At the first mention of the upcoming solar eclipse I was interested but not overly so. It would be cool to see but not cool enough to travel anywhere, be in a big crowd and fight the traffic. As time drew closer and the solar eclipse glasses craze grew, my intense FOMO (fear of missing out) grew too and I eagerly bought a couple of pairs of special ISO certified solar eclipse glasses for myself and family. By the time Monday, August 21, 2017 finally arrived, I was so excited I was officially regretting not taking the day off and travelling to a city in the path of expected totality while proudly sporting my glasses and a “Great American Solar Eclipse 2017” t-shirt! All morning the office was buzzing with talks about the eclipse and what to expect, by lunchtime we were ready to start putting those glasses to use! We took turns checking out the sun in each phase of the eclipse in the stairway window, but when it came time for peak viewing we went all together up to the roof to join the others in our building to gaze upon this rare and beautiful sight. My area wasn’t in the path of totality but we were close. The sun was 97% covered. It looked like a partly cloudy day outside, though there wasn’t a single storm cloud in the sky, it was beautifully strange. As I took it all in standing on that roof and then later seeing pictures, news and other posts, my heart was impressed with a few lessons from this solar eclipse: – The Son is even more powerful than the sun – I was so impressed with how powerful the sun is that day. We were only getting 3% of the sun’s light during the eclipse and yet it was still fully daylight all around us. How can that be? I have a new respect for just how big and mighty the sun really is. I mean think about it, it doesn’t just light our individual worlds, it lights the WHOLE world. When God set that sun into place, he put it there to light all of creation, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light.” Genesis 1:1-3. So as big and mighty and powerful as the sun is, God spoke it into creation! SPOKE IT INTO CREATION!!!! Just to light up the world. How powerful is HE???!! Later sin entered creation and a with it a different kind of darkness entered into the heart of all mankind. But, our Mighty powerful God had a plan and ultimately sent his Son Jesus, the Light of the World (John 8:12) to rescue us. He has power of sickness, he has power to bring life, he has power to forgive sin and ultimately, he has the power over all darkness! – There is beauty in the shadows of the sun – Though I wasn’t near any trees personally, I saw a lot of pictures of the crescent moon shadows on the ground during the solar eclipse. They were so amazing and beautiful! Sweet little touches of beauty to add to an already awesome display of God’s glory if you ask me. Maybe the same can be said for Jesus. When you step into the shadows of a personal relationship with Jesus you will find something amazing and beautiful. Sweet little touches of forgiveness, grace, mercy, strength, joy, peace and so much more are waiting to be discovered. Jesus said, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10. He wants to give you abundantly more than you could ever ask for, all you have to do is accept it, believe in him and confess that He is Lord of your life. Oh, what a beautiful gift indeed. – God is still in control – In the midst of this chaotic world, the arguing, political unrest, family struggles, busyness, work and grief, God gave us a little break from it all. Only He can line up the moon and the sun. “The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.” Psalm 19:1-4 God reveals himself through the beauty of his creation. Everyone can observe this means of God’s revelation of himself and is called to worship the creator, not the creation. For a small moment in time our nation was united in gazing upon the Heavens. I pray that the Holy Spirit moved in the hearts of men and women across this great nation as they viewed our Great God’s glory! He is still in control, despite the human nature we are constantly dealing with. In Him I find my peace. I understand that another Great American Eclipse is set to show us God’s glory in 7 years’ time. I will have my glasses, t-shirt and map ready for a road trip when it comes. Until then, why don’t we make it a point to see the beauty and wonder of God in the everyday picture of creation that is right before us.
