The Gravity of Grace

Gravity. It’s not just the title of amazing songs written by John Mayer and Sara Bareilles, though I completely love both of these songs. Gravity is a mysterious force that holds the universe together. One that sustains flight and orbit. A force that cannot be seen yet cannot be denied. A bit similar to grace!

Gravity echoes the majesty and mystery of our unsearchable Creator. It’s a celestially adhesive influencer. Powerful. Essential. Incredible.

Here on the pale blue dot gravity keeps humanity grounded and presses fleshy body parts to plunge and sag with age. In the distance she spins the world on its axis and dances between the barrier of earth and sky.

The Psalmist wrote of it beautifully. “He set the earth on its foundations, so that it should never be moved. You covered it with the deep as with a garment; the waters stood above the mountains. At your rebuke they fled; at the sound of your thunder they took to flight. The mountains rose, the valleys sank down to the place that you appointed for them. You set a boundary that they may not pass, so that they might not again cover the earth… He made the moon to mark the seasons; the sun knows its time for setting” (Psalm 104:5-9, 19, ESV).

And speaking of the moon, sun and sky, there’s nothing quite like soaking in the light show of stars on a clear night. Right? In brilliance, they dance and dazzle with a splendor that silences egos and shushes doubts of God’s existence.

As amazing as they are, beyond the grandiosity of gravity and galaxies is the high and holy hand that set the wild wonder in play. The One, true, eternal God who, in wisdom made every particle, planet, prism and person. The Author of life and death who permits the moon to mark off seasons and the sun to rise and set with the rhythm of day.

I love the paraphrase of these verses. “The moon keeps track of the seasons, the sun is in charge of each day… What a wildly wonderful world, God! You made it all, with Wisdom at your side, made earth overflow with your wonderful creations. Oh, look—the deep, wide sea, brimming with fish past counting, sardines and sharks and salmon” (Psalm 104:19, 24-25, MSG).

Taking this in, I’m shook, stirred, stretched, satisfied… stilled.

How can it be that the God of all creation, the One who hung lights to decorate night, holds the universe in place and space, and feeds the ox, fox and hawks cares for little, ole’ me? For us?

I shake my head and wonder with David, “what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him” (Psalm 8:4 ESV)?

Surely the gravity and glory of the Grace-giver is more amazing than we will ever know.

Matchless Majesty, You are worthy of my praise, my gaze and my days. May my meditation be pleasing to You today as I celebrate and savor Your loving care and wild wonder. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

FOR YOUR REFLECTION and RESPONSE

How does this freshly shape your perspective about the world around you and your very existence?

Read Psalm 104. Write a prayer of response in your journal, or on the wall of my blog.