God's Handiwork

"O LORD, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, behold, O LORD, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is too high, I cannot attain to it. Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, "Surely the darkness will overwhelm me, and the light around me will be night, even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day, darkness and light are alike to You. For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother's womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them. How precious also are Your thoughts to me, O God! How vast is the sum of them! If I should count them, they would outnumber the sand when I awake, I am still with You." Psalm 139:1-18

Last night I came across Psalm 139. I LOVE this Psalm and how it speaks of how intimately God knows us. God know our every thought, word and deed. We cannot hide from Him. Yet, here despite knowing all that the psalmist is still asking the Lord to examine his life and soul. I also love how the Lord has known us from the moment we were conceived. I saw on a PBS show once that we are who we are from the moment the cells form. It's an amazing thought!!!

Another amazing thought is creation. Yesterday I took the kids to North Creek Park. It has a boardwalk that snakes around wetlands where you see wildlife. We had so much fun listening to and seeing all the different birds. You felt God's handiwork in it all. Even down to the sun warming up the grass and having it crackle and pop under it's warmth. God is our creator and we are blessed to have been created and live in a beautiful world He created for us.

It always saddens me to think that people see the same things I do and yet still say there is no God. The wetlands we walked through is literally a life cycle for the earth, animals and plants. It's plain to see that someone had to create it. This morning my devotional touched upon this very thing.

"For I know whom I have believed . . ." II Tim 1:12

A most unusual incident occurred in colorful Mexico City a few years ago. A famous artist has painted a beautiful picture, and it was being displayed upon the walls of a new, ultramodern hotel. The scene was of one of the charming beautify spots of the country landscape. It depicted with lucid clarity the rolling country landscape, quiet fields, purling streams and a touch of virgin forest, carpeted with gorgeous flowers.

"Across the top of the canvas four words were painted which stood out in bold outline. They were these: 'God Does Not Exist.' A strange bit of lettering to be found on such a famous work of art!

"Spellbound visitors surged past the painting every day.

"One evening a large group of young men entered the lobby of the hotel and made their way down the corridor to the room that housed the painting. They quietly calmly removed paint cans and brushes from kits strapped to their shoulders and were soon busily at work. No one but those in the room could see what was going on; the air was freighted with suspense. Suddenly they stepped back and again the throng pressing against the doorway caught a glimpse of the masterpiece. At first they could see no change, but continued scrutiny revealed that the words in the caption had been brushed completely from the canvass and what were the words? 'Does Not Exist.' One word remained - 'God.'

"The group quietly but with the stride of conquerors, left the hotel. The onlookers stared in awe. Under the soft lights which were thrown upon the picture, that one glorious word was emblazoned - it shone like a brilliant in a monarch's crown.

"More than anything else that may be needed - more than changed conditions, more than release from pressure, is a vigorous faith in God - a rediscovery of Him who knows the paths of a hundred million stars and knows the way through every valley or difficulty and over every mountain of trial. Renew confidence in God; rediscover God, the mighty God - a match for mighty needs!" - Mrs. Charles E. Cowman, "Streams in the Desert Volume 2"

I pray that we will rediscover our Lord and Savior. That we will look with new eyes upon the earth He created and all the beauty within it. That we will see each person as a treasure created by a loving God. That we may desire to serve them and show them that the God who created them loves them.

Krista Jones
3.9.08