Regain and Maintain a Sense of Awe and Wonder For God

Recently I was asked to share my thoughts and study on the subject of Wonder. I used Bible commentaries, study Bibles, listened to other sermons, along with my own perspectives. In this blog I share, what I complied together to speak on regaining and maintaining a sense of Wonder for God.

Did you take a really cool trip this Summer? Maybe you even took 2 trips. Did you encounter a breathtaking view? Perhaps you went to a state park for a little bit like Yellowstone. A Sweet family moment and memory that will stick with you?

We have all had situations in our lives where we have stood in awe of something before us. Whether it was admiring something in nature such as a sunset or mountain top view, whether it has been visiting somewhere great such as Fenway Park, the White House, Mount Rushmore or some great place in another country, Paris, Egypt, Tokyo or whether it is admiring a work of art or an amazing play in sports; we have all been in awe and wonder of something in our lives.

What I think is happening less and less though, is having this sense of wonder for God, the Creator of all things. As we live our lives, we forget how involved He is in everything we do. We diminish His power, turn a blind eye to His miracles that happen every day, and we belittle his greatness. We have turned God into a personal buddy that we can go to when we are in trouble or upset but yet we ignore the other half of God as a fierce, judgmental, and jealous King. People who are Jewish won’t even mention God’s name of Yahweh but yet we throw God’s name around like it is nothing!

Maybe you used to be excited about something, and then, it has just become part of the day in and day out living? It seems the longer we are engaged in something, the more it becomes part of our life, the more likely that we are less excited over it.

Reading- Do you like reading in the summer cuz you can just do it but during school reading is a burden because you read and report. So now reading is work and not fun. You have lost the passion.

Perhaps you used to be passion about a sport but you have been playing the same sport for 4 years and the passion is gone. Now you just play because it is what you do.

Our relationship with God, yes even in our relationship with God and Reading his Word. this has actually happened twice in my life. Once in high school. (I began to find Sunday school borrowing which made the Bible boring. I felt as if I already knew all the stories. This attitude lasted for about 3 years. For 3 years I went to church because it is what you do and I wanted to see friends. I then joined a young adult class and my perspective was challenged. I was challenged to not just read the text but to look at context. Who wrote this book, what was happening in the culture and history. What happened in the chapter before and what is coming up in the chapter after. My view of the Bible shifted.)

And then in college, I went to Bible college. I went to chapel 4 days a week, I read books about the Bible, did projects on the Bible was in preaching labs. Took a Bible Study class and started to look at the Bible as work. ( I was reading the Bible for school, because I had to read it. Not because I wanted to read it. The Lord one worship service convicted and I felt Him say, "If you are going to teach my word, then you must love my word") Now, I still enjoy being in the word, but that same excitement and awe is not always there. Now I want you to turn with me to Hebrews 12:28-29 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our "God is a consuming fire."

If we are truly going to worship God with our lives, it needs to be with reverence and awe.

Awe - a very strong feeling of wonder, reverence, or fear, caused by something grand or powerful.

I asked myself, am I worshiping with awe? I have a reverence for the Lord, but sometimes, I confess, I don’t have that sense of awe and wonder. And when we lose a sense of awe of God, the scripture tells us that we fail to worship God acceptably.

I would like for us to return to a sense of being “In Awe and Wonder of God”

To do that though, I think it is important to ask a couple of questions. We know that it happens, but Why does it Happen? Why do we lose a sense of awe sometimes?

I think as we become familiar with anything including our own faith in God, it starts to become commonplace. Now I want us to understand that there is a balance to maintain.

As we grow with the Lord, our understanding and relationship with the Lord will grow and it will become closer and more familiar. We need to recognize that we can approach our heavenly father with confidence and with closeness.

But at the same time, we need to approach with a sense of awe and wonder that we have God almighty as our Father. We need to seek to avoid our faith becoming so common that we look at God as we sometimes look at our own fathers as someone who pays the bills and lets us borrow the car.

How? But how do we do that? How do we maintain or get back our sense of Awe for God?

To start with, I think we need to recognize where this problem originates. I believe it originates in our heads, in our thinking, or lack of thinking. it all starts in our minds.

And the same is true of our relationship with God. What is it that our minds need to be focused on so that we can recapture our Awe for God?

Instead of just focusing on God, we need to be focusing on some specific aspects of God and it starts with Recognize who God is

I believe that there is 1 specific thing that we need to focus on about Who God is if we are going to again have that sense of excitement and Awe for God. The first is we need to Recognize God as Creator

Psalms 33:6-9

6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. 8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him. 9 For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm.

One of the reasons we should be awed by God is because of Who He is as creator. He has made all of creation. Sustains all of creation and when we stop and think about it, it is absolutely unbelievable and awe inspiring.

The problem is that we often don’t think about it because we live here and this too becomes common place. So I want to take a couple minutes to again refocus on this place that God has made and created for our benefit.What about when it snows?

The Universe: The vastness of the universe

The Body: The intricacies of design of the human body We have 30 to 100 trillion cells in our body that work independently, yet must work in coordination with the other cells. It’s self healing properties It’s reproduction properties

Beauty of Creation-Flowers, trees, plants, the speed of a hummingbird’s wings. A woodpecker. (Look up the anatomy of a woodpecker and how they use their tongue. You're welcome.)

If we can keep our minds focused on the awesomeness of who God is as Creator and recognize the awesomeness of His creation on a daily basis, then I think we will go a long way toward having an awe inspiring view of God.

Each day, we should seek to view the Lord’s creation in a way that recognizes His awesomeness.

But we need to not only be awed by God as Creator. We need to realize and recognize and be awed as we Grasp the Power of Scripture.

In the book of Nehemiah chapter 8 Ezra reads scripture to a gathering of people:. 4 And Ezra the scribe stood on a wooden platform that they had made for the purpose. And beside him stood 13 Levites. 5 And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was above all the people, and as he opened it all the people stood. 6 And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God, and all the people answered, “Amen, Amen,” lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshiped the Lord with their faces to the ground.

Think about the scene of wonder and respect that we read starting in verse 4. Ezra, who would be similar to a pastor, took a Bible and stood up on a “high wooden platform” or stage. This was so that everyone could hear and see the Word of God being read. It wasn’t just any ordinary platform either, as we read that it was made specifically “for the occasion.” The people went out of their way to provide a venue for reading God’s Word.

To Ezra’s left and right stood a group of Levites, who were the ones who were in charge of the temple and considered priests.. While these men and Ezra were on this platform, they opened the Bible and when this happened, all of the people, nearly 43,000 of them, rose to their feet in respect.

This is incredible! Standing for the reading of the Word of God was normal growing up but not something most churches do anymore. Yes some still operate this way but not many. I'm not saying you are disrespectful for sitting. It is a matter of the heart.

Perspective: We will stand for the national anthem but now during worship songs on a Sunday morning or Wednesday night. This makes you a great patriot but a lazy Christian

As Ezra prays and praises God, all the people raise their hands and yell, “Amen!” Then all the people fall to their knees and bowed before God as they humble themselves. Further, as Ezra read from the Word of God, the people heard it and began weeping as they heard it. They were so moved by stories of God’s power, provision, and love!

Hebrews 4:12 tells us this about Scripture, The Bible, the Word of God: Hebrews 4:12 For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires

Is living and powerful: The Bible isn’t a collection of merely old stories and myths. It has life and power. The preacher doesn’t make the Bible come alive. The Bible is alive, and gives life to the preacher and anyone else who will receive it with faith.

God’s word is both living and powerful, in the sense of being active.

It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. God’s word reaches us with surprising precision, and the Holy Spirit empowers the ministry of the word to work deeply in our hearts.

It’s common for Christ-followers to start out with great awe and wonder of God. Our lives are centered around Him, and our desire is to give our all to Him with joy and passion. In fact, it’s simple and clear as our hearts beat for Him; love God, love people. Then we get mature, and we change. The awe and wonder is replaced with a desensitized view so everything is ho-hum and expressed passion is minimal, but there is a better way.

A proper view of God as creator and the power of scripture helps us to continue to be awed by God.

Conclusion

Are you standing in Awe of God? Maybe you have lost that Awe of God and have been going through the motions of being a Christian and haven’t been feeling the awe of God that we should be feeling.

This next week, here is what I want you to do. Open your eyes to God’s creation and really see the things around you.

Notice the sky. Notice the Sun.

Notice the amount of people driving on our highways at all hours of the day and walking through the halls of your school. Recognize God is the creator of each and everyone of them and knows every hair on their head.

Spend time in the Bible and have a wonder of the truth and power of the scriptures.

In the Youversion app there is a 3 day plan for Awestruck wonder. I challenge you to start and complete this 3 day plan.

Discussion Questions:

1. Is there something in your life that used to bring you excitement and joy but no longer?

2. How does familiarity with our faith in God sometimes lead to a sense of complacency, and why is it important to maintain a balance in our relationship with Him?

3. How can we approach our heavenly Father with both confidence and a sense of awe and wonder?

4. What are some specific aspects of God that we can focus on to recapture our sense of awe and excitement for Him, such as recognizing Him as the Creator and understanding the power of Scripture?