Brushed across the sky, the subtle rainbow of color caught my breath as the sky darkened into night, closing out the day. Parallel streams of streetlights intensified against the deepening shadows of nature. It was an ordinary evening turning into night, but it shouted, “God!” The certainty of His genius and creativity was etched into His handiwork and declared His eternal presence and absolute sovereignty. God. Creator, Sustainer, Ruler, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Holy, majestic, perfection of purity, with a heart that pulsates deeply and passionately for the people He has given life to. The lover who would give His all to meet the needs of those He loves – and He did. I saw it all and felt it all, and rehearsed its truth as my spirit swelled with the grateful awe of worship, and I was riding in my car, alone, on my way to church.
The songs of worship led by the young people on the stage added to the praise that was already in my heart. And then, the young woman who stood before the congregation, paused, hesitated, and attempted to quiet her emotions as her words spoke of tragedy, very recent tragedy, the death of a child who had begun a ride to school on his bike within the immediate neighborhood of our church, and his life was ended by a vehicle whose driver did not see him until it was too late. A family will never be the same again, their hearts as twisted and trampled as the small bike their child had been riding. A family that loves God and worships Him, a family who can know the hope of eternity for a little boy, but a family who will grieve with a pain that suffocates.
And then again, we were singing. How great is our God, sing with me, how great is our God, and all will see how great, how great is our God ..... Age to age He stands, and time is in His hands, beginning and the end, beginning and the end ..... Name above all names, worthy of all praise, my heart will sing, how great is our God. And with the reality of tragedy still close and fresh, we sang once more, How great is our God, sing with me, how great is our God, and all will see how great, how great is our God. I pondered our God and I pondered life. Does His greatness still stand in the wake of tragedy? Does heartache obliterate His worthiness and His eternality? I knew the answers even as I asked the questions. The lover who gave His all to meet the needs of those He loves – still loves and still gives. The one whose heart pulsates deeply and passionately for the people He has given life to, He understands our sorrows, He carries us and holds us. The sustenance He gives to His creation profusely flows from His insatiable love to comfort, to care, to wipe away the tears that stain the darkness.
Let all that I am wait quietly before God, for my hope is in him. O my people, trust in him at all times. Pour out your heart to him, for God is our refuge. He tends his flock like a shepherd: he gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart.
– Bev
(Related Bible reading: Psalm 62:5-8; Isaiah 40:11)
