The Whole World in His Hands
READ: ROMANS 8:18-25, 38-39; REVELATION 1:13-16 [https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=ROMANS%208%3A18-25%2C%2038-39%3B%20REVELATION%201%3A13-16&version=NLT]
Yuna spent her lonely days peering through her lens, gazing upon the planet that was no longer her home. The shuttle that she now considered home orbited the planet ceaselessly. Since she was stationed there, she’d been capturing images of the planet’s surface through the tele lens. With each orbit, she dutifully documented the horrors below.
Green once blanketed the equator, but now the land was stripped bare and plundered for resources. Yuna often compared the shrinking ice sheets to older images and noted how little of the tundra remained. Wildfires were even more terrifying to spot. Massive plumes of orange and gray moved across the land leaving nothing in their wake, as if giants had marched through with torches.
Yuna imagined the planet living and breathing, only to suffocate on its own polluted air.
As deeply as she cared for the planet and the animals and plants that inhabited it, she recalled a phrase she’d been taught. Imago Dei. She thought now of the people her God created.
She thought of them as the shuttle crossed over lands that made her mourn. She knew the region well. Old images showcased vibrant roofs and fields during the day. At night, the cities lit up and resembled webs of neurons. But the region looked like this no more. Yuna braced herself for what she might see and choked back a sob when she focused the camera.
Everything was gray. Buildings were flattened, streets were bare, and as the sun fell behind the planet, Yuna realized that the city was as dark as the endless space surrounding her.
Yuna turned and wept. Tears blurred her sight completely, but then she looked out the window and saw something, someone, clearly.
A constellation of stars flew into a new place, creating the shape of a person. He had white hair and eyes that burned like twin suns, making her tremble. Bronze feet stood steadfast in the bedrock of the galaxy way below. But in His right hand, He held the planet—and all those in it—like one might swaddle a child. He reached out a hand and placed it gently upon her. • Zoe Sherman
• Today’s allegorical story echoes the old children’s song, “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands.” Because of sin, God’s good creation has been permeated by a brokenness that is beyond natural repair, and humanity’s very own relationship with God has been fractured. How have you experienced brokenness, pain, or sorrow in this world? Consider taking a moment to tell God about this. He longs to listen to you and wrap you in His tender compassion.
• This brokenness was not God’s design, and it’s not the end. God still loves us, and He still wants to be with us. Throughout the Old Testament prophecies, God promised that He would send a Savior who would restore our relationship with Him and bring peace to this broken world. That Savior is Jesus. Fully God and fully human, Jesus took all our sin upon Himself when He died on the cross, and when He rose from the grave, He defeated death! Jesus’s promise for today is that He will be with us always, and His promise for the future is that He will make all things new. How can these promises give us hope?
• In Revelation 1, the author John depicts Jesus, in all His glory, holding seven stars in His hand. In John’s vision, each star represents one of the seven churches that receive letters, and the number seven symbolizes completion in the Bible. Therefore, this is also an image of God holding all of His church in His hands. Everyone who has put their trust in Jesus is part of the church, together with all believers everywhere and throughout history. For more about the good news of Jesus, and what it means to belong to Him, see our "Know Jesus [https://unlocked.org/knowjesus/]" page.
But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. Romans 8:20-21 (NLT)
