In my weekly Works & Wonders column, I combine a brief devotional with other interesting and uplifting bits and pieces I gleaned throughout the week. I hope you enjoy this week’s collection! It includes:
- His Will Will Be Done
- Photomicrography
- Come, Thou Fount (×3)
- The Brain-Injured Musical Genius
- Grain from an Attic
- Prepare Him Room (Live)
1.
His Will Will Be Done
To have power is to have ability and strength. This is true whether the power belongs to human beings or to God himself—to creatures or to the Creator. Of course, our power is derived from God’s, but his is inherent. We are accountable to God for the way we use our power, but God is accountable only to himself. Our power is always small and incomplete, but God’s is always unbounded and unlimited. To say we are powerful is to say we possess the ability to do some of the things we desire some of the time. But to say God is powerful is to say God always possesses within himself the means necessary to bring about whatsoever he wills—to execute all his plans, to execute them all the way to perfect completion, and to overcome any and all resistance. This guarantees that God’s will will be done, for as the psalmist says, “Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases” (Psalm 115:3). The God we worship today is the God for whom this is true: Whatever his will resolves and however his wisdom directs, his power will accomplish.
2.
Photomicrography
Shall we look at the results of another photography competition? Why yes, we shall. This week it’s Nikon’s Photomicrography Competition. “What is photomicrography you ask” (other than a word that is almost impossible to type correctly the first time, or even the fourth, in my case)? It is taking photos of microscopic objects and, in that way, opening a view to a world that is otherwise far too small for us to see. I think you’ll enjoy browsing the winners, which include spiders, pens, neurons, and inkjet printers.
3.
Come, Thou Fount (×3)
I really enjoy The National Parks and their delightful, easy-to-listen-to folk-Americana music. It’s my understanding that they grew up Mormon but have spoken openly about leaving that faith, but I am not aware of them becoming Christian. I was surprised, then, to see they had released a version of “Come, Thou Fount.” It’s quite a good one.
I’m not sure what motivated them to record it, but perhaps it was the same thing that motivated Marcus Mumford of Mumford & Sons, who has also recorded and performed it several times—I assume it was just the sheer beauty of the song. Mumford was raised in a Christian home, though later left the faith. His version is also wonderful.
Another favorite rendition, sung by Christians, is this one by Celtic Worship.
4.
The Brain-Injured Musical Genius
The New York Times had an amazing feature this week, and it was amazing in two ways. First, it was beautifully put together with animated graphics and other visual elements. Second, it told a remarkable story—the story of a man who suffered a terrible brain injury but, through it, became a musical genius. I think you’ll enjoy reading The Brain Injury That Made a Middle School Teacher a Musical Genius.
5.
Grain from an Attic
Here’s a fun story from Italy that pastors may want to hang on to for future sermon illustrations. In the early 1990s, a farmer in Parma found some old seeds in his attic. He assumed they were useless, so he tossed them on the manure pile. Much to his surprise, they sprouted into a form of grain he had never seen before. I’ll leave you to read the story, look at the pictures, and consider the many possible illustrations and applications.
6.
Prepare Him Room (Live)
A couple of days ago, a friend told me that his children had begun listening to Christmas music, and we discussed whether it’s still too early in the year for that. We agreed that you don’t want to begin listening too early lest you grow tired of the relatively limited catalog of songs before Christmas actually arrives. I will leave it to you to decide whether you want to listen to this new live recording of Sovereign Grace Music’s venerable 2014 Christmas album Prepare Him Room or simply bookmark it so you can listen to it when you’ve determined the time is right. (As of the moment I write these words, the playlist is complete but out of order compared to the official version of the album. I don’t think it really matters, though.)
