A Sense of Awe

Just taking sometime to think about awe this morning.

A sense of wonder where your senses or reasoning connect with the deep essence of your being and there is a connection and awareness that you are seeing or witnessing something great or beautiful.

There was a sunset last week that stopped me in my tracks and I got as high up in my building as I could to see it and tried to take a picture of it with my phone but the pictures all came out blurry and crooked. I caught a moment of wonder but I could not capture that moment.

For some it is a mathematics equation that elegantly displays a solution or a play in a game that was executed with such ideal timing and precision that it brings a crowd to their feet all at once in a roar of adoration. Someone with little knowledge of math or baseball would find these things interesting and might respond to a reaction others have but the wonder would be lost on them.

Beauty evokes wonder but function can also. Perhaps function is beauty to the mind of an engineer or scientist. A simple but efficient design is beautiful. A tool that just works for you after trying dozens of different similar tools.

I have screwdriver that I used as a technician and it just always seemed catch the screw just right... it never stripped a screw and I could use it to break the tightest seal. At the same time it caught the screw heads and spun them so easily when I was locking something down also. I loved using that tool.

Writing, plot lines or music can evoke this sense also. A mystery that totally catches you off guard and you can trace the clues back in your mind but never saw the conclusion coming. A poem or song that captures a mood or stage of life so well that you identify with it and it brings you into that time or place.

The God of the Bible is a God of wonder... He is beautiful... He is functional... He is the perfect match and mirror for our soul. Every song, poem, sunset and thing that causes us to take pause and gasp culminates in who He is. He is the deep satisfying laughter and sublime perfection that evokes worship.  Hymnals are filled with hearts that desire to describe and extol Him... all of creation is His artistry.

Grace amazes me... it is like visiting the grand masters section of a museum and standing in front of a beloved painting that I have stood before dozens of times but each time it does something to me... God's grace makes for perfect flawless relationships. It brings all of who God is into communion and union with all of who we are. Seamless and functional in every way. There is no ugly underbelly... it is beautiful from every angle.

I love my Bible but I also understand why people walk right by it. The awe is hidden inside it what looks like a normal book. God hides Himself this way.

Grace and mercy open our eyes to what is hidden. Favor that never fails and is never withdrawn beckons us to enter and see sights and words that change us. Grace reveals God but it also captures Him so that we can keep Him. The wonder lives in us. The flame may flicker at times or it may shine brightly but it will never leave or forsake us.

God, We worship You! You are our God of wonders.

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