St. Augustine, Florida * October 2004
The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the sky above proclaims His handiwork. (Psalm 19:1)
One of my favorite aspects of Creation is the sky; I love sunrises, rainbows, pretty clouds, sunsets, and--most especially--stars. There is just something so amazing, so powerful, in these displays of God's glory, and it's awesome to think that the God who paints such magnificent pictures across the sky has said, "I have called you by name, you are Mine. . . you are precious in My eyes, and honored, and I love you."* Oh my goodness; wow. He who is the very essence of beauty and holiness and truth has called me, in all the wretchedness of my sin and the utter ugliness of my life apart from Him--He has called me and reconciled me to Himself through Jesus' death and resurrection, even before I had any inclination of my need for a savior.** What a beautiful, incredible, ridiculous truth (one that, unfortunately, I tend to lose sight of all too often). It's certainly beyond my ability to comprehend; all I can say is just wow.
Oh, praise the One who paid my debt
And raised this life up from the dead
Jesus paid it all
All to Him I owe
Sin had left a crimson stain
He washed it white as snow.
Amazing, amazing, amazing. And as if saving me and giving meaning to my life weren't enough, God continues daily to give me reminders of His love and of the fact that He is intimately involved in every aspect of my life. God loves to give His children good things; sometimes these gifts are big and obvious (like with all the incredible things He did to put together my trips to Haiti this spring), while other times they're more subtle, like a much-needed hug from a friend or "randomly" coming across a timely Bible verse or song lyric or line in a book (note: nothing is mere happenstance with God). Such simple joys, sometimes, and yet each one of these gifts is an expression of God's grace. I don't often enough recognize this and give Him the praise that He deserves, but every once in awhile, something in me clicks and I just can't help but be in awe of Him.
The other night (which was the original inspiration for this post, though--as usual--I'm getting there in a rather roundabout and unexpected manner), I had one of those beautiful moments when I was utterly and blissfully content, so thrilled by the simple pleasure of a viewing a lovely star-filled sky and swinging in a park at midnight with my brother (who was so kind as to accompany me on this impulsive excursion). Though this was not the most breathtaking glimpse of the stars that I've seen (nothing can compare to clear nights in Haiti, far from city lights, lying on a roof or in a field and feeling completely surrounded by the stars and galaxies), I nonetheless was so filled with joy as I swung through the cool night air and reveled in God's presence. I wasn't necessarily thinking great thoughts or praying profound prayers, I was just being--being with God and enjoying Him. Simple...but amazing. One of John Piper's well-known statements is that "God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him"--and what an incredible thing it is that He gives us so many opportunities and ways to be so satisfied.
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