The Daily Verse

Psalm 8 was written by David to be sung in worship, is a psalm of praise focusing on God's majesty - His kingship, ultimate rule, glory, and magnificence which inspires awe. The awe David expresses in this psalm is not only in all the wonder and vastness of what God has created, but awe in the fact that He sees and cares for us humans, even though in comparison we are so small. David declares that God's majesty and glory is seen in the work of His hands - in all the earth and in the heavens (8:1-3). I'll never forget the feeling of awe I had as a child looking out at the vast Grand Canyon on a visit to Arizona, or when gazing up at huge snow-covered majestic peaks in the Sierra Nevada. I felt my smallness in comparison to these wonders of God's creation. And then when I took an astronomy class one summer at a community college with my brother, I remember an almost scary feeling of awe at how small we really are as earthlings in the vastness of space. But the wondrous reality that David points to so beautifully in this psalm is that God does not forget us in our smallness: "When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?" (8:3-4). David describes how God not only sees us but crowns us with a share of His glory as creatures made in His image (8:5-8). I encourage you to take some time in prayerful reflection on Psalm 8 today and throughout this week. Prayerful reflection questions: 1) "Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth." (8:1,9) When have you felt particularly stirred by God's majesty? Take some time now to sit before God in that feeling. 2) "Through the praise of children and infants, you have established a stronghold against your enemies..." (8:2). As you praise God, allow that to pour into an area of challenge or spiritual warfare in your life right now as a means of spiritual defense. For this week: Ask God to help you be especially awake to His majesty this week seen in all the summer beauty around you. Photo: Halie West | Seattle