Life is a Gift
Isaiah 40.21-31
21 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood since the earth was founded?
22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
and spreads them out like a tent to live in.
23 He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.
24 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root in the ground,
than he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.
25 “To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?” says the Holy One.
26 Lift up your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one
and calls forth each of them by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,
not one of them is missing.
27 Why do you complain, Jacob?
Why do you say, Israel,
“My way is hidden from the Lord;
my cause is disregarded by my God”?
28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
I like to watch some of the short documentaries on a variety of things. A subject that has been very interesting lately is the exploration of space. Seeing what is being discovered about places far from us. Beyond the solar system to far away stars and planets around them. Yet seeing all those things that we can discover that God has made, that God keeps in place and only this one place in the universe has been shown to have life.
Not that finding life somewhere else would change anything about faith. God can put life where he wills. But as far as we can tell, there is no life outside of this small rock covered in water and soil. Of course, all of the far away planets and stars we see are so far from us that we only see them as they were in the past. We have no idea what things would look like at this moment. And we can’t travel fast enough, or send and receive images from that distance.
Yet, all of the universe is created by God and he keeps it all moving and in order. So we see that life is a gift that has been given to us. While the movies give us stories of life everywhere in the universe, we find that life is a special gift from God.
As we spend time in our day with God, think of a few things. Think about how God has gifted this planet with life, not just us, but all who are on it. Think about how God knows us by name, yet also knows the billions of galaxies filled with stars and keeps them in place as he does us. We can think about his greatness, and yet his care for the smallest of things in life. Take time to sit in his presence here, knowing that all around the world can do the same at this moment. Even as God holds the stars and the galaxies in their places far from us. The greatness of God, and the intimacy of his knowing and loving us. This is our God.
Prayer
Creator God, who set the stars in their places and directs the courses of the planets; who robed this earth with a thin garment of air, making it a haven of beauty and life; who breathed into each of us the breath of life: We thank you for the gift of air. Create in us such a sense of wonder and delight in this and in all your gifts that we might receive them with gratitude, care for them with love, and generously share them with all your creatures, to the honour and glory of your holy name. Amen.
Song – We Bow Down