, 2025
This book was an excellent companion while camping along Lake Michigan. As we climbed the dunes, walked along the beach, watched the sunset over the lake, and biked through the forest, my mind was continually lifted to the Maker of the sand and seas and stars. Lewis guides the reader to a deeper appreciation and awareness of the language of God’s creation and shows us how to listen in as it proclaims His majesty and goodness. What a treasure.
“Look a little closer, and you’ll see that “ordinary” is just another word for the miracles God decides to repeat.”
“Look a little closer, and you’ll see that “ordinary” is just another word for the miracles God decides to repeat.”
August 3, 2025
My last book was about an old American Indian who complained that the white man thought everything he needed could be found in his ‘black book’ (Bible) whereas the red man was in touch with the Creator through the natural world. What this book does, is it bridges the gap between the two and highlights that the God of the Bible is also the God of creation and reveals himself through both if we only have eyes to see. It’s actually amazing to see how many references there are to the natural world in the scriptures. A lovely meditation using the days of creation as a framework.
September 11, 2025
“Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful. Beauty is God’s handwriting - a wayside sacrament; welcome it in every fair face, every fair sky, every fair flower, and thank for it Him, the fountain of all loveliness, and drink it in, simply and earnestly, with all your eyes; it is a charmed draught, a cup of blessing.”
May 30, 2025
One of the more beautiful and captivating books I’ve read in a long time! Eloquently written to speak of the marvels of creation and how it points to the Glory of God.
June 14, 2025
This book forever changed the way I look at the wonders of nature as stimuli for the worship of God.
June 18, 2025
Quick read and a great reminder of the glory of the Lord in creation!
July 2, 2025
I loved this!! Oh to feel insignificant compared to God’s glory¨̮
July 27, 2025
10/10 recommend even if you don’t like being outside
August 9, 2025
3.5 Delightful reflection on the sermon nature preaches.
December 3, 2025
Marvellous!
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July 18, 2025A very beautiful, poetic book. I’m looking forward to reading this again!
September 20, 2025
This book is moving up to my favorites list :) Man! The.Lord.Is.So.CREATIVE!!!!!
November 16, 2025
A beautifully written book with practical advice on how to see what creation is teaching us.
June 19, 2025
This book brought me so much joy. I listened for free via the library, but just ordered a print copy to read again.
August 6, 2025
This beautifully written book describes God’s wonderfully intricate creation and how much this reflects His love and Grace for His children. This book was such an encouragement to enjoy the splendor of God’s glorious creation. I listened on audio & it is author narrated. His pronunciation is at times hard to hear but his slight Irish accent did add to the narration.
November 2, 2025
It’s a nice written book, short chapters, easy to read, but deep thoughts and reflections after each chapter. Not until almost the half of the book, I remember the title, The Language of Rivers and Stars, maybe I was so attracted and related the cover to the Starry Night, and I called it Starry Night.
I am so glad that I read this book during the change of season. It helps me to look at the surroundings carefully and appreciate the creations of God. All creations, regardless the volume, are masterpieces of our God.
I am so glad that I read this book during the change of season. It helps me to look at the surroundings carefully and appreciate the creations of God. All creations, regardless the volume, are masterpieces of our God.
May 6, 2025
Nature has no words, but yet how is it that we understand its song? Why do we feel overwhelmed, awed, and mesmerized when we look out across a vast plain, deep canyon, or beautiful sunset? Could it just be that our good Creator intentionally designed nature to call out to us in order to give us himself? Seth Lewis writes a genius book on the two languages of God—nature and his written Word.
What makes this book stand apart from other books aimed at nature enthusiasts is that Lewis uses nature to point back to the gospel every time. If you see the world through the lens of nature as I do—in metaphors and spiritual truths—you will relish this book. If you don’t know where to begin understanding nature as it relates to Christ and his gospel truth, this book will help you become fluent in the language of nature so that you can accurately see the world as God does. From the beginning, Lewis uses familiar imagery of the Egyptians (nature worshipers) and the Rosetta Stone (a language cipher) to show how the Egyptians got God’s language of nature wrong because they didn’t have anything to rightly interpret it. Lewis stresses that you cannot understand nature apart from God’s word, and I believe this is what makes “The Language of Rivers and Stars” a worthwhile book.
This book is broken up into 2 parts: “Everything Speaks” and “To Hear and Respond.” The second part walks through the 7 days of creation, but not too obviously that it is distracting or routine. My favorite chapters were his near poetic prose on ‘the names of the stars’ and the hope we have of a God with us, ‘mysteries of the deep’ oceans and the hidden elements there, the ‘freedom of the skies’ and the dependence birds have on their Creator, and ‘the rest of the story’ where he articulates the theological and natural rhythms of rest. I love that this book exists because knowing God as Creator is the foundation of all other beliefs and sustains you through suffering, pain, and sorrow.
Personally, I don’t think you can over emphasize the benefit and the necessity of being outside in God’s beautiful but fallen natural playground. It certainly is a discipline to spend uninterrupted moments outside, and we all can find ample excuses to neglect hearing from God in his first language. But we must, in this fast-paced, digital world, listen to what God might be trying to articulate through a gentle breeze, an uncurling fern, a dangerous rockslide, or a newborn robin.
Read this book because it will help you marvel at Christ: “This world was made for wandering, and your soul was made for wonder” (158).
Read this book to start remembering that “our pictures will never be as real as the realities they picture” (68).
Read this book so you can see how nature helps you “[pay] attention to the sections of Scripture that stretch your concept of God and don’t fit well into your preconceived boxes” (54).
Read this book to finally know that we live by faith, not by sight: “There really is so much more than meets the eye” in God’s beautiful hieroglyphic earth and it all points to the Word himself. (137-8)
What makes this book stand apart from other books aimed at nature enthusiasts is that Lewis uses nature to point back to the gospel every time. If you see the world through the lens of nature as I do—in metaphors and spiritual truths—you will relish this book. If you don’t know where to begin understanding nature as it relates to Christ and his gospel truth, this book will help you become fluent in the language of nature so that you can accurately see the world as God does. From the beginning, Lewis uses familiar imagery of the Egyptians (nature worshipers) and the Rosetta Stone (a language cipher) to show how the Egyptians got God’s language of nature wrong because they didn’t have anything to rightly interpret it. Lewis stresses that you cannot understand nature apart from God’s word, and I believe this is what makes “The Language of Rivers and Stars” a worthwhile book.
This book is broken up into 2 parts: “Everything Speaks” and “To Hear and Respond.” The second part walks through the 7 days of creation, but not too obviously that it is distracting or routine. My favorite chapters were his near poetic prose on ‘the names of the stars’ and the hope we have of a God with us, ‘mysteries of the deep’ oceans and the hidden elements there, the ‘freedom of the skies’ and the dependence birds have on their Creator, and ‘the rest of the story’ where he articulates the theological and natural rhythms of rest. I love that this book exists because knowing God as Creator is the foundation of all other beliefs and sustains you through suffering, pain, and sorrow.
Personally, I don’t think you can over emphasize the benefit and the necessity of being outside in God’s beautiful but fallen natural playground. It certainly is a discipline to spend uninterrupted moments outside, and we all can find ample excuses to neglect hearing from God in his first language. But we must, in this fast-paced, digital world, listen to what God might be trying to articulate through a gentle breeze, an uncurling fern, a dangerous rockslide, or a newborn robin.
Read this book because it will help you marvel at Christ: “This world was made for wandering, and your soul was made for wonder” (158).
Read this book to start remembering that “our pictures will never be as real as the realities they picture” (68).
Read this book so you can see how nature helps you “[pay] attention to the sections of Scripture that stretch your concept of God and don’t fit well into your preconceived boxes” (54).
Read this book to finally know that we live by faith, not by sight: “There really is so much more than meets the eye” in God’s beautiful hieroglyphic earth and it all points to the Word himself. (137-8)
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