I’ve mentioned in a different post about my love of stars - so much so that Ben and I visited the planetarium in the Glasgow Science Centre. I wanted to tell you a little more about my experience there because it blew me away.
After you go in and sit down, they let your eyes get adjusted to the darkness and then show you the stars above a city - few and far between and with the yellowy orange glow from the streetlights below.
They then tell you to close your eyes so they can 'transport' you to an area of dark space - where they aren't allowed artificial light of any kind - to get a better view of the stars.
When we opened our eyes I cried.
I was blown away by the magnitude of God's goodness and majesty.
Really and truly - I completely teared up, and as I stared at the multitude of stars and the amazing sights of the night sky I actually had tears falling down my face. I felt so humble and so completely overwhelmed at God's creation, and even just writing this I get emotional.
So I decided to take a wee look at some of the places where stars are mentioned in the Bible and here's what I found.
• Obviously God created stars during the creation - the same day He created the sun and the moon. (Genesis 1:16)
• Stars where used by God to demonstrate how many descendants Abraham was going to have in the covenant with him. In Genesis 15:5 we read -
"Then the LORD took Abram outside and said to him, "Look up into the sky and count the stars if you can. That’s how many descendants you will have!"
• Stars were also used in the story of Joseph were he dreams about the sun, the moon and eleven stars bowing down to him much to the annoyance of his brothers. (Genesis 37:9)
• Stars are used to show Gods glory and power. We read this in Nehemiah 9:6 -
"You alone are the LORD. You made the skies and the heavens and all the stars. You made the earth and the seas and everything in them. You preserve them all, and the angels of heaven worship you."
• But the verses that really touch me and describe exactly what I felt sitting in that auditorium are these ones. Found in Psalm 8:3-4, it says -
"When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers-- the moon and the stars you set in place-- what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?"
God cares for the stars - He counts them and calls them by name (Psalm 147:4), and brings them out like an army, one after another... (Isaiah 49:26). It all just works together to remind me of how powerful, loving, caring and strong our God is. Not a single star will ever go missing, because God is in control of them.
And how much more does He love, care for and look after us. It's humbling, makes me emotional and gives me a desire to do something to show Him how much I love Him and how very thankful I am that He is in my life.
So what can I do? Philippians 2:15 has the answer -
“...SHINE as stars in the sky ...”
Philippians 2:15
It's where I got my inspiration for my blog - because I desperately want to shine for Him. I'm totally useless sometimes, I get it wrong A LOT, and I fail more than I succeed when I try to put my points across, but I do it all for Him. And I'm delighted and honoured to have you along for the ride and pray that something I say might be useful to you at some stage!
Next time you get a chance to look at the night sky, or visit a planetarium - remember how great our God really is!
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