How great are Your works, O Lord! Your thoughts are very deep! The stupid man cannot know, the fool cannot understand this: that though the wicked sprout like grass and all evildoers flourish, they are doomed for destruction forever; but You, O Lord, are on high forever. (Verses 5-8)
The Lord knows the thoughts of man--that they are but a breath. Psalm 94:11
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts." Isaiah 55
When Vanessa was in junior high school, all she could talk about was getting a pair of Guess jeans. As Christmas rolled around, I think she told me every day during the months of November and December that all she wanted was those jeans. "If I have a pair of Guess jeans, my life will be complete." She actually said that. More than once. In my daughter's experience, there were few store purchases of clothing. Since Bill and I determined before having a family that I would be a stay-at-home mom, there were certain things we had to forgo. Macy's and Nordstrom were on that list. I spent more time at the local fabric stores buying yards of material and creating outfits as close to the latest fashions for my girls as I knew how. Not that Vanessa and Heather weren't stylish. Vanessa was the only girl in her class with a Pink Lady jacket. None of the other mothers who worked at an office all day had the time to create such an iconic piece of clothing. But, oh, my middle child wanted to traipse in Guess! And I understood, so I haunted the department stores for sales. And found a pair some time in late November. Already hidden away while Vanessa still pleaded for them. Her life was already complete when she still thought I might forget her request.
We don't think eternally. Our now's are so filled with stuff that we think will make us complete. Just like V.J. But our Father already has our fullness purchased and paid for while we're still whining about what we don't have yet. Because our God sees past, present and future all at a glance, He's not worried. God Almighty thinks big! When we consider the works of His hands just in creation--universe, mountains, oceans, elephants, ants and crocodiles--we get the idea that His mind far exceeds ours. But He shares His thoughts with us. And I can't get over that. The Bible is filled with expressions about how God feels about things. And appropriate to today's psalm is how He thinks about us when we're foolish. Cases in point:
Like a stubborn heifer, Israel is stubborn; can the Lord now feed them like a lamb in broad pasture? Hosea 4
Israel has become like a pigeon--easy to fool and stupid. Hosea 7
Many times He held back His anger and did not stir up all His anger. He remembered that they were only human, like the wind that blows and does not come back. Psalm 78
Be not like the horse or mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you. Psalm 32
To compare our wits with God's is like a donkey telling us it knows more than we do. We are temporary here. God is eternal. And He thinks eternally. With the understanding of one who knows everything there is to know about everything. So, like Vanessa, when we become myopic about our lives and our requests, we must know He is bigger. Has a plan. And He is good. Always. Remembering we are earthen jars housing an eternal soul.
For those who despise God, however, the repercussions are damning. They, too, are only a vapor in the whole scheme of things, yet think themselves wise enough to declare "There is no God." Like mules braying at the moon, their words are empty. They cannot possibly know what they declare. Even the most brilliant of them can't think like God. Even the most scientific don't know all He knows. So they can't possibly know He doesn't exist. One has to know everything in order to know that. The Lord sees everything you do and watches where you go. An evil man will be caught in his wicked ways. The ropes of sin will tie him up. He will die because he doesn't control himself, and he will be led captive by his foolishness (Proverbs 5). The foolish person can't see God, so he thinks God can't see him. Like a dog we once owned who hid his head under the bed while the rest of his body stuck out from under it. He thought we couldn't see him because...well, it's obvious. And that's the point.
Evil people will not learn to do good even if you show them kindness. They will continue doing evil, even if they live in a good world. They never see the Lord's greatness (Isaiah 26). Lest we think that when God talks of the evil people He's speaking of us when we mess up, the evil He speaks of is a stubborn defiance aimed at the heart of God. They cannot see the Lord's greatness for glancing in the mirror at their own small selves. No one is as smart as they. We are the idiots for believing in our God. And they miss the marvel of His majesty...forever. Unless they repent of their thinking. It matters to God how we think about things. He wants to give a new mind (Romans 12) as well as a new heart. Forsaking thinking and doing evil and turning to God is smart. That's why He says: "Turn, because I know things you can't possibly know. I think thoughts you haven't dreamed of. And My heart is big enough to forgive that you used to think you were so smart." (see above verse)
Lest we believe we are here on planet Earth alone to drive our own destinies, it's good to remember how great are the works of our God. How evanescent our lives are compared to His eternal Being. How silly it is to tell Him Who He is and what He can and cannot do. And it's good to remember that even when evil appears to win in the short term, it has been vanquished forever more from God's vantage point. Our thoughts are a breath. Good for a season then they change. As do our hopes and dreams. Whether we think He won't get us our Guess jeans unless we beg or we don't think He hears us at all, the never changing, steadfast love and faithfulness of our Father saw us in the beginning and will be faithful to us until the end. Before I was born, the Lord called me to serve Him. The Lord named me while I was still in my mother's body (Isaiah 48). O, how great Thy works and how deep Your thoughts, my God.
The Lord knows the thoughts of man--that they are but a breath. Psalm 94:11
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways," declares the Lord. "For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts higher than your thoughts." Isaiah 55
When Vanessa was in junior high school, all she could talk about was getting a pair of Guess jeans. As Christmas rolled around, I think she told me every day during the months of November and December that all she wanted was those jeans. "If I have a pair of Guess jeans, my life will be complete." She actually said that. More than once. In my daughter's experience, there were few store purchases of clothing. Since Bill and I determined before having a family that I would be a stay-at-home mom, there were certain things we had to forgo. Macy's and Nordstrom were on that list. I spent more time at the local fabric stores buying yards of material and creating outfits as close to the latest fashions for my girls as I knew how. Not that Vanessa and Heather weren't stylish. Vanessa was the only girl in her class with a Pink Lady jacket. None of the other mothers who worked at an office all day had the time to create such an iconic piece of clothing. But, oh, my middle child wanted to traipse in Guess! And I understood, so I haunted the department stores for sales. And found a pair some time in late November. Already hidden away while Vanessa still pleaded for them. Her life was already complete when she still thought I might forget her request.
We don't think eternally. Our now's are so filled with stuff that we think will make us complete. Just like V.J. But our Father already has our fullness purchased and paid for while we're still whining about what we don't have yet. Because our God sees past, present and future all at a glance, He's not worried. God Almighty thinks big! When we consider the works of His hands just in creation--universe, mountains, oceans, elephants, ants and crocodiles--we get the idea that His mind far exceeds ours. But He shares His thoughts with us. And I can't get over that. The Bible is filled with expressions about how God feels about things. And appropriate to today's psalm is how He thinks about us when we're foolish. Cases in point:
Like a stubborn heifer, Israel is stubborn; can the Lord now feed them like a lamb in broad pasture? Hosea 4
Israel has become like a pigeon--easy to fool and stupid. Hosea 7
Many times He held back His anger and did not stir up all His anger. He remembered that they were only human, like the wind that blows and does not come back. Psalm 78
Be not like the horse or mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you. Psalm 32
To compare our wits with God's is like a donkey telling us it knows more than we do. We are temporary here. God is eternal. And He thinks eternally. With the understanding of one who knows everything there is to know about everything. So, like Vanessa, when we become myopic about our lives and our requests, we must know He is bigger. Has a plan. And He is good. Always. Remembering we are earthen jars housing an eternal soul.
For those who despise God, however, the repercussions are damning. They, too, are only a vapor in the whole scheme of things, yet think themselves wise enough to declare "There is no God." Like mules braying at the moon, their words are empty. They cannot possibly know what they declare. Even the most brilliant of them can't think like God. Even the most scientific don't know all He knows. So they can't possibly know He doesn't exist. One has to know everything in order to know that. The Lord sees everything you do and watches where you go. An evil man will be caught in his wicked ways. The ropes of sin will tie him up. He will die because he doesn't control himself, and he will be led captive by his foolishness (Proverbs 5). The foolish person can't see God, so he thinks God can't see him. Like a dog we once owned who hid his head under the bed while the rest of his body stuck out from under it. He thought we couldn't see him because...well, it's obvious. And that's the point.
Evil people will not learn to do good even if you show them kindness. They will continue doing evil, even if they live in a good world. They never see the Lord's greatness (Isaiah 26). Lest we think that when God talks of the evil people He's speaking of us when we mess up, the evil He speaks of is a stubborn defiance aimed at the heart of God. They cannot see the Lord's greatness for glancing in the mirror at their own small selves. No one is as smart as they. We are the idiots for believing in our God. And they miss the marvel of His majesty...forever. Unless they repent of their thinking. It matters to God how we think about things. He wants to give a new mind (Romans 12) as well as a new heart. Forsaking thinking and doing evil and turning to God is smart. That's why He says: "Turn, because I know things you can't possibly know. I think thoughts you haven't dreamed of. And My heart is big enough to forgive that you used to think you were so smart." (see above verse)
Lest we believe we are here on planet Earth alone to drive our own destinies, it's good to remember how great are the works of our God. How evanescent our lives are compared to His eternal Being. How silly it is to tell Him Who He is and what He can and cannot do. And it's good to remember that even when evil appears to win in the short term, it has been vanquished forever more from God's vantage point. Our thoughts are a breath. Good for a season then they change. As do our hopes and dreams. Whether we think He won't get us our Guess jeans unless we beg or we don't think He hears us at all, the never changing, steadfast love and faithfulness of our Father saw us in the beginning and will be faithful to us until the end. Before I was born, the Lord called me to serve Him. The Lord named me while I was still in my mother's body (Isaiah 48). O, how great Thy works and how deep Your thoughts, my God.
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