I, the Lord your God, am holy. (Lev. 19:2)


The museum displayING remnants of the Dead Sea Scrolls was crowded. I pushed my way up to the circular case that held the fragile fragments of writing. I saw one of the small bits of paper and caught my breath. This was God’s Word, guarded by Him for thousands of years. Then I saw the English translation, it was a portion of a psalm extolling God’s glory. That was what God has so carefully preserved for us today—His glory. My eyes welled with tears.

God’s holiness defies comprehension. We’ve never met anyone who is sinless, perfect, all-powerful, all-knowing, or all-good except Him. In the Bible, anyone who encountered God’s presence was so overwhelmed that they fell to their knees and were rendered speechless. That’s the kind of holiness Scripture speaks of. This is not just ultra-goodness but something much more.

That’s a bit of what I felt when viewing the scrolls: awe-inspired amazement at a God so great that He’d ensure the truth about Him was preserved, and so loving that He’d ensure I got to see it. I sensed that holiness, and I sensed how profoundly unholy I am. Yet God calls me to holiness so we can be in full relationship, and that requires a miracle even greater than preserving writing for thousands of years. It’s a good thing God provided one through His Son.

Each day this week, write one thing about God that inspires awe.

Diane Gardner lives in the San Francisco Bay area, where she enjoys theater, community events, and watching the sun set over the bay.