Stars

 ”The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork.” Psalm 19:1

The stars shown brightly in the cloudless sky at 6 a.m. An older woman put on her robe and stepped out onto her porch and looked at the stars.  She could hear the sounds of traffic a few blocks away. Many miles away a farmer stepped outside of his barn and paused to look at the magnificence of the starry night. He could hear the sound of a rooster crowing. Farther away a young woman in the mountains stepped into her back yard and beheld the beauty of the 6 a.m. sky.  She could hear the gentle sound of a nearby stream.

God’s handiwork is evident to all. It is evident to city dwellers, rural dwellers, mountain dwellers alike.  It can be seen by people in North America, Africa, or any other continent.  It is a free gift of beauty available to rich and poor alike.

Why did God put stars into the sky?  The psalmist states that the heavens declare His glory.  It is hard to imagine anyone gazing at a starry sky and not feeling a sense of awe and wonder. The beauty is evident to all.  It speaks of a Creator whose masterpiece leaves us speechless.

The psalmist also speaks of the sky and the things in it as God’s “handiwork”. When I think of handiwork I picture a woman knitting.  Her fingers move deftly while she carries on a conversation or watches tv.  For an experienced knitter, the handiwork is effortless.  Thus, we are given the image of God placing the stars in the sky as effortlessly as the knitter completes a row of stitches.

Why did God put stars into the sky? Perhaps He wanted to remind us that He is there. To give the early riser a reason to pause before rushing into the day.  To see a magnificent image and to stand in awe of a Creator who put the stars into the sky as effortlessly as a knitter completes a row of stitches.

Let us pause and praise our magnificent Creator.