"Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom He gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." -Colossians 3:16-17
As God created our World, He formed the light, land, skies and seas. He formed life of all kind, including man — you and me. It all was good, and we were very. We are the one thing He created in His image, so personally and carefully.
Everything He created exists to glorify, honor and reflect Him, but humans were made for even more. We were made to “reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.” (Genesis 1:26) Adam was put “in the Garden of Eden to tend and watch over it.” (Genesis 2:15)
To tend is to care for something, to look after. Our reign of this World does not mean full ownership. On a global level, to reign does not mean tyranny, pride and power. On a familial level, parenting does not mean the ownership of your children — it means caring for them and raising them to do their job. When God gave man dominion in the Garden, man was to take care of what he was given. We are given gifts so graciously. We are given one task: to take care of these gifts and glorify God, toreflect His love and grace.
The song So Will I is humbling. Often I swell with pride, thinking I am deserving of so much more. In all honesty, often times my thoughts are not humble and they are not thoughts from a servant’s heart. Whenever I find myself in a bad mood, it almost always stems from a heart of pride and an ungrateful attitude. Who am I to think I deserve more than I have? Who am I to demand more from the God who has given me more than I could ever need?
God created the Universe and everything in it. He controls it all, yet He still has time to care about every detail of each and every one of our little lives. To Him, we are the one very good thing in creation. As the song describes creation and the ways nature reflects God’s power and creativity, I am challenged to be better. I am humbled by the thought that God thinks I am very good, while a beautiful mountain is good, yet the mountain does a better job of reflecting God. When I look at a mountain, I see a massive, powerful God. I see a God who can do anything. When I see the joy and loyalty of a puppy, I see the love and care that God has for all of His creation. When I think of my own life, I hope people can see the love and patience of the God who created them, but quite honestly, I know I have failed to reflect that character of God. Yet I am the one He not only still calls very good, but I am the one He still cares for. He calls me His own child, created in His image, in great detail, and in great care.
God has given me everything I could ever need and so much more. Who am I to deserve more? Who am I to think I know better?
I have one job — to take care of and tend to the gifts I have been given. I have been given a wonderful family, tremendous friends, many gifts, talents and opportunities. It is my job to take care of all of those things, to serve those people, and reflect God’s character in all I do. It is notmy job to sit back, demand more, feel sorry for myself or to pout and complain. It’s my job to live like Jesus and love like God. That’s your job too. Let’s get it done.
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