In July of 2007, more than 100 million votes were cast to decide which seven candidates would be elected to represent the global heritage throughout history. Let’s see how many you can guess today. What are the seven man-made wonders of the world?
Here are the top seven that made the list:
1. Chichen Itza, Mexico – the Mayan Temple Pyramid
2. The Christ Redeemer Statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil which stands almost 125 feet tall
3. The Roman Colosseum, in Rome Italy
4. The Taj Mahal in India
5. The Great Wall of China
6. Petra in Jordan
7. Machu Picchu in Peru – a mountain city that was built in the 15th century by an Incan Emperor
These are truly amazing places to see. It is impressive what Man has been able to accomplish. Have you ever been driving into a city at night and been blown away at the lights, the skyline and all the architectural design? Have you ever walked down a New York City street and looked up in wonder? Buildings, cars, computers, Medical advancements, technology, bridges, art, music, pharmaceutics – these are all things that man has taken credit for.
There is so much knowledge that it is a virtual impossibility for one person to keep up with it. This brings to mind the verse in Daniel 12:4 which says, “But you, Daniel, close up and seal the words of the scroll until the time of the end. Many will go here and there to increase knowledge.”
Where we are in knowledge and information reminds me of the tower of Babel incident. Here they were getting their heads together and they built a tower to heaven. How big was it? We don’t know. What we do know was that God himself said, if we don’t step in now, there is nothing that will be impossible for them.
There is a friend of mine whose father would have been in a wheel chair for the remainder of his life, but a doctor from John’s Hopkins had developed a surgery that consisted of steel rods that would be surgically inserted into his legs in place of his bones. A year after the surgery my friend’s father was walking without any assistance from a peripheral piece of equipment.
Tania, my wife, has come home in the past during her medical training and shared many stories of medical wonders. We must ask ourselves how long until we as humans get our minds together and there is nothing that will be impossible for us?
This is the dangerous part. If we are not careful, the pride of man can rear its ugly head and we can begin to take credit for what humankind has developed, devised, designed, or discovered. It is inspiring to experience all that mankind has been able to do. But at what point do we stop and give God the credit?
We forget from whom we have received the knowledge. We forget who set the stars in place. We forget who our Creator is. We forget that it is not the buildings we build, the monuments we set up, or the technologies we have discovered.
One night my wife brought home some top sirloin that was on sale. She texted me and said, “Fire up the grill and please prepare some lettuce. We’re having steak and salad tonight!” Well, I immediately started salivating. During dinner I was being complimented on my grilling skills. That meat was cooked to perfection if I do say so myself.
Then one of my daughters chimed in and said, “Well I picked out the meat!” I thought about it for a few seconds and responded with, “It had nothing to do with either of us. God made the cow. We were just blessed with a good piece of meat that HE created.”
Isn’t this just like us though? We accomplish a task for the Lord. We organize something, preach something, teach something, administrate something, clean something, or fix something. Although we may not say it, sometimes we say to ourselves, “Hey, I did that. That was pretty good!” Yet, when we step back and see the process, God subtly reminds us that He was the author of it from the beginning. He just used us to carry it out.
We have a tendency to be a bit “ME” oriented. Even the most humble person has moments of pride.
A teacher was asking her class to name off the seven wonders of the world of which I asked you to do. They were asked to write them down and the class would compare them. The rest of them wrote down their lists and when they compared their lists they came up with one just like ours. However, there was one girl who was having difficulty writing her answers. The teacher asked her if she was having trouble with her list. She replied and said that she indeed was having trouble because there were so many wonders in the world she had a hard time narrowing them down to seven.
The teacher said, “Well, why don’t you read us your list and maybe we can help.”
The girl hesitated for a moment and then read her paper, “I believe the Seven Wonders of the World are…”
“…To See; To Hear; To Touch; To Sing; To Feel; To Laugh; and to Love.”
The class became so quiet you could hear a pin drop.
We so often forget – the things we consider ordinary or part of nature; the things that we don’t miss until they are gone; these are some of the most wondrous things of all. To hear a child laugh is one of the most wonderful things in the world. To see a sunset on the west coast over the mountains and water is certainly one of the closest things to heaven!
We must remind ourselves on a daily basis that the most wondrous things in life cannot be made by man or bought by man. And the most wonderful thing of all is to know that God has an AMAZING LOVE for mankind in that He sent His Only Son to set us free and give us everlasting life! You just cannot beat that!
Paul said in Galatians 6:14 & 16, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and I to the world…Peace and mercy to ALL who follow this rule…”
King David penned one of the great Psalms, #8 where he said, “O Lord our Lord how majestic is your name in all the earth. You have set your glory above the heavens. From the lips of children and infants you have ordained praise because of your enemies to silence the foe and the avenger. When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?”
Life is fragile. One moment you could be here, the next you could be gone. My wife once told me of a woman who had gone into the hospital with what seemed to be just a cold and a few days later, she had died. Our life is not a guarantee.
We should count our blessings everyday to be in a place of ministry serving the Lord in whatever capacity He has placed us. Let’s just remember, we do it all for the glory of God. He is ultimately the one who has enabled us.
What are the seven wonders of the world?
To See; To Hear; To Touch; To Sing; To Feel; To Laugh; and to Love.
Almost all of these, if not all, have something to do with relationships – whether with God or with others. With that said…
Look at God’s creation. Listen to His voice. Reach out and bless someone. Sing praises to the Lord. Feel God’s presence. Laugh at yourself. Love the Lord your God and Love your neighbor as yourself. And do it all because you know that God loved us so much that Christ died for our sins. That’s pretty wonderful!
The Lost Art Of Relationship 