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Psalm 47
1 Clap your hands, all you nations;
shout to God with cries of joy.
2 For the Lord Most High is awesome,
the great King over all the earth.
3 He subdued nations under us,
peoples under our feet.
4 He chose our inheritance for us,
the pride of Jacob, whom he loved.
5 God has ascended amid shouts of joy,
the Lord amid the sounding of trumpets.
6 Sing praises to God, sing praises;
sing praises to our King, sing praises.
7 For God is the King of all the earth;
sing to him a psalm of praise.
8 God reigns over the nations;
God is seated on his holy throne.
9 The nobles of the nations assemble
as the people of the God of Abraham,
for the kings] of the earth belong to God;
he is greatly exalted.

When I was a student in Jr. College we always delighted to have one Pastor Scott come to speak at chapel. That is because he was a great story teller and always had a few really great jokes.

On story I remember well. The pastor was speaking on the importance of awe and wonder. To illustrate he said that there was a boy scout who was given the gift of a trip of a lifetime by his parents of modest income. The boy got to tour the southwest and everywhere he went he wrote a postcard home. Finally the tour took him to the Grand Canyon. The boy went to the edge and looked at the magnificent expanse before him. Then he looked down into the yawning cavity beneath him to the river far away. After a few moments he took out a post card and began to write:

“Dear Mom and Dad, We came to the grand Canyon today. For the first time in my whole life I spit a whole mile. Your loving son, Tony.”

Need we say more? We are suffering a deficit when we see everything as existing for our plaything. We will do well to cultivate a spirit of wonder, awe and thanksgiving. We will do well to recognize the genius and kindness of our Creator. That is true maturity which will make us richer for the development of the virtue of worship.