“Your God Is Too Small”

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Opening Prayer

God, You are so great. You are mighty and worthy of all my praise.

Read Psalm 65:1-13

^[1] For the director of music. A psalm of David. A song. Praise awaits you, our God, in Zion; to you our vows will be fulfilled. ^[2] You who answer prayer, to you all people will come. ^[3] When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions. ^[4] Blessed are those you choose and bring near to live in your courts! We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple. ^[5] You answer us with awesome and righteous deeds, God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas, ^[6] who formed the mountains by your power, having armed yourself with strength, ^[7] who stilled the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations. ^[8] The whole earth is filled with awe at your wonders; where morning dawns, where evening fades, you call forth songs of joy. ^[9] You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly. The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for so you have ordained it. ^[10] You drench its furrows and level its ridges; you soften it with showers and bless its crops. ^[11] You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance. ^[12] The grasslands of the wilderness overflow; the hills are clothed with gladness. ^[13] The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for joy and sing.

Meditate

“The material universe is a tiny thing lost in a big God. God is not a tiny thing lost in a big universe” (Dallas Willard). Although the word is overworked these days, God is awesome!

Think Further

I once heard stated in a sermon, “Too many Christians believe that Jesus is Savior, but not that God is God.” We limit our faith to our personal salvation, worship God on Sundays and keep our heads down the rest of the time, lacking any real belief in the presence of God in creation and in human history.

In this psalm David delights in salvation, in gathering to worship, and in answered prayer (3-5), but the God he worships is the God of the whole world. This God is concerned with “all” human beings (2), and is the hope of “all” the ends of the earth (5). This God is the awesome Creator of the universe (6). This God is the Lord of the nations, in all their political turmoil (7). This God is the source of the rhythm of day and night. He is the source of the stability and the joy of human life, even when he is not recognized (8).

Then the psalm turns to harvest thanksgiving (9-13). God sends the rain, provides the growth and brings the year to a climax with the harvest. He is so intimately involved with providing for his human creatures, it is as though the hills and valleys themselves come even more alive to sing his praise. Then the psalm stops. It does not have a conclusion to tie the argument together. It is more an instinctive cry of praise than a theological dissertation. It does not circle back to the beginning to re-emphasize the wonder of sins forgiven. It just takes for granted that forgiven sinners serve a big God, the God of the whole universe, and that nothing and no one is beyond his power, concern or care. Big God indeed!

Apply

Every time you watch the world news, enjoy the beauty of nature, watch pounding waves, or shop in a supermarket, remember the power and generosity of our great God.

Closing prayer

Heavenly Father, today I want to praise You for all creation, praise You with all Your people, praise You with all my heart and soul. You surpass all I can ever imagine.

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