Grains of sand

    God's mind

    The beginning of Psalm 139 showcases the endless and immeasurable knowledge of God. If we will try to illustrate it mathematically we only think in a linear equation when we were kids, 2 dimensions into adolescents, and 3 dimensions in adulthood. But imagine that God thinks not only in 3 dimensions but maybe 10 or 100 or thousands. He knows us at the time we wake up and the time we sleep. Not only he knows us, but he perceives us and discerns the very beginning of our thoughts. The moment we attempted to gather relevant factors or elements to start an idea, he knew already from the very beginning. He's familiar with the way we conduct our plan, the way we get away with things, the way we want to tease or mess up with someone. Such a mind is way too far for us to have a glimpse of comprehension. This is the God that we serve. This is the all-powerful, all-knowing, diving being that we believe.

    He knows when and he knows how I'm going to do it. It's like the next-HD 4K edition of surveillance camera with the clear audio system installed in my vision, cerebrum, heart, and ears running continuously 24/7. There's no way I could get out nor hide something from him. “Where can I go from [his] Spirit?!”, and “Where can I flee from [his] presence?!? (v.7)”. Wherever we go he is there. He's always ahead of us. 

His interaction

    Here's another sweet thing that I find in this chapter. After the Psalter revealed who God is, and what he's capable of displaying the wide array of his wisdom he started to give praise and with a burst of emotions he was able to say, “How precious to me are your thoughts, God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand... (v.17-18)”.

 He's thinking of my food to eat today, he's thinking of where I want to go after this pandemic, he's thinking of my dreams, goals, and aspirations in the future. Both the significant and mundane things in life, he is thinking of and for me.

    His thoughts of me are extremely more than grains of the entire sand in the ocean. How are you able to count it. It's countless. He's constantly thinking of us in different forms and varieties among all areas in our lives.

Now what?

    The first part of this chapter displayed of immeasurable greatness of God's mind. In the second part, the author shifted gears and focused on the connection of God and mankind.

    It fascinates me how the Psalter ends it. Knowing that God knows his every move, every step, every word on his tongue, every thought in mind, his intentions and motivations, he humbly asked God to check his entire life, his heart. “Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting”. It reminds me of a scanner the one that you see in Walmart self-checkout. Once you hit the scanner gun into the barcode it would reflect on the screen everything about the item. Its name, quantity, price, everything. It will also show if it's an invalid item. It's always accurate. There's no way you sneak in on an item. The item is either recorded on the database or not.

    There's no way to hide.

    The psalmist knowing the limitless power of God humbly asked to scan his heart, his mind. He knows he has the tendency to deceive or to hide something from God. It might be an addiction, or bitterness, or greed, or lust, or pride that he try to justify or rationalize to God, unwilling to surrender.

    Upon reflection of this last verse, I will start remembering this to include in my daily prayers. Whenever I feel that I'm doing okay, I'm following God, and even active in serving him through ministry. I would be asking from time to time, is there any offensive way in me. Is there an impurity in my thought? Is there some hidden agenda in my good deeds? Am I helping someone just to get their approval or to be perceived as good in the public view.

    We need to be constantly this prayer to God. “Search me... test me... know my anxious thoughts... see if there's any offensive way in me”. For everyone who wants to bring their intimate relationship with God to a deeper level, this might be the first step.

    Even with our close, trusted friends have the possibility of misjudging us or giving us inaccurate feedbacks or opinions about ourselves, about our lives. God is different. For 2 main reasons: his character, and his ability. He is trustworthy and omniscient. He could never go wrong.

    With our relationship with God, it is assured that it is transparent and honest. God doesn't make mistakes. He never misjudges. He is perfect. That's why you can fully transparent with him. “Abba Father, where did I go wrong?”