His Handiwork...

"The heavens declare the glory of God 
and the firmament showeth His handiwork."
Psalm 19:1

This is one of the first verses I remember memorizing when I was a young girl in Missionettes. It is the King James Version and I'm pretty sure I had no idea what it meant at the time. Even that long ago, no one used the word "firmament"...what is the firmament? The NIV translation uses the word "sky". 

So, the heavens declare God's glory....
and the sky shows his handiwork.

I love nature and creation. It's one of the most obvious places I "see" God. On a beautiful clear night, away from city lights, I love to look up at the sky and see the countless stars. Or on a warm summer night stand on the beach and watch the sunset. The amazing colors that the setting sun can create as it disappears over the horizon. What about when a storm is brewing and the dark and angry looking clouds begin to gather? The various shapes and shades of gray...

God's glory....His handiwork.

I think my favorite chapter in the Bible is Isaiah 40. The entire chapter speaks of the incomparable greatness of God. But in verse 22, it says,    
"He stretches out the heavens like a canopy". 
Then verse 26 goes on...

"Lift your eyes and look to the heavens.
Who created all of these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one,  
and calls them each by name.  
Because of his great power and mighty strength, 
not one of them is missing."

He brings out the starry hosts....one by one. He calls them by name.    
And if that isn't amazing enough...He knows if one is missing. 
But, these are just stars....made up of rocks and gases.  
Yet still, they are the glory of God...

His handiwork...

Tonight, both of these scriptures came to my mind during worship. 
And I think what overwhelmed me the most was realizing that if God, 
the Creator of the universe, Maker of heaven and earth, 
cares that much about the stars, 
which are just made of rock and gas... 
how much more must He care for me!

You see, in the beginning,  God said,   
"Let us make man in our own image, in our likeness..."  
And though man was formed from the dust of the earth, God 
"breathed into his nostrils the breath of life". 
The very breath of God entered into man.
So not only was he created in His image, in His likeness, 
but the very breath of God is what gave him life. 
A part of God entered into him. 

So, while God spreads out the canopy of the night sky, 
and brings out the stars one by one, 
and He calls them by name, 
and is fully aware if one is missing...
it's still just a star made of rock and gas. 
A reflection of His glory...
an example of His handiwork. 
But, just a star.

And what I became overwhelmingly aware of tonight was this...

I am created in His image, 
I am created in His likeness;
I have the very breath of God ...
the Spirit of God...
in me!

I, too, am His handiwork!

And, oh how He loves me!

He knows the stars by name...
But my name is engraved on His hand.
He knows if a star is missing...
But He comes looking for me when I am lost....
He gave His life for me!

Oh, how He loves me!