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As Infinite As The Universe, As Near As Your Heart

Psalm 8:1,3-4a
"O LORD, our LORD, how majestic is Your name in all the earth!...When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have set in place, what is man that You are mindful of him...?"

I love to go outside at night and gaze at the heavens. I like to watch after sunset as the sky begins to darken and the stars and planets begin to pop out and light up the night sky. The planets Venus and Jupiter, which are about 420 million miles apart, can now both be seen at the same time, and so can stars that are thousands of light years away. The sight of the heavens at night is awesomely beautiful, a marvelous creation of our God.

I think of how great those distances in space are, and how hard it is for us to comprehend such vastness. In Psalm 8, the psalmist asks the Creator of the universe: "What is man that You are mindful of him?" Indeed, our God, Creator of the universe, though infinite, is a personal God Who cares about each of us individually, knows our own name, knows our life and the particular concerns and issues in our life. The God Who created such vast distances is a God Who is never far away from us. He is always near to us. The psalmist in Psalm 139:7-8 says,

Psalm 139:7-8
"Where can I go from Your Spirit? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to the heavens, You are there; if I make my bed in the depths, You are there."

God is not distant, but is always present with us.

God came to us most personally and most closely in Jesus Christ. Jesus is God born into human flesh, yet without sin, holy and perfect. Jesus carried God's personal care, love and compassion for sinners like you and me to the ultimate when He went to the cross on Good Friday. There the God of vast distances and infinite space took upon Himself our sin and guilt, and washed it away forever in His blood. Now there is nothing in all the universe that can ever separate us from Him and His love. In Romans 8:38-39 we read,

Romans 8:38-39
"For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our LORD."

Do you ever feel alone, as if God were as far away as some distant star? Even though we may at times feel that way, we can be assured from Scripture that nothing "in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our LORD." The God of creation and vast distances is very near, indeed He lives in our heart.

God of the universe, You have created all the wonders of space and eternity, yet You are close enough to live in our heart and to know our inner most being. Whenever we feel at a distance from You, assure us that You actively care for us and are always close with us and that nothing will ever separate us from Your love in Christ Jesus, in Whose Name we pray. Amen.