Trust all is going well in your neck of the woods.  Not much happening in ours. 

Psalm 8:3-5 When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained;

⁴ What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?

⁵ For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.

The people of the Old Testament looked at the Glory of God and compared it with themselves and knew they were but mites in His universe.  God, who created all things, looks down upon them; yet, man is God’s creation and He has given much to man through the years. 

Unfortunately, man has been a problem for God from the fall of Adam.  We think too much of ourselves, we lift ourselves up and proclaim how great we are, we forget that God is far above us and without Him we wouldn’t be.

Yet, God still loves us.

Romans 5:8-11 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

⁹ Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him.

¹⁰ For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

¹¹ And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

Even with all our faults, even though man has denied God’s love and existence for thousands of years, He still loves us.  He still wants to be our God and provide for our welfare.

As Christians we all too often take for granted our relationship with Him.  We forget the sacrifice God and His Son, Jesus Christ, made so that man could once again have an individual relationship with Him – a promise that we will be with Him forever.

God never gave up on man.  He disciplined Him; He destroyed all but Noah and his family at one time.  He allowed thousands of Jews to be killed for their disobedience; He even allowed those that truly loved and served Him to be killed – but He has never given up on man.

When it came time – HIS time – to send the Messiah to the Jews He did so, He sent His only begotten Son, Jesus, to be the sacrifice for man – a sacrifice that would be sufficient for all men forever.

The Messiah the Jews waited thousands of years for, is ours today. 

We look around us and realize we are but mites.  We look at those in powerful position and know that there have been others before them, there are people of equal or greater position right now, and there will be others that will take their place.

Our life on this earth is short.  Some have great accomplishments while others seem to just exist.  Some make an impact on the world, while others become a drain on the world.

Some think their positions, intelligence, wealth or some other attribute sets them up as being great – and when compared to others they may seem to be great; while others can’t seem to hold a job or effectively make decisions.

I was watching a program the other day on one of the Duke’s of England.  They traced the family history from sometime in the 1500’s to today.  At one time the family had hundreds of servants living in or near the castle, they were at the family’s beck and call.

The castle had hundreds of rooms and while several servants lived in the castle there was a distinct difference in the manner in which they lived compared to the family. 

The family lived in opulence and splendor; huge rooms filled with paintings.  A kitchen large enough to prepare dinner for over 200 people and a dining area that would handle that many.  Bedrooms larger than most people’s houses, dozens of them, sitting rooms, libraries, etc.

The servants lived in a very sparse and small area, closed in with little room to do anything but sleep.  The servants were limited in where they could go in the castle and woe be the servant that went into an area they were not allowed in.

But with all the pomp and circumstances surrounding the Duke and his family – he is but a mite when compared to Our Lord.  While the Duke was/is given much power and influence over others, it is but temporary and fleeting.

But no matter how great a person is, or how seemingly worthless a person is, we are nothing compared to God. 

God has angels that worship Him.  He could have created man without the ability to make his own decisions and do precisely what God wanted.  But God wanted man to have a will and He wanted man to worship Him of his own will.

From Abraham on, the chosen people have had the inroads into that special place in God’s heart; the devout worked hard to try and meet the standards, the laws and commandments that God set.

They knew that their forgiveness was only for a specific time frame, that when they sinned they must once again go through the sacrifices and once again try to cleanse their hearts with them.

They knew that they would not be with God immediately upon dying.  That because of Adam’s sin there was a separation that only the Messiah would fill – and generations waited for His arrival.

When Jesus arrived many missed Him.  They were not looking for Him and they did not apply His life to the scriptures – even though they were told to search and see. 

But, that did not lessen the desire God has for reconciliation with man.  He could have said, ‘you don’t accept my son, therefore I will withdraw Him and my mercy from you.’

Who would or could blame Him?  Who are we to question who He is?  Who are we to demand He react in a given manner and obey OUR idea of God? 

All that we are, everything we accomplish – if not for God – is nothing.  YET, God loves us and wants us to be part of His family.  To live with Him in heaven, forever, in magnificent splendor man has never dreamed of, let alone experienced.

Who is man – indeed – who am I that God would look down upon me and call me His son.  God is God, and I but a mite on the earth and only here for a short time, while He has always been and always will be.  What am I that He should seek me and sacrifice His Son on my behalf?

But He does love me, with all my imperfections.  And because of that, even with all my limitations, even though I sometimes shunt Him aside, I can call Him Father.  I can go to Him through His precious Son and be heard.

In the end, there will be no end.  I will be with Him for eternity. 

Who am I that God should take note of me?  I am His adopted Son, joint heirs with Jesus.

And I am thankful!

Later, Art :-)

From the ColumbiaRiverGorgeous
May Our Good Lord Bless and Keep YOU....’til we meet again