A Meditation Based on Psalm 8
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A Meditation based on Psalm 8 – R. Mark Green
O Lord, our Sovereign,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars that you have established;
what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
mortals that you care for them?
Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
and crowned them with glory and honor.
You have given humankind dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under their feet,
all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the seas.
O Lord, our Sovereign,
how majestic is your name in all the earth! – Psalm 8 (NRSV)
The Psalmist begins this favorite Psalm with words of praise and worship O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! It is right that we should worship God. God is our Maker, our Sustainer, our Lord and King!
I so enjoy worshipping with our brothers and sisters in Christ each week here at church. I love the intimacy and coziness of the Fresh Start Worship Service in Carreker Hall. The contemporary expressions of worship; the artistic and symbolic visual elements; the close, endearing relationships among the participants; and the weekly communion at the Lord’s Table all make Fresh Start a very meaningful time of worship and reflection.
And, of course, I love participating in the more traditional, often majestic Sanctuary Worship Service at 11:15 AM. A lover of the timeless hymns of our faith, I always enjoy the music, the choir anthems, and the congregational singing. The scripture readings, Pastoral Prayers, and sermons are thought provoking, challenging, and inspirational as well.
Both worship services are purposefully God-directed. Through these worship expressions, we are connected to God and to one another in the bond of friendship, community, and love. After participating in each one of these services, I feel refreshed and eager to live out my faith in the coming week.
The Psalmist mentions looking at and reflecting on “the heavens… the moon and the stars which you (God) have established.”
When I was in my early teenage years, I enjoyed looking at the stars and considering all sorts of large philosophical and spiritual matters.
The house we lived in at Dahlonega had a roof that was not steeply pitched. We also had some roof dormers above a couple of attic vents. This allowed you to safely ascend to the roof via a ladder propped against the side of the house. Though very careful, one could walk around on the roof without much fear of falling off. One could also lie down in the elbow of where the roof and dormers met to look at the stars above in the dark night sky. It was tons of fun!
Being far removed from all the lights of a large city, we had a front row seat (or, better… a roof top view) to some spectacular sights: the Perseid meteor shower in early August; the soft, lavender blue glow of moonlight cast by a full moon; or the viewing of countless constellations of stars on a clear, autumn night. We looked for The North Star, the Big Dipper, the Little Dipper, Orion’s Belt, Taurus, and Seven Sisters among plenty of others. My father would also point out planets when they were visible as well.
As we gazed at the heavens, we talked with one another about weighty, philosophical matters. Our conversation gravitated to subjects like creation, the concept of time, properties of light, our place in the universe, life, conjectures about intelligent life on other planets, the mysteries of the cosmos, and God. I can still recall the sheer wonder and excitement of it all.
The Psalmist goes on to ask, “what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them?
In this vast universe it seems that humankind is very small and insignificant. Yet, made in God’s image and for God’s glory, humankind holds a special place in creation. Our Maker regards us as the highest form of the divine order.
I am reminded, “to whom much is given, much will be required.” We are not to abuse or take advantage of our place in creation, but to celebrate it by fulfilling our calling to seek justice and mercy for all. As Followers of Christ, we are to be his hands, his feet, his voice… his very presence in the world.
Our world is filled with a lot of prejudice, hate, division, and violence right now. The call of God in Christ is to show love, grace, and kindness to all… and especially to “the least of these.” We are also to work for justice in ways that will truly benefit all to make this a better world.
“You have given humankind dominion over the works of your hands; all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas.”
As caretakers or stewards entrusted with the care of God’s creation, we are to actively engage in practices that will sustain and preserve the natural world.
Our seven-year-old granddaughter, Emmy, gets this. She did something the other day that touched me. After attending our grandson’s baseball game, we all gathered our things and got ready to head back to the car to go home. Emmy turned around and looked back to the bleachers where we had been sitting and saw some trash left by someone else. She ran back, gathered the trash, discovered some more trash underneath the bleachers, gathered it as well, and threw it all in the trash can nearby. Then she said, “We’ve got to leave the place better than we found it.” What an environmentally wonderful statement to make! Maybe she heard that from our son who likes to take the family camping (that’s a very good campsite rule). Maybe she heard it at school. Not sure if she heard it at church. Wherever she heard it, it was a marvelous principle for a young girl to have. Oh, that all of us would treat God’s creation thusly.
What a great and marvelous universe our Creator has endowed us with! It is good to engage with creation in awe and wonder. May it be so among us today.
O Lord, our Sovereign,
how majestic is your name in all the earth! Amen.
R. Mark Green
Pastor to Senior Adults and Youth & Children’s Music