09142019 Fringes of His Ways

Dear Missionary Lady,

Greetings in the name of our infinite God! He is infinite in so many ways - time, wisdom, power, grace, love, etc. God doesn't have the limitations that we humans are so used to, and we never need to be concerned that we are nearing the limits of what God can handle.

Job recalled some of the greatness of God in Job 26. He talked about how the dead spirits tremble before Him. He talked about how God hung the world on nothing out in empty space, how He holds the water in the clouds, how He can make the clouds obscure even the fullest moon. He talked about how God maintains the boundary between daylight and darkness around the globe, and how the heavens are under His control. He talked about how God controls the raging sea, clears the stormy sky, and reigns over every creature.

These are some amazing manifestations of God's infinite power. They are some of the grandest and most impressive things that God does. But then Job says something interesting. "Lo, these are parts of his ways: but how little a portion is heard of him? but the thunder of his power who can understand?" (Job 26:14).

The powerful creation and control are just "parts" of God's ways. The word translated "parts" doesn't merely mean one random section out of all the possible sections. It actually refers to the outermost parts - the coast, the corner, the edge, the border, the brink, or the frontier. Some translations use the word "fringes."

The amazing things that Job has described are just the outskirts of His power. They are the manifestations of His power that we mortals are perhaps best able to comprehend. But there is so much more! In a way, those fringes of His ways are the least consequential and the most mundane manifestations. If we really could get to the center of God's work and see all that He does, we would not even be able to comprehend it.

Job states precisely that truth in the remainder of verse 14. In fact, Job says that we don't even have very good understanding of these basic things. God's power is beyond our ability to comprehend.

Dear friend, what does this mean for you? It means that God is easily capable of handling everything that you face. If the amazing elements of nature that are easiest for us to see are just the edges of what He can do, there is no doubt that He can handle anything. Your finances are not outside the range of God's power. Neither is your health or your family's health. He can easily oversee your safety. He can direct the hearts of rulers and He can soften the hearts of sinners. God can provide buildings, supplies, leaders, workers, and everything else that you need for your ministry. And He will still be barely dipping into His vast resources!

Not only does this truth about God's infinite greatness give us confidence to rest in His care, but it also opens the challenge and opportunity for us to learn God more fully. As we mature, we can increasingly come to recognize His hand at work and to better understand His constant intervention. May you see His power this week on your behalf, and where you don't see it, may you rest in the confidence that it is working anyway. God is fully able to take care of you in every aspect.

"O Lord my God, when I in awesome wonder,/ Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made;/ I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,/ Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee,/ How great Thou art! How great Thou art!/ Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to Thee,/ How great Thou art! How great Thou art!"

He is indeed great! Rest in His care. Trust Him. Be amazed at His work, and remember that if we really could see it all, our amazement would be astronomical.

Love in Christ,
Peggy Holt
member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA
www.pressingontohigherground.blogspot.com