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by Gary Sims
10/14/03
Not For Sale
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The Psalms
Psalm 104:1-9, 24, 35c – Gloriously Robed
Key Verses: (MSG)

1: “O my soul, bless GOD! GOD, my God, how great you are! beautifully, gloriously robed.” – The psalmist begins this psalm of praise by linking the majesty and beauty of God with the wonders of His creation.
2: “Dressed up in sunshine, and all heaven stretched out for your tent.” – A vision of God sitting in His kingly palace readying Himself to create the heavens and the earth.
5: “You set earth on a firm foundation so that nothing can shake it, ever.” – The foundation of creation is rock solid in the truth of God’s faithfulness and love.
24: “What a wildly wonderful world, GOD! You made it all, with Wisdom at your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations.” – Taking time to see the glory of God reflected in all things as His creation overwhelms us with His magnificence.
35c: “O my soul, Bless God!” – What else can we do?

Points to Contemplate:

Do you love nature? Are you enthralled by all the intricacies of God’s creation? As you examine and inspect His handiwork does it create within you a sense of awe? Or are you tired of the “creation thing”, bored by its constant referral to God’s magnificence and wonder? Has man grown insensitive to the wonders of creation? Do the psalmists dwell on it as much as they do because they were exposed to it more than we are today? Has modern man created enough insulating environments that he is seldom exposed to the vastness of God’s creation?
Where do you go to experience God’s creation? Are you occasionally able to break away on nature hikes and walks? Is there a quiet, secluded spot available to you where you are able to hear more birds singing than cars honking or cell phones ringing? Why is this important? Is this one way to grow closer to God? Does He want you to sit up and take notice of His creation? Are you too busy to take the time to study the world around you? Are you afraid of too much peace and quiet?
What characteristics of God are revealed in nature? Does it help you to understand how rock-hard and dependable He is? Does it give you a sense of how patient and focused on details He must be? Do you ever find examples in nature that God has a sense of humor? Are you surprised by His creativity? How do these characteristics affect your relationship with Him? Have you learned to rely on His steadfast faithfulness? Does it help you to recognize how intimately involved in your life He can be? Will His patience for you allow you to be patient with Him? Can you allow His creativity into your heart?
How is God’s wisdom revealed in nature? Is it demonstrated by the inability of man’s greatest minds to merely scratch the surface in their attempt to explain the natural world? Is His wisdom demonstrated by the utter sense of balance and efficiency that is always evident? Was He wise to leave it in our care? Will our poor attempt at stewardship end up destroying His creation? If that happens, will it be harder for us to learn and experience God’s amazing creative powers? Will this inhibit us from growing as close to Him as we once did?

Promise of the Gospel:

The psalmist had grown to know God by experiencing the world around him. The vastness and magnificence of creation pointed him to a God so wonderful that he envisioned Him to be “gloriously robed” by it. Through nature, we are enabled to learn of God’s wisdom, His steadfast faithfulness, His creativity, and, even, His humor. A question arises as we think about the manner in which as we have come to know God: Does the insulation from nature we create in our homes and cities add to the sense of separation from God that we feel and experience? Are we cutting ourselves off from knowing Him completely as we channel and control nature into small parks and open spaces? He has created a “wildly wonderful world” we can still enjoy and in which we can totally immerse ourselves. When we do we will feel so thoroughly blessed by Him that we will want to cry out, “O my soul, Bless God!”

FUMC Devotionals

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