lord

Bible, bible study, Christian, Christian Church, christian encouragement, christian men, christian parenting, Christian women, Faith, Jesus, Jesus Follower, prayer, proverbs, religion, Uncategorized, wisdom

31 Days of God’s Wisdom

December 27, 2022December 16, 2022 krisshetter

“Love the Lord with all your minds heart and soul.” Matthew 22:37

It seems when we Christians talk about our faith these days it’s so frequently focused on feelings, emotions – “from the heart.” And while Jesus will ultimately be the judge of our heart’s true commitment, He also asks us to use the rest of our bodies to honor God. It’s not enough to feel God we need to know and obey God. Why? Because His Words are designed to guide us through this temporary life as best possible. We want to become skillful not just at making a living but in making a life that is in line with our Holy Father. Many of us have experienced life outside those guardrails – sometimes on a daily occurrence. When we are rash with our decisions or emotions, quick to be angry, quick to take up the latest idea or get rich scheme, quick to enter into relationships without good judgment, we easily find ourselves outside God’s protective ways.

The words “wise” and “wisdom” are used 125 times in the 31 chapters of the book of Proverbs. It sounds as though someone might be trying to get a point across to us! Wisdom literature in the Bible includes Proverbs, Job and Ecclesiastes. But for this series I’ll be focusing only on Proverbs. You’ll notice there’s 31 chapters – perfect for a one month study of God’s messages to us about living life in His guardrails.

But first and foremost, we need a right relationship with our Creator. Meaning we accept God in His three persons (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) as one God who created the universe and everything in it. And that Jesus came as fully man and fully human to be the final, complete sacrifice to cleanse us of our sins. In this way we may come before God, our King, as righteous. He is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent in our lives. There is one way on this path and that one way is open to everyone who believes in Him.

Second, we have an assertion of a moral law operating in the world and there will be divine justice. None of which has to do with IQ, wealth or even education. There is an expectation by God to follow His moral laws. And everyone, believers and non-believers, will be judged upon their death.

If we do not have these two foundations, then the seeking of wisdom has no foundation itself. Without a moral King to guide us then we are guiding ourselves. And we know how well that usually turns out! Our selfish souls seek ease, seek comfort, seek pleasure above all. Without an understanding and acceptance of a final, universal judgment then what does it all matter? If you read back into ancient history, peoples without God sacrificed children to meet their desires. They performed all sorts of sexually immoral acts (especially on women) to please their desires. Murdered without out conscience. It was the formation of God’s people through Abraham and Moses that brought God’s moral law back down to earth. Setting us back on the path toward God’s future Eden on Earth.

And so, through people like King Solomon He spoke. The king had asked God for wisdom and it was granted (1 King 3:5-14). It is believed King Solomon spoke 3,000 proverbs during his reign. The beauty of the proverbs selected for this book is that none of them are in conflict. All cultures have their sayings – quick summaries of lessons. But many times, they conflict with each other! (“Look before you leap!” vs “He who hesitates is lost.”) God’s words are never opposed to each other.

Toward the end of his reign, King Solomon turned to the folly he so frequently spoke to avoid and disregarded his own wisdom – proving we need to stay close to God at all times. In fact, God warned him when He gave Solomon this gift: “And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will enlighten your days.” A good reminder to never take a day off from following God.

Proverbs are not promises. They are generalized statements of what is usually true. So, if you find a proverb that you want to disagree with first remind yourself that we humans are sinful people. And second, God seeks to bring us into His ideal world. We are practicing to live in our final home – the New Eden.

If you haven’t signed up to receive your 31 Days of God’s Wisdom, make sure you subscribe today! After entering your email information below, check your inbox for your confirmation link. Thank you for joining me on this journey and be sure to share with your friends, neighbors, co-workers and family! Blessings to you for wisdom, Kris

30daysofpraise, Bible, bible study, Christian, Christian Church, christian encouragement, christian men, christian parenting, christian podcast, Christian women, Faith, Jesus, Jesus Follower, prayer, religion, Uncategorized

He Is Perfect

August 30, 2022September 7, 2022 krisshetter

"Who is he, this King of glory?
    The Lord Almighty—
    he is the King of glory." Psalms 24:10

My Lord, my God, perfect in every way. Awesome in power and in majesty. I come before you your imperfect adopted daughter, grateful for the cleansing you completed in me through your Son, Jesus. Grateful for the work your Holy Spirit continues in me so that I can bow before you blameless and faithful. Amen

One of my daughters suffered for a while with perfectionism. She once told me that she got that need to be perfect from me. I had to admit I played a strong part through my own need to always do things just right. And that need stemmed from a hole in my heart. A hole that needed filling with love and grace. I worried if I “messed up” then I would lose respect, lose friends, lose love. I’m sure my daughter felt the same. And it grieved me I had passed that along to her. I’m so grateful she had the courage to share her struggle with me so that I could remind her how much I love her – no matter what. Thankfully, she sought out God and the healing power of Jesus sooner in her life than I did.

I have finally realized the truth behind the flippant remark, “nobody’s perfect.” Well, there is one “body” who is perfect and that’s the Triune God. Other than that, we all fall woefully short. Can I get an “amen?”

" When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, “I am God Almighty; walk before me faithfully and be blameless (“perfect” KJV)." Genesis 17:1

When God had this conversation with Abraham, He wasn’t expecting this man to be sinless – an impossible goal for us to reach. In fact, the word “perfect” is translated as “single-hearted, without blame, sincere, wholly devoted to the Lord.” It’s not to say we aren’t to strive to mirror God’s perfect will but as our Creator He knows our weaknesses.

"³I will proclaim the name of the Lord.
    Oh, praise the greatness of our God!
⁴He is the Rock, his works are perfect,
    and all his ways are just.
A faithful God who does no wrong,
    upright and just is he."  Deuteronomy 32:3-4

In the history of our human existence there has never been another worshipped god that can claim this state of perfection. The Greek gods fought amongst themselves and were jealous. They required constant preening and begging to intervene in human lives. And when they did, you didn’t know for whose benefit they would act. The god of the ancients, Baal, also needed constant pleasing through child sacrifice and sexually immoral acts. Fast forward to today and the gods we modern humans have created look a lot like ourselves. We place our minds in the center of the universe and need to feed the god of humans through wealth and fame and accumulation. All the while not being able to accomplish a tiny portion of what the One True God has done and will do.

Yes, God wants our attention. He wants our worship. He wants our obedience. But He doesn’t need any of it. He is perfect without us. That, my friends, is what makes His devotion to us and His love for us and His sacrifice of His Son for us all the more glorious! What I say to that is thank you, Lord! Thank you for your Holy Word, your promises to us, for justice and mercy and grace. I give you all the glory you rightfully deserve!

His Mercy

August 29, 2022September 7, 2022 krisshetter

“It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” Proverbs 25:2

Heavenly Father, King above all kings, you know my sinful heart and yet you love me. You know my sinful ways yet you love me. You know my idolatries that I struggle to get out from under yet somehow you forgive me and love me. I reach out to you Lord in all your mystery and glory and thank you for the mercy only you can give. Amen

I was asked in a study to write down all the reasons why I pray. I listed thankfulness, requests, intercession, praise and repentance. I was then asked to circle the reason that comes up most in my prayer life. I have to admit “repentance” wasn’t one of them. Thankfulness is probably the most frequent expression I find in my prayer life. And it’s usually related to blessings – not for keeping me from the fires of my sinful ways.

A few years ago, I finally grasped the concept of God’s mercy with this helpful saying, “Mercy is when you don’t get what you deserve and grace is when you get something you don’t deserve.” Boy, should I be constantly thanking God for His mercy!

"Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
    blot out my transgressions." Psalms 51:1

The problem is we sometimes lack of awareness of our destructive swaths we create through sin. Realizing that, we should find it even more amazing that God gives us believers His mercy. He doesn’t always save us from earthly consequences but we know that when Jesus returns to judge the earth we won’t be thrown into the fire. What a glorious and loving God!

God has not asked us to wander bewildered by our transgressions and consequences. From beginning to end He has set the stage for our success. Through first giving us the Law, therefore defining sin, then sending Christ to teach us about God, how to live the Christian life and best of all, cleansing us of eternal punishment, He has taught us how to align ourselves with His ways. The Holy Spirit, which He left to dwell in us, provides us a daily conduit to keep us on track.

Friend, He thought of everything because He is our Glorious God! His mercy is our safety net. He knew we would struggle, and boy do we ever! Maybe you, like me need to tune in better to the Holy Spirit before we pray today. Ask Him to search our hearts and minds, like only the King of Kings can do. Have Him show us those corners of our life that seem blind to us. Let His glorious light shine to cleanse you.

Open Communication

August 26, 2022September 7, 2022 krisshetter

“Then Moses said to them, “This is what the Lord has commanded you to do, so that that the glory of the Lord may appear to you.” Leviticus 9:6

Holy God, it amazes me that you, in your infinite and powerful ways wants to talk to me. That the God of the universe wants me to come to you each and every day with my needs and my fears. Today I come to you with praise and thanksgiving that you love me so much. Amen

I heard a description of an early “church service” the other day. The first half was open to anyone and featured scripture reading and the teaching of the gospel. Then the pastor would call out, “the doors, the doors” and it was the message to those who were not baptized or confessed believers to leave. The doors would then be closed and the second half of the service commenced. This is when the holy gift of communicating with God began. The church membership would have an “upper room” type meeting with breaking of bread and prayer to the Most Holy One.

What I like about this is that shows reverence to the second greatest blessing God bestowed on us (the first being Jesus’ sacrifice for our sins) – a loving, two-way path communicating with God. A gift given to believers by Jesus and spurred on by the Holy Spirit that lives in the children of God. I’m not suggesting only believers should pray, it’s just an acknowledgement of the seriousness of this gift we’ve been given.

In the Bible verse today, we see the seeds of God’s desire to communicate with us in the priestly ministry of the ancients. God spoke through Moses on how to address Him through sacrifices and other holy activities. He tells the priests in training that when they take these steps, they will see God’s glory revealed to them. The same is true with the gift of prayer.

“One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” Luke 11:1

The disciples, just as in Moses’ day, desired to learn how to communicate with God. How to open up the heavens so they could see the glory of the One Almighty. And so Jesus taught them the prayer I mentioned yesterday, what we call “The Lord’s Prayer.” It starts with reverence, placing God in our hearts and minds rightly where He belongs. It moves on to acknowledging God as the provider of all our needs and our submission to Him. We then ask for forgiveness and to forgive others. And finally for daily guidance.

The gift of prayer is God’s message to us that we are not believers of a god who is unable to do all things, or a god who can’t be trusted, or a god to whom we need to beg to hear us. Before we pray we need to be fully informed of how we view Him. If we don’t believe He is merciful then we might believe He will punish us if we bring our sins to Him. Our prayers should always include a request for wisdom about Him so that when He answers our prayer – which He always does – we will understand the answer and see the glory in His ways.

Today, I want to leave you with this beautiful prayer from King David showing us how to glorify and praise God in all His magnificent ways.

Psalm 63

¹You, God, are my God,
    earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
    my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
    where there is no water.

²I have seen you in the sanctuary
    and beheld your power and your glory.
³Because your love is better than life,
    my lips will glorify you.
⁴I will praise you as long as I live,
    and in your name I will lift up my hands.
⁵I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
    with singing lips my mouth will praise you.

⁶On my bed I remember you;
    I think of you through the watches of the night.
⁷Because you are my help,
    I sing in the shadow of your wings.
⁸I cling to you;
    your right hand upholds me.

⁹Those who want to kill me will be destroyed;
    they will go down to the depths of the earth.
¹⁰They will be given over to the sword
    and become food for jackals.

¹¹But the king will rejoice in God;
    all who swear by God will glory in him,
    while the mouths of liars will be silenced.

He Calls Me Friend

August 21, 2022September 1, 2022 krisshetter

“For all the promises of God find their yes in him. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.” 2 Corinthians 1:20

Perfect and majestic Father! How is it that you open your heavens, reach down and invite us in to your perfect world each and every minute of every day? I don’t want to miss a chance to say “yes!” back to you when you put out your glorious hand to me. Holy Spirit, I RSVP today to you, “Yes and Amen!”

A few weeks ago, my church was studying Proverbs 27 and the theme of friendship which runs throughout it. It hit me how God is always inviting us into relationships that mirror what He wants with us. Jesus, himself, changed the status of His relationship with the disciples in John 15:15 when he said, “No longer do I call you servants…but I have called you friends.”

The role that Jesus plays in the work of the Trinity allows us to create a personal relationship with the most holy of all holies – God almighty. In fact, a few of my friends who have spent years in Christian denominations where fearing God the Father is placed higher than other parts of the Trinity, recently discovered that it’s this close, personal friendship with the Lord that has brought them farther along in their sanctification.

God knows the value of friendships. He has defined what a healthy, beautiful friendship is through His Son, Jesus Christ. Jesus provided gentle honesty, selfless attentiveness, stubborn loyalty, and intentional pursuit. He didn’t overlook sin and He didn’t call out sin without love. He doesn’t lie to us or betray us.

“Iron sharpens iron, and one man sharpens another.” Proverbs 27:17

Jesus didn’t meet a couple of guys, sit around having a beer listening to their woes and their sins then sign off for the day with a “see ya!” He invested. He pursued. He sharpened. Isn’t it amazing that God wants this type of relationship with little ‘ole us?

The sermon that day about friendship featured a pin drop moment. The pastor said, “Me and Jesus, it isn’t enough.” The crowd was silent. We’ve always heard that’s all we need, right? But we were made to be loved and to love. We were made to be in communion with other believers; to be friends, loyal, intentional and wise. We know that because it’s what God wants with us and models for us.

Friend, today ask the Holy Spirit to put someone on your heart to reach out to. Someone that you need to make an effort to get to know. Let’s honor and glorify God by making a new friend to whom we can sharpen and they will sharpen us, in His name.

The First Priority

August 20, 2022August 31, 2022 krisshetter

“Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, ¹⁰so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, ¹¹and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9-12

My Lord and Savior Jesus there is no other above you! You are the touchstone for everything and person in my life. Help me to place my thoughts first on you today, God. There is nothing I should chase after that is placed greater than You. Amen

Misplaced priorities, oh how I have had (have) quite a few. I can easily forgive myself for the years I wasn’t a Christian. Even those years I was a baby Christian I look back upon with grace. But today? Today when I put my yearnings above God there’s really no excuse. I know better. And I find myself doing it anyways. I’m getting better day by day. As my friend Betsy calls it, I’m making imperfect progress.

^“8What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ.” Philippians 3:8

The apostle Paul was certainly a man on fire to give all glory and honor and praise to Jesus. We “normal” folks can sometimes look at the very faithful and think, “I have family that’s going through (fill in the blank) and that needs my attention.” Or even, “My job takes a lot out of me and it’s important work so I don’t have the same time as Paul to devote to my faith.” We can list endless reasons why we aren’t on fire for the Lord. Or worse, we just are ambivalent. Paul was not a man with time on his hands. Although Bible scholars aren’t in total agreement, some believe that at one time he was married. He also had a thriving tent making business which he took on the road during his mission trips. Whatever his full biography was, he clearly placed his everyday activities secondary to God.

I’ve come to finally realize that once I have begun aligning my actions, yearnings, words and more to God’s priorities, life has gotten a lot simpler and clearer. It doesn’t mean it’s easier. However, knowing my highest authority is our Lord, my worries and thoughts get pulled into His ways and purpose.

Friend, if you’re chasing a need or desire that places an earthly object, goal or person above God you are just spinning your wheels. You may get the fame or the fortune but you won’t have the fruit. God alone deserves the highest place of honor and glory in your life. He has no rival; He has no equal. Pursue Him with great passion over everything else and you will see Him at work.

His Abundance

August 17, 2022August 29, 2022 krisshetter

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”  Colossians 1:27

Father God, your riches are boundless, your love endless, and your provisions unending! While I go throughout my day today help me to take my thoughts off the world’s insufficiencies and turn my eyes to your plentiful ways. Amen

It was only a short time ago that most of us worried about the scarcity of one product – toilet paper. It was a man-made problem borne out fear and selfishness. In fact, one day while at a home improvement store I witnessed a man and woman gleefully overloading their pickup truck with hundreds of rolls of toilet paper. I’m sure their plan was to sell most of it and their excitement was over the thousands of dollars they would make. A small part of me hopes they still have a garage full of toilet paper. My husband’s solution to this dire 21^stcentury problem was to install bidets in our bathrooms, therefore eliminating the need for toilet paper. Two points-of-view to the same problem. Scarcity vs. abundance.

We humans have a tendency to always worry about not having enough, whether it be food, water, fuel, trees, love, friends, money, work, or even toilet paper. But God’s plan for us is so completely different. He is always wanting us to model our lives, actions and thoughts to His kingdom—which He shows to be the opposite of scarcity thinking.

"Your love, Lord, reaches to the heavens,
    your faithfulness to the skies.
⁶Your righteousness is like the highest mountains,
    your justice like the great deep.
    You, Lord, preserve both people and animals.
⁷How priceless is your unfailing love, O God!
    People take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
⁸They feast on the abundance of your house;
    you give them drink from your river of delights.
⁹For with you is the fountain of life;
    in your light we see light."  Psalm 36:5-9

You might be thinking, “that all sounds good but what about droughts and food shortages and waning oil reserves?” To that I say, trust God first for He is always about abundance. Throughout scripture, especially in the letters to the churches, we are reminded about the basic lesson of childhood – sharing. (Something the folks in the pickup truck forgot) You see, God provides. He may provide more to you than you need so that you can give to another. He also provides others with knowledge and skills to discover new ways for God to meet our needs. Abundant thinking is always solution-based rather than fear-based.

I learned a valuable “point of view” lesson once from Dr. Laura Schlessinger about marriage. If you always have the perspective that divorce is not an option then you will always find new solutions to marital problems (barring issues with violence and other abuses). It’s the same with God. If we always have the perspective that God is a god of abundance – overflowing with unending love and grace and mercy for us – then we will seek ways to see Him at work. We will see our own abundance as His tools to serve others.

Friend, God’s kingdom is overflowing with milk and honey. When we see the world in a panic over the latest scarcity-based fear we need to turn our eyes to God. His kingdom of abundance is open to all who call Him Savior and for that we should give Him all glory and honor!

Sing Of The Lord

August 13, 2022August 25, 2022 krisshetter

“Glory is his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. “ 1 Chronicles 16:10

Holy God when I seek to worship you through song today help me to distinguish between music that elevates You rather than me. I want to lift up my voice in celebration of You – your glory and majesty and power. Amen

Last year my husband and I were attending a church that had an excellent teaching pastor. However, for various reasons we decided to keep looking for a church that fit more of our needs. We had become friends with the pastor so I felt the need to talk with him about why this church just didn’t seem like the right place to call “home.” Way down on my list was the music. It wasn’t a gamechanger but I included it just for feedback. My comment was that I was sure, because I’ve heard some before, there was music to be sung written after the 1800s. He agreed and replied, “Yes, but I don’t like the ”Jesus Is My Boyfriend” music either.

Music has always played a role in the world’s religions – whether hummed, chanted, drummed, or played in an arena like a rock band. But no other religion finds itself with a songbook as large, widespread and popular as Christianity. We have songs to celebrate the life of Jesus, to thank the Lord for rescuing us, songs to remind us of the pain Jesus suffered for us, songs to inspire us to trust in the Lord and songs to glorify God. And it’s important to pay attention to when we fall into the trap of honoring the work we do rather than the work God does. We also don’t want to reduce Jesus to our “buddy” or as the pastor said, our boyfriend.

"Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works!" Psalm 105:2

This got me thinking about the different types of Christian music and when we should be singing ones that are written solely for the purpose of glorifying God. Now some of you might be thinking, “if it’s Christian music, doesn’t it all do that?” If that’s your initial thought I’d like to challenge you to listen to the words of the favorite songs you hear on the radio, and maybe even in your church. Are the lyrics really about you or about God’s glory, holiness, power and authority? Here’s a popular song by Phil Wickham that I have in my Christian playlist:

"I searched through the Earth for something that could satisfy
A peace for the hurt I had buried deep inside
Knees on the floor, I finally found everything I needed
You lifted my soul and opened up my eyes

I never knew anything lasts forever
Till I found You, till I found You
I never dreamed anything could be better
Till I found You, till I found You
You're rewriting my story
And I'm brand new like a morning
Oh, I never knew anything lasts forever
Till I found You
Till I, till I found You"

In just these few lines the word “I” or “my” is repeated 16 times. So who are we really singing about here? This song is perfect for expressing to the world how we were changed by our faith. But it is not really a song glorifying God.

When my youngest was a teenager, she thought it funny when she would play a song in the car that had cuss words in it. She wanted to see my reaction. She didn’t think a few bad words here and there were important. “It’s just a song,” she once said. We are challenged, as Christians to watch everything that leaves our mouths, even songs. What we have running on repeat in our head reflects where our heart lies. When we come into worship are we singing about ourselves or our savior?

When I selected the music for my wedding, I took care in the messages I wanted to send to my guests about this beautiful union. Today, when I think of a song to sing glorifying God I want to take the same care. To focus on Him, not me.

Here’s a few modern songs that glorify God. Do you have a favorite song that glorifies God? Add it in the comments!

Only A God by City Alight

Holy, Holy, Holy (various artists)

Worthy of It All by CeCe Winans

Ancient of Days by City Alight

Revelation Song by Kari Jobe

Agnus Dei (Lamb of God) by Michael W. Smith

What A Beautiful Name by Hillsong Worship & Brooke Ligertwood

Our Outward Reverence

August 12, 2022August 24, 2022 krisshetter

“And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 3:18

“Holy Spirit, today as I stand looking into my closet in deciding what to wear today help me to not only have an inward Christ-like life but also an outward one so that I may completely glorify God in all I show the world. Amen”

I know it’s not fashionable or even politically correct these days to say things like, “the clothes make the man (or woman) but in the not too distant past this was understood as fact. This well documented human behavior actually acknowledges a role in what our outward appearance says to the world. You may think things have changed because of culture or “at home work” but human psychology is a pretty stubborn thing. Don’t take my word for it.

“Through our clothing, we can send each other silent cues that signal to others how we expect them to treat us. This works because we tend to make very quick assessments of situations and people and put them into categories that we already understand. This cognitive shortcut, known as representative bias, saves us precious computational energy.”
Sarah C. Newcomb Ph.D., Psychology Today

And in a 2012 study done through Northwestern University, researchers found that wearing certain clothes exerts influence through symbolic meaning. So, when, as Christians, we leave the house each day do we ever consider what message we are sending out to our neighbors, the folks at the grocery store, at church or at the beach by our clothing choices? That’s not to say we should be covered head to toe in some sort of hijab – the Bible doesn’t ask that of us women.

^“20you were bought at a price. Therefore, honor God with your bodies.” 1 Corinthians 6:20

Jesus wants us to present ourselves with honor in front of God. That means we clean ourselves off and cover our private bits up. When my youngest was home from college her last summer she wanted to find a modest one piece bathing suit. Quite the change from her bikini days. When asked why, she said she wanted to be more modestly dressed around her Christian boyfriend. That’s the Holy Spirit work in a believer!

Friend, when we leave our homes and go out into the world, we are God’s representatives. And when we attend church, we should present our best as though receiving an audience in front of the king. We glorify Him through our modesty of outward appearance and exuberance of inward love.

Wow, Just Wow…

August 10, 2022August 24, 2022 krisshetter

"Who among the gods is like you, Lord?  Who is like you – majestic in holiness, awesome in glory, working wonders?" Exodus 15:11

“Wow, God, just wow. Amen”

A few weeks ago, I was travelling across country by plane. My headphones were plugged in, my video played loud enough so I wouldn’t hear anyone around me. My snacks were laid out and my drink delivered. I was set up in my little bubble. We were heading west, chasing the falling sun.

About halfway on my journey my eyes took a break from my Ipad screen to look out the window. I expected to see a muted landscape below flying by without much interest. Instead, I was treated to the glory of God. We found ourselves skimming the tops of a blanket of cotton. Fluffy white clouds just below our plane for as far as your eyes could see. Because we were so close it made our airspeed more obvious. As my eyes adjusted to this phenomenon, I could almost feel the weight press me back into my seat like on a roller coaster. And we floated. Yes, that’s what it felt like. Floating through the heavens. Some unseen force was blowing us across the sky skimming the cotton fields. And the majesty of God was present in all His glory!

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1

As I sat there watching the clouds fly beneath us, I couldn’t help but smile and thank God for such beauty. It felt as though if I could just reach through the window I would touch the Father. I can’t explain why exactly it felt different than other times I’ve seen clouds from a plane. But it seemed as though God were putting on a show for us. There was no beautiful sunset. No purple and rose sky. Just white clouds slightly below and blue sky above. And all I could say to God was, “wow….”

At that moment I realized the huge difference between believers and those who refuse to acknowledge that everything in our lives has been created. They could look out the window and think, “hey that’s really pretty.” But I looked out the window and said, “wow, what a cool thing You have done!”

I mean imagine walking up to the painting masterpiece by Piero della Francesca, “The Resurrection,” called the most beautiful painting in the world by famed author Aldous Huxley, and saying, “Hey that’s kinda pretty. It must’ve happened by accident. Some cosmic dust or something. Like maybe there was a canvas and some paint fell from a window and people accidentally stepped on it and ‘voila’ a painting is made.” There’d be no credit to the master painter. No recognition of his ability or desire to create something beautiful for the world to see.

But there is always a creator. And God is the ultimate Creator. Our recognition of that fact brings an awe inspiring sunset into clearer view. It allows us to see the Grand Canyon from a new perspective. That brief encounter I had on the plane that late afternoon with God’s glory and creation almost brought me to tears. Of joy. Knowing He loves making beautiful things whether we are present to see them or not.