The science geek in me marvels at God’s sense of humor in creating the universe and letting us in on a few of its secrets. For example, scientists have amassed tomes of information about the moon, yet they can’t figure out what time it is on the moon. On the other hand, astronomers just released a composite of Dark Energy Camera images, revealing a stunning 360-degree panorama of the Milky Way bursting with more than 3.3 billion celestial objects. The feat is equivalent to taking a photo of 3 billion people and being able to identify each individual.
Can any overachieving camera capture every star? Not even for just one galaxy. Compare that to what God says through the prophet Isaiah:
“Lift up your eyes on high
And see who has created these stars,
The One who leads forth their host by number,
He calls them all by name;
Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power,
Not one of them is missing.”
— Isaiah 40:26 (NASB)
Let me draw your attention for a moment to the Hebrew word for “leads forth” (yatsa). The same word describes how God led and guided the Hebrews in their Exodus from Egypt.
We can snap photos of stars, but God leads and guides them. How mind-boggling is that?
Isaiah 40:26 says God created the stars, counted them, has names for all of them, leads them, and never forgets or loses sight of any one of them!
I don’t know about you, but that makes me want to fall down and worship God. To acknowledge His greatness.
“There is none like You, O Lord; You are great, and great is Your name in might.”
— Jeremiah 10:6 (NASB)
“Ah Lord God! Behold, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and by Your outstretched arm! Nothing is too difficult for You.”
— Jeremiah 32:17 (NASB)
(Matthew 19:26 and Mark 10:27 record Jesus paraphrasing this verse.)
“For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.”
— Isaiah 55:9 (NASB)
“Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth; Yours is the dominion, O Lord, and You exalt Yourself as head over all.”
— 1 Chronicles 29:11 (NASB)
The finale to Sight & Sound Theatre’s production of Joseph begins with these lyrics:
“We see You here
We feel Your hand
Vast and mysterious is Your plan
For all things start and end with You
So we can believe
That dreams do come true.”
God’s greatness truly is mysterious and boundless. What little we can see or comprehend of the universe attests to the fact that all things start and end with God.
So we lift our hands and hearts in reply:
“Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever.”
— Ephesians 3:20-21 NASB
Amen!
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BONUS:
More verses about God’s greatness here.
We tend to move through life with our heads down, calculating each step. But you adeptly reminded us to look up. The immense universe will will gift us with an awe of God. Heads up!
Looking down, around, or inward can never do for us what looking up can do! Praise God that He’s always there, even when we can’t sense it.