you should see the stars tonight.

He determines the number of the stars
and calls them each by name.
Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
his understanding has no limit.
Psalm 147:4-5

i hate taking my dog outside to go to the bathroom.
i admit it, i hate it. lucky, i love you, but can't
you be potty-trained? can't we install a doggie door?
something?

and i tell you that, because God sent me a whale today.
he sent me a huge, amazing whale in the form of a sky
full of stars, not a cloud in the way. and i wouldn't
have seen those stars if i didn't have to take lucky
outside to do her thing.

so i sat outside. i laid down on the patio swing
and just marveled at them, and for the first time in
a long time, my mind just cleared. it stopped buzzing with
the constant reminders...

"Liz, you've got to babysit tomorrow."
"Liz, you messed up yesterday,
and you still feel crappy about it."
"Liz, school starts in 2 weeks."

all of that stopped...

...and the stars came into focus.

"He determines the number of the stars
and calls them each by name" (v.4)

God could have skipped stars.
he could have put them all at the same distance from the earth--
an easy, single location explainable by one of his neat
and orderly laws of nature--smaller bits of one great thing.

instead, he spread them throughout the vast cosmos he created.
he numbered them, he named them--
he placed them for us to enjoy,
to light our way, to explode, to expand,
to get smaller, and even to disappear.
they're little reminders of a huge and beautiful past,
interwoven with our tumultuous present
and the times to come, all written by a
loving, dedicated, and painstakingly intricate Author.


Great is our Lord and mighty in power;
his understanding has no limit. (v. 5)

Every single act of God is an act of love--
a pure and beautiful gift meant to bring
his people happiness, and delight, and TO HIM.
Someone saw those same stars, and fell in love
with God--researched and studied the intricacies
of the universe God created and realized the divine
power of our loving creator.

tonight, God used those stars to remind me that
he knows my past. he's here in the present,
in my presence. and he's

got a future, a blessed future planned for me,

as plain as the stars.

really, you should see the stars tonight.