God Over All

Review and Herald Publishing Association · Takoma Park Station, Washington, D. C. · Jul 3, 1913

AMID the stress and strain and wear and waste of this natural life, how satisfying it is to feel that the great God of heaven is keeping watch over all! His eye sweeps the vast expanses of his universe. He takes account of the planets in their revolutions. On this earth of ours he beholds the nations of men. More than this, God takes account of the individual atoms making up the vast multitude. He singles out every man and every woman from the great throng. He numbers his children by name. He knows where each one lives, the circumstances which shape and control each life. He knows the trials of each heart, the well-springs of the life, the secret motives and purposes which possess the soul.

We cannot run away from God. We cannot, as our guilty first parents thought they could do, hide from his presence. Were we to take the wings of the morning and flee to the uttermost parts of the earth, there, says the psalmist, God would still find us.

To the one whose heart is set to do evil this thought brings oppression and terror, but to the child of God it comes with comfort and consolation. Wherever we are, the eye of our God is upon us; his hand is stretched out to help us; his Spirit is with us to direct us.

Sometimes we feel alone even in the midst of a great multitude. We feel that there is none who can sympathize with us or understand our heart’s deep sorrow, our ambitions and purposes. God knows it all. He sees us in the busy throng; he sees us though we may wander alone in the desert wild, and he sees us only to help us. He bends to companionship with us. Let us seek to enter more closely into this divine communion.

If religious faith is anything, it is practical. Jesus Christ is not merely a friend in theory, but one in deed. In every experience of life we can come to him for help. Daily as we converse with him, we may talk over matters of personal concern as familiarly as with an earthly friend. If our heart aches, if our spirits are depressed, if we have been slighted or neglected, if we are weary or nervous, if we are anxious over the future, if we are concerned regarding our temporal needs, all these are proper subjects of prayer. It is fitting that we should bring them to the counsel of our great Friend and seek from him wisdom and strength.

Let us cultivate the habit of doing this, telling Jesus everything, seeking strength for every trial, however small. This will develop in us constancy of character, assurance, conviction, conscientiousness. As we enter more and more into this communion, fear will give place to love, and the stern sense of duty to the joy of doing. We shall serve God not because we fear his judgments, but because we love his precepts. We shall be kept from the evil, knowing that it will bring grief to the One who loves us, and whom in return we have learned to love.

We walk today in the sight of heaven. God takes account of us. He sees us, he watches us moment by moment. Realizing this, may we walk with consciousness of his presence, and in the light and joy of his countenance.