03 Aug In Awe and Wonder

Sometimes it takes a baby to open our eyes to the awe and wonder of everyday life. You know how little ones get so captivated by the littlest things—things they see and experience for the first time, things that surprise them, wow them, excite them—things we that big people overlook and take for granted because we’ve just grown accustomed.

Recently my cousin, Barbara, became a grandmother for the first time. Her oldest son, Zach and daughter-in-law, Lizzy adopted THE MOST ADORABLE baby girl from India. I’m just telling y’all, this little girl is a miracle—and she’s been the most beautiful gift to our whole family.  We are simply captivated by Liza! Yesterday, Barb sent me the cutest picture of her looking at bubbles for the first time. It was a “live” picture, and I’ve watched it about 50 times. She was captivated, giggling and grabbing at the bubbles swirling around her. The expression on her face was priceless, her eyes, her amazement, the wonder, and awe over bubbles. I caught myself smiling, with tears in my eyes.

When was the last time you were truly in awe… of anything?

For several years my John and I had the joy of spending part of the summer in Colorado—the gracious gift of friends who owned a home in Snowmass. On our first trip there was my first time ever to see that part of the country and the grand Rocky Mountains. I was slack-jawed in awe of everything around me. I even told John this is where I was made to live—and I was supposed to be a cowgirl.

There was a backroad that we’d drive from Snowmass down to Aspen that always took my breath away. Owl Creek Road winds through green pastures where horses roam, surrounded by hills and mountains. It’s also an elk migration corridor, and on occasion, in the evenings, we’d pull over and park with our lights off and watch as herds making their way out of the aspen forest, would jump the fences to travel across the road and continue their journey. I’d make that drive at least once a day, and never tired of the spectacular scenery around me—some of God’s grandest work that was not part of our world back in Dallas. I often wondered if the people living around there had grown so accustomed to it that they the no longer noticed it. Or that the thrill was gone.

Worthy of Awesome

We stand in awe of a lot of things— some I’m not all that sure are worthy of the word. You know what I mean? We declare everything awesome from a great meal to a great concert, a new experience, a new purse, or a new pair of shoes—all of which are common, to say the least. The dictionary defines awe/awesome as—a mixed feeling of reverence, respect, fear, and wonder, caused by something majestic, sublime, sacred, etc.… Evoking feelings of being very impressed by something or someone, produced by that which is grand, extremely powerful, or the like (Collins; Cambridge).

We’ve been watching the Olympics and have truly been awed by some of these athletes. Especially the gymnasts! Oh, my goodness… how can a human being jump that high into the air, literally defying gravity as they contort their body to spin multiples times over, and the land on both feet? Unbroken! Like, how does that even happen? I certainly have had a ton of reverential respect mixed with fear or wonder over all of that, and it’s left me slack jawed in awe. They are uncommon, to say the least.

And yet, as amazing and awesome as all this mind-blowing athleticism, it pales in comparison to our Awesome God–-to Who He is, and what He’s done. His awesomeness is all over the place, all of the time!

The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.

Psalm 19:1

Have We Lost Our Awe of God?

I wonder if we haven’t become so awed by the common that we’ve lost our ability to appreciate the divine; to stand in awe of every aspect of the simplicity and grandeur of God. Have we stooped to behold lesser things, and wrapped our hearts so tightly around the manufactured things of this world that we cease to worship, love, adore and appreciate The One who has made man— and this perfect habitat He’s created for him to dwell?

When was the last time you stood in awe of the God of wonders? The One who has set the sun far enough from Earth so that we don’t burn up, yet close enough that we don’t freeze to death. When were you last thrilled by the Supreme Creator who paints the sky at sunset and at sunrise with colors no artist can duplicate? Do you marvel at the God of ages who breathed out the stars, who literally parted the Red Sea, who commands the oceans, and tells the rain and snow to fall. Has your life been jolted by this Savior God who revealed Himself as a burning bush, a pillar of cloud, a pillar of fire…and a man named Jesus who took our sin to the cross, delivered us from hell, and created The Way for you and me to spend a glorious eternity with the Almighty?

Something to Think About:

What Do You Do When the Thrill is Gone?

Pray for it! Ask God to kindle an awe for Him in your heart; to be continually thrilled by Him, with a holy awareness. Seek Him… go out and look for Him everywhere. Tell Him how marvelous you find Him to be. One of my very favorite things to do is to literally applaud God’s awesome works—at sunrise, at sunset, when the leaves change color, when the snow falls, when an amazing creature comes across my path or my screen. I’ll often say aloud, “Good job, Lord… that’s some of your best work ever!”  Sometimes it’s a matter of detoxing our view from looking at the materialistic beauty of the world, or from gazing at advertisements and movies that distort and corrupt our vision of God’s kingdom. So, pray as the psalmist prayed, “Lord, turn my eyes from worthless things; revive me with your Word” (Psalm 119:37).  May we never lose our awe of God!

Take a Child’s View

Childlike faith is highly underrated. But Jesus prioritized it, saying, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”  He had a fondness…a delight for little children, and I can imagine why. Little kids get it! They’re curious, they’re enthusiastic, and they’re truth tellers. Have you ever had one pray for you? You’ll never be prayed for more honestly than when a little one calls your name to God.

Do you remember what it was like to be a little kid? Think hard…back to Sunday School, sitting in those tiny chairs and listening to your teacher tell you all the stories about the great men and women of God in the Bible? Do you remember looking up in awe as your she or he might have described how Jonah was swallowed alive by a whale and lived in its belly for 3 days until the big fish spit him out of the shores of Ninevah?

And if you never had that experience, if you were a grownup by the time you read about Jonah and the big fish, that’s OK. But I want to challenge you to go out and get yourself a children’s story Bible. My personal favorite is the Child’s Story Bible by Catherine Vos. Read it—seriously! It will give you a great, concise sweep of the grand narrative of God’s story. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain—especially a renewed awe of God!

One More Thing:

I highly recommend hanging out with little people—I mean some really young kiddos who live in awe over the beautiful and ordinary things in life…  like bubbles. In fact, be a kid again; go out and by yourself a bottle of bubbles and go to town. Better yet, grab your Bible and read it with childlike wonder.

Gosh… I can hardly wait until Liza is old enough to hear about Jonah, and David, and Jesus busting out of the tomb! O that we would live in awe of the One who is truly awesome!

Until next week— stand in awe of God, and don’t forget that you are greatly and dearly loved by The King! And let’s live our beautiful, ordinary lives like women who believe it!

I love you!
xo–P❤️