Everything

"Yours, O LORD, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the majesty and the splendor, for everything in heaven and earth is yours. Yours, O LORD, is the kingdom; you are exalted as head over all." 2 Chronicles 29:11

Everything in heaven and earth belongs to Our God. Absolutely everything. He created everything we see... it came first from his mind. Think about that for a minute. Think back in history to some important moments... Think of Henry Ford designing that Model T- that came from God. God looked down and saw Henry Ford and liked something he saw, and gave him the vision for the future. Think of Louie Pasteur. God gave him the scientific mind to discover the process of pasteurization. Think of all the lives that have been saved through this practice ever since then- think of all the disease and pathogens that have been destroyed over time because of the discovery of pasteurization. God looked down from heaven, saw Louie, saw something he liked in that man and gave him an idea that lasts for generation after generation. When I think of things like that, when I think about all the good and wonderful things in this world, and I think about how God thought of it first, that just blows my mind.

It also makes me wonder what's coming next. Think about Tim Berners Lee and Robert Cailliau- who are they? They are the men responsible for what we now know as the World Wide Web. God gave them this amazing idea that would eventually link the world together in a way that was only possible in science fiction movies and novels. And now... well, just look at it! Information at our fingertips in a way that our great-grandparents could have never imagined. God has such an incredible mind... I can't even begin to fathom what he could come up with next. That kind of makes me laugh a little bit. Imagine God sitting back, watching the goings on of the world, and coming up with "the next big thing". And then he leans over, looks around at the billions and trillions of people and sifts through them before settling on one. And he gives a chuckle, points to that person, and says "Here, this dream is going to change the world!" How can that not make you smile!

He is mighty to be praised. Not just because he created everything, but because he created everything to give us such joy. More than anything God wants us to be filled with joy. I woke up singing this song today. I dare you- I dare you to give this song a play and not feel like jumping up and down and singing for joy to the Lord. It seeps in, it fills my every pore, and it reminds me that I can give my everything to the God who gave me everything. As I clean my house to prepare for company this weekend, I can do it to the best of my ability, with God at my side. As I take a break to play video games with my son, I can do that with my everything, instead of thinking about all the work I have to finish. Time with my son is so precious, and I can know that God gave him this desire to play video games, and not only is he amazingly good at it, but it is something that he and I can do together and have a wonderful time. While we are racing our little Mariokarts together, we are laughing and giggling and being joyful- and God loves to see that.

With everything, I will shout for HIS Glory.

"for the joy of the LORD is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10