Psalm 139: 1-6 - O Lord, you have searched me and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O Lord. You hem me in -- behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. (NIV)

Keeping track of information in this age of information overload is one big challenge. For some, advancing age means it is harder to remember names and numbers. For others, managing data by computer means multiple user names and passwords -- which we have to remember perfectly at precisely the moment we need access.

We have so much information at our finger tips -- stored on personal computers and accessible via the internet -- but our brains have a hard time making sense of it all.

I remember vividly the first time I used the internet to access an out-of-town telephone directory. I searched for a relative in a distant city, and a whole long list of people with the same last name appeared, complete with addresses and telephone numbers. I was intrigued, however, that in some cases only the name appeared, and instead of the seeing the address and telephone number in the appropriate columns, all that I saw was "Information suppressed". Evidently some people had given direction that their information was not to be published, and the telephone company had taken steps to "suppress" it.

I have often thought how sometimes we may attempt to hide or withhold information. We may succeed (rightly or wrongly) in keeping it from others, but it is futile to hide it from God. He is the one who knows it all. When we talk to Him in prayer, as the psalmist does in Psalm 139, we may have confidence that all the facts are at his recall and His disposal.

It is comforting to know that He knows. Without all relevant information, we may make a wrong decision. The electronic telephone directory may have multiple listings for individuals with the same name; choosing the wrong one may result in embarrassment or mis-directed information. It is a blessing to realise that not only does God know all things, but He remembers things appropriately, and can access precisely the right information when it is needed. No wires are crossed in His mind; nothing is mis-filed in His computer. Every needed piece of information is preserved and brought to bear at precisely the appropriate moment.

We cannot know all things, but we are called to seek the mind of Christ, and with the aid of the Holy Spirit we may gain both knowledge and wisdom. With wisdom comes discernment, and in part that means using what we have at the right time and in the right way.

Let us not be overwhelmed by the mountains of information accessible to us in these days; neither let be disturbed when information is withheld from us. May God remind us that He knows all things, and that He will reveal to us what we need as we need it.

Sincerely, in Christ,

Your pastor,

James T. Hurd.