Every Grain of Sand

"How precious to me are your thoughts, O God!

How vast is the sum of them!

If I would count them, they are more than the sand.

I awake, and I am still with you." 

Psalm 139 is a song filled with praise for God.  One of the reasons the psalmist praises God is for the extent of knowledge the that God has, knowledge of both the psalmist personally but also of all of creation.  Everything that God knows about the psalmist God also knows about every person and thing found in creation.

The psalmist knows that everything that could be known about him…the good, the bad…the well-known and the secret…all of these things are known by God.  In the language of the psalmist, the thoughts that God has about him are more numerous than the grains of sand.

More than the grains of sand.  That is a lot of thoughts.  And that is for just one person.  And God is able to hold not just these nearly infinite thoughts about one person, but all of the knowledge of all of creation.  That would be like multiplying infinity times infinity.  It is a number, a concept, too large and complex to comprehend.

And yet it is within the comprehension of God.  I find that very reassuring.

We are so often desperate to control our own part of the world.  And we can't.  At some point in time everyone learns that parts of their world are outside of their control, and parts of life will always be that way.  But God's knowledge of the world, every bit of it, is perfect.  And He also has the ability to exert control at any time over any part of the world, which He does, according to His purposes, and not ours. 

This morning, during worship, as we shared our prayer concerns, we were also reminded of the beauty that exists in the world.  There is beauty in the largest of landscapes and the smallest of details.  We were reminded that, while there are concerns on our  that hearts that we want to lift to God, in the beauty around us we can see reminders of God's knowledge, knowledge of us and every detail of our world. 

God, who can count every grain of sand, knows us fully.  He loves us.  He cares for us.  And He holds us.

May you know His peace and presence in the uncertain moments of your life. Amen.

Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.