“For you, O LORD, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy. How great are your works, O LORD! Your thoughts are very deep!” Psalm 92:4,5 ESV

You are marvelous,  Lord God, and we see this in your creation, with the dizzying array of size, shape, variety, color and texture in plants, animals and landscapes. You have shared with us your love of beauty, your graceful shaping, your wisdom in practicality, your intelligence in complexity.

I think about the million optic nerve cells in a developing baby in the womb; at one point, two sets of nerves grow simultaneously, one set from the eye and one set from the brain, joining at the right place, with each individual nerve finding and joining with its corresponding partner. This perfect weaving brings to our brains an exact image of what is before us. And all this is done in the way you designed.

You made our bodies to be so effective, so compact, so efficient, creating some parts to be amazingly multifunctional: mouths for speaking, tasting, eating, breathing, smiling and kissing. Legs for locomotion, lounging, lifting, lugging and loving.

You build into our being the ability to enjoy a wide range of experiences. You give us the joy of running, of relaxing, of sleeping, of walking in a snowfall, of feeling the warm sun, the crisp cold air, the tingle of frost, the drumming of rain.

Your sharing all this with us, when we don’t deserve it is a marvelous demonstration of your love. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for all the good you do to and for us.