What Sea Otters and Sparrows Teach Us About Trust

Recently, I spent over two months on the Monterey Peninsula; a place where ocean mist meets redwoods, and the days are often framed by the sounds of waves and wildlife. I found myself outdoors constantly, simply watching: sea birds gliding low over the surf, deer moving quietly through the fog, sea otters floating and playing together, and sea lions basking on the rocks.

As I slowed down to notice them... to really notice them, I began to reflect. Time in nature always does that for me. There’s something about seeing animals live so simply yet so intentionally that reminds me how deeply God’s wisdom is woven into creation.

When sea otters know exactly how to dive for shellfish, crack them open with a stone, and wrap themselves in kelp to rest without drifting away; or when birds, never having been taught, instinctively build nests strong enough to cradle their young, it’s hard not to wonder:

Is that just instinct, or are animals so in tune with the Spirit of God that they are led exactly to what they need? Or both? Or something else?

What we call instinct is, in truth, evidence of divine wisdom woven into creation.

Scripture says:

“In wisdom You made them all.” — Psalm 104:24

That wisdom (ḥokmah in Hebrew) isn’t simply intelligence or clever adaptation; it’s the order and harmony of God’s design. It’s His creative logic embedded into every living thing.

So when otters, whales, and tiny fish move through their days guided by inner knowing... when birds migrate with unerring accuracy... they’re not consciously “listening” for the Holy Spirit as humans do, but they are responding to the rhythm God placed within them from the beginning.

In other words, instinct is God’s whisper written into their very design. I find this absolutely amazing. It makes me wonder if we are designed similarly but we are too preoccupied with "human" things that we can't hear as clearly as nature...

Psalm 104 goes on to say:

“When You send Your Spirit, they are created, and You renew the face of the ground.” — Psalm 104:30

The same Spirit (ruach) that hovered over the waters in Genesis 1 is the one that animates and sustains every living thing today. Creation moves because God’s breath still moves through it. Even creatures we have never discovered in the deepest parts of the sea are seen, known, and sustained by Him.

Humans, too, were made with a divine rhythm; but unlike animals, ours includes free will, moral awareness, and relationship. God’s natural law for humanity is written not only on our hearts (Romans 2:15) but also reflected in the very structure of our creation.

When Genesis says,

“Male and female He created them” — Genesis 1:27

...it reveals that even in humanity, God’s design reflects His wisdom and love. Every part of creation, from the ocean depths to human life itself, shows His order, purpose, and goodness meant to draw us closer to Him.

What that divine rhythm looks like:

• Walking in daily communion with God (Micah 6:8)

• Loving Him and others fully (Matthew 22:37-39)

• Resting, working, and creating in balance (Genesis 2:2-3)

• Trusting that our needs will be met (Matthew 6:26)

• Reflecting His image through compassion, stewardship, and truth (Genesis 1:27)

While animals glorify God simply by being what they were made to be, we glorify Him when we live as we were made to live... in step with His Spirit, rather than striving against it.

We can learn from creation... animals don’t wrestle with identity or worry about tomorrow. They move with peace in the pattern God set for them; a pattern that echoes His care and order. Watching them can gently call us back to what we’ve forgotten... that we were never meant to live in frantic self-reliance, we were meant to live in tuned-in dependence.

Jesus said it best:

“Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?” — Matthew 6:26

Creation trusts its Creator...May we do the same.