How Big is the Sky?

How far did you travel this summer on vacation? This year, we have seen license plates from many of the states and provinces as we drove west to Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. The mice on Muppets Treasure Island sing “I’ve Got Cabin Fever” and the song swam around in my mind as we sat for what seemed like endless hours of driving. It took us over 40 hours of car time just to reach there.
I do praise God that the air conditioning worked well and the ride was somewhat enjoyable. Some of you travelled to camps, family or other favourite vacation spots. Whether you drove or flew, I am sure at some time the scenery changed. In our case, we crossed the great Canadian Shield, leveled out onto the plains, and watched the trees and forests give way to the flatlands of the prairies.
Numerous times, the horizon blended into the flat lands and you could see for miles. Our daughter, Charity commented on the bigness of the sky. Land and sky seem to stretch on for miles. In Ontario, with our landscape of trees, hills and buildings, the sky seems to close in on us and we lose perspective to how vast our country really is. Our perspective can be even narrower if we live in a valley surrounded by mountains.
Many times our vision is obscured when we try to focus on God and His goodness. We have difficulty seeing His plans and purposes because our vision is blocked by mountains of pain, trees of regret, and man made obstacles in our way. Overwhelmed by the bigness of our problems, we think God is small and insignificant.
Some people joke about tunnel vision. They say the light you see at the end of the tunnel is probably a train coming. When our sight is clouded or obscured, we need to take a trip to the prairies. I am not advocating a road trip to Manitoba, Saskatchewan or Alberta to see the vastness of the sky but we need to stop long enough to see that God is bigger than all of our doubts and fears.
One of the ways I catch a glimpse of God’s greatness is by studying His word. Over and over again, I read how God holds the universe in his hands. He counts the stars and gives them each a name. He creates every distinctive blade of grass. He knows and calls every one on this planet by name. God is so magnificent, he knows every thought we think and every word we say. With this knowledge, it is like looking up into the vast prairie sky that never seems to end.
God is bigger than all our problems. He desires for us to look up and see his infinite greatness. A promise to put things back into the right perspective when problems seem overwhelming is “Casting all your cares upon Him, FOR HE CARES FOR YOU” (1Peter 5:7).
When everything seem to be closing in and the terror of claustrophobia seems to be smothering you, take a few moments and look up into the clear summer night sky. Try to grasp how big our galaxy is and then remind yourself you are not some cosmic speck of dust but you were individually created by God who truly does love you.
Then with courage say aloud, “God I thank you for caring for me and that you are bigger than my problems.” Maybe God will even give you the privilege of crossing our great prairie provinces where you will be reminded of how big the sky, and God, really is.