Dec 28, 2013

Awesome Wonder

We say a lot of things are awesome. Awesome car. Awesome football game. Awesome book. But do we really mean awesome? Do we even know what that is? We do the same with wonder. The waiter at dinner last night responded "wonderful" to each order we placed and request we made. Was it really wonderful that I ordered tortilla soup? (In his defense, the margarita was, in fact, wonderful.)

Awesome means "extremely impressive or daunting; inspiring great admiration, apprehension or fear."
Wonder means "a feeling of surprise mingled with admiration, caused by something beautiful, unexpected, unfamiliar or inexplicable."

When was the last time you were so impressed by something that it caused apprehension at it's greatness? When were you last surprised by something so beautiful that you paused in admiration? The football game was thrilling, exciting, impressive...but I didn't shake in fear of its greatness. The margarita, even, wasn't so beautiful it surprised me. 

Have you ever, truly, had your breath taken away? Not in a romantic sense. Have you stood honestly, completely speechless? I'm not sure we ever stop long enough to be impressed. I'm not sure we are ever humble enough to admit that maybe there are things we can't explain. I'm afraid we are so used to "the next big thing" that truly big things aren't recognized and respected.

If you have a moment, no matter what you are doing, feeling or believe. Let yourself be in awe for a brief moment...

There is a God so powerful that when He speaks, light appears and universes are formed.
Because He designed it to do so, the earth spins on its axis without fail.
The sun is just the right distance away so as to give nourishment but not scorch the earth. 
He created the expanse of the sky and the tiniest molecules that make up the air we breathe.
You were grown in your mother's womb because her body was first designed with the organs to do so.
There are millions of factors that must line up perfectly to conceive and form a human - it is impossible to do so by coincidence.
A baby breathes liquid for 9 months yet within seconds of birth can inhale oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide.
Your heart beats almost 80 times a minute. It knows to slow or quicken based on stress and temperature level. It beats over 100,000 times per day without you actively knowing or telling it to do so.
Your brain functions not by chance but by intricate design. It processes information equivalent to over 250 mph and generates enough power to light a lightbulb.
There is a God so powerful that you are, right now, breathing, pumping blood and processing information while the earth spins and the sun gives light...and you did nothing to ensure any of it.
There is a God so powerful that seasons change and clouds absorb water and release it.
That same God with the power to create and take life knows you.
He created every cell; He designed every vessel.
That God with the power to create universes also created your ability to feel.
It's awe-inspiring enough that He is big; it's unfathomable that He cares about every tear you cry.
He didn't just create you.
He loves you.
He doesn't just love you, He CHOSE to enter the very world He created to be with you.
He could sit on high and watch you struggle, but He loves you enough to know every detail.
He loves you.
He doesn't just love you, He CHOSE to die so that when you leave earth you get to be with Him.
He loves you.
The God who created the universe loves you.
Can you even wrap your mind around that?

THAT'S awesome. THAT fills me with wonder and apprehension and fear.


O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder
consider all the works thy hand hath made,
I see the stars, I hear the mighty thunder,
thy power throughout the universe displayed:

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God; to thee,
How great thou art, how great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God; to thee,
How great thou art, how great thou art!

But when I think that God, his Son not sparing,
sent him to die-I scarce can take it in
that on the cross, our burden gladly bearing,
he bled and died to take away our sin;

When Christ shall come with shout of acclamation
and take me home-what joy shall fi1l my heart!
Then shall I bow in humble adoration,
and there proclaim: My God, how great thou art!

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God; to thee,
How great thou art, how great thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Saviour God; to thee,
How great thou art, how great thou art!

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