WONDER | Friday | 8/28

Open Hands

Psalm 65:5–8

By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,

    O God of our salvation;

you are the hope of all the ends of the earth

    and of the farthest seas.

⁶ By your strength you established the mountains;

    you are girded with might.

⁷ You silence the roaring of the seas,

    the roaring of their waves,

    the tumult of the peoples.

⁸ Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs;

you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

There is a difference between curiosity and wonder. Curiosity wants to figure something out. It searches for an answer so that eventually the mystery can be solved.

Wonder is different.

Wonder recognizes that God will always exceed the definitions we create. God cannot be reduced to our expectations, categories, or experiences. Instead of grasping tightly for control, wonder invites us to open our hands.

Maybe that's the invitation at the end of this week: open your hands.

Open your hands to the possibility that God might surprise you.

Open your hands to people you didn't expect God to use.

Open your hands to a calling that feels beyond your ability.

Open your hands to places where God is working differently than you imagined.

Psalm 65 says that from sunrise to sunset, God's wonders inspire shouts of joy.

May we become people—and a church—who never lose that wonder.

Reflect

What expectation or limitation about God do you need to release?

Pray God, forgive me for the ways I have tried to fit you within my expectations. I open my hands to you. Surprise me. Lead me. Keep me in awe of who you are and what you are doing. Amen.