“He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.” John 1:2-3

Cultivating Awe and Reverence for God, Day 7

His Mastery of Everything

When my brother was little, he was in the Cub Scouts, famous for their annual Pinewood Derby. Scouts from different troops would gather in one place to race their little handmade pinewood cars down a ramp. Fathers and sons would work together on this activity, carving, sanding, painting, and testing. I’m sure it wasn’t about the race—it was about fathers and sons working together on a project.

When God the Father created everything, He didn’t act alone. He did it with His Son. “In the beginning God—Elohim; God in His fullness: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, Whom we call the Trinity—created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1).

The angels also were present, watching while God created, and they rejoiced. “Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth… when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God (angels or celestial beings) shouted for joy?” (Job 38:4, 7).

Wisdom, also present at creation, rejoiced. “The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way, before His works of old… Then I was beside Him as a master craftsman, and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him, rejoicing in His inhabited world…” (Proverbs 8:22, 30-31).

Wisdom: the master craftsman. I am in awe of God’s mastery of what we call “occupations” today. When He created, He acted as author, scientist, mathematician, ornithologist, geologist, gardener, meteorologist, sculptor, painter, physician, nutritionist, artist, oceanographer, astronomer, botanist, farmer, architect, chemist, zoologist, environmentalist, forester, geneticist, poet, surveyor, herbologist, hydrologist, geologist, landscaper, musician, biologist, economist, psychologist, and—take a deep breath—lover. 

He created all systems of heaven, earth, seas, and humanity with flawless wisdom, and had perfect mastery of all that He made, thus making a perfect environment to sustain existence for man: mountains, rocks, tectonic plates, and earthquakes; all waters and their boundaries; plants and their systems of exchanging carbon dioxide for oxygen so we could breathe air; weather including all forms of precipitation to replenish our supplies and to water the earth; all aspects of time, which He does not need, but we do; temperatures that allow life to continue; food for all humans, animals, sea life, birds, and insects; minds, bodies, emotions, spirits, and souls; colors, words, and beauty to refresh us—there is no end to naming all the things He put into our lives at creation.

He perfectly made all our bodily systems work together; He made us in His image with the ability to think, act, appreciate, create, wonder, rejoice, grieve, love, be satisfied, amused, elated, tender, receptive, confident… I could never name all the emotions He has made us capable of exhibiting.

Let us surrender ourselves to awe and reverence as we realize anew that He is God, and we are not.

“Father, may our awe of You grow as we realize Your mastery at creation. Amen.”