From the very beginning man has been on a mission to subdue and rule over the earth, ” God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.” – Gen 1:28
We have been fruitful, we have increased in number to the 6 billion people range. We have traversed and mapped the face of the earth. There are few places that have not known the presence of people. We have categorized and captured many of the fish of the sea, birds of the air and creatures of the ground. We have searched out the depths of the ocean. We have flown across the skies. We have even made it into outer space and walked on the moon. We have even made tremendous strides in understanding the human body, genome, and brain. Things once explained as the deeds of the divine have now been explained by nature. What was once unpredictable has been predicted.
The result? Our sense of wonder has been stolen. We have answers and with that comes a perceived sense of control. What do we have left to restore our sense of awe and wonder?
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It’s sad, isn’t it?
And yet in the midst of all of that, the other night the Lord reminded me of just how Almighty and powerful He really is. Driving home from a rehearsal at church we were caught up in a lightning storm. We pulled over at a scenic outlook to watch and were mesmerized by the bolts of lightning piercing the night sky. They were so bright and coming in such rapid succession that we were overwhelmed.
Once it slowed down a bit, we decided to head home. We no sooner hit the road than the rain began in earnest. Nothing out of the ordinary at first, but then it began coming in sheets… torrential downpours like we have never experienced. Branches started dropping onto the road and vehicle from the trees, shaken from their place by the wind and rain. We pulled over and waited it out a bit, then resumed our drive home.
It was amazing. I was reminded that regardless of my type A control freak personality, I am not the One in control. My Heavenly Father holds the lightning in His fist and HE thunders down from Heaven… and keeps me safe in the midst of the storm. And for a time… my sense of wonder and my awe of Him was restored. I thank Him for that.
Have you ever seen the show “Blue Planet” I saw it the other day on the Discovery channel or one of the other ones but my wife and I were in utter awe as we watched it. We were also reminded of the wonder of our Creator even though most of the scientists were stating that the underwater depths is where life began. You see fish and other things that one could not see unless in some special submarine bit some of the beautiful colors that these fish displayed told me that it was God’s design. The one good thing is that the more man finds out about his surroundings should fill us with awe and wonder because they do speak of the work of the Master. I am still amazed that man is not reminded of GOd everyday by all the other planets and moons that are not like earth and we just happen to be here on a planet that is able to sustain us. Well thats my two cents. Great post. I was thinking about that and Romans ch 1 this morning so I was walking in that direction too.
Our problem is not always our sense of accomplishment, but also our inability to slow down. It’s hard to see the amazing God and His creation at 100 mph. Also, we’ve grown comfortable with God. I see 1000’s of sunsets, so one more doesn’t do that much for me anymore. I think it’d be interesting to see our change in awe if the birds only sung one day a year and if you could only see the sunset one day a year. I’m guessing we’d take the day off to hear the birds and watch the sunset. And then, we’d remember the awesomeness of God.
The advancement of scientific knowledge doesn’t steal our sense of wonder. I think it actually increases our wonder and awe, because such advancement only reveals the true extent and magnificence of God’s accomplishemnt.I remember in a college biology class I once took, the professor, attempting to demonstrate the complexity of the human eye, said that one of the pioneers of developmental anatomy, confronted with the increasing knowledge of mammalian anatomy which his studies were revealing to him, actually renounced science and became a priest. I can’t cite this scientist’s name, because I took the class twelve years ago and have forgotten. But I’ve never forgotten that little anecdote the professor used to illustrate his point. And this was not a religious university I attended; it was Arizona State University, a public, secular university.
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Thank you all for sharing your experiences that remind us of the power and presence of God. I think it is important to tell these kind of stories to each other.
Also, along with Scott, I think the more we study the more we are humbled by what little things we just can’t quite figure out. God’s ways are certainly higher than our own. I think scientists often equate knowledge with mastery. Knowledge is only being able to describe someone else’s mastery, God’s. God made all these things and we just observe.
Things that give me a sense of awe and wonder:
-the birth of a perfect little human being
-the same stars and moon shining on me in Tennesse at night that shine on my daughter and son-in-law in Canada reminding me of God’s greatness
-random acts of kindness by strangers
-unconditional love of God and family and friends
-the bird’s eye view of the earth from an airplane
-being blessed far more than I deserve!
Do you think that wonderment and pure joy at the simple experience is part of the “child-like-ness” that makes good Kingdom occupants?
Peace
neva
I go places that make me feel small and important all at the same time.
Nature is humbling. At the same time we can feel greatness in knowing God created these things to amaze us.