Here’s someone who appreciates creation!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OQSNhk5ICTI

The simple reasons for a thankful heart are the best!

I love your reminder about being brats.  It is a word not used enough nor used properly, in my mind.  It has become used for an awful line of toys, tossed out by a parent as a slur against a child who is only acting as they have been allowed or taught.

In truth, it is a simple word meaning a poorly behaved child.  And that is what we all are - on any given day, even the most faithful of us.  Now, some of us are more ‘bratty’ than others.  There is whole new gang of brats who have decided life and creation is somehow the result of their work and effort or something they are entitled to rather than the real gift it is.

Brats are hard to deal with, frustrating in their inability to listen to reason or logic but we must continue to try, ignore their tantrums and calmly assert the truth.  Hopefully, they will come around.  But, if they don’t, we be assured their Father, God the Father, will take care of them when they go home!

One of the most amazing videos I have ever seen!!!!!  THank you for putting this together!  What a witness to Gods power and love!

this video is beautiful!
creation is obvious in ourselves as much as the outside world.http://alterpolus.wordpress.com/2010/07/20/people-are-wonderful/

Mr. Warner; I’m a atheist (I’ll explain later).  so let’s see how I’d answer your questions about the marvelous gift that is the earth:
(1) Would my posture be one of doubt and suspicion?  No.  The beauty and life sustaining power of nature is (or should be) obvious.  The ways in which we are connected to nature (and it to us) are amply demonstrated.  The whole of the vast, natural world and, indeed, the universe is there for all to see.  We are each but one person among billions.  On one planet among billions.  Our lives are brief and our limitations many.  We need the earth.  And we need each other.  Life is a precious gift.  We don’t need to suppose that a God made it to accept that.  That’s a colossal leap with no bridge in between.  But we do need to be grateful for what we have, and show that gratitude in the way we treat each other and the world we live in.
(2) Would it be one of self-indulgence and self-righteousness?  Unfortunately, for many it is.  But it doesn’t have to be.  I myself am humbled by the sheer vastness of the cosmos and my very small place in it.  I’m humbled by the love shown to me by my wife and family (some of whom are believers).  And I’m humbled by my own limitations.  Yes, I question the existence of God.  But I don’t think that I’m a god either.  This is an assumption no rational person should make. 
(3) [And] would I demand that the giver of this gift provide absolute proof of themselves before I could say thank you for such a gift?  As if the gift wasn’t proof enough of their existence already?  Well, I already have proof that the gift exists.  And I have proof of many of the myriad causes of it; the erosional and geologic processes that dug those canyons or shaped the mountains, the cliamatological processes that bring rain and enable those gorgeous rain forests, or the evolutionary processes (which Catholics largely accept) that shape its marvelous life.  Ah, but what of the Prime Mover?  The First Cause?  The trail of cause and effect must lead to something, right?  Sure.  But demonstrate that it isn’t just naturalistic processes.  Or Thor.  Or Zeus.  And do this without saying “we don’t know…so God did it”.  In the absence of knowledge, the only thing we can say is “I don’t know”.  If you don’t know, then you can’t believe.  Atheism DOES NOT have to be an absolute rejection of God.  And, more importantly, we CAN still be grateful.  And we can show our gratitude to the earth by being good stewards of its gifts, and to each other by treating our fellow man as something precious.  The second part of your question (As if the gift wasn’t proof enough of their existence already) is an asserted conclusion.  Big time.  It’s your second cosmic leap.  You hold it as self-evident that because it exists, it must be God.  And not just any god, but the God of Abraham.  It was once self-evident that mental illness was caused by demons.  Oops.  Wrong on that one. 
By way of clarification, I don’t reject God outright.  I simply observe that there is little (beyond subjective human experience) to verify the fact.  In the absence of evidence, I withhold judgment.  Some say, “then you’re agnostic!”  Well, maybe I’m that too.  But consider this; you can’t “believe” unless you “know”.  I don’t know, so I can’t “believe”.  No doubt you may consider me a fool, but I’m an honest fool (to quote Tolkien).  Am I also a “spoiled brat” for not seeing things exactly your way? 
Now, one thing believers and non-believers can (and must) accept is that there is something greater than themselves; whether it be God or the Universe, respectively.  All believers are beholden to God, so they have a better time at this (except when they presume the superiority of their belief to the point of violence or lesser bad behavior).  Not all atheists are scientists, so they lack a comparable perspective.  This is a challenge for non-believers; some of whom reject God for reasons that have nothing to do with a rational thought process (i.e., they don’t want to be held to any standard of behavior, etc.).  Science is NOT God; but the science that everyone (believer and non-believer alike) should appreciate and embrace can be a source of the very humbling perspective we all require.

Praise be to The Creator.  This was awesome.  It brought me to tears.  How could there not be a God.  Thank you.

James,

Thanks for your very thoughtful response. Lots of good thoughts there. But I never said anything about the God of Abraham (I think there are other logical reasons to believe in Him as the Creator). I also didn’t say anyone was a spoiled brat for not holding my beliefs.

But how do you “know” that we require a humble perspective? This seems to be your belief…so you must “know” this somehow right? (based on your assertion that we must know something to believe it)

It also seems to be your belief that you should “withhold judgment,” so you must “know” this too, correct?  How do you know that you should withhold judgment?

And it doesn’t matter if everything was created by naturalistic processes. The “naturalistic processes” themselves still require a different kind of cause. A different kind of being. Something that needed no creator. A Being that needed no cause. Something that exists outside of time and space itself. This is God by definition.

Matthew; thank you for answering!  I’ll admit you didn’t say anything about the God of Abraham (although, obviously, this is who take God to be, for a variety of reasons that are your own).  And no, I didn’t really feel personally attacked.  I just wanted clarification as to where you stood (truth is, we’re all spoiled brats and behave thoughtlessly from time to time; I think someone else said this already).  I understand you better now.  This is why it’s always best to ask!  How do I know we need humility?  The same way I know that touching the glowing, hot element on my stove will burn the heck out of me.  Certain behaviors “work”.  Humility is one of them.  Humility acknowledges something outside of ourselves.  It acknowledges weakness.  And it engenders compassion and empathy for these reasons.  This, in turn, brings greater personal happiness and better ensures our survival as individuals and as a species.  A world filled with self-interested individuals not governed by any moral code will be at odds with itself.  There are abundant historical (and sadly, modern) examples of this.  And a world too greedy to care about its environment will kill itself by choking off the very source of its own survival (BP comes to mind).  These are obvious examples.  But happiness?  Really?  How do I “prove” that?  Again, there is abundant observed evidence that withholding love is psychologically damaging.  As social creatures who did not evolve thick pelts or sharp horns; it is our brains and our ability to work together and cooperate socially that ensures our survival.  And these traits engender a need for that very love and socialization; an instinctive knowing that isn’t much different from the way other animals recognize their own evolutionary adaptations.  Ours instincts just happen to be mental and emotional (and, inherently moral).  Now I realize this may sound cold and reductionist.  But does it have to be?  How is this not beautiful?  The world, indeed, the universe is splendid and lovely. The natural laws at work are, themselves, things of beauty.  Sometimes we just need to take things on their own terms.  I think I addressed “First Cause” in my last post.  We can both agree that there is something greater than ourselves; whatever we know it to be.  Anyway, thanks for responding!  And the video WAS gorgeous.  What a beautiful world we live in!