Gazing Upon The Awesome

The Jones family with Dad, Mom and the two kids loaded up the station wagon to head out for a vacation to Yellowstone National Park.    Yellowstone is a geological hotbed with hundreds of geysers and hot springs.    None more scenic and popular as the geyser known affectionately as "Old Faithful."

"Old Faithful" is the most visited of all the geysers for a simple reason:  It is faithful.    It is not the tallest geyser or the most beautiful, but it is the most faithful.    You can count on "Old Faithful" to erupt every eighty minutes.

Arriving just after a previous eruption, the family had plenty of time to find a good spot from which to view the next eruption of "Old Faithful."    The U.S. National Park Service has built a boardwalk that encircles the geyser.    There are benches on one side and on the other side you can stand.    That is if you want a shower when the geyser erupts.    "Old Faithful is the very centre of attention.

As the time for the eruption got closer, more and more tourists joined the Jones family, settling on the benches or on the boardwalk.     Latecomers stood behind.    Many had their cameras and video recorders - trained like weapons on the famous hole in the ground.

There was great anticipation as steam began rising from the opening in the earth.    At first there was a little sputtering of water.    "There she goes," exclaimed one observer who thought he was in the know.    But then the sputtering ceased.    Was that it?    Was that all there was.    A moment later the geyser sputtered again.     Swoosh,  a fountain of hot water streamed towards the heavens a hundred feet high.

All around the geyser jaws dropped, eyes popped.    A sense of amazement and wonder filled everyone gathered around "Old Faithful" as the geyser sent cascading waters higher into the air.    The crowd was spellbound, awe-filled, as dancing water performed its magic for a minute and then quietly returned to the earth as its water supply was depleted.    But in another eighty minutes its subterranean plumbing would be filled again ready to burst forth towards the sky as other onlookers witnessed its majesty.

Watching such a display leaves people with a sense of awe, a worship-like quality.    They are amazed at such a display.    There is a sense of amazement and wonder at the awesome display of nature.    Viewers witness something powerful, something wonderful, something beyond themselves.

One Dad said to his kids, "Did you see that? Amazing, wasn't it?"

A little boy replied to his sister, "I can't wait to tell Johnny when we get back home."

Another shouted, "Hey, Grandpa, did you see that?"

Still another said, "Can we watch it again?"

With a sense of reverence people returned to their cars or the gift shop knowing they had witnessed something spectacular.

This is the dynamic that ought to be present when we come to worship God.    We ought to be amazed, to be in awe of the one who is beyond ourselves.    We ought to be in awe, spellbound, mesmerized by the life-giving, life-flowing, power of God.    To gaze upon the wonder and power of the majesty and power of God Himself.    I’m not talking about seeing lightning bolts come out of the cloud, but a sense of awe and wonder, a sense that we are in the presence of something, someone,  far bigger than ourselves.

Brothers and sisters - could it be that we have forgotten that when we step into God’s presence we step unto holy ground.    Could it be that we have brought God down to our level rather than rise up to His level.     Could it be that we have lost that sense of awe, the sense of wonder, that sense of the majesty, holiness and power of God and therefore our worship experiences are less than satisfying.

As one writer put it " Remember hearing as a kid the words, "No running in church?"   The sanctuary is a place of reverence.    Physically we may not be running when we meet God, but spiritually, emotionally, and mentally we are.   We "do church" as many "do lunch," casually and unprepared.   Our hearts and minds don't show profound awe and respect.   We don't anticipate God's presence or God's voice.    Consequently, we're unable to experience the presence of God that will stir our souls, change our lives, and satisfy our hunger for meaning."

Let me encourage you.    God wants to meet you.    He wants you to behold His glory and stand in awe of His person.    He wants you to experience His presence and majesty in such a way that it is life-changing, that it gives you strength for the journey, and exalts Him above everything else.

When you go to church this Sunday, know that He is there.    Prepare your heart to meet Him, to behold His glory, to be amazed at how awesome He is, at how vast is His grace and mercy towards you.     Stand in awe of Him and worship His majesty.


If there is one characteristic more than others that contemporary public worship needs to recapture it is this awe before the surpassingly great and gracious God.

— Henry Sloane Coffin
(This post was inspired by a story from and unknown source that I read about "Old Faithful")