Do it again, Lord

     Thank You, Lord, for a breathtaking sunrise this morning!  Wow!  Moses and I went out for his morning constitutional--an ever slower and briefer one, I might add--and we (I'm just assuming he felt the same way--he's a deep thinker for a dog) were staggered by the stunning beauty--the wash of neon pink painted across the sky as a backdrop to the bare tree branches.  What a God, what a Creator.
     And to think: He does it over and over and over again.  Wouldn't you think that would be exhausting--to keep coming up with such scenes of remarkable, shocking beauty and wonder day after day, year after year, millennia after millennia?  I get tired just thinking about it.
      I cook a half way decent meal for my family or get the house all cleaned up and laundry folded for one shining moment in time, or maybe even come up with a great idea for a birthday party or a lecture or a gift for a friend, and I think: "I'll never be able to match that again.  That was a semi-peak performance, and I'm washed up, I'm sure. Not to mention, I"m worn out from all that effort."  Gee, sometimes I just get finished with the morning rush, get everyone fed and fortified for the day, clean up the kitchen, and then I'm tempted to go lie back down, staggered at the thought of how on earth I can do that again for 364 more days.
     But not our Lord.  He just keeps shining His glory day after day, century after century.  Like that giant waterfall at Cane River--the water just thunders over Upper Blue Sea Falls.  Think of the amount of water that pours over those falls... every single minute of every single day of every single year.  How can it not run out?
      The same way our Lord never runs out, never runs low, never runs away, never runs scared.  Nope, He is sovereign and omnipotent and omniscient... and relentlessly loving and forgiving and redeeming and restoring.  He is huge and vast and infinite and eternal.
      And yet He is our God.  He knows and loves us personally, individually, intricately.  He knows the hairs on our head and the hopes and dreams in our hearts.  I just can't get over the wonder and the joy of that.  O might we never get over that!
      Even as I write this, I'm suddenly thinking of Chris Tomlin's incredible new song entitled, "Whom Shall I Fear (God of Angel Armies).  Janie heard him sing it live at the Passion conference in Atlanta last week.  The lyrics are so powerful... and speak truth, because this is Who our Almighty God was and is and will be forever.  Man, I wish I could figure out how to put the song itself on this blog, but here are the words:
You hear me when I call
You are my morning song
Though darkness fills the night
It cannot hide the Light

Whom shall I fear?

You crush the enemy
Underneath my feet
You are my Sword and Shield
Though trouble lingers still

Whom shall I fear?

I know Who goes before me
I know Who stands behind
The God of angel armies
Is always on my side
The One who reigns forever
He is a Friend of mine
The God of angel armies
Is always by my side

My strength is in Your name
For You alone can save
You will deliver me
Yours is the victory

I know Who goes before me
I know Who stands behind
The God of angel armies
Is always on my side
The One who reigns forever
He is Friend of mine
The God of angel armies
Is always by my side

Whom shall I fear?
Whom shall I fear?

And nothing formed against me shall stand
You hold the whole world in Your hands
I'm holding onto Your promises
You are faithful
You are faithful

I know Who goes before Me
I know Who stands behind
The God of angel armies
Is always on my side
The One who reigns forever
He is a Friend of mine
The God of angel armies
Is always by my side.
     Sorry that was so long, but what on earth could I leave out?!  He is the Almighty God of angel armies and the God of thundering waterfalls and the God of brilliant sunrises and the God of resurrection and redemption who can do all things. Now seriously, in light of Who He is, whom or what on earth should we fear?!
      And the most shocking, even scandalous, but wondrous part of it all?  "The One who reigns forever, He is a Friend. of. Mine."  Who would believe it?  Who can comprehend it?  Who could ever deserve it?  No one. Not one single person on the planet. That's why it's called "amazing grace."  And the older I get, the more I agree with John Newton, who said at the very end of his life that his memory was fading but he would never forget two things: "I'm a great sinner but Christ is Great Savior."
     So thank You, Lord.  Wow, Lord.  Do it again, Lord.  And again.  And again.
     To the God of angel armies, the One Who reigns forever... and is a Friend of mine... be ALL the glory.