Oh, So Great
“For thou art great, and doest wondrous things: thou art God alone,” Psalm 86:10.
As I stood at the base of the mountain in Tocoa, Honduras I thought, “This isn’t that tall. It’s not anything I cannot do. I can handle it.” This thought would soon take hold in my lungs as I treaded up the sometimes treacherous, muddy slopes and steep terrain. I soon realized the 50 lbs. of gear on my back was heavier than what it originally was. In other words, I was tired and worn out.
This mountain in Honduras has no name that I know of. It’s not the steepest, nor is it the most dangerous. But for a mid-twenty year old, who thought he was in shape, it was a daunting task. The climb took 7 hours to go 7 miles up. I’m not sure the altitude or any of that, but our group by the time we reached the summit was saying, “Thank you, Lord! We made it!”
Have you ever thought of God in the aspect of how great He is? Think of that for a solid minute. Can you fully grasp the entirety of that thought? That the God of the universe is greater than anything we can imagine. That mountain in Honduras, which gave our mission group an out of breath feeling, is nothing for God! He could look at that mountain and then remove it from the face of the planet.
You may be thinking what does this have to do with VBS? Well, I didn’t know either at the time I first heard a certain VBS song that my little cousin sang at one of our VBS programs at my former church. It went, “My God is so Great, so strong and so mighty! There’s nothing my God cannot do.” I thought at first that it was just a cute little ending program song that the kids looked so adorable in singing. But as I looked down the path that I had taken to get to the top of that mountain it occurred to me. The thought that God truly is Great.
God’s greatness isn’t just in might, power or magnificence. It’s also in His gentleness toward us. It’s in His giving of our comforter, the Holy Spirit. And not least, but most importantly, His love for us. Yes, God has the power to remove mountains and to eradicate everything in the blink of an eye, but He chooses to love us even though we don’t love Him as we should. His greatness is amazing.
God’s greatness is also displayed in His righteousness. He is the perfect lawgiver. He could give to us what we really deserve, which is a godless eternity with His enemy. Yet, He chose to send His only Son to die for the sins of all humanity, so that we would not have to live with no hope. This hope is only found in His Son, Jesus. The propitiation of our sins on Calvary was the greatest display of His forgiveness. This forgiveness forgave us of all past, present and future sins that we would commit.
To remember that VBS song I heard would be like now saying it myself. That my God is so great, so strong, and so mighty. There’s nothing He cannot do. Had you known me prior to my salvation, you would be saying the same. For God has worked wonders in mine and my family’s lives. I can almost imagine your stories of how God has spoken to your families in times of need. Or of how He displayed His holiness in times that only He could explain. Our God is so Great!
To consider the greatness of God is not something we should take for granted. It should be on the forefront of our minds when we wake, and when we sleep. This greatness is found throughout Scripture. It is evident when we step outside into the marvelous creation of His universe. We should forever praise His holiness, love and goodness. How Great our God is!
Michael Whitman