(Anonymous submission)
It’s likely that the title of this blog immediately put a tune in your head and caused you to add the words “in His hands” and maybe you even found yourself adding some hand motions. Millions of people have heard and sung “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands,” a popular spiritual song with roots as early as 1927. This song gained further popularity by the 1950s, when it was eventually recorded under an RCA label. This timeless song has echoed through generations through church sanctuaries and homes alike, yet its essence carries a weighty question: do we truly believe it? Do we see God as the One that creates and is sovereign over all?
Earlier this week, throngs of people gathered across the solar eclipse pathway to view a total eclipse of the sun. The hype surrounding this event was unlike any other in recent years. There was a great fascination among many at this phenomenon of the moon covering the sun for just a few moments. Many posted on social media their awe and wonder. How many felt awe and wonder for the Creator of that same sun and moon? Genesis gives us a clear picture of God’s work on the fourth day, as in Gen. 1:14- 18.
“Then God said, “Let there be lights in the sky. These lights will separate the days from the nights. They will be used for signs to show when special meetings begin and to show the days and years. They will be in the sky to shine light on the earth.” And it happened. So God made the two large lights. He made the larger light to rule during the day and the smaller light to rule during the night. He also made the stars. God put these lights in the sky to shine on the earth. He put them in the sky to rule over the day and over the night. They separated the light from the darkness. And God saw that this was good.”
No one can say that the solar eclipse on April 8, 2024, was not a unique event, and for many, depending on where they might live in the future and how old they are, it may have even been a once-in-a-lifetime event. Yet, we should not lose sight of the fact that we have a God holding the whole world in His hands. He is deliberate and intentional in all things, sovereign in all things!
A quick look at 1 Chronicles 29:11 is a good reminder of God’s control over all: “Yours, O Lord, is the greatness and the power and the glory and the victory and the majesty, for all that is in the heavens and in the earth is yours. Yours is the kingdom, O Lord, and you are exalted as head above all.“ He is not just a silent observer but a sovereign ruler over all things.
If you are a fellow believer, consider the majesty of our Creator. How can we use the recent solar eclipse event to engage in conversation with those around us? The sovereignty of God is evident in His Word and His creation. We live in a world that often is in awe of the creation and not the Creator. Yes, God has made good things! We marvel at the beauty of His work, but let us not fall into the trap of forgetting that He made it all, the big and the small! Remember the song: He’s got the whole world in His hands. Not only did He create the world and everything in it, but He holds us each and every day, and nothing happens apart from His plan. He has told us “...’for I am God, and there is no other, I am God, and there is none like me’, declaring the end from the beginning and from ancient times things not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will accomplish all my purpose’.” (Isaiah 46: 9-10)
Therefore, let us anchor our trust in the unwavering truth that He indeed has the whole world in His hands, guiding and sustaining us through every moment of our journey. He is a sovereign God. The whole world is full of His glory, and He deserves our praise!