October 3, 2024 - How Awesome is Awe

JEREMIAH 1:1-2:30

PHILIPPIANS 4:1-23

PSALM 75:1-10

PROVERBS 24:17-20

One Year Bible Audio & Daily Reading (oneyearbibleonline.com)

Jeremiah 2:19 Your wickedness will punish you;

    your backsliding will rebuke you.

Consider then and realize

    how evil and bitter it is for you

when you forsake the Lord your God

    and have no awe of me,”

declares the Lord, the Lord Almighty.

I am reading a book right now called "The Six Conversations" by Heather Holleman. It is about having quality conversations. Chapter 4 has a section titled "Close conversations through marveling" She talks about encouraging people toward Awe in a conversation. She states that "Awe involves marveling at something sacred, vast, supernatural, mysterious, and so beautiful you feel overcome by the thing you're thinking about or experiencing.". She also mentions the benefits of Awe "kindness, patience, gratitude, happiness, increasing life satisfaction, creativity, and even lowered inflammation in the body." (From Kirk Schneider, "The Resurgence of Awe in Psychology: Promise, Hope, and Perils," The Humanistic Psychologist)

God and all that He is and all that Has done is AWESOME. If we have NO awe of Him I think we can expect to also have no kindness, patience, gratitude, happiness, increasing life satisfaction, creativity, and lowered inflammation in the body. I find it interesting that it causes lowered inflammation in the body because my dear friend who has rheumatoid arthritis praises God in and through her pain. I wonder if she has noticed that the times that her praise causes her to marvel at the awesomeness of God, she gets through a flair faster than when she does not. I think it is worth remembering that when we are feeling unkind, impatient, ungrateful, sad, unsatisfied, and uncreative that we should ask ourselves how much time have we spent experience the awesomeness of God. We should all tell others about it so that they too can marvel at Him and reap the benefit.

Philippians 4:12 I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. 13 I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

I think that Paul was able to find contentment in all his struggles because he knew God and marveled at His greatness and goodness on a daily basis. We should do the same.