Celebrating God’s ‘Bigness’…
There are moments this mama and grandma remember well. One is of of my beloved daughters or grandchildren sitting in their highchair. I asked the question, “How big is baby?[i]” In response, my cherished little’s chubby arms lifted and stretched wide, as I declared, “Sooooooo Big!”
This morning in my personal devotions, I read the account of Jesus’ final face-to-face interaction with his disciples before ascending from earth into Heaven (Luke 24:44-53). Verses 52 & 53 (NKJV) said, “And they worshipped Him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy and were continually in the temple praising and blessing God.”
The disciples’ vision of God expanded as they watched their friend and teacher leave earth, understanding more fully than ever who Jesus was—the long-awaited Messiah, resurrected Lord, God incarnate. “Sooooooo Big!” So deserving of continual praise!
Following my devotional time, I watched a YouTube teaching[ii] on Psalm 34. The psalmist, David, invites others to magnify the LORD with me. David is one of those characters we meet in Scripture who knew his God was “Sooooooo Big!” At the conclusion of her lesson, the teacher extended an invitation to listeners to join her in learning on a deeper level how big is God.
I often say I want my God to become bigger and bigger. Of course, I know I cannot change God’s size. God is infinite. I can only wrap my understanding of God’s ‘bigness’ around my very finite brain. What I mean is I desire my understanding of an infinite God to keep growing.
How does this happen? Your experience will probably differ from mine, but today as I write this blog, I recall some of my God-expanding moments.
· Discoveries in Scripture revealing a characteristic or action of God that causes me to exclaim, “Wow! I never knew that about you, God!”
· Events, such as watching my first grandchild enter the world. The wonder of birth expanded the parameters of my heart and enlarged my love for God.
· Looking through the rearview mirror of my life, remembering the variety of ways God orchestrated painful, perplexing problems for a good purpose.
· God’s creation. During the past couple years my husband has pursued astrophotography. As I view some of the amazing images Ron captures, my vision of God increases.
· Moments when God touched my spirit in an unmistakable way. Although feelings alone will not define my belief in God, experiencing on a personal level God knows my name and cares for me in a unique way causes my faith to explode.
In conclusion, I hope you will join me in “magnifying the LORD …”
