Our congregation Our nation, leaders and military

Various friends, relatives and co-workers James and Leon in the Army

Yevette’s dad is recovering from cancer surgery Yevette will be with him for a few more days

and gall bladder surgery.

EVENTS: SUMMER YOUTH SERIES (7 pm)

July 17 - First Colony (Rob Duncan, LCU)

July 24 - Bammel (Lipscomb)

July 31 - Southeast (ACU, Acappella)

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth" (Genesis 1:1).

One of the most powerful songs we know is "How Great Thou Art" because it says so much to us. Written in the late 1800s, it still speaks to us in a number of ways. Just consider the first verse.

O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder

First, it is a song of praise to God. David often addressed God in similar terms. "Praise be to you, Lord, the God of our father Israel…" (1 Chronicles 29:10). Or as Jesus taught us to pray: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name" (Matthew 6:9). Second, the author of the song is observant. He looks around and up. Back in the 1800s, there were few ways to observe the sky, day or night. Some planets had been discovered but mostly people could only observe the wonders of the night sky. Of course, scripture often uses the idea of the heavens as illustrations. God answers Job with a series of questions about creation in chapters thirty-eight and thirty-nine. The most famous was that star seen in the east by some wise men (Matthew 2). Today, however, we have progressed to literally see the heavens. The Hubble Telescope in space has opened up new worlds to us; amazing sights that astonish us. When pictures are sent back from various probes, we marvel at the sights of distant planets we only know by name; the rings of Saturn and the atmosphere of Jupiter. Beyond that, the author appeals to weather. David wrote of the God of the storm (Psalm 29).

We have talked about this before. A number of people have in recent years been studying and encouraging Christians to develop what is known as the "Christian disciplines." Among the subjects involved are prayer, reading and mediating on scripture, and observing in quiet. One of the ideas is to go out to a park or field and sit under a tree and observe creation, reading a portion of scripture and thinking about what God has in mind. The writer of the song certainly had that idea. Too often we are to busy to stop and smell the roses, both literally and figuratively. This past spring I really enjoyed the blue bonnets along the highway as we drove to New Mexico. And I enjoyed the barren environment of some of West Texas. We just got back from a five thousand mile trip in which we saw a variety of terrian, including in particular seven God created wonders and one man made; all of which we marvel and stand in awe. We live in a huge city and forget that there is a big world out there that God has created. But even in town, a rose, a frog or squirrel can cause wonder. That would cause us to sing, "How Great Thou Art!"

The second verse continues the thought of creation.

When through the woods and forest glades I wander,

Have you been for a walk lately? Have you sat outside and listened to the birds? When Yevette and I were first married, living in Lubbock, Texas, the fall was just not very exciting. Oh, there was football but it just wasn’t what I was use to. Lubbock has few trees and is flat all around. Now don’t get me wrong, it is a great place to live. Even there, a dust storm was an amazing sight as it rolled in from the west. Yevette could not understand my down time in the fall until we moved to Maryland. Fall was an exciting time. The air was crisp and the trees were changing from green to bright colors of various shades of red, brown and orange. The cycle of life that God has created is seen year after year, from birth to life to death and returning after a sleepy winter. Even winter is an amazing thing. A moon lit night with fresh snow on the ground is an absolutely amazing sight! And it is true when looking at the grandeur from the top of Pike’s Peak. On a clear day one could see two hundred miles to Kansas and New Mexico. So inspiring is this sight that Katherine Lee Bates was moved to write America, the Beautiful after visiting the Peak.

That leads the author of the song to us. The Psalmist has the same reaction concerning humans; that God would even consider us.

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing,

This is our awesome God! Paul reminds us that God created the world for a reason and that people have forgotten both God and the reason. Given choice, humanity chose to leave God in disobedience but God knew that could happen, so He planned before creation a means of redemption and renewed fellowship. God took this initiative. He didn’t have to but His love is so great, that He was willing to give that we might live. Love is seeking the best for another even if it means dying for them. "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16).

Why would God care for us? He has a universe to look over. Answers to that have led to various ideas. One is that God is off dealing with the universe and we are on our own. This deistic view is appealing to self-reliant humans but God knows what we need before we ask (see Matthew 6:25-34). He knows the number of hairs on our heads and when a sparrow falls to the ground. We are valuable to Him and He is actively involved in our lives. Just because we cannot see Him doesn’t mean He is not working. In an effort to prove modern day miracle workers false, we have gone to the other extreme. Maybe that is why we have lost sight of God and why we need to get out and look at creation again. Then again, we will be drawn to the cross of Jesus Christ and see the redemption of our loving Father.

Others say that He doesn’t care or He would do something about evil. The cross answers that if one is willing to listen. Jesus was tempted like we are yet without sin (see Hebrews 4:15). He understands suffering, pain, loneliness, rejection and a host of other human problems. We rarely understand why people die (the cycle of life is just one idea), why others suffer and the wicked have wealth. We struggle with evil not really wanting to come to grips with it in our own lives. That calls for an internal search (see Psalm 139), and we really don’t want to see what is inside us. Once we come face to face with our own sins, then we can better see why Jesus died for us.

It is also a song of hope.

When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation,

The Lord is returning and all will bow before Him (see Philippians 2:11 and 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). When Paul wrote to the Roman Colony in Philippi, the challenge was that Jesus is Lord and not Caesar. That same challenge is for us as well. Jesus is Lord and no one else is. One can voluntarily bow in faith to Jesus as Lord or wait until there is no choice. There will be no excuses, no searching for a "God gene" that somehow did not get activated. God has not left Himself without witnesses. The historical reliable and theologically sound scriptures point us to the witnesses. Jesus and His resurrection is one. The changed lives of twelve men who went out, and in the face of all kinds of dangers, proclaimed Jesus as Lord. Then there is creation itself. Many choose to ignore the evidence. The appeal of the Da Vinci Code is that of self-discovery and self-reliance rather than depending totally on the Lord of the universe.

Revelation gives us glimpses into heaven. We see angels and people gathered around the throne of God praising Him and singing how great He is! Today we can sing,

Then sings my soul, my Savior God to Thee;

Now or then, we continue to recognize the greatness and awesomeness of God. Sing out, for that too is a witness to our God and Father in heaven.

George B. Mearns