Significantly Insignificant

A Reflection on the Psalm for June 16th, 2019:
​The Solemnity of The Most Holy Trinity

Psalm 8

R. O Lord, our God, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established; what is a man that you are mindful of him, or the son of man that you care for him? 

R. O Lord, our God, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Yet you have made him a little lower than the Angels, and crowned him with glory and honour. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet. 

R. O Lord, our God, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

All sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. 

R. O Lord, our God, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

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I think God calls to many people through the beauty of His creation. I’ve loved the night sky for as long as I can remember; cold, early morning winter walks to work lit up by the bright moon; endless warm summer evenings spent looking for constellations or shooting stars, and everything in between. Most especially, I think, I love the moon – everything from the slim crescent moon you have to search for to the brilliant full moon whose light, streaming through my window, has woken me up in the middle of the night. 
 
I can’t help but feel somewhat insignificant when I am looking at the moon. People have been captivated by this faraway bright rock for thousands and thousands of years. There is an odd comfort in this feeling of insignificance. It pulls me outside of myself.

I can get wrapped up in my own little life, and my present circumstances so easily. It can quickly feel like my present circumstances are all that there is. I can put myself in such a place of importance, but when I ponder something as incredible as the moon I’m reminded that there really is a lot more going on outside of just my life. As the psalmist says, “what is man that you are mindful of him”? In the grand scheme of things, we are each alive for such a short part of history. 
 
The beauty of the night sky is absolutely breathtaking and it points to a Creator. I’ve been pondering the beauty of creation recently. He didn’t have to make it beautiful, but He did. I think this reveals something to us about God’s own character — about the kind of God He is. The truth is man is not much. But there is a beautiful twist: God is more than mindful of us, of each and every person He created. He loves us, He cares for us deeply, He sent his Son to die for us, and He longs to be in relationship with us. Whenever I’ve seen other people admiring creation – a beautiful sunset, a starry night, or waves crashing at the beach – I can’t help but think they are noting and honouring the care and creativity of the Creator who loves them more than they could imagine. 

"God uses His creation to remind us of the bigger story He is writing."

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God uses His creation to remind us of the bigger story He is writing. When I turn inwards and become self-absorbed I can be so tempted to see my life as a story that is primarily about me, when really, I want to write a story with my life that is primarily about God. Or at least, I want to want that. Some days I am better at remembering this than others. Somehow, I find this easier to remember whenever I stop and take a really good look at the moon.  ​

​Morgan MacKenzie

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