A history professor at a large university was giving a final exam to his freshman class. When the two-hour time limit was up, he announced that the test was over and that students should place their booklets in a pile on his desk.
The professor sat back in his chair and watched as the 250 students in the auditorium filed past his desk, dropped their tests off, and exited the room. Some grumbled about the difficulty of the exam; others walked out in stunned silence.
As he prepared to sort through the three large piles of tests on his desk, the professor noticed that one young man was still in his seat, working away.
The professor cleared his throat loudly, but the student didn’t seem to notice.
The teacher called to the student, “Young man, the test is over! Come down here now and hand in your booklet!”
The student didn’t even look up.
The professor decided to teach the young man a lesson. He sat back down at his desk and waited. When the student came up to turn in his examination, the professor planned to rip it to shreds and give him an “F” for the semester.
Five minutes went by. Then ten. Finally, after twenty minutes, the student closed his test booklet and made his way down to the now-fuming professor.
“I’m finished,” he said.
“Do you think I’m going to accept your exam now?” the professor asked incredulously.
The young man leaned forward, looking over the stacks of tests on the desk. His eyes narrowed and he frowned just slightly.
“Do you have any idea who you’re talking to?” the boy asked.
“I don’t know, and I don’t care!” the professor spat back.
“Good,” said the student. And with that, he stuck his test right in the middle of one of the stacks and walked out.
Where to Take It from Here…
There are times when it pays to be anonymous. You can get away with all kinds of things if nobody knows who you are.
Many people think they can get away with sin. They assume that with so many people in the world, God couldn’t possibly care about one individual. He’s too busy running the universe. He’s got more important things to do. Besides, who could keep track of billions of people every minute of the day?
That would be God. It’s hard for us to relate to that kind of power, because we can’t be in more than one place at one time. We can’t keep more than one thought in our heads at one time. Some of us can barely walk and chew gum at the same time.
We figure that if God is busy helping a missionary in Africa right now, he certainly can’t be paying much attention to us. But he can.
God is omnipresent, omnipotent, and omniscient. He completely fills up the world with his presence, knowledge, and power. He can be completely involved in your life, giving you his undivided attention—and do the same for someone else at the same time thousands of miles away.
We aren’t required to understand how he does it. All we’re required to do is have faith. Believe and trust that God knows your name, your heart, and all about you—not because he’s a cosmic snoop who wants to invade your privacy or a cosmic cop who wants to toss you into hell.
God knows you because he loves you. He wants the best for you. He wants to have a relationship with you. (See Psalm 139.)
