Our Identity: Creation

Good morning.

As Tobin has mentioned, we're starting a new series today on God's story and our story.

And over the next 11 weeks or so, we're going to be going through the story of the Bible as a church.

And each of us here today has a story of our lives.

We have somewhere that we've been, somewhere that we're going, somewhere that we are now.

And our stories are shaped by a number of different things.

They're shaped by culture and what culture says is valuable and what culture says is important.

They're shaped by our past experiences.

We can see what we've been through and we know what we want more of and what we don't want more of.

Maybe they're shaped by our friends and what our friends say is good and valuable and worth pursuing in life.

And just like each of us has a story, God has a story.

God is working in and through history.

With a goal in mind.

And he tells us about this story in the Bible.

The Bible, if you don't know this, is actually a story.

It's a collection of 66 books that combine to make one story.

And there's smaller individual stories within these books.

But they combine to tell one bigger, greater story.

And that big story of the Bible is supposed to shape and influence each of our lives and our stories.

God gave us the Bible so that the story in there could impact the way that we live today.

And we think that a lot of us, maybe we know the individual stories from the Bible,

but we don't know how they all get together and make one bigger story.

And because of that, it's very hard for us to live in that story because we don't necessarily know what the full story is.

So what we're going to do over the next 11 weeks is we're going to look at this story of the Bible.

And, you know, a lot of us know different stories that we're called and invited to be a part of.

Maybe we know the Disney story.

The world is there for you to be happy and prosper.

And you are a prince or princess waiting for Prince Charming or Snow White or whoever.

And you need to follow your heart to find that perfect someone so that you can live happily ever after.

Maybe we know the Hong Kong story.

It starts out around preschool because you've got to start in the right preschool.

Because if you don't, then your life is over.

Once you get into the right preschool, you spend somewhere around 10 to 13 years in the best international schools

before being sent out to the prime boarding schools in the U.S. or U.K.

You graduate high school and move on to the Ivy Leagues or Oxford or Cambridge.

And you graduate and get a job as a doctor or a lawyer or investment banker.

You work for a few years.

You save up your first couple million.

Around the age of, like, 30 to 35, you find someone of the opposite gender who's attractive and equally wealthy

and has business connections that can help you move forward in life, and you marry them.

And maybe you have a girlfriend on the side in China who can keep you company when you're on business trips.

And then a few years later, you have a couple children to secure your legacy.

You keep working until you reach your financial goals.

Then you retire.

You travel the world.

And if you have enough money left over, you donate it to somewhere so that you can get your name on a building

and future generations can remember who you are.

And that's the Hong Kong story of what it means to have this great, wonderful, prosperous, full life.

And here's the thing, is that if we know these other stories but we don't know the Bible story,

we're going to live by these other stories.

And if what the Bible says is true, then living our lives according to these other stories

rather than according to the Bible story is something that will lead to disappointment and death.

If the Bible story is true, the only way to a full, lasting, rewarding, fulfilling life

is by being a part of that story and living in that story.

So we want to take time over the next few months as a church to focus on this story, to get into this story.

And it's not just something that we want to be an academic exercise.

It's something we want to shape our lives.

And so we've got a couple things outside of Sunday mornings that we're putting together too

in the goal of helping us get into this story.

So Chris Thornton has put together a Bible reading plan that will go alongside of this sermon series.

He'll have it available after church if anyone wants to grab it for you.

You know, it's New Year's.

It's that time where we make those resolutions like,

I want to read my Bible this year, and then we never do.

This is something that's intended to help you with that,

to get you into that discipline, to help you understand the full story of the Bible.

So you can grab that Bible reading plan from Chris after church.

Also, our community groups over the next few weeks will be going through the story of the Bible as groups.

And that will be a great chance for us to get together in the groups,

look at the story and discuss it as a group,

and be more intentional about applying it to our own lives specifically,

and having people around us who can talk to us about it and encourage us in it

and help us to get into that story ourselves in our lives.

And again, if you're not in a community group,

it's a great opportunity to reinforce what we're learning here

and get that story to be a part of your life.

So if you're not in a community group, talk to Chris Thornton after church.

Do you want to, like, wave to everyone so they can see who you are?

This guy right here.

And he will help you get connected to a community group.

And also, Watermark Kids and Watermark Youth are going through this same story in their classes right now.

So if you have kids or youth that are involved in those ministries,

after church you can talk to them on the ride home and compare notes with them

so that it can be something that's being discussed in your homes throughout the week

and not just something that stays here on Sunday mornings.

And so today we're starting this story looking at creation.

And now, for those of you who don't know much about the Bible,

creation is a huge topic.

We could sit here for a year and have a sermon series on creation

that lasts the entire year and still not exhaust the theme of creation.

And so trying to cover it all in one sermon

is obviously going to leave lots of important stuff out.

And so if I'm talking about creation today

and there's important stuff about creation that you feel like I'm not saying,

you're right, I'm not saying lots of important stuff.

But what we're trying to do today is we're looking at it through a specific lens,

looking at a specific angle.

What we're trying to look at is two primary things.

One, how does the story of creation lay the foundation for the rest of the story of the Bible?

And number two, how does that impact the story of our lives today?

How does creation set the foundation for the rest of the Bible story?

And how does that impact our lives today?

So we're not going to take time to look at theories of how the world was created

or how long it actually took or anything like that.

We're looking at how it fits into the story of the Bible

and how that impacts our lives today.

And what we're going to see is that in creation,

God establishes his rule,

God establishes his place,

and God establishes his people.

God establishes his rule,

God establishes his place,

and God establishes his people.

And the first thing is his rule.

Now this is something that from the start flies in the face of our culture.

Our culture story says autonomy is the greatest thing possible.

Our culture repeatedly tells us stories

where the person who stands up and fights the authority is the hero.

Look at the box office from last year,

the top grossing movies from 2014.

What do you have up there?

The Hunger Games.

Teenage girl fights against the oppressive government

who's trying to destroy the lives of their people.

Autonomy is king.

What else is up there?

Lego movie.

Average Joe discovers the key to unlocking the universe

and saving his entire universe from the oppressive overlord.

What's the message?

Fight the authority.

Stand up for you.

Be your own hero.

Don't trust anyone in authority.

That's what culture wants us to believe.

And at the start of creation,

we see God establishing his rule.

Creation sets the precedent

that God is in charge of everything,

everywhere,

and that the proper response of humanity

is obedience and submission to God's rule.

Think about it.

The Bible starts with the four words,

in the beginning, God.

In the beginning, God is there.

We are not.

Actually, in the beginning, God is there,

and nothing else is there.

God is the one who existed in the beginning,

and as such,

he is the only reliable source

for what happened in the beginning

and where the world came from.

Also, as the one who is in the beginning,

God is the self-existing one.

As the one who created everything else,

God is the only one

who's not reliant on an outside source

for his existence.

If you think about it,

the Bible says God created everything.

The earth, you and me,

the trees, the stars, the animals,

everything was created by him.

Everything is reliant upon

an outside source for our existence.

That outside source being God.

God, as the one who was in the beginning,

is not reliant on anything

outside of himself to exist.

Everything else exists

because God chose for it to exist,

and God exists.

And as God is this pre-existing one

who existed before everything else,

and the self-existing one

who's not reliant on anything else

for his existence,

God establishes his rule over everything.

And God establishes his rule

over everything with his word.

What we see in Genesis chapter 2

Genesis 2 · chapter mention

is that after God creates the heavens

and the earth,

the earth is formless,

it's void, it's dark,

and then in Genesis 3,

God speaks.

And as God speaks,

the words that God speaks

are accomplished.

God says,

let there be light,

and there is light.

God says,

let the waters separate above and below,

and they do.

God says,

let dry land come up out of the waters,

and it does.

God says,

how about some trees on this land,

and they're there.

God says,

let's have sun, moon, stars,

and they're there.

Birds, fish, done.

Animals, all over.

It's there.

God establishes his rule

over everything with his word

by creating through his word.

And not only that,

but after he's created everything else,

God reaches down into the soil

that he's made,

and he shapes a man

in his own image.

And he establishes his authority

over the man

by his word.

It says that God spoke to the man.

He blessed the man and the woman.

He said to them,

be fruitful and multiply

and fill the earth

and subdue it,

have dominion over the fish of the sea

and over the birds of the heavens

and over every living thing

that moves on the earth.

And then it jumps ahead

and it says,

and it was so.

Just like in creation

where God speaks

and it happens,

God blesses the man,

God gives commands

to the man and the woman,

and he says,

do this and it's done.

God establishes his rule

by his word in creation.

God also establishes his rule

by a word of prohibition

to the man and woman.

In Genesis chapter two,

we see that God tells them,

you may surely eat

of every tree that's in the garden,

but of the tree of the knowledge

of good and evil,

you shall not eat.

For in the day that you eat of it,

you shall surely die.

Now God's not unreasonable

with this rule.

He says,

you have every tree in the garden

except for one.

He's not flaunting his authority.

He's not being withholding.

He's blessing them, actually.

He's telling them,

here's the key

to a good, full, plentiful life.

Don't eat from this tree.

Things will go very, very badly

if you do.

I love you.

I don't want that to happen.

Stay away.

And he establishes his rule

with his word again.

And we'll see in later weeks

that Adam and Eve's failure

to obey this word

and live under this rule

causes major issues for them

and for every generation

that comes after them,

including us.

But God's establishment

of his rule by his word,

it's not something,

as culture would have us believe,

that's oppressive.

It's not something

that's mean-hearted.

It's not something

that's withholding

or vindictive.

It's something that's loving.

It's the God

who knows

how the universe works.

The God

who has created everything

and understands best

how it is supposed to operate,

giving his people

the key

to a proper life

within that universe

that he has created.

And so as God

establishes his rule

by his word,

that is a gift of love

from him

to his people.

In the beginning,

God establishes

his rule

by his word.

Not only does God

establish his rule,

he also establishes

his place.

Now in one sense,

the entire universe

is God's place.

God created it all.

God rules over it all.

God owns it all.

God sustains it all.

There's a Dutch theologian

named Abraham Kuyper.

And he had this quote.

He said,

there's not a square inch

in the whole domain

of our human existence

over which Christ,

who is sovereign over all,

does not cry,

mine.

In the entire universe,

there's not one square inch

where God doesn't look at it

and say,

that's mine.

Everything is his.

Everything belongs to him.

But,

in the beginning,

although everything

belongs to him,

he reaches down

and creates

a special place.

He creates a garden.

He creates

a special place

that is,

that is green

and filled with gold

and rivers

and an amazing place.

And this is where

he places

Adam and Eve.

This is the place

where God enters

into a covenant

with his people.

and although

the entire universe,

everything that exists,

is God's place

in a special way,

this Garden of Eden

is God's place

because it is the place

where he and his people

meet together.

It's the place

where he focuses

so much attention

during this act of creation

and in creation,

God establishes

this place of Eden.

creation.

The third thing

that God establishes

in creation

is his people.

If you look at

the story of creation

in the Bible,

it centers around man.

In Genesis chapter 1,

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

you have this

least to greatest account

where they start off

pretty simple

with,

let there be light.

Oh,

let's have the sky

separated from the water below.

Let's have some land.

And then you get

increasing complexity.

On the land,

let's put trees

and plants

and then fill it

with birds and fish

and then have

like animals

like cows

and hippopotamuses

and elephants

and then let's put

man in there.

And the entire

creation account

in Genesis chapter 1

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

is building

and building

and building

until it reaches

its climax

with the creation

of man.

And then in Genesis 2,

we have another

creation account

that centers

around man.

You start out

with Adam

being created.

and God

takes the world

around Adam

and shapes it

for his use.

He puts the trees

and the plants

in the field

so Adam has

food to eat.

He puts

the animals there

so Adam has

things to rule over.

And Adam

names all the animals

and he's

in this garden

that God has created

and he realizes

there's no companion

for him

and God creates

the woman.

and that's the

climax of the

Genesis 2

creation account

is the creation

of woman

to be with man.

That God

creates the world

basically for man.

and God does this

because

he loves

his people.

And when God

creates man

and woman

he creates them

it says

in his image.

There's something

special and unique

and distinct

about humanity

that sets us

apart

from the rest

of creation.

as God

establishes

his people

he doesn't just

take some

random animal

and say like

you're going to be

my special

creation.

No,

he takes us

he shapes us

out of the dust

to the ground

and he creates us

in his image

to be his people.

There have been

lots of theories

throughout the years

about what it means

for us to exist

in God's image

and we don't have

a lot of time

to discuss that today

but there's a couple

important things

about us existing

in God's image

that I do want to say.

First off

the fact that we

were created

in God's image

means that in some way

that's unique to us

and nothing else

in all of creation

shares

we are like God.

In some way

that is unique

and distinct to us

that nothing else

in all of creation

shares

the trees don't share it

the dolphins

don't share it

the birds don't share it

we are like God.

I'm not saying

we are God

that would be bad

but we are like God

in a way that is

unique and distinct

from everything else.

The second important thing

about us existing

as creation

in God's image

is that our creation

in God's image

is closely linked

to our command

to rule over

the rest of creation.

It says

God creates us

in his image

and then he calls us

to rule over

creation for him.

We are God's

representatives

to the rest of creation.

God puts us

on the earth

and he says

I want you

to rule over

the animals

and the birds

and the fish

and

the rhinoceroses

in such a way

that in your ruling

over them

they will see

my goodness.

in such a way

that as you

steward the earth

you're not

exploiting it

you're not

abusing it

you're loving

and gentle

and kind

just as I

am loving

and gentle

and kind

to you.

You're stewards

and you are to act

as my representatives

so that through you

everything else

in all of creation

will see

who I am.

The third important thing

about us existing

in God's image

is that life

in community

is key

to our existence

in God's image.

You notice

God doesn't just

create man

he creates man

and woman together.

Actually when he

just has man there

he says it's

not good yet

there's something wrong

and then he creates

the woman

and he says

this is now

very good.

The community

aspect

of our existence

in God's image

is key.

The Bible teaches us

that God exists

as a trinity

with one God

three persons

which means

that from eternity

God himself

has been existing

in perfect community

and if we want

to be like God

and show the world

around us

who God is

we need to be

in community.

Although there is

the image of God

present in each of us

as individuals

we cannot fully display

the image of God

outside

of a proper community.

and actually

the creation

of community

in the Bible story

is one of

the greatest blessings

given to humanity.

If you look at the story

in Genesis 2

Adam's there

God's making all this stuff

he makes the trees

he makes the animals

Adam's living in paradise

ruling over paradise

and then God makes the woman

and the woman

is finally the thing

where Adam goes

at last

look what God made

for me.

Right?

He's ruling over paradise

but it's when he gets

community

that he says

yes

this is it

this is what I've been

waiting for

this is good

what an amazing gift

from God.

The creation of community

is one of

the greatest blessings

that God gives to man

in the entire story

of creation.

And in this community

that God creates

there's this openness

and this honesty

that marks

the relationship there.

If you look at the last

verse of chapter 2

it says

the man and his wife

were both naked

and not ashamed.

This isn't just

a physical nakedness

this is emotional

this is spiritual

they're completely open

completely honest

completely exposed

and not only with each other

but with God.

They have nothing

to hide from God.

When things go wrong

in the story

one of the first things

you'll see

is that

they run and hide

from God.

But in creation

when God makes them

they're completely open

and honest before him

and have nothing to hide.

They're completely open

and honest before each other.

There's no lying

there's no hiding

there's no covering up

what they've done.

They're completely honest

and open with themselves.

They don't need to lie

to themselves

about what's happened

in the past

to try and avoid

those dark memories.

Things are good

things are right

things are as they should be.

They're completely open

and honest

with the rest of creation.

They have this right relationship

with the rest of the stuff

that God has made.

It's good.

It's right.

It's as it should be.

And next week

like I said

we're going to see

that God

that humanity

fails to live properly

as we're supposed to

in God's image.

And when that happens

this openness

and honesty

and community

is one of the first things

to go.

they hide from God.

They cover up

their nakedness.

Their son murders

his brother.

Things go downhill

so quickly.

But at the start

this community

is one of

the greatest gifts.

And the last thing

I want us to see

about creation

of humanity

in God's image

is that this

flies wildly

in the face

of culture's story

about human worth

and human dignity

and human rights.

What does culture

want us to believe

about who we are?

We're an accident.

There was this explosion

billions of years ago

particles sort of formed

as they flew through space

and the planet arrived

and then

a couple billion years ago

there was this

lightning storm

that hit some

prehistoric gloop

in the ground

and then life came

and we formed

out of that.

And really

there's nothing special

about us

nothing unique

or distinct about us

we're just

overdeveloped animals

who are a product

of accident

and chance.

It's like Tobin

was saying earlier

the men who are

commenting

on these tragedies

throughout the world

who said

yeah so what

we're just

complicated animals

that's how we should act.

And if humanity's

or if culture's story

of where humanity

came from

is true

there's absolutely

no grounds

for human rights

for human worth

for human value.

You know

I just came back

from the States

and in the States

there is so much

talk going on

about race relations

right now.

People are upset

about the way

that police

have been

treating black people

and so there have been

calls for retaliation

against police.

There were people

marching on the streets

in New York

chanting

what do we want

dead cops

when do we want it

now?

a man came up

to New York

and shot two police

officers in cold blood

because people

are so upset

about the way

that black people

are being treated

by police

in America.

And here's the thing

if the Bible story

of creation

of man

in God's image

is true

then absolutely

proper race relations

are important

and significant

and something

that we should

fight for

with everything

we have

because there are

people who exist

in God's image

who are not being

treated as the image

of God.

But if culture's

story of humanity

as an accident

as a product

of chance

is true

then there's no reason

we should fight

for it.

If all we are

is a product

of accident

and chance

then the strong

should pray

on the weak

because that's

how it works

in nature.

If all we are

is a product

of accident

and chance

none of us

have any inherent

worth

as human beings.

Our value

comes from

what we do

what we accomplish

and those

who cannot

accomplish

have no value.

But

if the Bible

is true

if there's

something special

and unique

and distinct

about each of us

because we have

been created

in the image

of God

if there's

something about

the creator

of the universe

that's been

stamped on

to each

of us

as a person

that exists

regardless

of our race

regardless

of our accomplishments

regardless

of our disabilities

it's there

it can't be

removed

from us

then human rights

are incredibly

important.

Every human

being has value

regardless

of our skin

color

regardless

of whether

we've accomplished

anything

with our lives

we have value

because we exist

in God's image.

So creation

in God's image

calls us

to live properly

in community

calls us

to fight

for human rights

it calls us

to treat each other

with dignity

and respect

regardless of

whether we like

each other

or not

because even

if I don't like you

you still carry

the image of God

within you

even if you don't

like me

I still carry

the image of God

within me.

And as we look

at this story

of the Bible

creation

God doesn't just

establish us

as people

in community

with each other

he also establishes us

in a relationship

with himself.

There's a German

theologian

named Dietrich Bonhoeffer

and he talks

about the two

stories of creation

in the first couple

chapters of the

Bible

he says

the first account

is about humankind

for God

the second

about God

for humankind

the first

is about God

the creator

and Lord

the second

about the fatherly

God

who is near

at hand

the first

is about humankind

as the final

work of God

with the whole

world created

before humankind

the second

just the other

way around

in the beginning

humanity is created

and around humankind

for the sake

of humankind

God fashions

animals

and birds

and lets

the trees

grow

basically

Genesis 1

is about

how God

created us

for himself

and Genesis 2

is about

how God

is for us

Genesis 1

establishes the fact

that God

is creator

and God

is Lord

and God

is in charge

and Genesis 2

establishes the fact

that although

he's in charge

God loves us

deeply

and immensely

and he's there

for us

and he cares

for us

in these first

two chapters

of the Bible

we have a foundation

laid for how

we are to relate

to God

with respect

and honor

because he is

the creator

and Lord

who is in charge

but with love

as a father

because although

he is so in charge

and so big

he cares for us

in both accounts

of creation

we see God

providing for his people

he gives us

everything we need

for life

he gives us

companionship

he provides us

with other people

around us

and he provides us

with this awareness

of who he is

and the ability

to have a relationship

with him

in both creation accounts

we see

that God

is generous

to man

that God

doesn't just

create man

and leave him

in a wasteland

but God

generously

places man

in the middle

of paradise

God generously

gives man

access

to all of the trees

except one

in this paradise

God's not withholding

he's generous

in both stories

of creation

we see that God

is gracious

God could have

created man

as a robot

who had no choice

but to obey

but God

graciously

gives us

the freedom

to choose

to worship him

or not

God graciously

teaches man

how to live

properly

within that freedom

and gives him

structure

and guidelines

and rules

to help protect him

God provides

for his people

God is generous

with his people

God is gracious

with his people

he doesn't desire

to see us

suffer and die

he establishes us

with the ability

to know him

to know him

as creator

and lord

the one who's in charge

and to know him

as father

and friend

the one

who cares

for us

and Adam

and Eve

have a responsibility

to respond

properly

to God's creation

and just like them

we have a responsibility

to respond properly

to God's creation

and I want to focus

today on three

primary ways

that we're supposed

to respond

to the fact

that God

has created

the world

and everything

in it

and us

the first proper

response

is worship

God is big

no one else

can create

as he did

no one else

can sustain

as he did

or as he does

God has created

everything

God deserves

our worship

I'm not just

talking about

singing songs

at the end of church

when I say worship

I'm talking about

a life

that reflects

his bigness

and greatness

and who he is

to the people

around us

you know

I think

one of the

key ways

that we worship

God

is by getting

to know him

more

and a great way

to do that

is by reading

our Bibles

because the Bible

is where we learn

about who God is

like I said

at the start of church

Chris has a Bible

reading plan

available for us

that if you want

to spend more time

in your Bible

getting to know

who God is

getting to know

about how big

and amazing he is

and how amazing

it is that he loves

us and cares about us

I encourage you

to pick that up

from him after service

another great way

to get to know

more clearly

who God is

is by spending time

with other Christians

and hearing

about

what they've experienced

of God

in their lives

and a great way

to do that

is in community groups

so again

I encourage you

if you're not involved

in the community group

get plugged into one

the second proper response

to God's creation

is trust

we see in

the story of creation

that God is big

that God is powerful

that God sees his work

through to completion

we see at the end

of creation

the seventh day comes

and God rests

from his work

because the work

is complete

God sees the task

through to completion

and then he rests

and enjoys the work

that he has done

and the fact that God

is big and powerful

enough to see his work

through to completion

and the fact that God

is faithful

to see his work

through to completion

is a fact that

it's just as true today

as it was

at the time of creation

in Philippians chapter 1

Philippians 1:6

verse 6

Paul tells us

I'm sure of this

he who began

a good work in you

will bring it to completion

at the day of Christ Jesus

God's ability and power

to see his work

through to completion

and his faithfulness

to see his work

through to completion

apply just as much

on an individual level

in our lives

as they do

on a cosmic level

in creation

the God who is at work

in our lives today

who will see

the completion

of our transformation

into his image

through to the end

is the same God

who saw creation

through to the end

he's just as powerful

he's just as amazing today

as he was then

and he's just as faithful

to see his work

through to completion

so when we see God

working in our lives

and we wonder

is he ever going to

make it all work

is he ever going to

shape me into

who he really wants me to be

we can trust that he will

because he's the same God

now working in us

to change us

and save us

as he was

in creation

and the third

proper response

to God's creation

is obedience

in creation

God establishes

his rule

by his word

this is not

a mean word

this is not a bad word

this is a loving

and kind

and generous

and good word

it's instruction

on how to live

the best

most full

possible life

on earth

as humanity

and despite

the goodness

of God's command

Adam and Eve

decide they want more

than what God's already

given them

and they disobey him

and despite the goodness

of God's commands

to us

in our life

we continuously

decide

we want more

than what he's given us

and disobey him

and in creation

we see

that God is in charge

so we owe him

our obedience

in creation

we see that God

is good

and so it's in our

best interest

to obey him

because he wants

what's best for us

in creation

we see

that God is loving

and therefore

we should obey him

because it's a response

to that love

and yet we all

choose every day

not to do that

we choose

to get angry

at others

because they've

insulted us

we choose

to bend God's rules

a little here

break them there

but creation

tells us

that we owe him

our obedience

and the good news

is that God's love

God's generosity

and graciousness

don't disappear

when we disobey

he's still loving

he's still generous

he's still gracious

and as we get further

into the story

what we'll see

is that God

loves us

that God wants us

to be his people

God wants us

to be in relationship

with him

and that even

when we disobey

and rebel

he is so

so strongly

wants us

in this relationship

with him

that he's willing

to forgive us

at great cost

to himself

if you don't know

the rest of the story

and you don't want

to wait 11 weeks

to find out

where it goes

or how it ends

I'd love to talk

to you more

about it

after service

but for now

we're out of time

so we're gonna pray

and let us remember

God's love

in creation

God's love

for us

God's love

for the world

that he created

and our proper

response

of worship

and trust

and obedience

let's pray

Father we thank you

for the fact

that you are big

and strong

and loving

and despite

your bigness

you still care

about us

as individuals

that you bring

order out of chaos

that you bring

light out of darkness

that at your word

creation responds

God we pray

that we would respond

properly this week

as well

that we would live

lives of worship

we would live

lives of trust

that through

our response

to your work

of creation

others would be able

to see how big

and great you are

I pray that this week

that we would be

obedient to your word

even when it's hard

even when it doesn't

seem like the best

path forward

we would trust you

enough to obey

what you say

and believe

that it is right

God we love you

we thank you

for you being

who you are

and in Jesus name

Amen