A Drop from a Bucket
Surely the nations are like a drop from a bucket.
On September 28th, I began a series in Isaiah 40, my favorite chapter in the Bible. I wrote about how we finite humans are compared to grass and grasshoppers, not the loftiest of comparisons.
On October 5th, I shared how God views our rulers. Negligible is the difference between how he sees a prime minister, a president, or a king, and how he sees us. Today, I will continue that progression in Isaiah 40 to enquire, how does the awesome God of time, space, and eternity, view nations?
For those of you that know me well, you may have observed that I view a 5 gallon bucket as an indispensable tool. So critical to the function of the universe, that any displaced bucket is welcomed to the Gritsko habitation. Due to my deep affection for them, I have not only collected many, but also use them in countless ways.
Earlier this week, as I was carrying water to our chickens, turkeys, and guinea fowl, I was also pondering the words of Isaiah. Isaiah 40:15-17 states, “Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket, and are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales; Behold, He lifts up the islands like fine dust. Even Lebanon is not enough to burn, Nor its beasts enough for a burnt offering. All the nations are as nothing before Him, They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless.”
Depending on how you count them, there are somewhere between just under 200, to just under 250 nations in the world. The UN has 193 member states plus 2 observer entities, 206 compete in the Olympics, 211 are allowed to play in the FIFA World Cup, and according to the ISO, the International Organization for Standardization - yes, it really exists - there are 249 country codes.
No matter how we count them, add them all together, and they are like a drop from a bucket, to God. To my friends who are super athletes, in your exercise routine, have you ever tried to pick up an island? God has, and to him they are like ‘fine dust,’ as inconsequential as all the nations around the globe.
Scripture was not written to inflate our egos or self-importance. It was also not written to spur us on to higher and bigger achievements either as individuals or as nations, lest we be tempted again as those were who built the ancient tower of Babel.
However, scripture was written by our loving Creator to help us navigate our existence. As we inject our daily lives with megadoses of eternity, found in the pages of the Bible, we can glimpse the power and majesty of God in the midst of a dying and desperate world.
My dear brother or sister in Christ, or friend along life’s journey, as we begin a new week, 7 months into the pandemic and a few weeks before our election, I hope you can smile with me, not because of the heartache you may be facing or the challenges in our nation, but because we are confident of the great love extended to us, by the awesome God, knowing that to Him, surely the nations are like a drop from a bucket.