Skip to main content

Wondering In Prayer


Has any god ever tried to take for himself one nation out of another nation, by testings, by miraculous signs and wonders, by war, by a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, or by great and awesome deeds, like all the things the LORD your God did for you in Egypt before your very eyes? You were shown these things so that you might know that the LORD is God; besides him there is no other. (Deuteronomy 4:34-35) 

          Every once in a while, I find myself amazed by the fact that for years, a group of people in Harrisburg, PA have allowed me to own and control a multiple-thousand-pound object that can move around very quickly. I’m not saying anything about my driving skills. I’m equally amazed that whoever gave you your license did so. 
          As a writer, wondering is part of my job description. Right now, I’m wondering how in the world my heroes are going to get out of the mess into which I’ve gotten them. (OK, they helped.) Wondering is fun. I believe that the capacity to wonder is one of the things that separates humanity from the animals. Animals are practical. Some animals are inquisitive. There’s nothing wrong with that. I value their practicality and curiosity, but those things aren’t what I mean by wondering. 
          Could it be that God works miraculous signs and wonders to make us wonder? Wonderment provokes (at least) two basic responses: investigation (Oh? How’s that? What’s that?) and awe (Oh, wow!) I think wondering is one of my favorite forms of prayer and worship. The times of prayer that I love best are those in which I ask God about something rather than for something. What does He think of this? How should I understand that? What connection is there between those two things? Why is that right and this wrong? Those “Oh?” wonderings often lead to “Oh!” wonderings, and the “Oh!” leads back to more “Oh?” The more I look, the more I see parallels between the way the physical universe works and the way the spiritual universe works. As I wonder about God, my focus is on getting to know God, and not on getting God to give me something. 
          For anyone who wants to explore this subject further, I recommend Recapture the Wonder by Ravi Zacharias. I need to reread it. Last time I tried, I think I was looking for the wrong things. This time, when I get to it, I want to read it with the prayer:
          Lord, cause me to see the wonder of You.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The List

              Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,   through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;   perseverance, character; and character, hope. And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured out into our hearts through the Holy Spirit, who has been given to us. (Romans 5:1-5)           Think about it. We have been justified. At least, we could be justified if we stopped insisting that our justification be based on our merits. We have peace with God, or could have peace if we stopped throwing temper tantrums. We have gained access into grace i...
Post a Comment
Read more

Listen To Him

              The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him . (Deuteronomy 18:15)           Today, we switch from Jesus’ claims of “I am” to prophecies made about Him. My Bible platform is starting in Deuteronomy. I’d start in Genesis, where we would learn that the one who would save us would be a descendant of Eve (Genesis 3:15), of Noah (by default), Abram and Sara(Genesis 12:1-3). Isaac (Genesis 17:19), Jacob (Genesis 25:23), Judah (Genesis 29:8), and David (II Samuel 7:12-16). There were also references to a new covenant (Jer. 31:31-34; Ezek. 36:22-32). In addition, there were prophecies about when and where the prophet/Messiah would be born and what would happen to him.           Of course, naysayers will claim that Jesus’ life was retrofitted or reverse enginee...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Way, The Truth, and The Life

              Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me . (John 14:6)           If “I am the gate of the sheep…I am the good shepherd” from chapter 10 is a double whammy, this verse is a triple whammy. And its first victim is the notion that any other so-called god was acceptable or the same as Jesus. He, and He alone is the way, the truth, and the life, and the only way to get to the Father. There is no other Savior, or Redeemer, according to Jesus. Now, to be fair, other religions will claim that their religion or god(s) are the only way. That is the nature of gods and of religions. If this and that are equally good and agree on what’s necessary, then this and that are the same thing, so there’s no need to from the other to one. If that’s the case, then why speak against the other or promote the one? There’s a song I’ve been listening to i...
Post a Comment
Read more