“The heavens declare your glory, O God, and the firmament shows your handiwork. One day tells its tale to another, and one night imparts knowledge to another.” (Psalm 19:1-2, St. Helena Psalter)
The past few evenings, I have seen the moon rising over the bay, round and bright. And the following mornings, I have seen the moon finishing its journey across the sky. It has brought me a great sense of calm to see the witness of the heavens to eternity. For millenia, people have looked up at the sky and seen the sun, the moon, and the stars in their places. So much changes on our planet, but we can count on day turning to night, and back to day.
Considering the vastness of the universe, the unfathomable reach of eternity, might make us feel unmoored, or unimportant. But lately, for me, it is having the opposite effect. It grounds me and helps me find my place. I can be who I am, limitations and all, and still be at home in this amazing creation. I rest in the knowledge that I am not the creator of the universe, and I do not sustain it, but I am a treasured part of it. Treasured by God, the source of all.
The glory of God is told over and over again, unendingly, in the cycles of day and night, seasons, years, life and death and resurrection. The glory of God is told in the smallest starfish and the largest whale, and everything in between. The glory of God is told by each person, unique in all eternity. The glory of God shines all around us. Let's bask in it.