“Awesome, simply awesome”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Saturday, November 26, 2022
Psalm 104 (Forward, p. 28) CEV p. 618
I don’t know how anyone can fail to be humbled—and awestruck—by the wonders of creation, whether they be the beauty, majesty and intricacy of this planet Earth and its creatures, or the splendour and awesome detail and expanse of the heavens. I certainly have been humbled—and made to feel very small indeed--by such things as a mountain vista or waterfall, or by a seashore scene, or by the aurora borealis, the northern lights. Sadly, in our frantic busyness, and in our cloistered urban environments, far too often we miss out on such things. Here, our First Nations peoples, with their reverence and profound respect for the creation, have much to teach us. Perhaps, after their example and teachings, we should slow down, take it in, and treat it with more respect and care. And, surprising as it might seem, I think that even the most ‘devout’ of our evolutionists, who don’t see the hand of God in any of this, have a certain respect for nature as they try to describe and explain how all of this came to be, albeit entirely by chance and randomness and with no guiding hand and no guiding principle.
But for those of us who believe in God and believe that His wonderfully creative and astute hand is behind all of this, how even more wonderful it is. To us, it illustrates His wisdom, His incredible organization and planning, and His unbelievable care for us and our world and universe. To think, how wonderfully precise it is, from the tilt of the earth, to its location in terms of the sun or the solar system, to the effects of the moon and planets upon its life, to the tectonic forces that effect the earth’s crust, all of it works together wonderfully to make possible the earth we live on and the life we know. And what, most surely, should be our response, not to worship the earth or its creatures, but to worship the One who put it all into place, for truly, what He has made is awesome, simply awesome. And so, He alone is worthy of our praise and worship and honour, both now and for all time. Amen.
Forward notes: “You send the springs into the valleys; they flow between the mountains. All the beasts of the field drink their fill from them, and the wild asses quench their thirst. Beside them the birds of the air make their nests and sing among the branches. You water the mountains from your dwelling on high; the earth is fully satisfied by the fruit of your works. You make grass grow for flocks and herds and plants to serve mankind; that they may bring forth food from the earth, and wine to gladden our hearts” (verses 10-15).
“American author Stephen Crane once wrote a novelette entitled The Open Boat. It’s the story of a ship’s crew lost at sea and fighting desperately against the overwhelming machine of the ocean tides.
“The psalms have all the attributes of great ancient poetry. There’s the humble acknowledgement of human frailty and the overwhelming grandeur and mystery of the created world. And there is the recognition that above it all is the supreme providence of the Divine. All things are dependent on God: the inanimate world, the animal kingdom, and the human family. Nothing can exist without God’s hand.”
Moving Forward: “What poem or song reminds you of the Divine? Share it with us at #ForwardDaybyDay.”