O Lord GOD, you know

Posted under The Rectory Bulletin

And I answered, “O Lord GOD, you know.” (Ezekiel 37:3).

What a great comfort it is to pray to a God who already knows. There is no breaking of news to God, nothing catches him by surprise. When we pray we may struggle to find the words to express the inner turmoil, sentences might be incomplete and words halting, but worry not - God knows. At times all we can do is turn our eyes heavenward and sigh. But God knows. Eyes might stay closed and thoughts race through our mind, making no sense to us, yet God knows.

Our darkest moments are often produced by the sense that we are alone, that no-one else quite understands. Our deepest frustrations can be caused by an inability to express ourselves clearly. The sense is there in our hearts, but it just will not come out coherently. It is in those moments that the knowledge that God already knows the contents of our hearts can be a consolation.

This was the experience of the Apostle Paul. He was no stranger to prayer, and his careful choice of words makes up so much of the New Testament, yet he also knew what it was to utter the wordless prayer of simple reliance upon God. In Romans 8:26 he wrote: “Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words”.

“O Lord GOD, you know”. When times are dark, cling onto that thought.

The Sure Foundation

According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 3:10–11) - The most important bit of a building is the bit you can’t see: the foundation. If these are poorly laid then it doesn’t matter how good the rest of the building is, it will fail.

How Great Thou Art

And when I think that God, His Son not sparing, Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in; That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin. Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee. How great Thou art, how great Thou art! - So from Sweden - via Estonia, Russia, Ukraine and America - the hymns has passed through four languages. The praise of God is truly an international affair, as the first verse of the shortest Psalm bears witness: “Praise the LORD, all nations! Extol him, all peoples!” (Psalm 117:1)
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