Like Puff of Wind

"...like a puff of wind..."

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"Lord, what are mortals, that you notice them; mere mortals, that you pay attention to us?
We are like a puff of wind; our days are like a passing shadow." (Psalm 144:3-4)

"Lord, what are mortals...?" and "Lord, what is life...?" are questions that have been asked over and over for centuries and millenniums. In a recent internet article entitled, "Will Science Someday Rule Out the Possibility of God?" (Natialie Wolchover on LiveScience.com, 9/18/12) the author states the following:

"Over the past few centuries, science can be said to have gradually chipped away at the traditional grounds for believing in God. Much of whatonce seemed mysterious - the existence of humanity, the life-bearing perfection of Earth, the workings of the universe - can now be explained bybiology, astronomy, physics and other domains of science."

I remember the line from the song that went something like, "...looking for love in all the wrong places..." I guess if a person looked for love in all the wrong places and found none it would be easy to conclude that love did not exist. I'm convinced that some scientists might be on a similar quest, looking for God in all the wrong places and then concluding that God must not exist.

I've spent the last few days with a couple of families who walked with their loved ones the last few steps of their life journeys on this side of heaven. I watched as the majesty and wonder of God unfolded in the warm and tender embraces of one family member with another. I saw God in those hospital rooms and waiting rooms as friend after friend offered reassurance and comfort. If we look in the right places we will see God.

This morning I stood again in one of the most sacred of spaces. I stood beside the bed of one person and watched as they took their last breath. Once more I wondered how in one moment they were here, and the next - there - not gone, but there - with God. I saw and experienced God in that sacred space. We were not alone. When I got home this afternoon my attention was drawn to the raindrops on the edge of the table on our deck. The drops in the photo all lined up next to each other and then gradually, left to become transformed into the newness of God's creation. Who knows, that raindrop might be part of next Spring's daffodils. I saw God in that raindrop.

The psalmist is right, we are like puffs of wind, passing shadows, or drops of rain in the grand scheme of things. But we are part of God's grand scheme of things. If we look in the right places, we will see God, and we will be renewed by God's loving Spirit. I pray that God will keep me looking in all the right places. How about you?

Blessings and Peace,
Gary
Pastor, Cross Lanes United Methodist Church
Cross Lanes, West Virginia

Help save lives! For more information on my new book, "A Relentless Hope: Surviving the Storm of Teen Depression," visit www.survivingteendepression.com.

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