“Gratitude grows in the heart of wonder at being reached and rescued by the unfailing love of the Lord.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – August 14, 2026
Praise the Lord, for he has shown me the wonders of his unfailing love. Psalm 31:21
My wife Rita can’t get enough time with our grandchildren. With 12 grandkids, she schedules regular visits with each family at their convenience. During a recent stay with our youngest, a three-year-old boy, she marveled at how he sees the world. He lives in the moment, fully absorbing what’s right in front of him. He tries to find words to match what he sees and feels, but his smile or frown says it all. When he’s happy, he might giggle or fling his arms to express his joy. When he doesn’t get what he wants or feels ignored, he looks sad or mad, wondering when he’ll get what he wants. For her, his world is a wonder, cute and cuddly until it isn’t. But the love she feels is like a warm bath and her favorite music. The wondrous love of a three-year-old never gets old, only purer and freer. Love is like a wide river fed by multiple tributaries of wonder.
As an adult, I can easily lose the beauty of wonder, the refreshing reminder of how marvelous my Lord’s love is for me and for those I love. Why do I tend to replace wonder with my explanation for what might be, instead of celebrating the fascination of the grace of God, an unfiltered wonder that encompasses the unfailing love of the Lord. Charles Spurgeon speaks to keeping a heart of wonder, “We ought not to take the love of God as a matter of course, but to admire it, to be astonished at it, to bless him for it, with the wonder of our whole heart.” I am struck by “the wonder of our whole heart.” What does that mean? How can I grow in wonder?
Never lose the awe and astonishment of being chosen by God to be His child. Gratitude grows in the heart of wonder at being reached and rescued by the unfailing love of the Lord. Decades after the slave trader John Newton was transformed by Jesus Christ, he penned the words of Amazing Grace, still aware of his wretchedness, only by the grace of God was he physically and spiritually alive. The quiet provision of daily bread is another reason for wonder. The Holy Spirit’s display is not always dramatic but is faithfully under the radar, meeting our daily needs. An anonymous gift, an unsolicited prayer, or a timely word of encouragement is the wonder of a heavenly Father concerned with meeting our needs and sometimes granting our wants. Being generously forgiven is a wonder Augustine could not fathom in his Confessions, marveling that God loved him through the years of his sexual sin, theft, ambition, and pride. He kept returning to the wonder of it: “Late have I loved You, beauty so old and so new, late have I loved You.”
In Creation. The night sky over a dark field. A child’s hand around your finger. A whale breaching offshore. The wild extravagance of wildflowers in a meadow no one will ever see. Annie Dillard, in Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, called it “the wild, gratuitous beauty” of a God who didn’t have to make any of it beautiful but did. Jonathan Edwards walked in his fields, describing the divine glory shining through every leaf. Look for and embrace the Lord’s wondrous love!
“See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1).
Prayer
Heavenly Father, restore the wonder of Your unfailing love. Let me see today as a child sees with eyes wide, heart unguarded. Astonish me afresh with Your marvelous kindness. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Application
Pause three times today; name one specific kindness from God in that moment. Tell someone what you saw. Refuse the dullness of routine; receive ordinary mercies with wide-eyed gratitude.
Related Reading
Jeremiah 31:3; Lamentations 3:22-23; Romans 5:8; Ephesians 3:17-19
Worship Resource
Celtic Worship: How Deep is the Father’s Love
Donate
If you are blessed by these daily devotionals please prayerfully consider a donation to support Wisdom Hunters Resources. We are trusting the Lord for His provision.
Download our app!
