March 16, 2014.

I am flying out to Florida today for an interview at the University of Florida, at I am very excited. I love to fly. Isn’t it amazing what God has given man the ability to do? Just think about it. Thousand upon thousands pounds of metal, soaring through the air, miles above the ground. That’s crazy. Would that even be thought of 400 years ago? It’s a little like imagining the human race being able to teleport in 200 years. We all would be skeptical. But this just goes to show human ingenuity, a God-given gift.

What does it remind me of?

“Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” And the Lord came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of man had built. And the Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them.”
(Genesis 11:1-6)

The Tower of Babel. Now, this may be a scary comparison, and I am not saying that our intentions are the same as those in Genesis 11. But notice what God says at the end: “And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for the.” What a statement! And this was just with the use of bricks. God has truly given mankind the ability to do great things, and when our language is the same, so as to facilitate the sharing of ideas, technology and ability booms. Are we getting back to the same place as humans were during the time of the Tower of Babel?

If we are, we need to be careful to learn the lesson that was lost on the people of that time. This is not too long after the flood, which was caused because man only thought about evil continually. Now they were determined to thwart God so as to no allow him to destroy man with a flood again, and they were going to be able to do it! That’s scary. In a sense at least. They would have been able to do it if God had not intervened.

I believe that is a lesson we can take. Yes, God has given us the ability to do great things. And yes, it is not wrong to use our talents. But we do need to recognize who is ultimately in control. If our ways are evil, he will intervene. We may not see a physical intervention, but God is supreme. In the end, God will win. It is our job to make sure we are on his side. As sons of the King, we have already won the victory. Let us share our victory with as many as possible.

Suggested Daily Reading: Genesis 2, 6, 10, 11.

God be with you.

-Walter