Three Grand Challenges

Lord, it took You less than a full week to create the earth; one day is more than enough to recreate my broken life!

There is no level of emptiness, void that God cannot fill with order and meaning.

Before creation, the earth faced three grand challenges. First, it was without form. Second, it was void. Third, darkness covered the face of the deep waters.

These same three challenges, one way or another, confront every human heart: emptiness, darkness, and the absence of form or direction.

Everything before creation was in chaos. God’s Spirit then began hovering over the waters, acting as an overseer and preparing the ground for an ordered creation.

Notice that the water was already there (but in deep darkness), and the Holy Spirit was actively moving over it. God chose to limit our knowledge of what occurred before the darkness filled the earth. 

He did not reveal to Moses the origin of the waters, keeping that knowledge to Himself. But we know it is an open secret.

God created everything before or after! God is powerful and sovereign, and His purposes are sometimes beyond our comprehension, yet His plans are perfectly ordered. 

However, I am not sharing this background to start a new discussion about creation. For anyone who comes to God, they must first believe that He exists and that He rewards those who diligently seek Him (Hebrews 11:6).

My purpose in telling this story is to stir pure faith in your heart about God’s power to bring meaning, order, and newness to any chaotic life or broken heart.

So let us return to the main point: Before God ever said, “Let there be light,” the Spirit of God was governing over the deep, deep dark waters of a shapeless and empty earth. 

These characteristics —shapeless, void, and dark —mirror the state of anyone who has not known the way of Christ or is currently going through life's storms.

But if anyone be in Christ, he is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17). The same creative power that brought order and life out of the formless, empty, and dark earth now works to recreate lost human souls. 

And for those going through some brokenness, I want you to stir your faith, even if you are walking through a valley of emptiness, darkness, or void.

There is no level of brokenness, formlessness, or emptiness in your heart that is beyond the power of God.

You can return to Him with this renewed understanding and say with deep faith in your heart: “Lord, it took You less than a full week to create the earth, one day is more than enough to recreate my broken life!” and watch His power work in your life!

Reflection Question: Is anything too hard for the LORD? (Genesis 18:14; Jeremiah 32:27)