In the Beginning — God
“Before there was anything… there was God.
Before there was time, light, or even matter—
His Spirit was already moving.
And He’s still moving now.”
Scripture Text:
Genesis 1:1-2
“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.”
Pause. Don’t rush past the first four words:
In the beginning, God.
That’s the foundation of everything—of faith, of hope, of life itself. Before there was light, land, stars, or breath… there was God.
This is the line in the sand between belief and disbelief. Some live their lives shaped by the truth that God is—that He was before all things, and by Him all things were made. Others, as Romans 1 describes, refuse to acknowledge Him. They suppress the truth. That’s not just a philosophical disagreement—it’s the root of every kind of brokenness and rebellion.
But from the first sentence of Scripture, God reveals Himself—not just in words, but in the very fabric of creation.
As Psalm 19:1 says:
“The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork.”
We don’t begin with a religion. We begin with a God who is—and who made all things on purpose. That includes the stars, the sea… and you.
The Spirit in the Chaos
“The earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. God’s Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters.”
The Hebrew phrase here—tohu va-bohu—is so raw and layered that no single English translation can do it justice. It doesn’t merely mean “formless and empty.” It speaks of chaotic desolation—a wild, unstructured void where nothing lives, nothing forms, and nothing makes sense. Time and space are without rhythm. Matter exists without form. It’s not a clean slate; it’s a storm of potential with no order… yet.
No shape.
No consistency.
No life.
No measurement.
No light.
Just a void.
And yet—even in that, everything needed for creation already existed. In that moment of confusion and cosmic unrest… God’s Spirit hovered.
Like a flash of lightning waiting to strike, like breath waiting to be spoken—He was there.
There’s deep comfort in this: In the darkest, blackest, most disordered corners of the universe—God shows up.
He doesn’t run from the chaos.
He doesn’t fear the void.
He doesn’t hide from darkness.
He enters it.
He hovers over it.
And He speaks.
This is who He is—not a distant deity, but a present Spirit.
The kind of God who doesn’t avoid our mess, but moves into it—bringing light, order, and meaning.
Video Reflection:
Pondering Questions (from the videos):
- What would change if you truly lived as if God was already present in the middle of your unknowns?
- What does it mean that the Spirit of God hovered over formless chaos?
- Can you sense that same presence hovering over you today?
Pause and Reflect…
Before there was time…
Before light…
Before shape or sound… there was God.
In the quiet.
In the chaos.
In the darkness… He was already there.
You may not see Him clearly right now.
But He’s there.
Hovering over your deep places…
Present… even when everything feels undone.He was there. And He still is.
- What does it mean to you that God was “in the beginning”?
- Where do you see Him in your own beginning—or in the chaos you may be feeling today?
Scripture Connections:
Psalm 19:1
“The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork.”
John 1:1
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
This isn’t just poetic language—it’s a deliberate echo.
John was reaching all the way back to Genesis.
God spoke the universe into existence.
Creation didn’t begin with clay in His hands, but with a Word on His lips.
And that Word… was Jesus.
Let that settle in for a moment:
The voice that pierced the silence at the dawn of creation…
is the same Word who became flesh and dwelled among us.
Hebrews 11:3
“By faith, we understand that the universe has been framed by the word of God, so that what is seen has not been made out of things which are visible.”
Guided Journaling
- What does it mean to you that God’s Spirit hovers over chaos—over formlessness, darkness, and confusion?
- Think of a time in your life when everything felt like a void—when nothing made sense, and you couldn’t see a way forward. What would it mean to believe that God was already there, hovering, waiting to speak light into it?
- What does it mean to you personally that God was there “in the beginning”?
- How does that truth affect the way you view your own beginning—your life, your story, your chaos?
Write it down—on paper, in your phone, or in the space provided in your book.
You can also share your story or insight with others below.
