Awestruck Wonder

Welcome back! Today, God is still very active in his world and our lives. He wants to help guide us on the right path that leads to life. Join me listening to the thoughts expressed in Psalm 2. Give it a couple of read-throughs. What does God want to impress on you through these words?

I'm drawn to this statement:

Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. (v. 11)

I read this and think how easy it is to fail to give God his due. I mean, what if I had lived at the time of Julius Caesar or Alexander the Great--both of whom conquered the world--and been called in by him, walked into his pristine throne room through the gauntlet of palace guards and stood there before him? Well, actually I wouldn't have been standing! I would have been on my knees, or I would have been slammed to them by a spear shaft across my back. And what if he had given me a charge of some kind? Sent me to carry out some royal decree?

I'm trying to imagine how I would have felt in that moment and as I left the palace. I think I would have been duly impressed with what just happened! Knowing I was kneeling before the most powerful king in the world would have been awe-inspiring! Imagine me in a one-on-one with Julius Caesar! I can picture myself setting out with an intense sense of purpose and a heightened sense of urgency about what he just commanded me to get done. I don't think I would have let much distract me from it. I would have been a man on a mission!

Then I think about how I feel when I come into the presence of God to worship him. I'm thinking about what the level of my intensity and resolution is when it comes to carrying out the mission he has set me on. I think about what I see from my fellow servants. Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. This is far from the casual Christianity of many church-goers. Where is the awe? Where is the wonder? It's amazing that God makes himself so near and proves to be so loving. But I wonder if we haven't so domesticated and tamed God that serving his mission is no longer a compelling responsibility? How has the service of the King of the Universe, who holds our very lives in his hands, become such a low priority? If we really thought about who God is, it would unleash an unbridled joy to be in his presence coupled with a profound awe and a sense of urgency to carry out his will.

I know I will stand accountable to you, my King, for the way I have approached your service and your worship. May I never hear you say that I did either half-heartedly, flippantly or that I offered you lame excuses. God, remind me of how fearfully awesome you are! I am on my knees before you right now, fully aware of who you are and who I am in awestruck wonder! I gladly accept your decision to send me!

Please share your impressions of Psalm 2 and how it relates to your life. Sign in on the top right corner of the page or select Anonymous in the "Comment as" field when you enter your comments below.