Summertime is the season of vacations and travel. With the end of the school year, families will be packing their suitcases, climbing into cars, and boarding airplanes to get away for a little while. Vacations serve many wonderful purposes in helping families share mutual experiences, see new and different wonders, and get a respite from life’s normal strains. Everyone needs some kind of a break from time to time.
As we prepare for our trips, it’s always necessary to pack our bags with whatever clothing and other items we may need. While some pack lightly and travel with little gear, others of us load up the kitchen sink because you never know what you might need. Airline baggage fees and size restrictions, however, have cramped the style of many kitchen-sink packers and forced us to be a little more selective. Nevertheless, many travel bags are still crammed to the zippers as we fold, stash, and tuck as much into the allowable spaces as possible. Some suitcases have even prompted ultrasounds due to their pregnant appearances.
This periodic ritual of packing helps us appreciate the Creator’s work throughout nature. As we examine a rose blossom, for example, we are astonished as to how much fragrance and beauty He has stashed inside that one small bud. Perfumers would require several quart jars and artists would need many brushstrokes to even approach what God does many times over on every rose bush each summer.
As we look elsewhere in His marvelous creation, we can recognize His packing skill in many other areas. How, for example, can He consistently cram mighty oak trees into tiny acorns or multiple ears of corn into just one kernel? How does He tuck ten thousand degrees into one small jalapeño pepper and multitudes of sour into a single permission? How did He put all that melody into a warbler or all that hurt into a tiny yellow jacket? Whenever we watch a baby bird emerge from its egg, we can but wonder how its Maker stuffed all those feathers, flesh, bones, and beak into such a compact space.
In terms of energy, it’s always amazed me how God put all those warm cozy nights into a few gallons of crude oil and thousands of volts of current into one single lightning bolt. How did He manage to fit all those vitamins and minerals into the fruits and vegetables that perfectly match our bodies’ needs, along with a good dose of delicious to boot? All of us vacationers could certainly benefit from a few sessions at God’s School of Packing.
His most amazing packing fete, however, is seen in His Son, Jesus Christ. When this holy child was born into this world, He contained all the fullness of the godhead in one human body. That one skull held all the wisdom and knowledge of the universe. His hands held all the power and His legs contained all the strength. Most incredibly, into that one human heart, He was able to cram infinite love and grace with enough supply to meet our every possible need. It’s hard to imagine the incredible packing skill necessary to stash all of that into such a tiny space, but He did.
Then, demonstrating the true limitlessness of that compassion, He poured out His love on Calvary’s cross for every other human. While we had been busy packing sin and garbage into our lives, He was actively replacing it with His mercy and forgiveness.
As you pack your bags this summer, ponder anew God’s amazing packing ability demonstrated throughout His amazing creation. Praise Him for His astounding abilities, but don’t miss His most excellent work of Jesus. Receive the mercy and pardon He died to give you and allow Him to pack His infinite grace and love into your heart today.
Blessed packing, George