A few months back, I wrote an article called “The Size of God” (click here) and as I’m updating my research for an upcoming retreat talk I’m giving, I found that we have new astronomical information to work from! This doesn’t change the size of God (smile) but it does affect the accuracy of my illustration model in attempting to get our minds around the size of God. If you read the article, you’ll know what I’m talking about…

I was referring to 1994 research that the Saggitarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy was the nearest galaxy to the Milky Way at 80,000 light years (LY) away. However (and I should have checked more closely before writing “The Size of God”!), I’ve now found that in 2003, astronomers discovered the Canis Major Dwarf Galaxy is actually only 42,000 LY away from the Milky Way. Here’s a picture of this beautiful new discovery! The Canis Major is the ribbon of red mingled within the blue that is the Milky Way. The cool thing about this galaxy is that the Milky Way has actually been stealing stars from Canis Major over the years. In fact, the Milky Way has gained around 1% of its current mass by stealing stars from Canis Major!

It seems that streams of stars pulled out of the cannibalised Canis Major galaxy not only contribute to the outer reaches of the Milky Way’s disk, but may also pass close to the Sun.

Astronomers currently believe that large galaxies like the Milky Way grew to their present majestic proportions by consuming their smaller galactic neighbours. These cannibalised galaxies add stars to the vast haloes around large galaxies. However, until now, they did not appreciate that even the disks of galaxies can grow in this fashion. Computer simulations show that the Milky Way has been taking stars from the Canis Major dwarf and adding them to its own disk - and will continue to do so.

information taken from the following University of Strasbourg website: http://astro.u-strasbg.fr/images_ri/canm-e.html

I relay this info simply because I’m amazed by God’s handiwork. The more I find out about the universe, the deeper I worship the Creator of it. And to think about the fact that in just the last three years, we were finally able to see the galaxy that is CLOSEST to ours makes my mind spin at how many other wonders there are out in the universe that we can’t or never will see!!

This galaxy is able to be seen only because of new infra-red technology (the Two-Micron All Sky Survey or “2MASS”), which has allowed astronomers to look beyond the clouds of dust in the disk of the Milky Way. Just think about what else is out there that we have yet to see…

Technorati Tags: galaxy, Canis Major, 2MASS, God’s handiwork, Milky Way, worship, universe

We’re having our third boy in a couple months, but the pregnancy and development process will never cease to amaze me. We’re at 22 weeks now and counting… Our little guy now looks like a miniature newborn, checking in at 10.9 inches and almost 1 pound. His skin will continue to appear wrinkled until he gains enough weight to fill it out, and the fine hair (lanugo) that covers his head and body is now visible. His lips are becoming more distinct, and the first signs of teeth are appearing as buds beneath his gum line! His eyes are now developed, though the iris (the colored part of the eye) still lacks pigment. Eyelids and eyebrows are in place, and his pancreas, essential for hormone production, is developing steadily.

It’s unbelievable to me that our little buddy probably looks close to this picture on the right.

Psalm 139:13-16

For you formed my inward parts;
you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.^[a]
Wonderful are your works;
my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there were none of them.

My dad flew into Denver on Wednesday morning (August 2) and we headed up into Estes Park to check out the mountains in Rocky Mountain National Park. What an incredible place! We ate lunch at a little diner in downtown Estes, and then headed up onto Trail Ridge Road. Here we are at just about the highest place in the Park with beautiful mountains surrounding… 12,005 feet…

Dad came prepared with Milwaukee Brewers hats knowing the Brewers were in Denver to play the Colorado Rockies that night… We got great seats from a ticket scalper outside Coors Field and here we are enjoying foot-long hotdogs during the rain delay prior to the start of the game. Baseball has always been a big part of our relationship… What a blast to get to a game with my dad!

Did I say climbing Mt. Princeton on Monday morning was the hardest thing I’ve ever done? Well, skydiving in Boulder on Thursday morning is definitely the CRAZIEST thing I’ve ever done - but also just about the most exciting, too. Jumping out of a plane next to the Rocky Mountains is terrifyingly outrageously awesome! Here’s a pic of my landing after a one minute free-fall and five-minute parachute descent. Dad was next. He especially had fun with the spirals on the descent. This was a tandem ride with Rob, the pro, guiding our descent down to the landing zone at the Boulder Reservoir. WOW!

Jumping out of an airplane at 16,500 feet was enough action for the rest of the day, so we made the 3 hour trek back to the Friesema’s ranch (Mountain Meadow Ranch) in Lake George. We had to rest up for our big day on the river the next day…

So, how do you find “action” after skydiving in the Rocky Mountains, you might ask? You raft the Royal Gorge section of the Arkansas River with 22-year river veteran Doug Valentine as your guide! The Royal Gorge section of the Arkansas is widely considered the most challenging (and hence, most FUN) whitewater rafting in the country. (many class III and IV+ rapids!) I rafted it 10 years ago with my good buddy Mitch Eliason, and knew my dad and I had to tackle it as well. Here we are doing a “backpaddle” in the WallSlammer rapid. What an incredible blast! This trip required previous class III experience and since dad had canoed Wisconsin’s Crystal River a few times, they let him on the raft. (smile) I’m front/right. Dad is second from the left, just in front of our guide and crazy-man Doug.

After skydiving and rafting the Royal Gorge, there’s only one thing left to do with one day left on the trip: climb another 14er!

Saturday morning, Dad and I made a quick omelette at 6am, packed our backpacks and headed for Mount Sherman (elevation 14,036 feet). This morning was windier and colder than any other day I remembered that week, so we bundled up. Here’s a look at the summit from the trailhead near where we parked. It’s nothing like Mt. Princeton, but I came to realize that for someone who is used to living near sea-level, there is no such thing as an “easy 14er”!

This was a nice hike. Dad’s training regimen unfortunately didn’t get his lungs acclamated to the elevation and he had to turn back before we got to the summit. At his encouragement, I pressed on toward the summit. Passed a few abandoned 19th century mines along the way…

After a two-hour hike, made it to the summit. Again, a gorgeous view of God’s beautiful and awe-inspiring creation. Like the Princeton climb, I found myself quoting Psalm 90:1-2 and giving praise to my almighty Creator. WOW! Here I am at the Mt. Sherman summit. It was a pretty emotional experience having climbed to the top of this beautiful mountain, knowing that this was basically the end of my sabbatical. What a fitting conclusion to a month of celebrating the greatness of the glory of God!

I couldn’t figure out how to rotate the picture but you get the idea…

Did I say how awesome it is to spend 4 days in Colorado with my Dad? This was a true bonding experience and a trip of a lifetime. Thanks, Dad, for your commitment to our relationship and for allowing me to take us on a number of life-threatening adventures. We’ll always cherish these fond memories… (our Mt. Sherman mine explorations will always be a highlight!)

I posted my sabbatical summary a couple days ago, but here are some pics and thoughts as well…

I was so thankful for the home Heidi found in Garfield, AR where we spent the first three weeks. Such a beautiful view of the Beaver Lake valley - we could see for miles and miles… As you can see, we had to install rabbit fencing to the deck railing so Jon-Jon wouldn’t fall through and down into the valley!

Here are the three boys (R-L, Josiah, Jonathan and Brian) eating at The Lodge down the street with the beautiful Beaver Lake as a backdrop. Heidi was taking the picture. The Lodge had excellent food, although the A/C left something to be desired. They had free wireless internet, so any blog posting I was doing during our stay there was done from their lobby. Thanks to the Lodge for the wireless use!

When I arrived in Colorado, I knew I wanted to climb a “14er” (one of Colorado’s 54 peaks over 14,000 feet in elevation) - but I also knew my lungs would be in trouble at that altitude. So, I decided to do a little acclamation to get ready for the climb. I researched a beautiful place near Mount Yale (I originally intended to climb Yale) called Lake Hartenstein at an elevation of about 11,500 feet. WOW. What a beautiful place.

Once I parked at the Yale trailhead, it was about a two hour hike - I needed to stop a few times along the way to catch my breath even at that altitude… But the hike was well worth it. What a gorgeous spot! God is so attentive to detail in His beautiful creation… Complete with a mountain stream feeding into the lake, the surrounding pines providing a stunning backdrop - and I saw at least one big trout so I’m sure there were more! That’s Mount Yales peak hiding behind the tall trees on the right side. I never did try to get up Mt. Yale. That’s another story…

The next morning, after researching and deciding on climbing Mt. Antero… I saw the turnoff to Mt. Princeton (elev. 14,197), and remembering that Jonathan Edwards was one of Princeton University’s first presidents in the 1780’s, I turned right instead of left and decided to climb Princeton! Here’s a pic I took through the windshield on my drive toward Princeton. Although, at the time I took this picture, I think I was still intending on climbing Antero. Little did I know what kind of adventure awaited…

Here’s where I parked… at some radio towers up at about 10,800 feet. This is kind of an interesting picture because I thought the peak was to the left of the radio tower… Actually, the peak is the seemingly shorter peak to the right of the tower off in the distance… much higher! I found out later I could have parked quite a bit closer to the trailhead… But the morning hike up to the trailhead was beautiful!

Once I made it around “Tigger Peak” (the shorter summit I originally thought WAS the summit!), I got a view of my goal: the true summit of Mount Princeton. Two thoughts: 1) WOW. and 2) How on earth am I going to get THERE?!?

Here I am at the summit!! I skipped past the two hours between pictures where I thought I would never make it… Thanks to my friends Kim and Kristin (who I met as they were passing me on the way to the top), I made it. They made sure of it. I couldn’t have done this without their encouragement! Thank you Kim and Kristin (mother and daughter) - and thanks also for the two bottles of water on the way back!

Words can’t express how beautiful it is from the top of a mountain like Princeton. WOW, God. (that’s what I wrote in the summit log-book) Here’s a view of Mount Antero (I would be near the top of Antero the next morning) from the peak of Princeton! God is glorious. God is glorious. God is glorious!!

I got ambitious again this morning. I was going to take a breather today, but woke up really early and couldn’t fall back asleep, so I thought I’d make the most of my time and climb Mount Antero (elevation 14,269). Left Lake George at 5:30am, got to the base of the mountain (after about an hour drive) at around 6:45am and began the drive up to the trailhead. I have never been on a road like this before in my life! Obviously, I haven’t done a ton of mountain climbing… For all you officianados out there, I’m sure this road was typical. But it was one lane, of course… and so full of huge rocks and boulders - it took me an hour and a half to drive up to where I parked! Plus, the switch backs near the top are crazy. You can only take this road with a 4WD (I have a 4WD Chevy Trailblazer). I hope Hertz doesn’t check underneath when I return it!

As I was driving up the road at somewhere around 10,500 feet, I passed a parked pickup truck with two guys getting ready for the climb. I said “hi” and asked them if the road continues further. They said they thought so, but they wanted to hike it. I thought to myself “those guys are more ambitious than me… I’m going to drive as far as I can…”

I got to where the road seemed to end, thinking I had made a wrong turn, but I ran into someone in a jeep and he pointed out that the road didn’t end - the switchbacks started! I looked up and saw switchbacks all the way up the side of the mountain. I thought - I must be crazy for doing this, but many people I talked to said a 4WD vehicle can drive very far up the switchbacks. I started making the ascent, stopping a couple times to assess whether my Trailblazer would make the next section…

I drove up as far as I needed to and parked on one of the switchbacks. And I kid you not… The two guys I ran into earlier hiking at 10,500 were just behind me coming up the last of the switchbacks. As I huffed along with what was left in my oxygen-depleted lungs, they finally caught up with me. I told them they had my undying respect for hiking up as far as they did. They actually hiked what I drove, and caught up with me! They’re from Breckenridge of course…so they live with no oxygen…

This time I came prepared with extra H20! Although, it turned out I didn’t need it. Honestly, I was only intending to scope out the terrain for a climb later in the week. My dad is flying out tomorrow for a little “father/son bonding” and I was hoping to climb Mount Antero with him on Saturday. But the higher I got, the higher I kept going.

The views at that elevation are amazing! I had a great look at Mount Princeton, the peak I summitted yesterday. Looking at that peak, I couldn’t believe I did that just yesterday. God’s creation certainly is astounding. From Mount Antero, I had a view of I’m guessing 15 or 20 summits. I had a very worshipful experience standing in awe of all that God has made.

At about 13,800 feet, there is a steady and challenging uphill climb to the summit. I was debating the ascent as I rested on a rock to catch my breath. The two pickup truck guys were already halfway to the summit. There were a lot of dark clouds nearby and some of them seemed like they were coming toward Mt. Antero. And just as I was thinking about trying the summit, one of the clouds actually moved over and covered the summit and covered the guys. I decided I wanted to actually live to meet our unborn child, so I immediately turned around and made a quick descent back down toward the car. In this picture, the dip just to the right of the highest peak is where I stopped.

The road is as crazy going down as it is going up. I was SO glad to get down to pavement! I’ll feel more comfortable with my dad along side me next time… (IF we try it…)

Well, I did more research and determined that Mount Yale (14,196) was a little too aggressive for my first “14er”… Some of my research happened to be a guy at the Mount Yale trailhead following my Lake Hartenstein hike who said, “Man, that last mile and a half is brutal!” To be honest, I really didn’t want to try anything “brutal” for my first time. So, I decided on Mount Antero (14,269) based on a number of conversations with people recommending first climbs. It’s very doable, and partly because you can drive up and park about 11,000 feet making the trek even easier…

So, why, you ask yourself, do I have a picture of Mount Princeton (14,197) in this post? Because i got inspired, that’s why. Driving to the Mount Antero trailhead, I saw a sign for Mount Princeton, and remembered reading in one of my many books and publications on the subject that Mount Princeton is a fairly easy climb. AND… I’m currently in the middle of my Jonathan Edwards biography as part of my sabbatical reading list, and knowing that Jonathan Edwards is a past president of this famed institution, it all made perfect sense! So, I pulled to the side of the road, did more reading on Princeton to make sure I wasn’t doing something stupid, and upon seeing that this peak is indeed very doable, I changed course. In honor of Jonathan Edwards, on to Mount Princeton!

I haven’t been able to upload the pictures from my camera yet, so this picture from a 14ers website will have to do for now. I will summarize by saying that this was without a doubt the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but for sure one of the most exhilarating and rewarding. I arrived at the base of Mount Princeton at around 7am and made the way up the very precarious one-lane road having read that there were a few parking places somewhere up the mountain. I do have to say, that drive made me pretty nervous. There was no place to pull over if there was an oncoming car. That would have made for an interesting situation about 10,000 feet. I’m glad I didn’t have to figure that out!

I found a parking spot, thank goodness, near some radio towers that had some room, got my pack ready, and was hiking by about 8am. At about 10:30am, I was exhausted, nursing a blister on my left heal, and really discouraged because it seemed like the summit was still miles away! I was praying for strength to make it, and did I mention that I foolishly attempted this climb alone?! Well, God has mysterious ways of answering prayers. A mother-daughter team - who were moving quite fast, I might add - caught up with me. We started talking, and upon finding out they had already done six 14ers, I knew I was in good company. I was right. Kim and Kristin Sievers were my lifesavers! There were so many times over the next two hours that I didn’t think I could go on. My lungs were definitely not prepared for 14,000 foot oxygen. And combining the lack of oxygen with a lot of vertical climbing, I was in trouble. But, Kim and Kristen slowed down and were determined to help me get to the summit. I kept telling them to go on ahead, but they kept waiting for me as I stopped to catch my breath.

At 11:15, I felt like giving up, but knew I had to make the last few hundred feet despite what my body was telling me.

At 11:30, I really felt like giving up. But Kim wouldn’t let me. Kristen had gone ahead of us and was almost to the summit. I thought to myself… “We’re this close. I need to pick up this lifeless body from the rocks and get my feet moving.”

At 11:50am, we hit the summit. I can’t tell you how I felt. I was dead physically, but emotionally overwhelmed at having made it. There was some weather coming in, and it didn’t look good, so we had to get moving back down fast. Lightning can be a real risk above the tree-line with no protection from the elements. I signed the log-book that’s at the summit for those who make the peak… took a few pictures… gave as much praise to God as my delirious mind could muster at that moment… and started heading back down.

Oh… and yes… I ran out of water about 10 minutes after the summit. That’s a big no-no on a mountain like this. Dehydration is a big problem. I had 3 liters with me, which I thought would be plenty, but I thought wrong! Unbelievably, Kim and Kristen had both packed more water than they needed just in case… They each gave me a bottle for the trek back. HUGE answer to prayer. Meeting up with them was not a coincidence. God must have wanted me to make it back down the mountain! Kim and Kristen, if you are reading this… know that you were an answer to prayer in a big way. Thank you for your selfless and giving spirit. Yes, I do believe in angels!

We hit the bottom at 2pm, and I was glad…no, elated…no, ecstatic… that we were on a road. We’d made it!

As I was on this mountain today, I was reminded of how incredible God is, and what a master artist He is. The landscapes, vistas, and views were breathtaking and incredible. The Lord brought to my mind a number of times Psalm 90:1-2:

Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
From everlasting to everlasting You are God.

I repeated those words over and over. What an awesome and majestic God we worship. He is eternal. He is transcendent. And, though I am unfaithful and faithless at times, He is always faithful. I get a real sense of God’s bigness in the mountains. I am so thankful for this time today at the top of one of His most beautiful creations, Mount Princeton.

Pictures and more commentary to come soon…

Back in January when I knew I was going to be able to take a sabbatical this summer, I just sensed that the Lord wanted me to get to the mountains at some point. I really connect with God in the midst of His creation, and especially sense His power and majesty in the mountains. Here I am! I flew into Denver last night, and am staying in a quaint cabin in Lake George, CO on land owned some very gracious hosts, the Friesema’s. I’ve known Ray and Hazel from Calvary Memorial Church in Racine, WI for 30 years - it was so good to see them when I arrived. (Hazel sang with my mom in the choir as I was growing up). They even had milk, bread, butter and jam in the fridge when I arrived! They have a home (a converted dance hall from 1890!) on their 110 acre ranch, and I’m staying in the guest cabin. Lake George is about 60 miles west of Colorado Springs.

This morning, I headed out to “have church” in the mountains. After some research, I decided that I’d like to eventually tackle Mount Yale - one of Colorado’s 54 “14ers” - peaks over 14,000 feet. Yale is 14,196. It’s part of the Collegiate Mountain Range, near Lake George and while I feel ambitious, Yale is considered one of the easier climbs for a first-timer. While I’ve been running a lot to train for this, I knew my lungs wouldn’t be used to the elevation, so this morning I set out to “acclamate” and get my lungs ready for Mount Yale - a trek I hope to take on Monday.

I stopped off for some advice in Buena Vista at a hiking store called “Trailhead” and got some great pointers from Evelyn, the owner. She got me stocked up with all the right stuff to pack into my brand new REI backpack. She told me about Lake Hartenstein, a beautiful and fairly easy hike to about 11,495 feet on the same trail as Mount Yale. Perfect!

The trailhead for Mount Yale is Denny Creek at about 9,900 feet. After parking there, I headed up the trail. About 1.5 miles in, the trail comes to a Y - to the right is Mount Yale, to the left is Lake Hartenstein. I went left…

Wow! What a great hike. I took my time and made it to the Lake in about 2 hours. For a glacial lake, it’s faily large and just below the tree-line. A beautiful vista with 5 or 6 peaks in the background surrounding the lake. I hiked about half-way around the lake before I ran out of trail and decided not to get too ambitious or wet. Got some great pictures.

It was a sweet experience with the Lord. He reminded me of His faithfulness and patience. What a wonderful privilege to be here. I’m so thankful for this opportunity to be alone with God in the middle of His beautful handiwork. What an amazing artist! Yes… it’s good to be alone to connect with God in this way. But I sure do miss Heidi and the boys…

Heidi and I are at JH Ranch in California for husband and wife camp week… in the middle of the gorgeous Salmon Mountains in one of the most beautiful parts of the world. WOW. In the midst of God’s amazing creation, I am reminded of one of my favorite quotes from one of my favorite books by one of my favorite authors:

“The message of creation is this: there is a great God of glory and power and generosity behind all this awesome universe; you belong to Him; He is patient with you in sustaining your rebellious life; turn and bank your hope on Him and delight yourself in Him, not His handiwork. Day pours forth speech of that message to all that will listen in the day, speaking with blindingly bright sun and blue sky and clouds and untold shapes and colors of all things visible. Night pours forth the “knowledge” of the same message to all who will listen at night, speaking with great dark voids and summer moons and countless stars and strange sounds and cool breezes and northern lights. Day and night are saying one thing: God is glorious! God is glorious! God is glorious!”

“This is the most basic reason that God delights in His creation. In creation he sees the reflection of His own glory.”

John Piper, The Pleasures of God, p. 87.

I once heard someone say that “the size of your worship is determined by the size of your God.” In other words, if my view of God is teeny-tiny, my response in worship to Him will correspondingly be teeny-tiny. On the other hand, if my view of God is HUGE – as it should be – then my worship response will naturally be huge as well! I’ve thought about this concept a lot, and have determined that I far too often live as if I have a very small God – my life-response, not just what I sing, but how I live, often reflects that I don’t have an accurate picture of the BIGness – the absolute greatness of God.

There are many scriptural passages that talk about the greatness of God, but I think our psalmist worship leader, David, was onto something when he wrote Psalm 8. In verses 3-4, he says “When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained; What is man that You take thought of him, the son of man that You care for him?” David had a lot of time to consider the “bigness” of God. Think about it – he was a shepherd. What do shepherds do? Well…they feed sheep, lead sheep, protect sheep, move sheep, carry sheep, sheer sheep… Twenty-four/seven, David is catering to all-things-sheep. But in his off-time when the sheep are either out of trouble or sleeping, what is David doing? I picture him kicking back on a hillside outside Jerusalem at night (keep in mind, there are no big city lights to distract) looking up into the dark midnight sky “considering” the stars and the moon – but more importantly, considering the God who hung them in the sky!

I’ve found a place in the middle of nowhere – away from the lights of the city and noise of cars – where I can look up into the sky and consider God. And honestly, as I look up into the sky and think about what is out there beyond the stars that my little eyes can see, it hurts my brain to think about how big God is. I thought the earth was big, but did you know that you could fit over a million earths in our sun? And I thought the sun was big, but did you know that the sun is just an average sized star in the Milky Way galaxy which holds over a BILLION stars?!? I recently did a little reading and found out that the galaxy nearest to ours (the Sagittarius Dwarf Elliptical Galaxy for those astronomy buffs out there) is about 80,000 light years away. Can you imagine how far even the nearest galaxy is? Its even harder to fathom when you realize that a single light year equals about 6 TRILLION miles. That means that the nearest galaxy to the Milky Way is about 480,000,000,000,000,000 miles from earth!! Now…think about how big the universe is when scientists have estimated that there may be over 100 BILLION galaxies in the universe. Is your brain experiencing that sensation that occurs when you drink a Slurpie too fast like mine is right now?

Well, all of this astronomy trivia is great, but our point is that we’re trying to fathom the size of God, which will in turn enlarge our response to Him, which will in turn completely transform our lives. Isaiah helps us put everything into perspective with what he writes about God in chapter 40. In verse 12 he asks about God “Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand, or with the breadth of His hand marked off the heavens?” Do you remember how big the universe is? (We were just trying to comprehend that, remember?) Well, this is how big God is - He is able to hold out His hand, spread His fingers, and mark off the distance from one side of the universe to the other from the tip of His pinky finger to the tip of His thumb. Of course Isaiah writes in poetic language and certainly God is much bigger than this, but do you see what I’m getting at? God is HUGE! And far more often than I’d like to admit, I act as if this incredible universe revolves around ME!

Obviously, its impossible to quantify “the size of God” – God is limitless and infinite… but, if our response to God should correspond with how big and mighty and transcendent and awesome and loving and merciful and powerful He truly is, shouldn’t our worship be MUCH bigger than it is? My prayer is that as we open our eyes and our hearts to see more of who God is, our lives will be radically transformed to express a life-response that matches His size.

I’ve sometimes referred to Clyde Kilby as one of my all-time favorite worship leaders, although I have no idea as to whether he’s actually ever “led worship” as we refer to it. It’s because his resolutions have often led me to worship. When I ran across these in one of my favorite books, I immediately typed them out and put them on my wall. There are eleven of them… here I’ve included three of my favorites. Kilby resolved to live by these resolutions every day, and I sensed the Lord’s challenge to me as well. I’ve definitely not followed these resolutions as consistently as I’m assuming Kilby did, but I DO know they’ve had a profound effect on how I view God and His world – and hence, how I worship Him every day.
My encouragement would be that whether you follow these specific resolutions or not, that all of us would open our eyes a little wider to what God wants us to see as we live in His world – and realize that everything is created for the purpose of HIS GLORY.
Kilby’s resolutions:

1. I shall sometimes look back at the freshness of vision I had in childhood and try, at least for a little while, to be, in the words of Lewis Carroll, the ‘child of the pure unclouded brow, and dreaming eyes of wonder.’

2. At least once every day I shall look steadily up at the sky and remember that I, a consciousness with a conscience, am on a planet traveling in space with wonderfully mysterious things above and about me.

3. I shall open my eyes and ears. Once every day I shall simply stare at a tree, a flower, a cloud, or a person. I shall not then be concerned at all to ask what they are but simply be glad that they are. I shall joyfully allow them the mystery of what Lewis calls their “divine, magical, terrifying, and ecstatic” existence.

Clyde Kilby’s resolutions, taken from THE PLEASURES OF GOD by Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday, millions of people all over the globe gathered in living rooms, pubs, sports bars and one big stadium in Detroit to witness the greatest spectacle in sports - Super Bowl XL. Captivated by the moment. Captivated by the commercials. Captivated by the Rolling Stones at half-time. Captivated by two NFL teams fighting it out to have the right to be called the best team in the world. There I was, too. My annual pilgrimmage to the couch with my chips, salsa, cool beverage and a room full of friends to join half the world’s population.

I can become captivated by an incredible sporting event or a passionate and inspiring musical performance. I’m certainly captivated by the stunning beauty of my wife, Heidi (whose birthday is today, by the way!) I’m sure you can think of a number of things that can captivate your attention unlike any other.

This word, “captivate”, is an interesting one to me. I think of a young child looking up into the night sky and seeing her first full moon. Eyes wide open, full of wonder and awe. Her attention for that moment is captured by something that fills her mind and imagination with thoughts too deep for words. The same emotion that I experienced when I took my first trip to the top of the snow-capped Rocky Mountains and looked out across creation for miles. There were no car horns blowing. No traffic lights flashing. Just the gentle sound of the wind almost singing as it carried the fresh fragrance of the mountain landscape. As the clouds created the backdrop for the peaks in the distance, the portrait was more majestic than anything I’d seen in a book or magazine. All I could think about was the awesomeness of God in that moment. I was captivated.

The American Heritage Dictionary defines captivate as “to fascinate by special charm or beauty; enrapture.” My question is: Am I as captivated by God - the Almighty, Sovereign Creator of all that exists - as I am by other things around me? Am I enraptured by His beauty? Overwhelmed by His grace and mercy? Amazed by His compassionate love for someone so undeserving?

I believe it comes down to our view of God. I fear that many of us have such a small view of God that we rarely ever allow ourselves to be truly captivated by Him - His beauty, power and glory. However, if we have an accurate view of God – a Biblical view of His greatness and majesty – He WILL captivate us! He IS compelling!

Psalm 19:1 says “The heavens are telling of the glory of God; and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.” All of creation, day and night, shouts forth His praises: “God is glorious! God is glorious!” I have found that one way I am captivated by God is through His creation. Keeping my eyes open to God’s glory around me, and in turn being WOW’d by God. As John Piper puts it:

“The message of creation is this: there is a great God of glory and power and generosity behind all this awesome universe; you belong to him; he is patient with you in sustaining your rebellious life; turn and bank your hope on him and delight yourself in him, not his handiwork.”

But, being captivated by His creation compels us to be captivated by The Creator!

In his book, The Pleasures of God, Piper devotes an entire chapter to “The Pleasure of God in His Creation” outlining a theology of worship that focuses on The Creator. He tells of one of his Wheaton College professors, Clyde Kilby, and the eleven resolutions he had made for staying alive to God’s glory. I have printed these resolutions and have posted them on my bulletin board to daily remind me of God’s glory. One resolution states:

“I shall sometimes look back at the freshness of vision I had in childhood and try, at least for a little while, to be, in the words of Lewis Carroll, the ‘child of the pure unclouded brow, and dreaming eyes of wonder.’”

This is the kind of mindset that enables us to continually be captivated by God through the appreciation of the things He has created.

Piper says,

“One of the tragedies of growing up is that we get used to things. It has its good side of course, since irritations may cease to be irritations. But there is immense loss when we get used to the redness of the rising sun, the wetness of rain, the blueness of the sky, the buzzing of bumble bees, the stitching of crickets, the invisibility of wind, the unconscious constancy of heart and diaphragm, the weirdness of noses and ears, the number of the grains of sand on a thousand beaches…and ten million kingly-clad flowers flourishing and withering in woods and mountain valleys where no one sees but God.

I invite you, with Clyde Kilby, to seek a ‘freshness of vision,’ to look, as though it were the first time, not at the empty product of accumulated millennia of aimless evolutionary accidents, but at the personal handiwork of an infinitely strong, creative, and exuberant Artist who made the earth and the sea and everything in them.

I invite you to believe (like the children believe) ‘that today, this very day, some stroke is being added to the cosmic canvas that in due course you shall understand with joy as a stroke made by the Architect who calls Himself Alpha and Omega.’” (page 95-96)

I invite you to become so captivated by God, His creation, His grace, His love—that you will never look at the world again through the same eyes. In so doing, your life of worship will forever be changed.