Trustworthy

As I sat down to write, I noticed a bright red cardinal in my backyard. The day was overcast, and everything looked a little drab, but the cardinal was as vibrant as ever. It was unbothered, carrying on about its business without a worry. 

The whole yard was full of animals carrying on -

I noticed hummingbirds happily zooming about, coming to drink from the bird feeder.

Bunnies and squirrels chased each other around the yard, seeming to play a game of tag.

One particular bird caught my eye. I'm not sure what it is, but it resembles a dinosaur. It has very tall legs, and its feathers appear more scaly than those of other birds.

Every now and then, the sun peeked out, illuminating everything it touched.

Creation always reminds me to breathe.

It is as if it is saying everything is going to be all right. The sun will still shine. The stars will still twinkle. The birds will still sing. The trees will still bloom.

No matter what is happening in the world, creation is telling us a story of hope.
A story of renewal.
A story of belonging.

I've been thinking about Job. Thinking about his deep despair and his less than helpful friends. Thinking about the way God shows up in chapter 38 and reminds Job that, as much as he thinks he understands, he just doesn't. Look at some of the things God asks Job beginning in verse 4 -

Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth?
    Tell me, if you know so much.
Who determined its dimensions
    and stretched out the surveying line?
What supports its foundations,
    and who laid its cornerstone
as the morning stars sang together
    and all the angels shouted for joy?

Who kept the sea inside its boundaries
    as it burst from the womb,
and as I clothed it with clouds
    and wrapped it in thick darkness?
For I locked it behind barred gates,
    limiting its shores.
I said, 'This far and no farther will you come.
    Here your proud waves must stop!'

Have you ever commanded the morning to appear
    and caused the dawn to rise in the east?
Have you made daylight spread to the ends of the earth,
    to bring an end to the night's wickedness?
As the light approaches,
    the earth takes shape like clay pressed beneath a seal;
    it is robed in brilliant colors.
The light disturbs the wicked
    and stops the arm that is raised in violence.

Have you explored the springs from which the seas come?
    Have you explored their depths?
Do you know where the gates of death are located?
    Have you seen the gates of utter gloom?
Do you realize the extent of the earth?
    Tell me about it if you know!

Where does light come from,
    and where does darkness go?
Can you take each to its home?
    Do you know how to get there?
But of course you know all this!
For you were born before it was all created,
    and you are so very experienced!

These questions persist for chapters, reminding us of all that we do not know and can not understand. 

Sometimes, I look around at the world and think, 'What is going on? Where is God in all of it?' And then I read these verses in Job and remember that the story of the world has been unfolding long before I arrived and will continue long after I'm gone. God has witnessed it all and holds it all together.

God is trustworthy. Yesterday, today, forever.

Numbers 23:19 reminds us of this truth - 
God is not a man, so he does not lie.
     He is not human, so he does not change his mind.
Has he ever spoken and failed to act?
     Has he ever promised and not carried it through?

As I write, a squirrel has sprawled out in the tree. It is lying flat on its belly with its legs wrapped around the branch as far as they will go. It seems to be resting, fully relaxed, at peace. 

And I wonder what it looks like for me, for us, to live from a place of rest, fully relaxed and at peace, as we navigate how to engage with the world around us.

I want to live each day from the place of confidence that God is on the throne and knows how to take darkness and light to their respective homes. 

 

~  Melissa 

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Heir of All Things