Psalm 90:2
“Before the mountains were born, or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.”

Our minds cannot even comprehend how long God has been around, as this verse describes in poetic terms. To Christians, God is the Creator of the world–He has always existed and will always exist (“from everlasting to everlasting”). In a social landscape that is always tilting back and forth as people struggle for power, on a planet that literally shifts underneath us and erupts above us, in a universe that is slowly but surely spreading apart, God is the constant in our lives, a source of strength, comfort, and wisdom.

This verse occurs within a psalm that not only shows God as eternal Creator, but also quick to act justly when we disobey, much like a parent. When we are small children, we often think of our parents as having always been around, and we fear their punishments and obey their rules. God is a much more expansive example of divine parenthood to us–we are His children, even if we have strayed, and while He punishes us for deliberate disobedience, He is also forgiving, as the best of parents forgive their children for the mistakes they make. God’s forgiveness, compassion, and love are intertwined with His wrath and justice; He guides our lives, as He has always done for humanity, and as He will continue to do.