Anything can trigger this - I was watching a BBC Sherlock music video this evening, and when Sherlock grabbed Moriarty by his coat collar, suddenly I was drowned by the force of their emotions sweeping over me: desperation, triumph, horror, anger, determination, sadness, fear. And I realized just how huge the world is - I don't know if that makes sense, but I realized that in each person, there is a vast depth of thoughts, experiences, feelings, wishes, dreams, and passions that can never be fully explored by the persons themselves, let alone by those who know them. The world is full of billions of these dark, turbulent ocean-trench hearts. So many are completely unlit and unexplored, perhaps full of beauty, and certainly full of pain and sadness. And each of these hearts is just a little speck in the huge expanse of the earth, with all of its mountains and valleys and rivers and forests and deserts - each as deep as the human heart.
And in turn, just a moment after being struck with the magnitude of all these depths, I looked up and saw the indescribable infinity of God - and I was awed and overwhelmed. God in His majesty and glory is vast. He is unable to be comprehended or known by the human heart. Think of all the yawning expanses of the universe and multiply them by a billion, and you have the tiniest fraction of the size of God.
Life is BIG. God is big.
And now - the most incredible mystery of all: This great vastness of God, the mighty power and glory that overshadows the universe and outshines every sun, the righteousness that is blinding in its whiteness and purity, the love that is too incredible for the human heart to comprehend - all of His majesty and glory is contained in the person of Jesus Christ.
Colossians 2:9 - "For in Him [Jesus Christ] dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily ..."
Christ hid this glory for us, so that we could be near Him and know Him without being driven away by awe and fear, like the Israelites who were terrified of the holy mountain. But it was in no way diminished by His humble human appearance. He still had the power to calm a massive, raging sea, and to control huge storms with just a few words.
This is something I know in my head. But do I know it with my heart? I want to - I want to be completely drowned in the vastness of God, so that I can better understand and appreciate His love, which is both bigger than the universe and small enough for me to understand. I want to value Him more than all of the petty little things that have captivated my heart.
Lord, please don't let me get so small-minded that I can't look up and see the depth of the hearts around me, the hugeness of the world You have created, and the breathtakingly vast expanses of Your power, righteousness, and love!
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