The Lord is high above all nations, and His glory above the heavens! Who is like the Lord our God, Who is seated on high, Who looks far down on the heavens and the earth? (Verses 4-6)
For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward Him. 2 Chronicles 16:9
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayer. 1 Peter 3
We were newly married and at the park with our good friends, Ron and Barbara. Acting like the kids we still were, we swung on the swings, barreled down the slides and chased each other all over the green grass. Suddenly, Bill, my husband, put his hand to his left eye. Then up to his right. "I've lost my contact lens," he said despairingly." Oh, great. Where?
"Let's look for it," I offered without much more than newlywed naivete that everything will work out because, well, it's us! Down on our hands and knees, Bill and I searched. I took my position near the swings. Peered into the long blades of green as if looking down from on high into the rain forest or some other messy jungle. And there it was, shining in the sun. Glowing for me as if it had been struck by a sunbeam for me to see. Obvious, even. "I found it!" I screamed with earth shattering glee. I won the day. Heroine of that particular story. I saw what others missed.
Several years later, I lost my wedding ring. Looked all over for it. Made myself an hour late to work, but still could not figure out what I did with it. Hesitantly, of course, I called Bill to tell him what I'd done. I'd forgotten in my rush to get me and our three kids off to school that I'd cleaned the ring that morning. Wrapped it in a towel to dry it. I couldn't remember what happened next, but I had the sneaking suspicion my ring was in the garbage. Told Bill he might want to look there, but feeling also like it could be somewhere in the sewage system of Riverside, Ca. All day bothered by the ridiculous folly with which I'd handled something so meaningful. Then the phone call from Bill. "I got it! I got it!" he was screaming over the phone. "I found your ring!" In the garbage outside. Don't make me explain.
God is looking for us that way. From His vantage point high above everything, He's peering past the stars, gazing through the vaporous clouds, rushing past mountains and oceans, zeroing in on His children. Something lights us up, like the contact lens in the dense grass, we sparkle and He comes in closer to find us. Like the lost wedding rings, He digs through the garbage to rescue us. We are just that precious to Him. And He doesn't rest until we are saved. Can you picture Him on His throne when an alarm is sounded? Our prayers. "Father, help us!" Like a mother awakened in the night to the sound of her crying child, the Lord stands up, alerted. Never mind that He is outside of our known universe, greater than the sum of all of it, managing galaxies and worlds we cannot even fathom. A child of His cried out. So He looks--everywhere--for the beacon that our prayers become. And if we were as cognizant as we should be, we soon sense our Father's face looking closely into ours. Large as my face would look to the contact lens had it the ability to actually see. Tiny me. Big God. His face in mine. "I heard you. What is it you need?" And all of this took less than a second. The moment my prayer left my lips, He'd careened past all perceived obstacles to check on my well being. Not because I have my own righteousness to commend me to Him, but because, through Jesus, I'm His kid. We light up the universe like all the electric bulbs in Vegas set it aglow to such a degree it can be seen from outer space. God can't get far enough away that He's not looking at us.
Who is like our God? No one. The God of the Bible is personal. Relational. Intentional. Involved with world events. Keeping the heavens in place. Yet, walking our roads and eating our food and dying our deaths. Yearning for our love. Jealous over our hearts. Vengeful when we are abused. Shepherding us when we're lost. Attentive to our prayers. Our Father, Who is in heaven, yet only a heartbeat away.
For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward Him. 2 Chronicles 16:9
For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are open to their prayer. 1 Peter 3
We were newly married and at the park with our good friends, Ron and Barbara. Acting like the kids we still were, we swung on the swings, barreled down the slides and chased each other all over the green grass. Suddenly, Bill, my husband, put his hand to his left eye. Then up to his right. "I've lost my contact lens," he said despairingly." Oh, great. Where?
"Let's look for it," I offered without much more than newlywed naivete that everything will work out because, well, it's us! Down on our hands and knees, Bill and I searched. I took my position near the swings. Peered into the long blades of green as if looking down from on high into the rain forest or some other messy jungle. And there it was, shining in the sun. Glowing for me as if it had been struck by a sunbeam for me to see. Obvious, even. "I found it!" I screamed with earth shattering glee. I won the day. Heroine of that particular story. I saw what others missed.
Several years later, I lost my wedding ring. Looked all over for it. Made myself an hour late to work, but still could not figure out what I did with it. Hesitantly, of course, I called Bill to tell him what I'd done. I'd forgotten in my rush to get me and our three kids off to school that I'd cleaned the ring that morning. Wrapped it in a towel to dry it. I couldn't remember what happened next, but I had the sneaking suspicion my ring was in the garbage. Told Bill he might want to look there, but feeling also like it could be somewhere in the sewage system of Riverside, Ca. All day bothered by the ridiculous folly with which I'd handled something so meaningful. Then the phone call from Bill. "I got it! I got it!" he was screaming over the phone. "I found your ring!" In the garbage outside. Don't make me explain.
God is looking for us that way. From His vantage point high above everything, He's peering past the stars, gazing through the vaporous clouds, rushing past mountains and oceans, zeroing in on His children. Something lights us up, like the contact lens in the dense grass, we sparkle and He comes in closer to find us. Like the lost wedding rings, He digs through the garbage to rescue us. We are just that precious to Him. And He doesn't rest until we are saved. Can you picture Him on His throne when an alarm is sounded? Our prayers. "Father, help us!" Like a mother awakened in the night to the sound of her crying child, the Lord stands up, alerted. Never mind that He is outside of our known universe, greater than the sum of all of it, managing galaxies and worlds we cannot even fathom. A child of His cried out. So He looks--everywhere--for the beacon that our prayers become. And if we were as cognizant as we should be, we soon sense our Father's face looking closely into ours. Large as my face would look to the contact lens had it the ability to actually see. Tiny me. Big God. His face in mine. "I heard you. What is it you need?" And all of this took less than a second. The moment my prayer left my lips, He'd careened past all perceived obstacles to check on my well being. Not because I have my own righteousness to commend me to Him, but because, through Jesus, I'm His kid. We light up the universe like all the electric bulbs in Vegas set it aglow to such a degree it can be seen from outer space. God can't get far enough away that He's not looking at us.
Who is like our God? No one. The God of the Bible is personal. Relational. Intentional. Involved with world events. Keeping the heavens in place. Yet, walking our roads and eating our food and dying our deaths. Yearning for our love. Jealous over our hearts. Vengeful when we are abused. Shepherding us when we're lost. Attentive to our prayers. Our Father, Who is in heaven, yet only a heartbeat away.
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