Praise Him
Psalms 8: 1 – 9
Very often in our lives, certain things happen and we find it hard to understand why they happen. If someone is responsible for those things, we quickly try to put that someone “where he belongs”. If there is no one to blame, we just sit back and sulk all we can and wonder why the whole world is against us. We ask God why he allows such things to happen to us – this is human nature and I am the guiltiest of all. Very rarely, do we think that maybe, just maybe, God allows such things for a reason.
Ever heard of the pitcher plant? The pitcher plant – known scientifically as sarracenia flava – is a carnivorous plants. For many, this is just another plant; but a more careful look reveals the wonderful design to this plant. The pitcher plant mainly lives in areas where the soil is not too fertile; as a result, the plant is not able to get all the nutrients it needs from the soil. To supplement its supply of nutrients, the pitcher plant attracts and kills flies and insects. Amazing huh? Here’s a summary of how it works.
The plant has a bright and attractive petal as well as sweet nectar which draws flies and insects to it. The nectar lines the bottom part of the petal, meaning that when flies and insects perch on the petal, they try to find their way to the nectar. The same part of the petal which has the nectar is also lined with sharp spikes. When the flies and insects find the nectar and try to perch, they get pricked by the spikes, lose their balance and fall into the lower body of the plant which is shaped like a tube. This lower body is always filled with water and so when the flies fall, they land in the water and get drowned. As the dead flies decay, the nutrients from their bodies are mixed with the water in the lower body of the plant. The plant then absorbs these nutrients to make up for what it does not get from the soil.
The pitcher plant is a simple plant yet it has a complex design. Such are the things the psalmist talks about in Psalms 8 when he says “when I consider your heavens and the work of your fingers”. If we look closely enough, we find that all creations under the sun are manifestations of the power and might of our God. So the Psalmist asks the question “what is man, that you are mindful of him?”
This is deep. Such a powerful and mighty God is mindful of us, humans, when he has no reason to be; He is under no obligation to think about us. He is in His own league and we, hmmm, well our power and might wane in comparison to His. Yet, He is still mindful of us; He thinks about us. What is even more amazing is that God is not just mindful of us, we are actually His priority. The psalmist realizes this and so he praises God by saying “how majestic is your name”. As children of God, if we realize how great and powerful our God is, and that there is no comparison between us and him, yet He makes our welfare His number one priority, then all we can do is to praise Him and tell Him how majestic and wonderful He is.
Today, spend a few minutes reflecting on the creations of God. Go outside and see the things He has created and then praise Him and thank Him for being mindful of you.