Thou Hast Made the Moon
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Psalm 104:1-4, 19-25, 31-34
1. Bless the Lord, O my soul! O Lord my God, thou art very great! Thou art clothed with honor and majesty, 2. who coverest thyself with light as with a garment, who hast stretched out the heavens like a tent, 3. who hast laid the beams of thy chambers on the waters, who makest the clouds thy chariot, who ridest on the wings of the wind, 4. who makest the winds thy messengers, fire and flame thy ministers. 19. Thou hast made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows its time for setting. 20. Thou makest darkness, and it is night, when all the beasts of the forest creep forth. 21. The young lions roar for their prey, seeking their food from God. 22. When the sun rises, they get them away and lie down in their dens. 23. Man goes forth to his work and to his labor until the evening. 24. O Lord, how manifold are thy works! In wisdom hast thou made them all; the earth is full of thy creatures. 25. Yonder is the sea, great and wide, which teems with things innumerable, living things both small and great. 31. May the glory of the Lord endure for ever, may the Lord rejoice in his works, 32. who looks on the earth and it trembles, who touches the mountains and they smoke! 33. I will sing to the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praise to my God while I have being. 34. May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord.
This is a very long psalm so I extracted bits and pieces this morning. I was mainly drawn to the verse about the moon. Did you notice there was a full moon last night? And this morning when I met my walking buddy, the moon was so bright we really didn’t need our flashlight to see the way! The sky was so clear – it was obvious which lights were planets and which were stars, and the moon . . . it was so very beautiful! The moon and I have a special relationship, too! I don’t sleep on full-moon nights. I don’t look it up or even keep track most of the time, but I should have known about 1:30 this morning that the moon was full because I was unable to really sleep after that time! I was in a state not conscious, but not asleep—that state your brain goes into right before you wake up—not a dream, but not really grasping reality yet!
Granted, I was physically exhausted as we spent from Friday night through Sunday night moving, stripping wallpaper, cleaning, shelf-lining, moving some more, etc., etc., in preparation for our move the end of the week. And of course there’s the rest of life and its varying and unending issues! But I mean every inch of my body ached, and my mind—which usually is in high-gear anyway—went into hyper-drive last night! God uses those nights to work in me. He has trouble getting my attention very often, so he gives me a little nudge in the wee hours to have my undivided attention!
And though I’m tired, I’m at the same time very alert and in tune with my maker at 3 am! And that’s when I get a big infusion of His energy and His wisdom and His love! I know that He’s in heaven without a doubt! When I look up at that bright, glowing orb and feel the cool morning air, I can’t imagine anywhere else I’d rather be, or anything else I’d rather see! That moon brings it all into focus for me. God is in charge—not just of me and my little life, but of you and your life—and of the oceans, and the skies, and the mountains, and every living being. And even the ants and the algae tremble at His voice!
Could it be that even they know how great their maker is? Could we take a cue from them? Shouldn’t we sing to the Lord as long as we live? Should be sing praise to our God while we have being? I don’t know about you, but I need those reminders, more often than I care to admit. Reminders about what matters. Reminders about who is in charge. Reminders about God and his purpose, and his plan—which is perfect. Rather than worry, and turn things over in my mind a hundred times, and ponder all the small, insignificant issues (in the big scheme of things), I thank God for caring enough to meet me where I am—even if I really do need the sleep (in fact LOVE to sleep!)
My meditations today will be on my God, who is so big he can spare a few hours with me, to get me back on track and keep me coming back for more.
I hope today rejoice at all the wonderful signs in nature that God made to remind us of himself. And that your meditations are pleasing to the Lord.
Mary
