Cringe Before Me
Pathetic earthlings. Hurling your bodies out into the void, without the slightest inkling of who or what is out here. If you had known anything about the true nature of the universe, anything at all, you would’ve hidden from it in terror. – Ming the Merciless, Flash Gordon Movie 1980
We recently adopted a puppy in our home. Tanner was a 3 month old bundle of energy when we got him from the local animal shelter. We quickly found out that he has a rather strong will and absolutely no knowledge of what is proper decorum for a member of our family with his status – a pet. Tanner would recklessly hurl his body into whomever and whatever lay ahead of him. He had no inkling about the true nature of his existence or his new universe. He had to learn.
Tanner responds very differently with me vs. other members of my family. He is surprisingly observant and is aware that I am given deference by all as head of my household. Having had some experience with dogs in the past, I quickly established myself as the “Alpha Dog”. If I “growl” at him or shout a stern “No!” at him, he immediately stops what he was doing, often rolling on his back to demonstrate submissiveness. Observing this behavior I was struck by the similarity of a verse I read today.
Foreigners cringe before me;
as soon as they hear of me, they submit.They all lose their courage
and come trembling from their strongholds. – 2 Samuel 22:45-46
The true nature of Tanner’s universe, and ours is that someone else is in charge. And unless we learn to submit to the authority over us we are in trouble. But, when we do submit as we are designed to do, we are blessed both in the here-and-now and in the life to come.
Father, thank you for being a just and righteous ruler, one who is not arbitrary. Please give me the grace to have proper fear of you, to understand the true nature of the universe. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
If God is for me, who can be against me? Jan
My Journey in God's Word 