A number of years ago, my family moved to a city near a large body of water. For a guy that grew up in endless cornfields, the sight of endless water was new and fascinating to me. While driving along, I would often look at the water and marvel at its beauty and size. During the first couple years, one of our favorite activities was to go down to a hidden beach and go swimming. I was surprised to find my enjoyment was, many times, not shared by the people who had lived near the water for some time. I remember thinking how amazed I was that they could take its beauty for granted.
As the years passed, I realized my perspective had changed. The sight of all the water was still beautiful, but my eyes were on my daily responsibilities, and I overlooked its beauty. The wonder had worn off.
Unfortunately, this is a picture of what can happen in our Christian lives. The day we are saved, everything becomes new and wondrous; but as we walk along in life, we can lose sight of what our Lord has done and keeps doing.
Do you remember the wonder of being saved? Do you remember the wonder of new sight, all things becoming new? Do you remember the wonder at the realization that you really are a new creature? Do you remember the wonder of becoming more and more aware of what Jesus really had done for you and the depths of His love?
These last days are so distracting. If we take our eyes off the Lord and forget His wondrous works, we can easily become defeated in our service.
If you are struggling, fatigued, burnt out, or simply need encouragement, take a moment and remember the wonder of it all.
More specifically, look to our marvelous God and remember His wondrous works!
If you are a blood-bought (Hebrews 9:12-14), born-again (John 3:3) child of God (Romans 8:15), our hearts should be encouraged by the wonders of our God. More than encouraged, our hearts should burn brighter with a desire to worship, serve, and love God.
David was an example of a man that remembered the wondrous works of God (Psalms 26:6-7). David often praised God for His wonderful works.
Remember, our peace and joy are based in the finished work of our Lord Jesus Christ. When we are tired spiritually, we should think on the Lord. When we are energized spiritually, we should think on the Lord. Think of His wonder and our hope in Him. Think on what He has done in our lives. Think on what He has created. Think on what He will soon do at the end of this age. Think on His promises to each of us.
Psalms 40:5 “Many, O LORD my God, are thy wonderful works which thou hast done, and thy thoughts which are to us-ward: they cannot be reckoned up in order unto thee: if I would declare and speak of them, they are more than can be numbered.”
Psalms 119:27 “Make me to understand the way of thy precepts: so shall I talk of thy wondrous works.”
Psalms 145:4-5 “One generation shall praise thy works to another, and shall declare thy mighty acts. I will speak of the glorious honour of thy majesty, and of thy wondrous works.”
The book of Job is a wonderful place to read about the wondrous works of God.
Job 37:14 “Hearken unto this, O Job: stand still, and consider the wondrous works of God.”
The apostles spoke of God’s wonderful works during Pentecost.
Acts 2:11 “Cretes and Arabians, we do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God.”
It’s impossible to list all the works of God, but I have listed a few that should cause our hearts to wonder.
- We should be in wonder that the Living and Great God, the only Holy One, the Creator loves us (1 John 4:10).
Can you comprehend how our God loves us? We, who are unworthy to be loved, are loved by the Living God (Romans 5:8). On top of that, His love is perfection, because He defines love, because He is love (1 John 4:19). We, the finite, are loved by the infinite God. I cannot put into words the wonder I have at God loving me.
We tend to tie our own merit to God loving us, when the Bible simply says God is love. We will never merit His love, especially the love of a Holy God.
- We should be in wonder that God would give His Son Jesus to die for us (John 3:16).
Beyond the wonder of God loving us, He gave Jesus to die for our sins. Isaiah 53:10 says, “Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief:” It pleased God to sacrifice Jesus for our sakes. This is astounding and worthy of our praise for eternity. Have we lost the wonder of this truth?
This should break our hearts and cause our spirits to soar. I can’t grasp the wonder and depths of His sacrifice. I praise God for it though!
- We should be in wonder that Jesus could have called twelve legions of angels to free Himself, but He still chose to die for us (Matthew 26:53).
Not only did God love us and not only did God the Father give His Son to die for us, but Jesus was obedient to the Father even when He knew what He would go through. He knew He would die a torturous death and be mocked by the people watching. He was/is God! The shame He chose to endure for us is astounding. Remember the wonder of His sacrifice!
From my research, I found that a legion usually indicated around 5,000 soldiers. Imagine what 60,000 angels could have done to protect Jesus. Twelve legions of angels could have easily destroyed every person on the planet.
- We should be in wonder that we are now adopted into God’s family (Romans 8:15).
What wonders will we encounter in eternity? Once we put our faith in Jesus and are saved, we have a heavenly Father. I wonder at meeting all my brothers and sisters in eternity. Will we know everyone by name immediately or eventually? Imagine the wonder of being part of a huge perfect family that never sins and is always loving to each other. This family will never have someone die and will never watch someone waste away to cancer. This family will be led by the King of kings and Lord of lords and will live forever doing wondrous things we can’t comprehend right now.
- We should be in wonder that we are now heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17).
Not only are we now in the family of God; we become heirs with Christ. If none of the previous wonders listed above break our hearts, this should. Being an heir means we will receive an inheritance. It’s just one blessing after another. The grace of God is truly wonderful.
1 Peter 1:3-5 “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.”
- We should be in wonder that God created this world and that He set perfect laws in place to govern this world (Genesis 1:1).
As the earth spins, why don’t we get thrown off into space? Why doesn’t every atom in creation simply explode? Why does the air we breathe stay perfectly as we need it? Why do the seasons come and go? How are we in a perfect rotation around the sun and at the perfect distance? Do you ever wonder about these things? God has set the laws of creation. Mankind can bottle some of these laws and call them science, but certain truths will never be understood by “science.” Certain laws are understood by faith.
Gravity is an example. We cannot explain gravity, but God knows how it works because He created it. The Bible says it is God’s word that holds everything together (Colossians 1:17, Hebrews 1:3). Oh, the mighty power He displays! What a wonder.
- We should be in wonder at God’s design of the human body. We are fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalms 139:14).
The complexity of the human body should make us marvel at God’s design. When our bodies are young and healthy, our joints allow us to move with amazing agility. When we break something or are damaged in some way, our body will work to heal itself. Someday we will receive a glorified body.
As mankind has developed AI and robotics, they have found it’s incredibly difficult to build the range of motion our bodies enjoy.
- We should be in wonder at the complexity and uniqueness of the animals God created (Genesis 1:20, 24).
Our marvelous God is a wonderfully creative God. He designed each animal uniquely, yet we can see that all animals had the same architect. Mankind enjoys observing animals, which is why we have zoos, but we should remember to marvel at our Creator’s creativity.
When I look at the face of my Siamese cat, I can’t help but marvel at God’s design. Cat eyes are completely different from our own and their small faces are fascinatingly detailed. They can jump very high while being precise, and each one has a unique personality. My Siamese is slightly cross-eyed, yet she sees perfectly fine and is an exceptional mouser. Praise the Lord for His design of just this one little animal.
- We should be in wonder when looking at the night sky (Psalms 147:4).
I’ve read that there is no truly empty place in the night sky. Every dark gap is filled with stars which our eyes can’t see. We can only see a small portion of the planets and galaxies in space, but our God knows every molecule, on every star, in every galaxy.
If you would like to be amazed at the magnificence of God, look up “Hubble eXtreme Deep Field” or “Hubble Deep Field.” The Hubble telescope was directed to a patch of night sky (the size of a pinhead) with absolutely nothing in it. The goal was to see if they would pick up anything in the patch of nothingness. What they discovered was an astounding number of galaxies. The scientists who performed this experiment said they had to sit back and marvel at the magnificence of space. (Unfortunately, I didn’t read that they marveled at its Creator.)
The Milky Way (our galaxy) is estimated to have between 800 billion and 3.2 trillion planets. If we were to calculate all the planets in all the galaxies in space (remember we can’t even number the galaxies), the number would be staggering. Please read the verse listed below and wonder at the magnificence of our God!
Psalms 147:4 “He telleth the number of the stars; he calleth them all by their names.”
- We should be in wonder at the mysteries of the ocean (Psalms 146:6).
God knows all the hidden corners in the deepest depths of our oceans because He created everything. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration website says only 20% of the oceans have been explored. From their site, “more than eighty percent of this vast, underwater realm remains unmapped, unobserved, and unexplored.”
Did you know there are lakes at the bottom of the ocean? Look up “brine lakes” or “underwater lakes.” These underwater lakes actually have shorelines. What other wonders has God created in the depths of the oceans?
- We should be in wonder at God’s fulfillment of prophecy (Acts 3:18).
One of the foundations for the authenticity of the Bible is fulfilled Bible prophecy. Psalms 22, Isaiah 53, and many others have been fulfilled in Jesus. He is the fulfillment of Bible prophecy, and He will be fulfilling more Bible prophecy soon. God is moving millions of pieces into place for the fulfillment of prophecy in these last days. We should look at Israel becoming a nation as wondrous. God kept His promise to Israel. However impossible it is for a nation to return after being dispersed, God is not limited by the impossible.
- We should be in wonder at the miracle of God’s Word (2 Timothy 3:16).
The Bible was written by around 40 men over a period of 1,500 to 1,600 years, who worked in a variety of backgrounds and were located on 3 different continents. The Bible is inspired by God, and it is our final authority on this earth. It was written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek; and the central figure in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, is Jesus. God not only inspired His Word, but He has preserved the scriptures.
Psalms 12:6-7 “The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.”
God’s Word is a wonder.
- We should be in wonder at the thought of our Lord returning (1 Thessalonians 4:16).
Our Lord’s return will be an event with two legs. First, Jesus will return for His bride (all the saved in Christ) and take them instantly to heaven at the rapture. Next, He will return at the end of the tribulation period with His wife (Revelation 19:7) to conquer the earth and slay the armies of the antichrist. Our Lord’s return is our blessed hope.
The mysteries of our future and the Lord’s return should cause us to wonder at the marvelous works our God will do.
Revelation 19:11-16 “And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
“And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
My heart burns to see this sight. As a child of God, have you ever thought of your perspective during this event? Hint: Your view won’t be from the ground looking into the sky.
- We should be in wonder at the power of God (Job 26:14).
Have you ever felt the raw power when waiting for a train to pass? The ground shakes. What will it be like to be in the presence of our Creator? Will all of creation shake when He speaks? He has the power to set the sun in the heavens. God holds everything in place by the power of His word.
Job 26:6-11 “Hell is naked before him, and destruction hath no covering. He stretcheth out the north over the empty place, and hangeth the earth upon nothing. He bindeth up the waters in his thick clouds; and the cloud is not rent under them. He holdeth back the face of his throne, and spreadeth his cloud upon it. He hath compassed the waters with bounds, until the day and night come to an end. The pillars of heaven tremble and are astonished at his reproof.”
Never forget the wonder of it all. Our God is wonderful and mighty. He is our hope and our help. As this world grows darker, think on the wondrous works of our God. He is on His throne; and if you are saved, the wonders of your future are beyond your understanding. Those wonders stretch into the eons of eternity.
Malachi 3:16-18 “Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name. And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him. Then shall ye return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.”
