Fireworks

THIS WEEK America celebrated the anniversary of the day the colonies declared their independence, way back in 1776. We celebrate, as my brother points out, by eating lots of meat and blowing things up. In other words, we cook food and light fireworks.

I love fireworks. I love going every year with my family to some spot next to the river to watch the lights rise above the city.

But my dog, on the other hand, does not like fireworks. Every year when we come home from watching them, we find Sugar relieved to see us coming to rescue her. She hears the pops and booms and thinks the world outside is exploding, and it scares her. The sounds make her try to stay as close to us as possible. Sugar slept in my room that night, which made her feel better.

That reminded me of the way it is with us and God. It's not rare that scary things happen to us that make us feel like the sky is surely falling. We don't understand what's going on, and we seek shelter. But just like the fireworks don't scare us, the dangerous parts of life don't scare God. He knows what's going on. He knows that this is just what needs to happen right now, for reasons we just don't understand.

And like Sugar seeks protection in her family, we should seek protection in God. Because no problem is a threat to Him, and He won't let anything bad happen to us that He doesn't think is for the best.

Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12:9 "But He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

The Bible in many places describes Him as our refuge, our strong tower, our Deliverer, our strength and shield. Among other things, God is our Protector. And if we have given our lives to Him, shouldn't we trust him to take care of our lives properly? It's not easy, but when we trust God with our worries and fears, they get a lot smaller. Mountains turn into mole hills, in a sense. When our trusst is in someone who is bigger than our problems, they no longer have the power to defeat us.

Proverbs 18:10 "The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous man runs to it and is safe."

I started a new Bible Study journal this week because I had filled up the last one. It was pretty neat, actually, because the last day in my last journal was the same as the first day I started journaling a year ago. What was on my mind that day was the reason that we read the Bible.

There's no point in reading the Bible if not to seek God. He says that when we seek Him with our whole heart, we will find Him. It's hard to remember that it's not just something to do every day, like a chore. But there's such joy in seeking God in His word if we just seek Him.

Also on my mind that day, because of an old song that popped into my head, was the fact that it's really something to be able to approach God at all. Remember that the people used to worship God in a temple where only the holiest people were allowed near the center, the focus of God's presence. Non-Jews and women, people like me I notice, were furthest out. People also had to make sacrifices of animals and grain to atone for sins. But of course, God wants to be with us. So He made a way for all the walls to come down, so that everyone can rush in at once and be near God. He gave His own self and spilled His own blood to atone not only for sins, but for all sin forever. We should never lose sight of how beautiful it is to be able to be close to God, whoever we are and whatever we do.

This way, we can draw near to God when the fireworks go off and the sky is exploding. Whether it's a big problem or a little one, He cares enough about us to hold us and get us through. I've heard it said, "Don't tell God how big your storm is. Tell the storm how big your God is." I like that, but I think we should do both. Acknowledge the greatness of the problem, and then defeat it by trusting in God, who is much more powerful. I'm just so glad He's listening, and that He cares, aren't you?

As I'm finishing writing this, a storm has come by and lightning is striking. My dog got scared again and has come to sit with me on my couch (where she's not technically allowed to sit). As she trembles uncontrollably, I'll stroke her head and tell her it's alright, until the storm passes. And I'll just sit here and be glad my God does the same for me.