Scripture:
“Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory in the heavens.” - Psalm 8:1
Thought for the day:
I remember the first time I went “elkin’” in Benezette, Pa. I had never witnessed elk in the wild and I was amazed! The beauty of creation was right there for all to see and folks came from all around to pay homage to these magnificent creatures.
Two things caught my attention quickly: first, I was amazed at the audacity of some people who were trying vainly to “call” the elk. The pathetic attempts to “speak” elk made me chuckle as I pondered what an elk might think of those people. The second thing that amazed me was the lack of respect some people had in their approach to these animals. Yes, they are beautiful! Yes, they are magnificent! They are also wild and unpredictable! Signs were everywhere telling people to stay on the paths and keep their distance, yet there were a few people roaming through the woods, even attempting to feed the animals. Dangerous...
At any rate, I begin to think that perhaps this is how we treat God. We make our pathetic attempts to speak with the Creator of all things and I sometimes wonder at the audacity of my prayers. Yet God chooses to answer me. Occasionally, I find myself treating God as if he were a lapdog: cute, cuddly, even controllable. I sometimes forget that, in the words of Chris Tomlin, our God is “indescribable, uncontainable, all powerful, untamable, incomparable and unchangeable” and yet God covets our attention. Amazing!
Nonetheless, let us never forget that our God is not to be toyed with. We must always approach the Lord of Life with humility and respect, remembering that the presence of God is, in itself, an act of majestic grace.
Live in awe of the Almighty in all that you do, remember always just how wonderful and how marvelous our God really is and then pay him homage with all that you are and all that you have.
Prayer for the day:
O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! Empower my life to pay homage to you with all that I am and all that I have. Amen.