I was just looking at this Star Jasmine creeper at my
daughter’s place and this Cootamundra wattle tree in East Dubbo. These photos
don’t do them justice; they are spectacular. I asked my young Great Grandson to
count the flowers on the creeper this morning but of course he wouldn’t even
start to do so because it would be an impossible task, (like counting the stars
in the sky). Our God who designed all these things really thinks big. However,
He also is a genius for detail. Every tiny flower is crafted to perfection as
you see here with every minute detail complete. Each tiny flower has its own
tiny seed waiting to be pollinated and it has its own scent and nectar to
attract insects. Likewise, each tiny ball of wattle is not only pretty but also
has pollen for the bees to collect as they fertilise the seed there too.
The same planning went into designing you and me, we may be
part of a crowd of people, just like these individual flowers are part of the
tree or vine, but Jesus points out that each one of us is very special to the
extent that God knows how many hairs there are on our heads and “He loves us with an everlasting love”, as
a good father loves his child unconditionally. He won’t “Gate crash” our lives though,
but wants to guide us to the extent that He has promised to “Direct
our paths” if we are prepared to “Trust
in The Lord with all our heart”, and
“in all our ways acknowledge Him”. Actually it is similar to the way the
Satellite Navigation System in a modern car guides us as we travel. We tell it
where we want our destination to be, and then we rely completely on its ability
to navigate us down the best route to that destination.
When we become Christians we tell God that we are looking
forward to our ultimate destination in Heaven. We should then ask Him daily to
be the equivalent of our Satellite Navigation System to guide us down the best
path for us to travel, (as He has requested that we do in the bible quote
mentioned in the paragraph above). Non-Christians don’t do this; they just go
blindly ahead and do whatever they think might be best, which of course often
results in some very unhappy outcomes and sometimes they even blame God which
is quite unfair. After all, if we decide to not follow the instructions of our
Navigation Satellite System when travelling by car and end up lost, it is
hardly fair to blame the System. Likewise,
if we decide to ignore God’s directions in the Bible it is hardly fair to blame
God if we end up in a mess. However, God knows our weaknesses so He “didn’t send His Son into the world to
condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved”. So the
big picture might look alright: But in Gods sight it is the
individual flowers that count: And when it comes to people the same applies. As
clearly shown in John’s Gospel where Jesus said “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whosoever believes on Him, shall not perish but have eternal life.” That “whosoever” covers ordinary sinners
like you and me who make up the big picture, so we shouldn’t forget how much we
are loved, and make the most of that outstandingly Gracious offer whilst we
can, (forget your pride and independence). Hell is full of people who used to
be proud and independent. Instead be proud of our Heavenly Father and become
fully dependent on His grace and guidance. Best wishes. Tom.
I was just looking at this Star Jasmine creeper at my
daughter’s place and this Cootamundra wattle tree in East Dubbo. These photos
don’t do them justice; they are spectacular. I asked my young Great Grandson to
count the flowers on the creeper this morning but of course he wouldn’t even
start to do so because it would be an impossible task, (like counting the stars
in the sky). Our God who designed all these things really thinks big. However,
He also is a genius for detail. Every tiny flower is crafted to perfection as
you see here with every minute detail complete. Each tiny flower has its own
tiny seed waiting to be pollinated and it has its own scent and nectar to
attract insects. Likewise, each tiny ball of wattle is not only pretty but also
has pollen for the bees to collect as they fertilise the seed there too.
The same planning went into designing you and me, we may be
part of a crowd of people, just like these individual flowers are part of the
tree or vine, but Jesus points out that each one of us is very special to the
extent that God knows how many hairs there are on our heads and “He loves us with an everlasting love”, as
a good father loves his child unconditionally. He won’t “Gate crash” our lives though,
but wants to guide us to the extent that He has promised to “Direct
our paths” if we are prepared to “Trust
in The Lord with all our heart”, and
“in all our ways acknowledge Him”. Actually it is similar to the way the
Satellite Navigation System in a modern car guides us as we travel. We tell it
where we want our destination to be, and then we rely completely on its ability
to navigate us down the best route to that destination.
When we become Christians we tell God that we are looking
forward to our ultimate destination in Heaven. We should then ask Him daily to
be the equivalent of our Satellite Navigation System to guide us down the best
path for us to travel, (as He has requested that we do in the bible quote
mentioned in the paragraph above). Non-Christians don’t do this; they just go
blindly ahead and do whatever they think might be best, which of course often
results in some very unhappy outcomes and sometimes they even blame God which
is quite unfair. After all, if we decide to not follow the instructions of our
Navigation Satellite System when travelling by car and end up lost, it is
hardly fair to blame the System. Likewise,
if we decide to ignore God’s directions in the Bible it is hardly fair to blame
God if we end up in a mess. However, God knows our weaknesses so He “didn’t send His Son into the world to
condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved”. So the
big picture might look alright: But in Gods sight it is the
individual flowers that count: And when it comes to people the same applies. As
clearly shown in John’s Gospel where Jesus said “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that
whosoever believes on Him, shall not perish but have eternal life.” That “whosoever” covers ordinary sinners
like you and me who make up the big picture, so we shouldn’t forget how much we
are loved, and make the most of that outstandingly Gracious offer whilst we
can, (forget your pride and independence). Hell is full of people who used to
be proud and independent. Instead be proud of our Heavenly Father and become
fully dependent on His grace and guidance. Best wishes. Tom. 