Overwhelmed?
Does your mind remain overrun and overwhelmed by the infinite wisdom of God? In the fall of 1982, I began to read through the Bible, a little each night before going to bed. Although I grew up going to church, these late night vigils began soon after I was handed a small green Gideon’s Bible outside of my dorm, as a sophomore at West Virginia University.
As a young person attempting to make sense of an often complicated, yet exciting world, and finding my own path forward, the more I studied, the more I was amazed by Jesus. Each night as I read, I was increasingly astonished by the way he spoke, his actions, and his amazing interactions with others.
As I pondered the truths I was devouring, the mysteries of the universe began to be unlocked before my young eyes, and I became awestruck by the brilliance of the brightest brain in the Universe. Now, almost 40 years later, and with a lot more wear and tear on those same eyes, I am still awestruck by God. I also continue on an incredible and amazing journey that is oftentimes daunting and difficult, yet still remains a daily quest.
Isaiah 40:13-14 addresses the majestic mind of mightiest one of all when he states, “Who can fathom the Spirit of the Lord, or instruct the Lord as his counselor? Whom did the Lord consult to enlighten him, and who taught him the right way? Who was it that taught him knowledge, or showed him the path of understanding?”
God is awesome and is the source of all wisdom and knowledge. As such, he doesn’t need anyone to instruct, counsel, or advise him, as I do. Not only is no one capable of enlightening him, but he also doesn’t need to learn by trial and error, as we do, or to get his ‘fingers burned on the stove’, to familiarize himself with life’s dangers.
We learn by study, research, exploration, and investigation. The wisest and brightest among us also live as lifelong learners, even to the end of our days. However, if you take the accumulated knowledge and understanding, from all civilizations, for all of history, add it all together, and at best it ranks a molehill in comparison to the mount Everest sized manifold wisdom of God.
While it is wonderful that there is a long list of qualities of God that have drawn, or can draw, each of us to the Savior, such as his love, forgiveness, mercy, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, grace, peace, comfort, joy, and many many others, my pursuit of God began, and still remains centered in the recognition that there is a mind, far brighter than mine in the universe.
How humbling also to know that this attribute of the Holy One highlighted here is yet another part of the stunning and long list of incredible truths found in Isaiah 40.
Dear brother or sister in Christ, or friend along the journey of life, as we begin a new week, beyond the recognition of the one-year anniversary of the global pandemic, I hope you can find strength and courage from God as you face the challenges and opportunities in front of you.
I also hope you can smile along with me, knowing not only how sweet it is to know the Savior, but also the joy and zest it adds to life when you can answer with an affirmative yes to the question, does your mind remain overrun and overwhelmed by the infinite wisdom of God?