Articles
My Soul Knows it Very Well
Driving on my way home not long ago, I started to appreciate the complexities of what was being proposed in the idea of automatic driverless cars. Since the traffic was a little heavy, I had to constantly keep track of all the cars around mine by using my mirrors, only glancing at them for fractions of a second, but making the appropriate calculations in my mind. Since it was also raining, I had to adjust my velocity and steering, also paying attention to the telltale signs of loss of traction. On top of all these things, I was listening to the radio, and thinking about technology and what it would have to accomplish to match what humans do without trying.
Driverless cars would be the result of so many humans working in so many disciplines, accomplishing so many amazing things. The supercomputers that would be responsible for making all of these calculations that driving requires, along with the mapping technologies, and the ability to communicate wirelessly and instantaneously with other computers. The cars that can be driven in this manner, along with all of the other amazing components in modern vehicles that bring us so much capacity. The science that goes into producing the materials needed for these cars to function, like lithium-ion batteries and new fuel technologies. All of these are the result of so many great minds working together to create an amazing product that can do great things.
Yet in the face of all this, there are some who will maintain that humans, with their minds that can accomplish so much, are the result of infinite mistakes over eons of time. However, the psalmist reminds us to be thankful. “For You formed my inward parts / You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made / Wonderful are Your works / And my soul knows it very well.” (Psalm 139:13-14) The fantastic creation that is the human body and mind is a sure sign that God is above us, and we owe Him our ardent thanks. “Know that YHWH Himself is God / It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves / We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” (Psalm 100:3) It is not wrong to appreciate what God has brought about in the creation of human beings, provided that we then are dedicated to serving Him with humility.
“When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers / The moon and the stars, which You have ordained / What is man that You take thought of him / And the son of man that You care for him?” (Psalm 8:3-4) Humans are relatively small in the grand scheme of things, and it is our minds that can perceive nature and come to this conclusion. Written into our very basic being is the wonder that comes with beholding the vast reaches of the cosmos, and the subsequent humility that is appropriate. “O YHWH, what is man, that You take knowledge of him? Or the son of man, that You think of him? Man is like a mere breath / His days are like a passing shadow.” (Psalm 144:3-4) We only have so much time on this planet to praise God and thank Him for His creation and blessing. Let us consider wisely.
