The heavens proclaim the glory of God. The skies display His craftsmanship. Day after day they continue to speak; night after night they make Him known. They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard.” Psalm 19:1-3
Though it was two years ago…I can still remember it. It was a wonderful, wonder filled night. It was a Friday night, and it was beautiful. After a day of cool temperatures and clear skies the sun bowed out and night moved in. My wife Judy and I decided to build a fire out on our patio and just enjoy the evening. Using my incredible fire building skills, which included opening one of those wax logs and lighting it, we soon were enjoying its light and warmth. It was perfect. As the smoke rose into the crystal-clear sky it caused me to pause and be amazed. I agreed with God. After He was done with creation, He said it was very good. He was right.
The slowly rising smoke caused me to look to the skies. As darkness settled in, slowly, ever so slowly, the stars came out for their evening performance. That was good too. And then I noticed what we see and rarely stop to ponder. Streaking across the sky was a jetliner. By now it was only visible because of its flashing navigation lights. Here’s what is so amazing. That cylinder tube with wings was flying at about 30,000 feet…that’s almost six miles up in the sky. It weighed in at approximately 175,000 pounds and was carrying dozens of people. Pause. A man-made object, weighing 87.5 TONS is effortlessly moving through the sky at a speed of right around 500 miles per hour. That is amazing.
Now you may be one of those folks who believe that we humans showed up from a glob of jelly laying on a beach somewhere but personally, I don’t have that much faith. I believe that there is a Creator God and He made us…fearfully and wonderfully. How else do you explain 87.5 tons zipping through the air? You could cite the law of aerodynamics but even that law was figured out and applied by God’s most wonderful creation. But it gets better.
A little later I told Judy that it would be very cool if the space station flew over. Now this modern marvel flies out in space—that’s why it is called the “space” station. Get ready to be amazed. It flies 240 miles above the earth at a speed of 17,136 miles an hour. It weighs in at 925,000 pounds. On that particular day there were three people on board, an American and two Russians and they had been on board for 165 days. Can someone say, “amazing?”
Well, my neighbor happened to come home, and we were chatting. He looks up and says, “Oh, there goes a satellite.” I got up and looked and it wasn’t a satellite…it was the space station, and it was amazing. Though I have seen it several times each time I am just amazed. I’m amazed not at what man built as much as the God who created man and gave him the intellect and ability to create and build. Once again…God and I agreed…it was very good.
The night crept on, and I looked up again and noticed one very bright star in the southern sky accompanied by a little sister just to its left. I asked Judy, “I wonder what star that is?” So, we got on our handy iPhones and looked it up. It turns out that they were not stars at all but two of the planets that circle our sun…Jupiter and Saturn. Jupiter was the star of the show by far—pun intended. Here’s what is really amazing.
The light that I saw coming from Jupiter that night had travelled 43 minutes through space to get to earth. That may not seem too impressive until you consider the speed of light is 186,000 miles per SECOND. How’s that for a wow? You see, as wonderful as jetliners and space stations are…they pale to what God did all by Himself. I just had to agree with God again…it is very good.
But Jupiter is just one small planet in our small solar system, that is a small part in our relatively small galaxy called the Milky Way. And beyond our little galaxy there are millions and millions of galaxies. What we see with our naked eye is just a fraction of all that is out there. And all of it exists for one reason and one reason only. The Bible tells us that the heavens are there to declare the glory of God. All those stars, solar systems, and galaxies are there to sing the praises of our incredible God. And He is worth every note and a million, zillion more besides.
Tonight, if the skies are clear, go out and take a peek. You might see a jetliner streaking across the sky and maybe even the space station, but what you certainly will see is God’s choir singing the praises of their Creator. Maybe you should join them in a chorus or two. Oh, and be sure and sing what should be your favorite God song. It goes something like this, “I can rest in the arms of my Dearest Daddy for He holds me secure. I can go to sleep tonight knowing He has this…because He does.” Amen. Bro. Dewayne
Grits with Grace 