12-20-2015

Good Morning All!!     

         Isaiah 40:15; “Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are accounted as the dust on the scales; behold, he takes up the coastlands like fine dust.”

    There is a joke that I often think of when I am dealing with difficult people.  “It seems that now that the Hubble telescope has been in space for a while and with the use of space voyaging satellites and with the new supercomputers, scientists are able to probe even deeper into space at distances from earth that truly baffles the mind.  With this understanding, I have good news and bad news.  The good news is that scientists are certain they have found the center of the universe.  The bad news is that it is not you.”   Perhaps you know someone who would be crushed to find out that the world, even the universe, does not revolve around them.

   Many people, especially many US citizens, think the world revolves around them.  We see it in many forms.  People who demand to be waited on first regardless of who is already there.  We see it in the way everyone is complaining that they are offended by almost everything.  We see it in the self-centeredness expressed throughout our social media.  We hear it in how people speak of God.  “The God I believe in would…”  I hate to break this to these people but God does not exist to serve you; you exist because God created you.

    We see it in how we pray.  When we pray for something and do not receive it, do we complain to God for failing to meet our “needs” or do we see that God has something better in mind for us and we only need to wait for God’s love to pour over us.  For some, this will shake them.  For many think it is all about them.  This is as old as Adam and Eve and who sits on the throne, you or God.  For some, they will simply deny the truth.  They would rather try and control and manipulate God.  The problem for them here is that you cannot do either of these things and eventually you will be frustrated and feel lost and alone.

    Yet for those who know God as their creator, for those who know that God is so far above us that He is in complete and total control; you can take comfort in His ways.  We can take comfort in the certainty that all things are in his hands.  There is nothing that exceeds him.  When we combine the knowledge of the greatness of God with his nature of love, shown to us in Jesus, we can have peace.  We can have peace because God loves us and is in control of all events.  No event in our life is beyond our loving God.  There is no pain he cannot heal; there is no sorrow he cannot console. 

    The center of the universe is easy to find; it is God.  It is God that creates, sustains, redeems and re-creates all of creation.  His loving-kindness carries us, comforts us and gives us the certainty of our salvation that we may live in his hope.

Almighty Father, in you are all our needs met.  We have no need to fear for you are with us.  You give us all we need and you comfort us in our fear.  Guide us by your Spirit to always know that you are God and that you have promised to prosper your people.  In the precious name of Jesus we pray, amen.

God’s Peace,

Pastor Bret