Wonderful God

“O LORD, you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; you discern my thoughts from far away. You search out my path and my lying down, and are acquainted with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, O LORD, you know it completely. You hem me in, behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high that I cannot attain it.” (Psalm 139:1-6) What an amazing confession to God! Do we know how God knows us? Do we know how much God knows us and loves us?

In seminary I had the privilege of studying the theology of Dr. Howard Thurman in a course taught by Dr. Luther Smith. It remains a privilege that I cherish to this day because both men are heroic figures of the Church. Dr. Thurman’s book, Jesus and the Disinherited, was the other book that Martin Luther King, Jr. always carried with him in addition to his Bible. The humility of Dr. Thurman is reflected in the words of the psalmist. Dr. Thurman’s favorite Psalm was 139. Dr. Thurman was moved toward a great calm and strength when he read and understood what the psalmist wrote, knew and understood about God. When we come to the realization of God’s knowledge of us it should be that of calm and strength. If our lives are in disarray it will cause us to stop and realize that God is present in that disarray offering calm and strength.

Listen musically to the Psalm. At the bottom of this blog there is a link to Cyberhymnal. Click on the link and it will take you to an alpha listing of the hymns. Turn your volume on. Go to the S’s and select the Orr version, Search Me O God. J. Edwin Orr wrote these words at a revival meeting in 1936 in Ngaruawahia, New Zealand, taking less than five minutes to put them down on paper. The musical tune is an aboriginal Maori tune.

Prayer: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my thoughts. See if there is any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.” We are yours O God. We need your presence constantly. Heal us where physical healing is possible; restore us to our holy relationship with you and our neighbor; bless us in Your service; and teach us to travel in the Way of Your Son Jesus Christ. We pray this in Jesus’ Redeeming Name. AMEN!