Insightful Musings on the Scripturesby
Ray Sparre, NU class of '67
Ray has a wealth of experience as a Husband, Father, Pastor, Missionary, and student of the Word. He believes and practices his faith where the rubber meets the road. You'll find his writings to be practical, insightful, and grounded in a truly Christ-centered world view.
Below are links to a printable daily Bible reading guide which Ray has followed, and an archive of all his daily devotional writings for 2010 and 2011.
| Sparre Home Page | Daily Reading Guide | 2011 Devotion Archives | 2010 Devotion Archives |
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9 May 11
Greetings, dear people.
Wow! The day is getting away from me. I need to have the car in town for a 2pm appointment. So I better run.
Have a wonderful day after Mother’s Day.
Love, Dad/Ray
9 May 2011
Psalm 8
Focus: “O LORD, our LORD, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” Psalm 8:1.
My thinker goes into overload when I attempt to comprehend distance in terms of a LIGHT YEAR. That, of course, is based on the scientific understanding that light travels through space at the speed of 186,000 miles per second—a LIGHT SECOND. It only stands to reason that a LIGHT MINUTE could be established by multiplying that number by 60. From that, one can calculate a LIGHT HOUR, a LIGHT DAY, a LIGHT WEEK, a LIGHT MONTH, and a LIGHT YEAR. If that isn’t mind-boggling enough, scientists multiply those figures way beyond that. How well does your mental computer hold up when they want to drop a number on you like ONE MILLION LIGHT YEARS?!?! Now—can you tell us again how big and important you think you are?
David did not have the benefit of modern science to assist him in understanding the expanse of space. But he had A HEART AFTER GOD. And he had senses to behold, and a brain of limited capacity to process what he beheld. Using those instruments, he arrived at a very important concluding question and exclamation: “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?” (vv. 3-4). In other words, “GOD, YOU ARE INFINITELY BIG, AND I AM INCREDIBLY SMALL—WHY WOULD YOU HAVE ANY INTEREST WHATSOEVER IN PUNY ME?!” I believe that a similar perspective will serve you well and help you to avoid your natural magnetic attraction to arrogance.
“O LORD, our LORD, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” “LORD.” How well do you get your thinker wrapped around that Name and Title? How well do you comprehend WHO we’re talking about and how big He is? Personally, I don’t have any big problem with the doctrine of the Trinity of the Godhead. It’s not because I understand it so well—because I don’t. But based on my puny capacity, perspective, and limited knowledge of how big God is, I have chosen to give Him infinite slack to be infinite God—because I’m not. Reflect with me on Paul’s inspired words in Philippians 2:9-11: “Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him a name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is LORD to the glory of God the Father.” Make no mistake about it—all creation is moving in that direction. Speaking of Jesus, John begins his Gospel narrative with this declaration: “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made” (John 1:3).
We could spin off here in a hundred different inspiring and meaningful directions. But I’ll wrap up with just one idea. This BIG awesome LORD is LORD whether or not I know it, like it, or embrace it. And the BIGGEST and most important question I can think of to ask myself is this: IS HE MY LORD? Is He YOUR LORD?
“When a proud man hears another praised, he feels himself injured.” - English Proverb