Worship Opportunities

Have you ever heard the saying, “You are what you eat?” In other words, your body’s health is a product of what you put into it. There’s probably a lot of truth to this, and one I *loosely* live out, but it’s a saying I prefer to ignore when my body tells me I just need a cookie! Panera Kitchen Sink cookies are just the best. Salty, sweet, dense, a pure symphony in my mouth! Mmmm I can taste it now! Ha! 

Yesterday, I was struck by a thought with more spiritual weight to it, though. I was reading Psalm 8, and thought, “You are what you observe.” In other words, that which we behold shapes who we become.

These are the verses that influenced this thought: 

When I observe your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you set in place, what is a human being that you remember him, a son of man that you look after him? Psalm 8:3-4 (CSB)

This Psalm is thought to have been written in David’s older years, but as I read it, I was carried back into the accounts of his younger years of shepherding and years of living on-the-run from his enemy, Saul. He spent countless hours outside, undoubtedly gazing up at the heavens. While he may have been distracted by thoughts of fear or anguish, get this, he didn’t have the competing glow of a rectangular box tucked in his tunic!

There are a few things that really struck me yesterday as I meditated on this Psalm. I’ll simmer it down to these few observations, though: Activity, Attention, Affection.

First, Activity. 

David says, “When I observe your heavens…” The word “when” makes me think that he observed the heavens more than just once. As I said, years of David’s life were spent outside, and as he was in the quiet solitude of God’s creation, he was intentional to observe what he saw. That’s his activity. The word “observe” can also be translated “behold” or “give attention to.” 

Who or what do I take the time to observe, behold, or give attention to? 

Like David, I am quite taken by the activities I see in the sky. I love the night-to-day transition and the day-to-night transition. Numerous pictures captured on my camera roll reflect this, and that very minuscule feeling I experience in those moments well-up this awe of God and sense of His grandeur. 

While I can say the above with complete honesty, I can also observe my screentime and an opposing truth is exposed, as well: I’m captivated by my phone! 

I think David would feel some solidarity with me. Though he was so captivated by God’s grandeur, he was far from being perfect. The accounts of his life expose that he also got captivated at times by unworthy, dissatisfying things.

Here’s a Kate version of what could be said of us in modern times: 

“When I observe my iPhone, the swiping of my fingertips, the pinterest ideals and unrealistic expectations… who am I and what am I doing? How can I ever keep up?”

See how it lands so short? What I observe leaves me unchanged- or worse, anxious and earth-bound!

Next, Attention.

David gave attention to the observations he made about the heavens. “When I observe your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you set in place…” Wow, the work of God’s fingers?! His fingers set in place the moon and stars?! 

What is the greatest thing you can think of that your fingers have ever done? 

The best thing I could think of is this incredible, fudgy chocolate cake I learned how to make thanks to my friend Allison. Everyone loves it! 

Or, on a more healing note, my fingertips have been put to use in medical needs offered to my children: applying bandages or attending to Jonathan’s medical needs. 

I was even trying to think of the heaviest thing I’ve ever lifted with my fingertips. Maybe like four milk jugs at once? 

But using my fingertips to set celestial bodies into the sky? Never! 

Imagine the most brilliant or the strongest people we know in this time period. Elon Musk is a pretty genius guy, but even he would require extensive thought, research, a team of other brilliant thinkers, and technology to create and set a new star some place in the galaxy. His fingertips wouldn’t cut it.

But God? David says His fingertips set these wonders in the sky into their exact positions for their proper working in this incredible solar system in this vast universe where we are just tiny fragments of existence. He didn’t drop them; He set them there.

Finally, Affection. 

David goes on to express affection in verse 4: “what is a human being that you remember him, a son of man that you look after him?”

One translation says “what are mere mortals that you should think about them…”

We can see a two-way affection here: God’s affection for mankind and David’s affection for God in attending to him. 

Do you feel that affection towards God? Do you know His tender, loving affection towards you? It’s written all over His creation and all over the pages of His scripture, preserved through all these centuries!

So what are we beholding and becoming? We are shaped by what we observe. 

Here’s a simple prayer we can say together: Lord, help our activities draw our attention to you and stir up our affection for you. How majestic is your name in all the earth!