Unfinished Faith: Relearning God.

Week 12:

The bit where i introduce:
I’ve been fortunate this week to be in NZ and it reminded me of the verses in psalm 24 ” The earth is the Lord’s and everything in it.”

It’s a stunning country to see, with so many beautiful natural wonders it was quite humbling and I all of a sudden felt very small in the universe.
We even saw a tree trunk section that had allegedly formed around 4BC, older than Jesus!

When was the last time you really stopped and appreciated our earth and its creation? Is it something you do to bring you closer to God?

The bit where I refer to the bible: and ask a few rhetorical questions:

Psalm 24 is one of my fav… read the whole Psalm!
I like it because of the language used and that it refers to God sustaining all of life. From the grains of sand to the tallest redwood tree, to the vast oceans and the largest polar icecapped mountain, He created it and its all under His command.

I also treasure the reference that it is under our stewardship. That’s an amazing legacy for humankind dont you think? but we arent doing a great job on a global scale. One earth people, we’ve only one! No second chance earth 2 sitting on the sidelines. Stewardship, one of those jargon words we use but what does it mean in this context?

Stewardship: Nothing we hold is ultimately ours, our homes, our roles, our influence, even our children and the people we care for. It all belongs to God. But we sometimes think we own those things dont we?

As I researched stewardship is deeper than what we first realise in the context of this Psalm, we often think of stewardship in terms of managing our resources well, time, money, and the environment. But Psalm 24 goes deeper. It connects stewardship not just to what we handle, but to who we are.
“Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord?
Who may stand in his holy place?
The one who has clean hands and a pure heart…”
This is where it gets uncomfortable. God isn’t just asking, “What have you done with what I gave you?”
He’s asking, “What has it done to you?”

Ever asked that of yourself?
For those of us in caring roles, (myself included) supporting vulnerable people, holding stories of trauma, building wellbeing this matters deeply. It’s easy to slip into a quiet belief that the outcomes depend on us. That we carry more than we were ever meant to.
But Psalm 24 gently corrects that:
It was never yours to carry alone.

The people we serve? God’s.
The outcomes we long for? God’s.
The work itself? God’s.

We are invited to be faithful stewards, not ultimate saviours. Hands up who’s taken on the role of saviours in their own life or the lives of loved ones? Maybe, it’s time to let that ideal go…

The Psalm then ends with a powerful image, gates opening wide for the King of Glory. It’s a picture not just of heaven, but of our lives.
What would it look like for the “gates” of our work, our hearts, our identity to open fully to Him? Are we willing to let Him do that or do we selfishly want to hold on to that we love to give us a sense of comfort and or control?

Not just inviting God into what we’re already doing, but surrendering what we’re doing to Him entirely. That’s a big call, are you willing?

The bit where you get to think about stuff: questions for the week:

Where have I subtly shifted from steward to owner carrying responsibility that isn’t mine to carry?

Are my “clean hands” (actions) matched by a “pure heart” (motives), or is there a disconnect?

What would it look like today to open the “gates” of my work and life and let Jesus redefine my role in it?