Did you know that the tallest man ever was 8ft 11in tall?

Did you know that the most jigsaws owned by one person is 1047? 

Did you know that the record for ‘number of toilet rolls balanced on the head’ is 12?

Did you know that the record for solving a rubik’s cube is 3.47 seconds?

If you haven’t already guessed I’m writing this with the most recent book of Guinness World Records open in front of me! In a recent ‘Spotlight on…’ article for the Circuit Newsletter I admitted to collecting copies of this publication and find it extremely interesting – though slightly odd in parts! 

Whenever I get my hands on a new copy it’s always the facts about people – their experiences and achievements – that fascinate me. It’s amazing what human beings can achieve, and what we choose to try to achieve. Facts about the nature of the universe or space travel are fascinating but a bit beyond my understanding!

My inability to contemplate the enormity and diversity of God’s creation isn’t new. Whenever I ask a group of people for their favourite Psalm, Psalm 139 usually comes pretty high up the list. ‘Even before a word is on my tongue, O Lord, you know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is so high I cannot attain it.’ says the Psalmist in verses 4-6, summing up both our inability to comprehend God’s goodness and God’s absolute knowledge of us as individuals. I don’t mind telling you that I find it to be one of the most beautiful, comforting and reassuring passages in the whole Bible.

While my Book of Records tells me what I need to know to put together a quiz, or to satisfy my nosiness, or to find a few facts to start the church newsletter, it tells me virtually nothing about the people involved. Flicking through the pages of my book I see snapshots of them; just a couple of sentences to say who they are/were and what their record is/was. People are reduced to a single activity, experience or trait. 

In reality, of course, human life is far more complex than that – each one of us with our likes, dislikes and quirks. The idea that God, the creator of the universe, knows everything there is to know about us and yet still wraps us in love is beyond understanding, but that doesn’t make it any less true.