Man Made vs. God Made

This past weekend we were tremendously blessed when a friend of mine gave us two tickets to the 2012 Cotton Bowl where our beloved Arkansas Razorbacks were playing Kansas State at my hubby's dream stadium.  It was too good to pass up!  We threw our plans together and rushed off to Dallas bright and early that Friday morning.  We joined a convoy of many other Hog fans phenatics on I-30 all the way into Dallas.  We were excited and felt completely honored to be among the 30,000 - 40,000 other Arkansas fans that weekend.  The excitement gushing from Rich was almost more than our little Honda could hold.


This was a dream come true for my man.  As much as he loves the Razorbacks, he equally loves the Dallas Cowboys.  He has followed them since he was 3-years-old (No exaggeration...watching the Cowboys with his dad are some of his first memories!)  How much better could you get than your home team playing in the stadium that you have been dreaming to see...for the Cotton Bowl!?  It was as though God had reached down and created that very situation just for my man.  Although I've told my friend a hundred "thank you's"...she just really doesn't know what this meant for us.


As we arrive at the stadium and begin to walk around we begin to understand the size of this place.  It is huge.  No really...try walking around it...it's huge.  And everything about it is proportional to its overall size (including the price of a hot dog and Coke Pepsi soap in a can 20 oz cup loaded with ice.)  When we first get inside we are overwhelmed with smells from concessions, lights, noise of the sound system and voices.  And then we see IT...the megatron TV screen suspended above the football field.  It's quite impressive as you're able to see every pore on every face that hits the big screen.  It became clear throughout the game that nothing goes unnoticed on that screen.  Every look...every word muttered...every glance of the eyes...every furrowing of the brow...every type of body language...every missed call by the referees was very apparent...no one could escape.  It was simply awesome!  Suddenly our 46" TV seemed so small and insignificant. :)


But that's what Jerry Jones is known for, is he not?  (Well, that and apparently a lot of other things according to my Texan friends.)  Jerry does it big....go big or go broke must be Jerry's moto.  I bet there were a few times this past year that the "go broke" part was a little too close for comfort with the NFL union battle battle of greedier vs. greediest.  But Jerry takes it to another level in whatever he does.  He likes being at the top...owning the best...being the best...He's kind of like the godfather of the NFL.


As I was sitting in the stadium, I could not help think about this...there is no comparison between mad-made works and God-made wonders.


God has given man the ability to create wonderful things.  Many of them beautiful.  Many of them more powerful than we often know how to handle.  Some of them larger than life...some smaller than the eye can see.  None of them as amazing as God's creation.  Try as we may, no man-made creation will ever trump this creation...

While a 160' x 72' TV is impressive...God's creation is where I want a front row seat. 

What a wildly wonderful world, God!
You made it all, with Wisdom at your side,
made earth overflow with your wonderful creations.


Psalm 104:24 (Msg)

How amazing is His creation!  What a wonderful gift to His children.  For thousands of years we have been trying to discover all there is to know about this complex world our God has created.  We have yet to scrape the surface.  He is intricate in His creations.  He takes nothing and makes it into stunning beauty.  He simply says the word and it is done.  He moves His finger across the sky and paints a picture that Michelangelo could only dream of painting. 

He did not create it so He could become greater and richer by "charging" us to enjoy His creations .... no, it is a free gift to us.  Just like His precious Son.  Free.  Everything free.

The heavens are the Lord's heavens, but the earth has He given to the children of men. Psalm 115:16

May we always remember to stop and enjoy this God-made creation.  May we never take for granted His Free Gift.  And may man-made works never be more glorified in our lives than God-made wonders!