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Grandeur in Brooks and Breezes

Lofty Mountain Granduer

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
   And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
   And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

How Great Thou Art
By: Carl Gustaf Boberg (1859-1940)

Listen to this interesting violin arrangement as you read.  And Subscribers and Free Members be sure to experience the worship-cultivating podcast below.

The greatness of God is always on display around us, but we seldom take the time to appreciate it.  I pray today’s blog helps you create a few minutes to cultivate a greater awareness of the greatness of our God.  That’s why Resonant 7 exists.  May He give your the perspective you need to see, hear and feel His power on display all around you today.  Let’s think about this.

When I Look Down

I had the opportunity to drive to the top of Pike’s Peak with my oldest son two years ago.  Some of those switchbacks would put the fear of God in just about any honest soul.  As we stood out near the edge at a couple of the stops on the way down it was truly breath-taking.  My heart filled with praise.  Lofty mountain grandeur indeed.  It was a sight to behold!

For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind, and declares to man what is his thought, who makes the morning darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth— the Lord, the God of hosts, is his name!  Amos 4:13 ESV 

One of my favorite words is perspective.  Years ago as I prepared to head off to seminary a dear friend took me up a mountain to the foot of a large cross outside of Uniontown, Pennsylvania in the Allegheny Mountains.  He encouraged me to look over at the town, miles and miles away.  He then challenged me with the thought of how small a problem can become with different perspective.  You see, as you walk the streets of town a problem can seem enormous, but when you get a few thousand feet above it suddenly it becomes smaller.

The One who made the mountains also made me.  He knows what I am made of, and is familiar with my limitations.  If I am willing to get His perspective on anything it can inform my response.

What do you need a different perspective on today?  What situation right now has you overwhelmed by it’s magnitude? Are you willing to see it in light of the greatness of God?  Maybe getting a few thousand feet above it will change how you see it.  Take a moment to do that right now.

See the Brook

What Do You See?

So the mountaintop perspective can be very helpful.  But you can not live there.  It is too sparse.  You need to come down from it’s lofty grandeur and live in the place where your life flows freely.

You need to get down where you can see the brook in the valley.  Appreciate its refreshing nature.  Be calmed by the tranquil trickling of its water.  Find restoration in its life-giving flow.

What restores you?  I am referring particularly to your soul.  When your soul is weary and parched, what brings you refreshment?

  He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
  He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.  Psalm 23:2-3 ESV

I find restoration in being alone.  Part of it is the quiet.   Another is the solitude.  I think more clearly, and ultimately find myself, in my deepest places, more in tune with God there.  I see Him in other ways, places and times, but none quite like those quiet ones.

There are many paths to this place of rest renewal.  Do you know yours?  If not, ask God to help you identify your streams of living water.  If so, have you been there lately? Get there today even if only for a short time.

Feel the Gentle Breeze

Feel the Breeze

There are a couple that really stand out to me.  Those sweltering days when there is no air moving and suddenly to of nowhere comes the relief of a little moving air.  Then there are those days when winter is still holding on but you hear a rustling of the wind and as it engulfed you the warmth and scent of spring seem to overwhelm you.

When have you noticed that gentle breeze?

The imagery of the wind here reminds me of the Holy Spirit.  Jesus told Nicodemus in John 3 that ‘The wind blows where it wishes and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from or where it is going; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”  The gentle breeze of the breath of God, the Holy Spirit.

I heard this illustration years ago.  You can not see the wind, but you see the effects of it.  You see the leaves swaying and the tress bending.  The same is true of the Spirit.  You see the impact He has, but can not trace His form.

And you can feel Him.  You may not be able to explain it with words, or even teach someone else how to identify it, but when the Holy Spirit is moving in your life, like the wind through the trees, you can not deny it.

Ask the Holy Spirit to blow through your life today.  When you do, be ready.  As you see the evidence of His moving, first identify it, then join Him in it.  Our Great God wants to put His glory on display in your life today.  Open your life to see and feel it.

Father, thank You putting Your greatness on display in creation, and in my life.  Help me to hear, see and feel your activity all around me.  Forgive me for the times I have been inattentive to Your creativity and activity.  In Jesus’ name.   Amen.

Sensitive Thinking!

Are these thoughts helping you to develop greater spiritual awareness?  Sign-up in the form to the right above to get updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Below is content always available to Subscribers, sometimes to Free Members, but occasionally to everyone.  Want to learn more about accessing all the additional material in the Subscriber Content Library, click here.  Or check out some other samples at our Free Member Content Library.  We have lots of tools and lots of options designed to help you be Resonant!  Check them out today!!

Subscribers and Free Members enjoy this podcast and everyone the transcript below! It features meditative music and moments to contemplate the Scriptures shared.

Podcast 10.2 Transcript

Welcome to Thursday Thoughts at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s think about this.

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,

Psalm 96:12 Living Bible (TLB)

Praise him for the growing fields, for they display his greatness. Let the trees of the forest rustle with praise.

I love the way this is paraphrased.  Fields displaying His greatness, trees rustling with praise.  Creation declaring His worthiness. When did you last just wander along in God’s handiwork? Recall it and make it a point to do so again soon.

    And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.

Psalm 104:12 ESV 

Beside them the birds of the heavens dwell; they sing among the branches.

When was the last time you got quiet enough to just listen?  Chances are when you did you could probably hear the singing of some birds, and maybe some insects too.  What an ordinary reminder of the extraordinary creativity of our God.  Ask Him to help you learn to listen.

When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur

Amos 4:13 ESV 

For behold, he who forms the mountains and creates the wind, and declares to man what is his thought, who makes the morning darkness, and treads on the heights of the earth— the Lord, the God of hosts, is his name!

Few things in creation make me feel so small as the majestic mountains.  How kind of God to form some clay into them, other clay into us, while all of it displays His greatness.  Tell Him, “Thank You for making mountains and me!”  

  And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

Psalm 23:2-3 ESV

  He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
  He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

The power in the previous line and the gentleness in this one juxtaposes two of God’s greatest qualities.  Creator God made it all. Shepherd God cares for it all. One and the same God, for you. Praise Him for the restorative properties of still waters and gentle breezes.

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
   And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
   And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

Image Attributions
Lofty Mountain Granduer – https://pixabay.com/photos/adventure-altitude-backpack-climb-1850912/
Hear the Brook – https://pixabay.com/photos/stream-river-water-brook-nature-541707/
Feel the Breeze – https://pixabay.com/photos/grass-white-breeze-field-spring-520912/

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Greatness in Forests and Feathers

The Woods

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
   And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
   And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

How Great Thou Art
By: Carl Gustaf Boberg (1859-1940)

Listen to this awesome electric guitar version as you read.  Subscribers make sure to check out the video log below which will guide you through a worshipful reflection of this stanza.  Everyone else check out the transcript at the end.

We continue to game into God’s greatness by shifting our focus from the heavens to the earth.  I love spending a couple weeks on the way God reveals Himself through creation, working from the cosmos to the this sphere on which we live.  We will look at redemption and consummation in the coming weeks, but for now, let’s consider God’s glory as revealed in trees and birds.  Let’s tune our hearts.

The Woods

So what do the woods in your minds eye look like?  Close your eyes and allow that image to become clear.  Do you have it?  Hold on to it for a moment.

They are not all the same.  There are many different kinds of woods.  Some are so thick you can barely walk through them.  Some so dense that you can hardly see the ground.  Some foreboding and mysterious, others bright and inviting.

And there are different seasons as well.  The same woods are not the same across all of them.  In the fall, they are crisp and crunchy with the changing and freshly fallen leaves.  In the winter, stark and barren.  In the spring, new life bursts forth everywhere and in the summer the growth is often lush and thick.

So when you think of the woods, what kind of image comes to mind?  Recall that image you created above.  There will be as many different variations of woods as there are readers.  The remarkable thing is that God reveals His greatness not only in the variety, but in the way each of us perceives each nuance.  You are as unique as each vista of every patch of woods across this creation, and God made it all to declare His greatness.  Wow!

Praise God for the wonder of the woods!  The way that you can see Him in each view is a gift.  Cherish it every chance you get.

Forest Glades

Forest Glades

Through the first section we considered the variety of woods, but in this section I would like to ponder our journey through them.  The first image above shows a clear path.  The image here does not.  This is a reflection of life.

Sometimes our wandering through creation is very deliberate and we can clearly see where to plant our foot next.  It seems obvious where we are going.  Almost as if a path had been clearly marked out for us.  Those times are comforting and simpler.

Sometimes, often even, our wandering is slightly less deliberate and we lack confidence that we are going “right” way.  The path is hidden and uncertainty creeps in.  Those times can be disconcerting.  Maybe there is another perspective to be gleaned from the pathless forest glades.

Rather than there being one best way to go, we are given the freedom to carve out our own path.  This can be intimidating, but also exhilarating.  In these moments it is truly more about the journey than the destination.  We are truly able to wander, to leisurely move through the environment where God is showing off His greatness to us.  What a blessing!

How does your path ahead look?  Clear or unclear.  Certain or uncertain.  God is in them both, in the woods and the forest glades.   Embrace the opportunity to wander along with Him.

Birds Sing Sweetly

The Birds

In the first stanza we heard rolling thunder.  We swing the pendulum here to the other extreme, the silence of the woods broken by the occasional song of slight winged creatures.  What a stark contrast, and simultaneously a continuation of the progression started in that first stanza.  From silent stars and rolling thunder, to mighty tress and tiny birds, all displaying God’s greatness.  But there is another aspect of the introduction of the birds I want to use to tune our hearts.

They choose to sing.  God gave them this ability, but they choose to use it.  And use it they do.

Can you conjure one of their songs?  Or at least the feeling it evoked in you?  They tend to be light and simple tunes, startling in their simplicity, beautiful in their tonality.  Each bird is a marvel and each song a gift, but did you know that not all birds sing?  Even if they do not sing, they still have calls that serve different purposes, like the Cedar Waxwing.  Song and call alike they make known the greatness of God.

How about you? Do you sing? You can.  And you certainly have something worth singing about, ie. the greatness of God.  Determine to join the song of these small feathered creatures, and echo the greatness of our God.

Keep coming back and we will work to help you remove the things that may dampen your praise.   We will help you tune your heart to live out your worship by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Tune-ful Tuning!

Jesus, thank You being with me when my path is clear and when it is not.  I choose to walk with You wherever You lead.  Thank You for giving me songs to sing to praise Your greatness.  I will sing them all my days.  In Jesus name.  Amen.

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Below is content always available to Subscribers, often to Free Members, and sometimes to everyone.  Want to learn more about accessing all the additional material in the Subscriber Content Library, click here, or the Free Member Content Library with some examples of the complete Subscribers content, click here.

Subscribers enjoy this video! Everyone else the transcript below!

Video 10.2 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

When through the woods, and forest glades I wander,
   And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees.
When I look down, from lofty mountain grandeur
   And see the brook, and feel the gentle breeze.

Now our attention turns to seeing God in the greatness of nature within our grasp, all which points us to Him.  Whether walking along through wood or forest He stirs our hearts with praise. Recall such a stroll and thank Him for His goodness to you in those moments.

How often I have been struck by the sweet song of a bird!  Have you ever noticed their songs are often louder, livelier and more frequent in the morning?  But why not, their Creator has brought them through another night! Join their song of praise today in some way.

This is one of my favorite lines because mountains are such a part of who I am.  I am so thankful for the moments I have stood on mountains and praised His name. Thank Him for the times you have found yourself seemingly, and figuratively, on top of the world.

There are also valleys, but God is there as well.   You can not hear the ripple of the brook from the mountaintop, and sometimes God’s voice is difficult to identify in the valley. Though the  topography reminds us there are hills and valleys in life ask the One who made the literal ones to carry you through the figurative ones as well. 

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

Image Attributions
Woods – https://pixabay.com/photos/road-forest-season-autumn-fall-1072823/
Forest Glades – https://pixabay.com/photos/green-park-season-nature-outdoor-1072828/
Birds Sing Sweetly – https://pixabay.com/photos/bird-singer-singing-chirp-tweet-2119874/

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Can You Feel the Power?

The Stars

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
   Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
   Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

How Great Thou Art
By: Carl Gustaf Boberg (1859-1940)

Listen to this awesome electric guitar version as you read.  And be sure to experience the worship-cultivating podcast below.

The glory of God is ever on display around us, but often we simply fail to take the time to acknowledge it.  I pray today’s blog helps you carve our a few minutes to cultivate a greater awareness of the greatness of our God.  That’s why Resonant 7 exists.  May He give your the perspective you need to see, hear and feel His power on display all around you today.  Let’s think about this.

Seeing the Stars

Just seeing the stars is not enough.  Many look into the night sky and quickly realize just how small they are.  But fewer see beyond their stature and gaze into the grandeur of our God.

He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure. Psalm 147:4-5 ESV

The Psalmist saw the stars, and in them something more.  One paraphrase of Psalm 8 says, “When I gaze in to the night skies and see the work of your fingers, the moon and stars suspended in space, o what is man that your are mindful of Him?”  Our smallness makes sense against the backdrop of God and His glory, but making sense is not enough.

We must choose to respond to this greatness revealed.  

I want to point you to someone who has done that for some time, and in some very creative ways.  Louie Giglio has long been a proponent of calling people to respond to God’s greatness.  As  significant person in the Passion movement, he has influenced many people to offer their worship to the One who is worthy.  In the clip below, he describes some the response of the stars and other parts of creation which not only display God’s glory, but respond to it in their own ways.

This clip is 9 minutes long and climaxes in a crafted response of worship that is truly unique.  You may not have time to view it all right now, but I would encourage you to carve out 9 minutes today to have your awareness of God’s greatness stirred in an unusual way.

How Great is Our God

You see, we not only see God’s power displayed, we hear it as well.  We will consider some other aspects of that in the next stanza, but for now let’s consider for a bit the sound, and the feel, of thunder.

Rolling Thunder

Feel the Thunder

Again to the Psalmist.

The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind; your lightnings lighted up the world; the earth trembled and shook. Psalm 77:18 ESV

Thunder is a remarkable demonstration of the power of our God which we can feel. It flows from the lightning which we can see.  According to the Library of Congress, “Thunder is caused by the rapid expansion of the air surrounding the path of a lightning bolt.”  Another interesting article explaining this with a few pictures can be found here, courtesy of the National Weather Service.

Think for a moment of a memory of some powerful storm.  Maybe you have seen up close the damage that a bolt of lightning can do.  You have probably at one time or another not only heard thunder, but felt it.  

In the face of that demonstration of power, do you recall our you felt.  Was it awe?  Terror?  Ambivalence?  Did you notice in the Scripture the natural response of the earth?  It trembled and shook.  If the earth trembles and shakes at something, we should probably take notice and either be cautious, or worship, or both.  It really is not enough to simply hear and feel the thunder, we should respond to it for what it is.

Ask Him to fill you with a reverence similar to that which the earth demonstrates.  The earth has no choice.  You do.  Choose to worship the greatness of our God.

 

Everywhere You Look

The Universe

Stars and thunder…just a couple examples of different things in our universe which display the power of God.  Frankly, everywhere you look His glory is revealed.  If you have read this far it is likely because you know it is only by His grace that you can see, hear and feel any of this for what it truly is.

Think about that.

There are millions, even billions of people walking around unaware that everywhere they look God is revealing Himself.  Through a trillion stars in the sky, and then some, and countless storms raging, but many fail to comprehend the One behind it all.

First, give God praise for helping you see His power, and giving you the grace to respond.  Second, ask Him to help you assist others to develop ears to hear and eyes to see the greatness of our God.

 

Jesus, thank You for revealing Your power to me and helping me respond to me.  I am in awe of You.  May I live a life of awesome wonder, always considering all that You have made, but never keeping it to myself.  In Jesus’ name.   Amen.

Awe-ful Thinking!

Are these thoughts helping you to develop greater spiritual awareness?  Sign-up in the form to the right above to get updates of new tools to help you be Resonant.

Below is content always available to Subscribers, sometimes to Free Members, but today to everyone.  Want to learn more about accessing all the additional material in the Subscriber Content Library, click here.  Or check out some other samples at our Free Member Content Library.  We have lots of tools and lots of options designed to help you be Resonant!  Check them out today!!

Enjoy this podcast and the transcript below! It features meditative music and moments to contemplate the Scriptures shared.

Podcast 10.1 Transcript

Welcome to Thursday Thoughts at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s think about this.

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,

Exodus 15:11 ESV

“Who is like you, O Lord, among the gods? Who is like you, majestic in holiness, awesome in glorious deeds, doing wonders?

I like rhetorical questions.  You know, those ones where everyone knows the answer.  Only, not everyone knows the answer here. Who is like our Lord? No one. If you know that answer, thank Him, and let that privilege fill you with wonder. 

   Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;

Nehemiah 9:6 ESV

“You are the Lord, you alone. You have made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth and all that is on it, the seas and all that is in them; and you preserve all of them; and the host of heaven worships you.

That is a pretty comprehensive description of what He has made.  In short, everything. Our time here does not permit us to consider it all, but simply ponder this.  He made it and preserves it and invites you to join worship.

I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,

Psalm 77:18 ESV 

The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind; your lightnings lighted up the world; the earth trembled and shook.

Thunder is a remarkable demonstration of the power of our God which we can feel, flowing from the lightning which we can see.  Ask Him to fill you with a reverence similar to that which the earth models.

   Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Psalm 147:4-5 ESV

He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.

The stars in every universe numbered and named.  Order beyond comprehension. Power unfathomable. Greatness unsearchable.  Give glory to our great God for the way He reveals Himself in His creation!

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has come to your mind, or listen to what He is saying to you, then I will read our text once more.

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
   Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
   Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

Image Attributions
The Stars – https://pixabay.com/photos/universe-galaxy-space-atmosphere-2250310/
Rolling Thunder – https://giphy.com/gifs/storm-timelapse-qRY3cPYRkyQh2
The Universe – https://pixabay.com/illustrations/universe-sky-star-space-cosmos-2742113/

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Beautiful God Bea-YOU-tiful ME

Wednesday Wanderings with Dr. Sherri is a time we set aside to wander in the Presence of Jesus and ponder His truths. When you are ready, prepare your mind, body, and soul to have a transformational encounter with Jesus.

Watch the Wednesday Wanderings Welcome for this week.

Now that we have cleared our minds of the clutter, we can wander on the Bea-YOU-tiful journey of considering the awesome wondrous works of God.

PREPARATION: In our last Wandering we explored the awesome Covenant love of Jesus. This week we will examine the awesome wonder of our Beautiful God. When you are ready, you may begin the dialogue with Jesus and state: “Jesus, I invite you to help me to leisurely wander into your Presence. Illuminate my spiritual senses to encounter your holy, glorious beauty. Prepare my heart to consider your wondrous works.”

  Beautiful God created Bea-YOU-tiful Me

PROMISE: Our beauty is in the eye of God, our Beholder and Creator.  Psalm 139:14 reads, I will give thanks and praise to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Wonderful are Your works, And my soul knows it very well (Amplified Version).

You are a wonderful creation of The Lord, Our God. When you consider all the works created by God, do YOU come to mind? Are you convinced in your soul that our Beautiful God made Be-YOU-tiful you in His image? If so, whisper with certainty, “Beautiful God created Bea-YOU-tiful Me.

PSALM: In the song How Great thou Art Carl Boberg marvels at the works of God our Creator. He says:

Rosh HaNikra Grottoes – cliff on the Mediterranean Sea, Israel
       Garden of The Gods                     Colorado Springs, CO

 

O Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder
Thy power throughout the universe displayed

 

 

 

 

The psalmist took time to contemplate ALL the daunting, impressive, and unexpected beauty of God’s sovereign creations. We can also observe the evidence of God’s amazing creations all over the world. In awesome wonder take a moment and consider the majestic power and beauty of God displayed through the white chalk, soft rock cliffs on the Mediterranean Sea in Israel and the red rock formations of Colorado. Now, take a moment and glance into the mirror and see the wonderful and marvelous creation of YOU.

PARABLE: We come face to face with God’s power when we see the twinkle of a star or hear the roaring of thunder. It is easy to consider and marvel at God’s hand in nature because it has an innate way of beckoning our attention to His astounding works. It is not as easy to see ourselves as astonishing, wonderful formations of God. How do we know that we are one of God’s wondrous works? We can be assured of this because:

  1. Our Beautiful God created the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1-2).
  2. Our Beautiful God created YOU in His beautiful image (Genesis 1:27).
  3. Our Beautiful God created YOU as a wonderful, marvelous work (Psalm 139:14).
  4. Our Beautiful God created YOU as a beautiful masterpiece to do His good works (Ephesians 2:10).

As a Christian what an incredible empowering truth to believe that Our God the Creator of  the moon and mountains, stars and seas made Bea-YOU-tiful you.  The YOU in Bea-YOU-tiful is speaking to God saying, I can be full of beauty because YOU made ME in Your image.

PONDER and WANDER:

I am a Reflection of the Creator of the  Mountains and Moon and Stars and Sea

Ponder the question:   Do I believe that I am a beautiful reflection of God’s wondrous work and image? 

On the website of the Creation Museum located in Kentucky the first words you see are “Prepare to Believe.”  This indicates that the thought of acceptance of creation has to be formulated. This implies we may also need to prepare to believe we are made in the beautiful image of God. It is understandable that we don’t always feel beautiful or believe we look beautiful. It is comprehensible that we don’t always believe that we are marvelously enough. Nevertheless, the truth is God formulated you as one of His wondrous masterpieces and you are created new in Jesus for His planned good works (Ephesians 2:10). If you have not prepared to believe you are a beautiful reflection of God’s wondrous work and image, take time today to construct this belief in your mind and allow that truth to be manifested.

Start with pondering the thought that Our Beautiful God made all things good. Next, deliberate on the idea, God must have made you beautiful because everything He creates is of high quality and superiority. Then, ruminate on the truth that you are the reflection of HIS beautiful image.  Now, wander back to the truths that the Word of God declares and let them resonate in your heart. Finally, say with conviction “I am beautifully and wonderfully made.” If you choose you may meditate longer on this truth by clicking on the the link and listening to the declarative song and reading the lyrics by Leah Smith.

PRAYER: Father God, the Creator of the Universe, How great thou art! Yet, I admit that I don’t always accept the great truth that I am Your beautiful and wonderful creation. One day I will be transformed and stand face to face with the beauty of Your holiness and all my disbelief will cease. Until then, when I can’t trust my view of who I am and whose I am let me gaze upon the beauty of Your creations. Help me to pay attention to Your wondrous portraits of nature and know if they are reflections of Your beauty, I am more so because I am Your image. Help me declare even when my eyes don’t see it and my heart doesn’t believe it that I am bea-YOU-tifully and wonderfully made in Christ Jesus. In the name of Jesus I pray. Amen.

PRAISE: Now that you have emptied your mind of the clutter and wandered with Jesus, take a closing moment to thank God for making you beautiful and marvelous in His image and for His purpose. Let the work of your wandering fill you with the assurance that our Beautiful God made Bea-YOU-tiful You!

Then take the mindfulness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes of wandering into the next ones and beyond.

Until next time, be Resonant.

 

 

Image and music attributions:
Grottoes: Photo by Mary Shortreed
Garden of the Gods: Photo by Troy Woods
Creation reflection: Pixabay photo
Beautiful You: Pixabay photo with text added
Beautifully and Wonderfully made: Leah Smith

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When Was the Last Time You Were Filled with Wonder?

Awesome Wonder

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
   Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
   Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

How Great Thou Art
By: Carl Gustaf Boberg (1859-1940)

Listen to this awesome electric guitar version as you read.  And make sure to check out the video log below which will guide you through a worshipful reflection of this stanza.

So today we begin our five week journey through one of the greatest of all hymnody.  So much has been said about this great hymn that even pondering adding to that body of work is daunting, but I was reminded today of the purpose of Resonant 7.  It is not to be the last word on these wonderful songs of faith, but to use them to create an atmosphere to help you, our readers, cultivate and awareness of God’s presence.  We pray that happens again today.   Let’s tune our hearts.

When I Consider

Nature is a go-to for me when I want to commune with God.  It is just natural for me to sense the supernatural in the beauty of the created world around me, so this hymn has always been a favorite of mine.  For this reason, I want to take you on a little journey with me.

Mountain Sunrise

I had walked with Jesus a little over the year and had the opportunity to be visit the Rockies.  While at a camp high in the mountains I recommended to my friends that we awake before dawn to catch the sunrise from one of the ridges surrounding us.  We underestimated the magnitude of those ridges and so were not able to make it to the top before the sun began to peek over the peak we were climbing to west.

I remember stopping to take in the view as it slowly began to illuminate the opposite ridge to the east of us.  The four of us just soaked in that moment, fully aware of the greatness of our God.  It was a moment of awesome wonder to be sure.

I have had several others over the years, but that one certainly stands out in my mind as one of the most breathtaking.  I want to invite you to take a few moments and remember a time when your encounter with your creation and the way it pointed to your Creator simply took your breath away.

Recall those moments of inspiration.  Where were you?  Was anyone with you?  What did you see?  How did you respond?  Take a moment and express your gratitude to God for those moments of wonder.  And then ask Him for more.

Worlds

The Worlds

We a blessed to live in a very beautiful world.  What is your favorite place on it?  Maybe where you grew up, or where you are loving now, or hope to visit someday.  Now consider for a moment that this is but one of countless other worlds across all of creation.

We simply lack the capacity to understand the magnitude of all that God has made.  I could spout some numbers that would try to demonstrate our smallness in the vastness of the cosmos, but they would only begin to demonstrate it.  Can you imagine the unique beauty of your favorite place replicated billions of times over and over again?  I can not.

The sense of the insignificance of my tiny being set against the expanse of all the created worlds is humbling to say the least.  My perspective of our world fills me with awesome wonder.  When I consider all the worlds His hands have made, I am overwhelmed.

Big Daddy Weave wrote a song with that title a few years ago.  Want to take a few moments and ponder another perspective of being overwhelmed by our God?  Listen to it here.

Thy Hands

Thy Hands

We will consider later in this hymns some of the other work His hands did, namely purchasing our redemption as they were nailed to a cross, but here we are reminded that those hands that made my re-creation possible where the same ones that created everything in the first place.  He spoke it all into being, but I like image His fingers forming rivers and valleys, planets and stars.

He is the Creator God.  He made it all, so He has the power to remake it.  A friend once said, “If a man made it, a man can fix it.”  This is true.  How much more-so is that the case with our God?

We will spend time acknowledging His power to re-make things later, but for today, marvel at His creative force involved in everything He has made.  On this little ball where we exist is your minute life.  Give Him praise for all His handiwork!

Keep coming back and we will work to assist you in offering God praise with your entire life.   We will help you tune your heart to live out your praise by providing resources like this to help you acknowledge the greatness of God as you become more Resonant, 7 days a week.

Awe-ful Tuning!

Jesus, thank You being Creator and my Lord.  I acknowledge Your creative power at work in all thy worlds Your hands have made.  I am filled with awe and pray You will help me stay so throughout this day, and every day.  In Jesus name.  Amen.

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Enjoy this video and the transcript below!

Video 10.1 Transcript

Welcome to Tuesday Tunings at Resonant 7, where we reflect on the reality of God and resolve to let it resound in our lives, repeatedly. Let’s tune our hearts.

O Lord my God, When I in awesome wonder,
   Consider all the worlds Thy Hands have made;
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
   Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

From the very first line one thing is clear, the writer esteems God with a great deal of reverence.  It is marked by awe and wonder, but it is also personal. This mingling of friendship and fear is an unusual characteristic of Christianity.  Praise God for that reality.

And what fills him with reverence, a careful consideration of all the worlds our Creator God has made with His hands.  Remember the most beautiful vista you have ever seen. Are you recalling it? Give God glory for how He puts His work on display on the earth.

Not only on the earth, but in the heavens above as well. Whether the immediate skies above  filled with thunder and lighting, or all the starry host beyond, the magnitude of His grandeur is truly awe-inspiring.  Ask Him to open your eyes today to see it afresh.

Throughout our universe, and all the multi-universes beyond, the sheer size of space is mind-boggling, let alone the power on exhibit.  All the while, we have access to speak directly to the One who has made it all. Hallelujah! Thank Him for revealing His greatness!

Take a few moments to talk to Jesus about what has surfaced in your heart, or just listen to what He is saying to you, then we will sing once more.

Sing

Take the awareness of God’s presence cultivated in these last few minutes into the next ones and beyond.  Until next time, be Resonant.

Image Attributions
Awesome Wonder – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfUBnNez72w
The Worlds – https://pixabay.com/illustrations/background-space-sky-planets-stars-1475670/
Thy Hands – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfUBnNez72w

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